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-   -   The 2017 Force Gurkha (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian-car-scene/185323-2017-force-gurkha-4.html)

@devildriver:

On paper the Gurkha looks great on paper.

The only irony is that so far it has got praise only from armchair off-roaders. No one who actually is involved the the off-road scene has dared to buy one and bring it for off-road events, so what ever disadvantage Thar may have over the Gurkha, it is become the vehicle of choice for most off-roaders in India. There is probably some value in that. The only thing the RFC Gurkha shares with the production version is the body and chasis. All other parts are upgrade including Engine, Gearbox, Axles, Steering, brakes, tyres, etc..

Now getting to the current version, if you look at a vehicle that you want to use for daily drive and go off road occasionally, I think the Gurkha is a better option than the Thar provided you are willing to live with a poor power to weight ratio. If you look at most of the *bashing* it has to do with two things, the under powered engine & crappy interiors/dashboard.

Guess by now, it must be clear to Force Motors, why this version also will have to go to the drawing board. Do you remember, study holidays between our final exams? It's kind of like that for Force Motors now. They make improvements, sell a hand full of vehicles, which some owners actually try to sell for 9 lakhs used after a year . Then they go back to study holidays for about 2 years.

I am pretty sure that after this study holidays, the version that comes out with FM2.2 CRDe, and ABS will be much better alternative to the Thar. I for sure will get one.

TG seems to be 4X4 enthusiasts or am I missing something, but Power and Interiors don't match up to enthusiast expectations.

Lesser said about safety the better.

One can do up interiors but there is no solution for power - or rather the missing power.

Sometimes I wonder that these guys keep on coming up with new and better iterations every 3 years or so, but you could ask anyone the expected end result based just on the spec and one would know right off that the revision is not going to work.

Why do they bother at all if it is always going to be half hearted. Last time we all gave feedback on the plastic cladding all around and yes that is sorted but there is no visible solution to the power aspect.

Not worth a buy.

I will agree with most of the respected members. Very few people can afford a 12 lacs vehicle just for the sake of offroading. We want something which can be our daily driver, will be enough for occasional weekend offroad meets and can take us out from sticky situations( if it happens) on the roads of Spiti or Arunachal. And a 85 Bhp engine won't tick the box for most of the people out there.

This vehicle has a tremendous possibility. The factory fitted snorkel, front and rear diff locks, macho looks. What Force Motors has missed is plonking a better engine and incorporation of ABS/ airbags. Though this vehicle is mainly for offroading, but will not do offroading in my garden. For that I have to reach the spot negotiating traffic and regular roads, where safety is a prime issue.

Better luck next time, Force!!! Get a better engine and safety features, and you have a customer ready to pick up Gurkha.

Regards

Saubhik

This car to me, just reminds of the 90s SUVs in 2017. Maybe the company is trying to attract the rural folks in tough terrains as a people/goods mover.
Most of the components, especially the interior bits look the same as the yesteryear aftermarket options.
Maybe they wanted to build a car not for just the enthusiasts but for nostalgia, where niggles were certain and repairs could be done by a rookie rural mechanic.

:OT What is this 'Handling Charges'? In most cases, vehicle manufacturers provide expenses to dealerships for pre-delivery inspection, fuel among other bits in a bid to transfer cars from the stockyard to the dealership location.

The Kerala Motor vehicle department last year raided major vehicle dealers across the state in a bid to catch dealerships extorting money from customers in the name of handling charges and took action against 71 dealers. These dealers were served a notice so that if they were found guilty again, their trade certificate will be cancelled permanently.

8.14L ex-showroom in KA for Expedition.
I'm mighty impressed with the specs. - A Bolero user. :D

I think that the older non-CRDI engines have better low end torque compared to the CRDI engines, so you can lug it at low speeds. So for OTR and bad steep roads the power is sufficient. It is only on highway speeds that a CRDI shines, but then you have to choose between excellent highway speeds and good low end torque for difficult off the beat roads.

As a Pajero user, and a heavy one at that - including daily drives, offroad meets, expeditions... camping and what not, was pretty impressed when Gurkha was contemplating the update. Looking at the final specs now, I must admit it is pretty disappointing. I needed a 4x4 with a good Low Range Transmission, and some power to help me consider it as a replacement to my trusty Pajero (considering at nearly 2.5 lac kms and 14 years, I might want to replace it). Apparently, there is still no replacement to the kind of activity I can afford to do with my current ride! The interiors seem pathetic, and ergonomics doesnt seem to mean anything to the people at Force. Come on you guys, please for your own sake, wake up. You may have scored in the looks department, but the insides are all mushy.
So, as of now, I will not even consider this Gurkha. End of Matter!

I think its a good proposition given after sales parts and service are equally better. Been to the Force dealer in Bhubaneswar to check it out physically but was upset it is not available in Odisha yet. Would wait till I take a test drive and then can comment. I can vouch for the OM 616 indirect injection 2.3 diesel that I had installed on a Mahindra CL500D earlier. With the KMT 90 4 speeder it offered good offroading and highway capabilities. I dont mind the interiors as I wouldnt take it for shopping Mall runs but long distance ergonomics do count for me.Lets see.

Saw the 2017 Force Gurkha Xplorer Hard-Top sporting lots of accessories at the Force Motors showroom in SB Road, Pune.

More pictures of both versions.

Xplorer 4x4.

Has any one noticed the Offset Tow-hook of the Xplorer version.:eek:

Xpedition 4x2.

Tow-hook at the center.

Tail-lights on the bumper!! Stupidest thing. A minor hit and that's the first to go. Kudos to whoever came up with that idea. :(
Like someone mentioned, it could've been a stepped roof instead of slanting. Yet to take a test drive.

So me along with fellow mod Khan_Sultan and another offroad buddy went and test drove the vehicle on saturday. We had gone to the hosur road showroom, just after the Honda showroom. A lone red gurkha was parked, from the looks of it this was a pre-production vehicle, reasoning being both the diff locks handles were placed on driver side and the vehicle seemed quiet used (2500 kms). Anyways let's cut the chase and get to the real thing.

Positives first:

• Tremendous improvement from earlier version. The gear box is all new and cable operated and now it works, though it has lil rough spots wrt shift. Things seem to be put up together better than previous version.
• Driving is super comfy as good as a entry hatch/sedan (feel perspective). Steering is light, all controls are also smooth. The Thar felt quiet archaic after Gurkha, to drive ie.
• Ride is very supple and road humps are dismissed off like they dont exist. Tons of space and we were playing musical chair changing drivers. There is a little bit of roll but understandable for such a heavy and tall vehicle. The rear height of roof was taller than a body lifted Thar on 31" tyres.
• AC is quiet good and in 10 mts or so even the rear passenger cabin was nicely cooled, inspite the vehicle being parked under the sun.
• Sales team is super responsive and even gave us some good options to try for purchase.

Negatives:

• For 11.27 Lakh INR on road in BLR, one expects much more on finish department. Especially the cosmetics and what about safety? Atleast an alloys and offroad tyres please???
• Engine power, though super refined from inside is anemic and has 1200 to 3000 RPM range, which is usable power and extra short gears for 1-3 plus tall 4th and 5th makes it not an ideal car for city slick enthusiast. You need to be in power band and gentle on pedals to keep it moving.
• Compared to current Thar the dash felt pre-historic, even the grab handles felt like thick metal wire covered in plastic which was put together at nth minute before launch.
• Body would need a complete putty work and painting (just like old amby's) before it can be called urban stupid: Maybe this is a pre-production one, since the images posted above has better finish.

Final words - For all 3 of us biggest downer was the engine, if it was the 2.2 Liter 110-120 bhp version with ABS and two airbags that was being sold at this 11.27 price tag, i am sure there would have been 3 bookings on saturday. Rest everything we could have fixed!

ps: After doing many car purchases over the last 2 decades and more, i have to give this sales team a 4 out of 5 star rating (atleast the one in BLR). The way they pursued a casual web inquiry, turned it into a test drive and the effort they put during the test drive and the follow up's before is commendable. Sad that the product that they are trying to sell has lots of catching upto do if they were to sell to urban folks.

Thanks for the review. But could you elaborate on how it stacks up against Thar?

Thar doesn't have ABS/Airbags either. Also as per your observations Thar felt archaic, less comfy and cramped. Don't know what the price difference is with Gurkha 4x4 Xplorer 3 Door.

I fancied Thar crde a lot, but when I drove it I felt it lacked feel, soul (driver-car connect) compared to yesteryear Mahindras like Classic, even M&M Major (@Thar Enthusiasts - No bashing intentions, Just my experience). Sure it has more convenience in the form of A/c, PS etc.

Good feed back Jaggu. The above line pretty much sums up my take as well. We can deal with improving the dash, repainting the vehicle, etc, but I think they need to provide a decent powertrain that can move this fat lady.