The much-awaited 5-door Mahindra Thar Roxx is here. It has been priced quite aggressively with the petrol variant starting at Rs 12.99 lakh (ex-showroom) and the diesel variant beginning at Rs 13.99 lakh (ex-showroom).
According to Mahindra, the new Thar Roxx has been designed to be a mainstream SUV. Its main rivals are the mid-size SUV segment players like the Hyundai Creta, Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara, Kia Seltos and the upcoming Tata Curvv.
For reference, the Creta was the largest-selling mid-size SUV in India in FY24 at 162,773 units. It was followed by the Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara at 121,169 units and the Kia Seltos at 100,423 units.
For Mahindra, the major focus area with the Thar Roxx is the SUV space with a price point of over Rs 12.50 lakh (ex-showroom). The company is aiming to make the Thar Roxx the top SUV by volume here within the next three to five years.
In that context, if we see the pricing of the rivals, the Creta is between Rs 11 lakh and Rs 20.15 lakh (ex-showroom), the Grand Vitara between Rs 10.99 lakh and Rs 20.09 lakh, and the Seltos between Rs 10.90 lakh and Rs 20.37 lakh (ex-showroom).
In the Rs 12.50 lakh plus SUV segment, Mahindra has a handsome share of 27% with the Scorpio at the top and the XUV700 at fifth position among the brands present.
While the Thar has always been appreciated for its off-roading prowess, Mahindra has taken the premium appeal of the Thar Roxx many notches above, at the same time keeping its off-roading DNA intact to attract more buyers and further strengthen its leadership position in the concerned segment.
The Mahindra Thar Roxx boasts features like LED headlamps, LED DRLs, LED taillamps, 19-inch alloy wheels, 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment, 10.25-inch digital instrument panel, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, fully automatic temperature control, six-way powered driver seat, front ventilated seats, Harman Kardon audio system with nine speakers, 360-degree camera, panoramic sunroof, Adrenox connectivity technology and Level-2 ADAS. Safety features like six airbags and electronic stability control are standard.
The new Thar Roxx has a 41.7-degree approach angle, 36.1-degree departure angle, 23.9-degree ramp over angle and a water wading depth of 650mm. There is 4Xplor system with Snow, Sand and Mud terrain modes. The SUV has brake and electronic locking differentials.
Currently, the Thar Roxx petrol only gets RWD, while the Thar Roxx diesel has RWD and 4WD.
The petrol engine is a 2.0-litre TGDI mStallion unit in three tunes — 152PS/330Nm, 162PS/330Nm and 177PS/380Nm. The diesel engine is a 2.2-litre mHawk unit in two tunes — 152PS/330Nm and 175PS/370Nm. Both engines have 6-speed MT and 6-speed AT torque converter options.
In terms of dimensions, the Mahindra Thar Roxx is quite big. It measures 4,428mm in length, 1,870mm in width and 1,923mm in height and has a wheelbase of 2,850mm. In comparison, the Hyundai Creta in 4,330mm long, 1,790mm wide, 1,635mm tall with a wheelbase of 2,610mm.