Mahindra ramps up production of Thar SUV as bookings cross 15K

Mumbai: Mahindra and Mahindra on Monday announced increasing production of its all-new Thar SUV substantially after its bookings crossed 15,000 units since the launch of the vehicle.

The new version of Thar was launched on October 2. The deliveries will commence from next month.

The company in a release said a majority (57 per cent) of the buyers of Thar are the first-time car customers.

Mahindra and Mahindra Chief Executive Officer (Automotive Division) Veejay Nakra said, "We are delighted with this overwhelming response received for the all-new Thar, having crossed 15,000 bookings as on date. Given this overwhelming response, we are substantially ramping up our capacity."

Also, there is an acceptance of the vehicle among a larger base of lifestyle seekers, beyond the traditional lovers of this iconic brand, he said.

As many as 57 per cent of all buyers of the all-new Thar are first-time car buyers and a significantly large share of all bookings are for the automatic variants, the company said.

The latest version of Thar has received over 65,000 enquiries as well, it added.

Priced between Rs 9.8 lakh and Rs 13.75 lakh (ex-showroom), M&M has introduced the model in two trims -- AX and LX -- with both petrol and diesel power train options.

All the variants of new Thar come with a four-wheel drive set-up.

Among the major changes, the new Thar gets a hardtop, providing the vehicle the safety and convenience of a closed cabin. Now, the Thar can be locked using a smart key and owners do not have to worry about keeping expensive items inside the cabin. On the safety front, the built-in roll-cage provides extra safety.

The old Thar offered a comfortable journey only to the occupants of the front seats; those seated in the back used to be left exhausted even after a short journey. The Thar 2.0 takes care of that issue.

(With inputs from PTI)