Top 10 Things To Expect From The Five-Door Mahindra Thar

It will broaden the use and appeal of the rugged Thar SUV

The five-door version of the Mahindra Thar seems to be nearing the pre-production stage and a heavily camouflaged test mule has now been spied multiple times. It is due to arrive in 2023 and here are the top ten things we can expect from it:

Added features for increased comfort

First and foremost, the elongated Thar will offer more creature comforts than the three-door version. Among the expected feature additions are auto AC and a new infotainment system powered by Adrenox with connected car technology. It could also get rear AC vents and front and rear parking cameras like the Scorpio N.

Three-door Thar could become a made-to-order model

In international markets, like the U.S.A. the five-door version of the Wrangler tends to have the majority sales compared to the three-door version. Mahindra could witness the same post the launch of the five-door Thar and push the three-door version towards limited production, building it on a made-to-order basis. Given the off-roader SUV’s extensive waiting period, the Indian carmaker could also offer waiting buyers the chance to upgrade their order to the five-door Thar.

Could get a metal hard top, no convertible

The three-door Thar is available with the choice of a fixed hard top and a convertible soft top, but no fixed metal top or removable hardtop like the Wrangler. Mahindra is likely to offer the five-door Thar with a metal roof for improved safety, which would be a first for the iconic moniker. While a convertible is pretty much out of the question for the longer Thar, it could still get a removable hard top made from the same weather-proof composite as the current Thar’s roof.

Shared underpinnings with the Scorpio N

Mahindra has already revealed to us that the five-door Thar will be based on the same platform as the Scorpio N, modified for size. It is an updated and significantly stiffer version of the three-door Thar’s platform. The carmaker also made improvements to the steering setup and redid the suspension for better vehicle stability with the Scorpio N. The similarly sized five-door Thar is expected to get the same benefits over the smaller version.

More performance from the same engines

All three of Mahindra’s latest SUVs - Thar, XUV700 and Scorpio N - are powered by different iterations of the same two new engines - a 2-litre turbo-petrol and a 2.2-litre diesel. Both engines are offered with six-speed manual and automatic transmission options. The five-door Thar is certain to get the same as well, but in a higher state of tune than its smaller sibling. 

In the regular Thar, the petrol engine offers 150PS and up to 320Nm while the diesel is tuned to 130PS and 300Nm. The five-door Thar could get the same performance output as the Scorpio N where the petrol unit produces 203PS and 370Nm, and the diesel engine makes 175PS and upto 400Nm.

Will offer drive and traction modes 

The regular Thar comes with shift-on-the-fly 4WD as standard and has a low-range transfer case. However, the five-door Thar is expected to come with different modes for terrain-specific traction control like snow, mud, road and sand as seen in the Scorpio N with 4XPLOR. It will also get drive modes for its powertrains that can affect the fuel economy and engine responsiveness.

Likely to get a 2WD option

As a more practical family SUV, the five-door could be offered with just rear-wheel drive variants as well. These could be the more affordable choices for those who want the Thar’s rugged looks but don’t plan to go adventuring into the wilds to need the 4WD system. The three-door Thar is primarily a lifestyle vehicle and comes with 4WD as standard and is priced similar to bigger SUVs. 

A three-row seating configuration

In typical Mahindra fashion, the five-door Thar will likely offer multiple seating options including a three-row configuration as spied on the test mule. These third-row seats would take eat up luggage space when in use and looked similar to the rear seats of the three-door Thar.

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It won’t be the only off-roader to do so as the Force Gurkha is also expected to get multiple seating options in an elongated avatar.

Market debut in 2023

The five-door Thar seems to be in its latter development stages, based on the camouflaged test mule spied. It will be making its market debut in 2023, likely in the second half, nearly three years after the debut of the second-gen Thar. In case you’re hoping to see it at the Auto Expo 2023 in January, you’re likely to be disappointed as Mahindra will likely make sure that the arrival of the bigger Thar is an occasion of its own.

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Pricier than regular Thar by Rs 1-2 lakh

The regular version of the Thar is offered in two trim levels, is priced from Rs 13.53 lakh to Rs 16.03 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). The five-door Thar will likely be priced at a premium of around Rs 1 to 2 lakh over comparable variants of the three-door version. In addition, it is likely to get new variants with more features that could be priced closer to the Rs 20 lakh mark with an automatic transmission and 4WD (ex-showroom).

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