[sirjokhi]

Hello to all,
This is my first post ever so i hope you guys can bear with me and let go of a few mistakes along the way. I am no car expert by any means and this is just a personal experience! I live in Vyara which is a town in Gujarat around 50 Kms away from Surat. I have been blessed in this life and i used my 2018 Octavia RS as a daily driver for almost 2 years out of many others! I always liked tall SUVs mainly for their road presence. Not a fan of how they drive though! My car getting damaged and my requirements for a vehicle with proper ground clearance made me start my hunt for a SUV.

Requirements from the vehicle :-

1. It should have proper ground clearance. Since I own farms and I am into Construction, I needed a car with proper ground clearance. A lot of times there would be no roads at all for the places I visited and had to park my Octavia on a road and walk the rest of the way.

2. Cheap maintenance . I already owned a lot of cars at the time and was really paying a lot of money to keep them running. This would be 6th car in a family where only three people drive and I was not keen on spending much.
P.S. I am not married.

3. Road Presence. The car should stand out from the crowd. Should have a tall and proud stance.

4. Customizable . I wanted a car I could modify according to my personal taste i.e. easily available mods in India.

5. Looks. Completely subjective to one's taste but I personally wanted a car which would make me look twice after I parked it and was walking away.

Why not buy new?

Like I mentioned above, I was blessed enough to have many cars at the time. I could not afford to lose more money on depreciation and other aspects. Plus buying a new SUV with my requirements would cost more than double the money I was willing to pay. In addition to that, I wasn't willing to take a loan as two of my cars were already financed.


Cars Considered:-

At first, I kept the budget as low as possible around 2 lakhs INR. But with some advice from my good friend Yazadbhai, I increased it to 5 lakhs INR keeping in mind I wanted a car that would stay on the road more than the workshop. On a personal note, Yazadbhai is highly knowledgable and was owning a Gypsy and a Thar at the same time. I needed an unbiased review of both. He also was a part of and off-road group who helped me in my search for a car in good condition.


Maruti Suzuki Gypsy & Mahindra Thar
Lets get technical for a second

Gypsy King MG413W

Length: 4,010 mm
Width: 1,540 mm
Height: 1875/1845 mm
Wheelbase: 2,375 mm
Ground Clearance:210mm
Kerb weight: 985 kg/1, 040 kg
Cylinders: 4
Displacement:1298 cc
Future Type: Petrol
Maximum power: 80 bhp@6000 rpm
Maximum torque:103 N⋅m@ 4500 rpm
Transmission type: Five forward, one reverse
Suspension: Front and rear leaf springs with double action dampers

Mahindra Thar CRDE

Length: 3920mm
Width: 1726mm
Height: 1930mm
Wheelbase: 2430mm
Ground Clearance:200mm
Kerb weight: 1670kg
Cylinders: 4
Displacement:2498cc
Future Type: Diesel
Maximum power: 105 bhp@3800 rpm
Maximum torque:247 N⋅m@ 1800-2000 rpm
Transmission type: Five forward, one reverse
Front Suspension: Independent Suspension
Rear Suspension: Semi Elliptical Leaf Spring



Why Gypsy?

The gypsy in question here was the MG413W. Not the early models. I was looking for a car post 2010

- A huge soft spot in my heart as my father owned one.
- Retro looks and good road presence.
- Old school mechanical car. (Personal Preference)
- I prefer petrol over diesel any day.
- Good performance from the 1.3 litre considering the car was ultra light.
- Ample ground clearance at 210mm. (More than a stock Thar)
- Nimble and engaging handling comparatively
- Very very very cheap to maintain. (Considering other cars in the fleet)

Why not Gypsy?

- No power steering. You don't need someone to tell you that driving in city would be very difficult without a power steering.
- No Air conditioning from the factory. Shockingly, it was hard to find a car even in the used market with air conditioning. The ones with A/C were asking a huge premium over the ones without. And I mean HUGE!
- The ride. This was the deal breaker for me. The ride with the leaf springs was truly back breaking. No person should go through the torture this way. The ride is extremely bouncy and there was no way I could live with it everyday.

Note:- Please keep in mind, Gypsy is a wonderful car but just didn't meet my requirements.

Why Thar?

The Thar in question is a CRDE variant and not DI. Pre-facelift

- Powerful Crde engine churning out a healthy 105Hp and 247nm of torque.
- Low end torque unlike Gypsy
- Looks and road presence. Loved the macho look of Thar.
- Ground clearance was sufficient for my day to day use.
- Cheap maintenance and highly customizable just like the Gypsy.
- Much better ride than the Gypsy overall. Bouncy at the back though.
- Factory fitted power steering and A/C available.

Why not Thar?

- The asking price for a used Thar was quite high in my honest opinion. They have a strong resale market. Not a bad thing, just makes us increase budget by a bit.
- The engine isn't peppy like Gypsy and needs turbo to spool up before delivering any sort of performance. Understandable from a common rail.
- Couldn't believe the quality of interiors Mahindra was offering at that price point. The facelift model's interiors were quite better but still not upto the mark.

Decision:- As wonderful as Gypsy is, it couldn't fulfill the requirements with the lack of power steering and really bouncy, uncomfortable ride. So the decision was to buy a Thar. I had to convince myself with a heavy heart because i really liked the Gypsy. It just wasn't meant to be.

Found the One:
One fine day, I got a call from Yazadbhai and he forwarded me the pictures of a Thar based in Mumbai owned by an actor. The actor really loved the car and was replacing this with a new one. He quoted an asking price of 6L INR. Unfortunately for him, I didn't share the same attachment and was not paying that amount in any possible way. The car had a hardtop which was a must for the car I buy. Also had a few mods including off-road tyres and will leave the rest on the pictures.

Note:- I would suggest anyone buying a used car to buy it from someone who is in contact with you or any of your friends. Knowing the history of a vehicle is very important and vehicles like Thar may have been taken serious off-roading so it's always good to check any signs indicating the same.






Delivery Experience :-

I stay 300kms away from Mumbai so the seller decided to send the car with his driver halfway through. The sun had already set and the driver was late. On calling, he told us that he couldn't see at night. We asked him to take his time. Me and Yazadbhai went to check the car. I didn't take a TD as I knew very little about Thars in general. I suggest to take a more knowledgable companion with you when buying a used car. After getting a thumbs up, we paid 5.5L INR for the car. It needed a few tweaks here and there to be perfect on the road. There was play in the steering and headlights were not proper. But the car overall looked in good condition. The third gear had a problem and it would go to neutral under acceleration. All of that was sorted in the coming weeks. Not a huge blow on the wallet. Have mentioned in the repair section.

Likes

- Powerful engine and healthy torque
- Easy to drive in city
- Old school handsome design
- Ground clearance
- Highly capable off-roader
- Road presence
- Mechanical driving feel

Dislikes

- Appalling interior quality
- No ergonomics
- Bouncy and uncomfortable Ride for the rear passengers
- Body roll and wind noise at high speeds
- Steering feel at high speeds
- Turning radius
- Lack of features overall
- No safety features

Driving Experience and Features :-

I am by no means a car expert and am only rating the below based on my personal experience. The below mentioned points are a combination of city and highway driving. My usage is 80% city driving and 20% highway.

Engine- Engine is a delight to drive in the city as well as highways. It has never stalled in the city. You can easily start from second gear and it will not knock even in slow moving traffic. On highways, it can cruise easily at 100kmph without showing any signs of strain. I usually drive at 80kmph and engine is smooth and has enough punch for overtaking.

Rating- 8/10 (only because the turbo needs to spool before you get proper performance which sometimes leads to engine bogging down)

Ride- Ride overall is on the firmer side. The ride can be improved with softer dampers but it is not necessary and definitely not uncomfortable at the front by any means. City driving is comfortable and even at highways, it feels okayish. There is a fair amount of body roll on highways but that is to be expected from a vehicle like this. BUT ride at the rear is truly horrible. It is very bouncy and can easily cause back problems for the people at the rear. People have often complained about the ride especially rear passengers. I took the liberty of trying it out once in my own car and it's not something you want to experience on a regular basis. So only buy Thar if you have another comfortable car to share the garage with.

Rating- 4/10 (rear suspension brings the score down)

Brakes- Brakes are what you expect from a car like this. It has disks at the front, drums at the rear. A huge nose dive under hard braking. But all and all effective brakes and can stop this heavy car when required assuming you have left enough distance from the car in front. The pedal needs to be pushed hard before you get any sort of strong braking feel. Not very confidence inspiring overall.

Rating- 5/10

Interior- Absolutely horrible. Cheap plastic everywhere. No matter how hard you try there will always be something rattling in the cabin. The dashboard is unattractive and you won't touch anything which is not cheap plastic. The climate controls are flimsy and can break easily. The instrument cluster is unattractive and plain. Cabin insulation is non existent even with the hardtop. You can hear everything happening outside the car and there is far amount of wind noise and engine noise on highways. No sort of effort from Mahindra to make the cabin welcoming in the slightest way. My car doesn't have rear seats but sitting sideways can't be too comfortable I imagine. My great dane fits in without the seats just fine. So boot space is okayish if you don't have passengers. What ergonomics? That's what Mahindra would say if you asked them about it. The indicator stocks are weirdly placed. You need to take you hand off the wheel to turn them on sometimes. The key hole is idiotically placed and you need to get used to it. Most of the time you need to bend and see before inserting the key.

Rating:- 1/10 (Would rate 3 if it was face lifted model)

Features- You get not much for the price you pay. Power steering and A/C. Yes you get 4wd. Why else would you pay such an amount for this car? You do not even get heater. No power mirrors, windows. You do get a tachometer and I feel Mahindra should add that to the brochure.

Rating:- 2/10 (A/C and Power steering)

Safety- Nope. No ABS. No airbags. Nothing.

Rating:- 0/10

Looks- Completely subjective. I am a fan of how Thar looks. That old school charm with the tall stance. Macho design.

Rating:- 9/10

Overall experience:- All and all I like the driving experience. The engine makes up for all the shortcomings. Once you start to live with it, the interiors and lack of safety features can be ignored. The driving experience is purely mechanical and engaging. You don't have any electronics helping you out and it's a good feeling. Ride should be improved if this is your primary car by changing the dampers. You can even upgrade to the new interiors at a cost. Not the best but definitely a huge leap above the pre-facelift version. Driving position is high you can see the bonnet but not all the way through and because my car has the racing seats, I'm sitting quite low when compared to other Thars. The B-Pillar obstructs the view on the side and you need to lean forward to look out the window. Steering is light and that helps in city driving but not very confidence inspiring on highways. Clutch is light for city driving and it can easily be your daily driver. Fuel efficiency i got overall was close to 10kmpl.

Rating:- 6/10 (Engine helps Thar a lot and the mechanical feel increases the score. Gearbox helps too.)

Off-roading Experience :-

I joined Yazadbhai and his group for off-roading. They all have modified their Thars according to their personal needs. There were a total of 6 cars and one joined after. I am a complete newbie to the world of off-roading and these guys are experienced. They helped me a lot and gave me necessary tips and advice on the usual mistakes people make. Attaching the group photo below.



After gathering the tips and advice in my mind, I entered some slush with a lot of confidence. Got stuck in around 2 seconds. You can see my devastated face below.



The group winched me out and were very helpful and patient with me and my highly skilled driving. While driving through some rocky terrain, the front right axle boot gave out. Maybe due to aging, I'm not sure. Keep in mind off-roading is based on the driver's skill and not the car alone. Thar is a very capable off-roader and other cars there got out of the same terrain with ease. DI engine has lower end torque in comparison to Crde and hence is better in tackling certain obstacles. Thar can easily do some serious off-roading with a few mods. The clutch pipe needs a protector if you're an off-road enthusiast. It is available at a minimal cost of INR750/- from Swastik Fabs and is really useful as clutch pipe is low and exposed in Thar. I will share more off-roading experience in the future. Attaching a few more pics from the day.





Maintenance and repairs:-

After I bought the car, the play in the steering and third gear problem had to be sorted at the earliest. I sent my car to Mahindra Navsari and got it fixed. I also got all the oils replaced. The bonnet was not opening due to a broken hinge which was fixed and the bonnet repainted. All that costed me INR 18114/- They were kind enough to send the car back to my place some 50 odd kms away.

After off-road scenario, I was informed by Yazadbhai and Mahindra that they do not sell axle boot independently and the assembly had to be replaced. I wasn't going to do that and Yazadbhai and I did some jugaad and ended up paying INR 900/- for the new boot. Also replaced one on the rear while I was at it.
All and all the car has been reliable with no major breakdowns. I have noticed that the coolant tank is getting empty at a higher rate than usual but there are no evident leaks to be found. Will sort that out in the future.


Modification list:-

Mods by previous owner :-
1. Off-road tyres 31x10.5 R15
2. Off-road ready front and rear bumpers
3. Hard top
4. Wrangler mirrors and a few other aesthetic touches.
5. Working snorkel

Mods by me so far :-
1. A 12000lbs winch (not branded) [Paid around 20 odd thousand]
2. A 6 point external roll cage (Safety First)
3. A skull gear knob ('cause why not) [ Bought from amazon]
4. Installed better headlights (much needed)
5. Got 9" HID Spotlights ( Bought pair for INR4000/-)
6. Changed tyres (More like exchanged with a friend)





Mods on the way:-
1. Have ordered Lamda Diff locker from Swastik Fabs (INR 40000/-)
2. Ordered Jti pro fender shock absorbers from Bimbra (INR 27500/-)
3. Underbody Protection kit from Bimbra (INR 9500/-)
4. Stage 2 tuning from Starboy customs in Mumbai who are associated with T8 performance. (INR 24000/-)
5. Bigger intercooler from Ks motorsport (Discounted price-17000)
6. T8 performance exhaust with performance air filter. (INR 29000/-)

Have already ordered everything and just waiting for the lockdown to end!

Summary:-

Thar is a vehicle with a lot of flaws and I would recommend against it if it's going to be your primary vehicle. There are a lot of more practical and safer choices out there. But if you like old jeeps, and your heart usually wins over mind then there is no other vehicle you should go for. You will soon forget about the ridiculous interior, rattles and heck even the rear suspension because overall there is nothing in the market which can make you feel what Thar does while driving. A pure mechanical engaging drive with no boundaries to capability. With killer looks ofcourse.


If you have sticked all along the post, a huge thanks to you for enduring my blabber! This post is just a personal experience and can vary from person to person. Have given my Octavia a break and only use it for highway trips now.

Stay safe guys! All my prayers are with you and your families!

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the 4x4 Section. Thanks for sharing!

Beautiful Jeep, one of my favourites . Will be going to our homepage soon. Congratulations!

[paramesh3210]

Originally Posted by sirjokhi

Thar is a vehicle with a lot of flaws and I would recommend against it if it's going to be your primary vehicle. There are a lot of more practical and safer choices out there. But if you like old jeeps, and your heart usually wins over mind then there is no other vehicle you should go for. You will soon forget about the ridiculous interior, rattles and heck even the rear suspension because overall there is nothing in the market which can make you feel what Thar does while driving. A pure mechanical engaging drive with no boundaries to capability. With killer looks ofcourse.

Very true. Thar has always been my favorite car and waiting to see how the new Thar will be. Hopefully after the launch of new model, the price of the current one should come down in the used car market. There is a famous saying - It's a JEEP thing you wouldn't understand

Not everyone likes the Jeep. I personally love it. Will definitely own this one day!

[Aafaq]

Congratulations!

you have got yourself a very beautiful and capable Off-roader and it will serve the purpose it is meant for. By the way would you mind sharing its year of manufacturing or have it missed it?

[sirjokhi]

Originally Posted by paramesh3210

Very true. Thar has always been my favorite car and waiting to see how the new Thar will be. Hopefully after the launch of new model, the price of the current one should come down in the used car market. There is a famous saying - It's a JEEP thing you wouldn't understand

Not everyone likes the Jeep. I personally love it. Will definitely own this one day!

I completely agree with you bud! Let's hope you own one soon! The new Thar is going to have better road manners from what i've read! even an automatic is on the cards. I prefer the old school look of current thar though

Originally Posted by Aafaq

Congratulations!

you have got yourself a very beautiful and capable Off-roader and it will serve the purpose it is meant for. By the way would you mind sharing its year of manufacturing or have it missed it?

Thanks for the reply mate! I apologize as I have missed mentioning the manufacturing year! It's a 2013 model and had been driven 27K when I bought it.

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[SJ410]

Thank you sirjokhi for the detailed update. Congrats on the purchase. I was in a similar dilemma and went for the gypsy in spite of no AC mainly for the reliability.

Waiting for more pic of offroading! Cheers!

[TheHkrish]

Congrats sirjokhi for the Thar, loved the Mods.
Please keep updating this thread, waiting to see the refreshed Thar.

[Viraj.515]

Congratulations for bringing home the raw adventure vehicle.

BTW, I live in Navsari. It felt amazing catching you here on Team-BHP as we know it is not usual to spot true enthusiasts in our region.

Enjoy the addition of your garage.
Drive safe.

[Kosfactor]

Congratulations Man! Back in the days there was this concept of a gentleman`s personal car - it has appeared in the recent past (within my time) with Sierra for instance, Zen 2 door, Mahindra Classic, Mahindra Legend etc. Thar CRDe is one such vehice , there is no rhyme or reason to buy it except that you would make one up. There are plenty of people who want one and cannot have one even if they could afford it because bringing a Jeep home is - complicated.

I see a laundry list of mods , so a question popped up in my mind - What is the intended purpose of this vehicle? Daily drive & recreational off road or Off road competition vehicle?

[jetsetgo08]

Congratulations sirjokhi.

Thar Crde in white is as rare as a white tiger. Wonder, how did you manage to buy a Hyderabad registered vehicle? Did you get it re-registered or plan to do so?

[sirjokhi]

Originally Posted by Viraj.515

Congratulations for bringing home the raw adventure vehicle.

BTW, I live in Navsari. It felt amazing catching you here on Team-BHP as we know it is not usual to spot true enthusiasts in our region.

Enjoy the addition of your garage.
Drive safe.

Thanks a lot viraj! I'm happy to see someone from our area here. You're right, really a rare site to see enthusiasts from our side of the country.

Originally Posted by Kosfactor

Congratulations Man! Back in the days there was this concept of a gentleman`s personal car - it has appeared in the recent past (within my time) with Sierra for instance, Zen 2 door, Mahindra Classic, Mahindra Legend etc. Thar CRDe is one such vehice , there is no rhyme or reason to buy it except that you would make one up. There are plenty of people who want one and cannot have one even if they could afford it because bringing a Jeep home is - complicated.

I see a laundry list of mods , so a question popped up in my mind - What is the intended purpose of this vehicle? Daily drive & recreational off road or Off road competition vehicle?

Thanks buddy! Actually initially it was only going to be a daily driver with occasional off-road adventures but i really got the hang of it and met some wonderful people so off-roading escapades have increased to every alternate weekend. Not going for the competition vehicle build. Trying to find a balance between daily and good capability! Cheers!

[BlackPearl]

Congratulations sirjokhi! I love the white Thar, not just because I own one, but because I feel it really looks wonderful in white. I agree to most of the points you have mentioned, except the brakes. They are simply terrible and not fit to be in a car in the 21st century. In fact the whole vehicle is unfit to be sold in this century, but once you have bought it you will love it to the core.

A few pictures of my Thar collected over 5 years of ownership -

[sirjokhi]

Originally Posted by jetsetgo08

Congratulations sirjokhi.

Thar Crde in white is as rare as a white tiger. Wonder, how did you manage to buy a Hyderabad registered vehicle? Did you get it re-registered or plan to do so?

I never thought about buying a white one honestly but fell in love when i saw the pictures. The previous owner was from hyderabad bud! I am planning to transfer it but there have been a lot of problems in the process! Hyderabad RTO is not very co-operative and previous owner is trying his best! Fingers crossed it works out.

Originally Posted by BlackPearl

Congratulations sirjokhi! I love the white Thar, not just because I own one, but because I feel it really looks wonderful in white. I agree to most of the points you have mentioned, except the brakes. They are simply terrible and not fit to be in a car in the 21st century. In fact the whole vehicle is unfit to be sold in this century, but once you have bought it you will love it to the core.

Thanks a lot! I'll have to agree with you on the braking part bud! I really didn't expect anything from it, maybe that's why i am neglecting the brakes. That's a beautiful Thar you got there and some wonderful pictures! Thanks for sharing and yes Thar has completely blown me away and I don't even know why!!

[abhikb]

Congratulations Sirjokhi on this wonderful buy. The ownership experience that this vehicle rewards with is priceless and no amount of money you put on can justify it. Always good to see a fellow Thar owner and that too from the same state. Congratulations and wish you many miles ahead.

Note: We GJ bhpians have a active whatsapp group having more than 50 members as of now. If you wish to join then You can PM your contact number to me.

Thanks and all the best!!!

[sirjokhi]

Originally Posted by abhikb

Congratulations Sirjokhi on this wonderful buy. The ownership experience that this vehicle rewards with is priceless and no amount of money you put on can justify it. Always good to see a fellow Thar owner and that too from the same state. Congratulations and wish you many miles ahead.

Note: We GJ bhpians have a active whatsapp group having more than 50 members as of now. If you wish to join then You can PM your contact number to me.

Thanks and all the best!!!

Thanks a lot for the reply mate! There is something about a thar which just stands out from the rest. I would love to be a part of the group! My account does not have the required permission to pm so posting my number here. Moderator please excuse this once.highly appreciated. 9737081434.