Mahindra is gearing up for introducing the bigger 5-door Thar in the market. Slated to make its maiden appearance in August 15 later this year, the longer Thar has been spied testing on several occasions over the last couple of years. It has been spotted once again ahead of its launch and it appears to be almost a production-spec model.
The latest set of spy shots reveal some new and interesting details about the upcoming 5-door Thar, which is rumoured to adopt the ‘Thar Armada’ moniker. The latest test mule has reportedly been clicked in Pune and if one observes closely, the rear bumper is pasted with small stickers with black and yellow shades.
In all probability, the test mule of Thar is being tested by Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) in Pune for emissions and safety, although we couldn’t spot an emission testing apparatus attached to the exhaust in the images. This might suggest that the Thar might be undergoing the final phases of testing.
5-door Mahindra Thar: Exterior & Interior
From the latest set of spy shots, we see a new 18-inch alloy wheel dual-tone black and silver design. The spare wheel also appears to be an 18-inch unit. Rest of the design has already been discussed at length previously. Visual highlights include a boxy profile with a flat roofline and tall pillars, squared wheel arches, round headlamps, vertical taillights, and large footboard.
The latest spy images also reveal details of its interiors, including a revised dashboard layout featuring a larger free-standing touchscreen infotainment system at the rear, and a digital instrument console. Like the 5-door Force Gurkha launched recently, we expect the 5-door Thar to be offered as a seven-seater, at least as an option. A five-seat layout will expectedly offer better space for rear seat passengers and a larger boot.
5-door Mahindra Thar: Expected specs & features
Besides a fully-digital instrument console and a touchscreen infotainment system, we expect the new 5-door Thar to come equipped with new connected car features via AdrenoX, button start-stop, dual-zone climate control, rear AC vents, a manual day/night IRVM, electrically retractable ORVMs, and rear centre armrest to name a few. An electric sunroof could possibly be added although there is no confirmation of the same.
Safety package in the Thar 5-door will include six airbags, a 360° surround view system and front parking sensors. Higher spec variants are expected to disc brakes on all four wheels. Previous sightings have revealed that Thar 5-door will also be getting ADAS comprising active safety features such as adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, driver drowsiness detection, etc.
Powering the 5-door Thar will be the same 2.0-litre mStallion turbo petrol and 2.2-litre mHawk diesel engine options. However, both these powertrains are expected to receive a different set of tuning to churn out a higher output for the bigger and longer Thar. Transmission duties will be carried out either by a 6-speed manual gearbox or a 6-speed torque converter automatic gearbox for both engine options.
A 4×4 drivetrain with a low-range transfer case will be offered as standard across all variants. Break locking differential is expected to be offered in selected variants, most probably the diesel-powered trims.
