[mayankjha1806]

Ohh i hope this wait is worth it. Have been frequently visiting this thread for sometime now. Hopefully the QC will be on par with Toyotas (if not better).

[droolingvoyager]

Wow! good news finally
Autocar India Forum: Tata Safari Merlin : Yeh dil Mange More the pic here if real, looks really good. More aggressive and boxy.

[swiftnfurious]

Originally Posted by mayankjha1806

Ohh i hope this wait is worth it. Have been frequently visiting this thread for sometime now. Hopefully the QC will be on par with Toyotas (if not better).

I would say its too early for us to expect this benchmark from TATA. But if they achieve atleast 60-70% of what Toyotas can, TATA has a brilliant future for sure. They are making the most out of the JLR acquisition I believe and its completely worth to have them. I seriously hope to see "solid" cars from TATA at worthy prices.

[jkdas]

Originally Posted by himanshugoswami

Update on the Merlin from a TML ARC insider:

The Merlin is absolutely ready- TML is ready to roll it out. they are only working on the pricing strategy.


The launch will happen anytime after May (he is in prod development so does not have too much insight into lauch timings)

Thats great news.

Fortuner seats 7 in better comfort than Safari.

[shortbread]

Good news on the Merlin and hoping Tata wont dissapoint. This car is very important as it should fill a 2-3 year gap before Tata's next gen UV arrives.

Autocar UK have reported that JLR have started work on the Defender replacement and Carl Foster has insisted the new Defender should be a lot cheaper and target developing markets in Asia and Africa. I am quite confident that this new platform will be primarily made in India and this will perhaps also be used for future Tata UVs. Fingers crossed!!!

[himanshugoswami]

another thing I forgot to mention- the export version of the Merlin will feature HDC- not sure if this will make it to the Indian versions keeping costs in mind.

To a poster's quesiton about interior quality- my friend last drove a pre-production version of the Merlin a month back and said that when ARC signed off on the mechanicals and drive train, the interiors were still to be frozen (they were 90%) there, only trims and colors were to be decided) and it was a significant step up from the current Safari.

The Merlin will come at a price hike compared to the Safari

[lordofgondor]

Originally Posted by himanshugoswami

The Merlin will come at a price hike compared to the Safari

That's interesting, very interesting. Right now, Safari VX 4x4 is about 60K less than Aria Pleasure. If Merlin is priced higher than Safari, won't it cannibalize the sales of Aria (not that it's selling in good numbers anyway).

Would TATA still continue to manufacture Safari after Merlin's launch?

[tsk1979]

Himanshu, can you please check with your friend whether the Tata Safari 4x4 will be offered in lower trims?

[directinjection]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

Himanshu, can you please check with your friend whether the Tata Safari 4x4 will be offered in lower trims?

Himanshu, could you also check whether ABS will be offered in lower trim models? There was a discussion earlier that Tata plans to offer ABS option on all its models.

Originally Posted by himanshugoswami

when ARC signed off on the mechanicals and drive train

I'm sure you meant ERC, as in Engineering Research Centre.

[himanshugoswami]

@DI- correct, I meant ERC, My bad :P

I too asked him about the ABS part since an LX with ABS would be my choice. Since he is in product development, he does not have visibility on the final trim levels, but he said that there a stong likelihood of ABS being offered across the range as an option. He mentioned that htere were test mules in three different specs and all three had ABS. Also, the higher end versions are likely to have discs all around (this bit is pretty much certain for the export versions)

Tanveer, will check on the 4x4 when i talk to him this weekend.

[jkdas]

Whats HDC

They should give ABS plus disc all around IMHO. My next buy too will be Safari of Merlin story is true.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by jkdas

Whats HDC

They should give ABS plus disc all around IMHO. My next buy too will be Safari of Merlin story is true.

Hill Descent control?

[MAS]

Originally Posted by himanshugoswami

The SUV is a hoot to drive and will set new benchmarks in its class- according to him, the only reason people will buy a Fortuner after this will be for Toyota brand- as a vehicle, the Merlin (not the final launch name) is more than a match for the Fortuner.

I hope your insider is not joking. The new Safari would be a match for the Fortuner which is twice its price?

[shortbread]

Lets not get carried away. The Fortuner is a more powerful and accomplished SUV than the Safari, it has to be considering the rip off price.

Its amazing if we consider the fact that the Safari is basically more than a decade old and one can only wonder what a success it would have been if Tata got it right from day 1. If wishes were horses.

I sincerely pray they do get it right this time round, there are plenty of folk doing the same. Many friends I know wanted to buy the Safari especially since there is very little in the market to match it at that price. But they are drawn away due several negligible reasons primary among them are the interiors.

From the various 'insider' info available so far there is a lot to look forward to, Fingers crossed!!

[himanshugoswami]

Originally Posted by MAS

I hope your insider is not joking. The new Safari would be a match for the Fortuner which is twice its price?

Just because the Fortuner is ridiculouly priced for what it offres does not make it a great SUV. it is good no doubt, but for twice the price of the Safari, are you sugesting it is twice as good! I dont think so- and TML is steadily going up curve- the Elan and Aria are ample proof of this.

I for one feel that if TML gets the QC spot on, the Merlin can be more than a match for the fortuner at approx 60% lower price.