Should Thar buyers wait for Maruti Jimny?
The lifestyle SUV segment has seen rapid growth in the last few years. The major reason behind this growth has been the new Thar which was launched in 2020. Since 2020, the Thar has only grown stronger in the market and faces very little competition from Force Gurkha. However, next year it could face its biggest competitor in the form of the Maruti Jimny 5-door. So, what should potential Thar buyers do? Wait for the Jimny or buy the Thar? In today’s article, let’s talk compare the new Maruti Jimny 5-door vs Mahindra Thar.
Dimensions & design
The Jimny will be offered with 5-doors whereas the Thar is available with 3-doors. This will result in an increased length, however, dimensions-wise, it will still fall under 4-metre. Width & height are expected to be similar to that of the 3-door variants. What about its design? The Jimny 5-door was recently spotted testing in India. The spy shots revealed the iconic grille and circular headlamps. Overall the car looked quite proportionate, even with the added doors.
Maruti is planning to launch the Jimny 5-door in 5-seater and 7-seater configurations to cater to a wider audience. As for comparing it with the Thar, design is a subjective matter & both cars will have their fans and haters.
New Jimny vs Thar – Specifications
There is a lot of speculation about the specifications that the Jimny 5-door will boast. According to a recent report, Maruti is looking to couple its 1.5-litre naturally aspirated engine with a turbocharger. Why could Maruti be doing this? The 1.5-litre naturally aspirated engine will be insufficient for the 5-door Jimny, given its position in the market as an off-roader. Earlier reports that suggested that a 1.4-litre turbo-petrol could be on offer would not make financial sense since Jimny would be the only car that would carry this engine for the time being.
If Maruti wants to genuinely take on the Thar, it would need the turbo-petrol engines. Maruti could also give it some hybrid tech to balance out fuel efficiency. Unsurprisingly, the Jimny will come with 4×4 capabilities. Will it be better than the Thar? For that, we will have to wait. However, one thing that can be expected from the Jimny is impressive approach, departure & breakover angles.
Features
The Jimny is expected to come with a decent amount of features. It could get features like an infotainment system with off-road statistics, LED & projector headlamps, all-power windows, a semi-digital instrument cluster, and some basic Suzuki connect features. Offering a 360-degree camera would make sense for the Jimny due to its off-roading nature.
Launch date
As mentioned above, the Jimny 5-door has been spotted testing in India. It thus could be in the final stages of its development. There are rumours that Maruti will unveil the Jimny 5-door at the Auto Expo of 2023. The launch may happen a few months after the unveiling.
New Jimny vs Thar – Conclusion
So, should Thar buyers wait for the Jimny? If you can wait and are not in a hurry to pick a car, you should surely wait for the Jimny. The Jimny is surely going to be a competent product with its capabilities and compact nature. It remains to be seen how aggressively Maruti prices it. Potential Thar buyers could also wait for the 5-door Thar, which will be quite a different car compared to the Jimny 5-door and Thar 3-door.
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