[Mr.Fawlty]

Sometime around March 2023, I started planning for an additional car to join our trusted MY 16 Duster 85ps, with a purchase date around Jan to March in 2024. The idea was for the new vehicle to assume the role of a tourer (with travels planned to some parts of the country with dodgy infrastructure), while the Duster could be more for city run arounds, and used mainly by the missus. The big criteria for the new car was that it had to be a MT, be a competent 4x4 or an AWD, costing under INR 20L OTR. I started warming up to the idea of the Gurkha. Rumor and speculation was aplenty that the new Gurkha would be launched later in 2023. Sounded like perfect timing for me: the first lots would be reviewed, and initial ownership experiences would be out by the time my turn came to put down the money. Alas, that was not to be case, and we started looking at alternatives around November. Considered and TD'ed - the Grand Vitara AllGrip, Thar 4x4, Jimny, and Scorpio N 4x4.

The GV was rather underwhelming. I can't objectively state the reasons, but it just didn't seem to be what I was looking for.

Thar's well documented cons didn't work in our selection process. And the sales advisor who turned up with a driver and another fellow for the TD - all half deaf - whilst playing unintelligible gibberish of music at obnoxious volume levels didn't help the cause.

I, personally fell in love with the Jimny. Nimble, small footprint, and its ride quality on non existent roads was a joy. The styling is appealing. On the flipside, lack of usable storage spaces, the rear seat comfort, and notchy gear shifts that the missus struggled with along with that perceived sense of lack of safety were quite a bit to ignore.

The SN 4x4 has a lot going for it. Not the most technically superior 4x4 of the lot, but I think enough has been documented about its capabilities. As I recollect hearing in a YT Thar vs SN comparison video, the scorpio N does everything that a Thar does comfortably. For my use case, that's substantial!

Now that the Gurkha BS6.2 is launched (and assuming I still could manage the funds), would I still buy it? Probably not. Somewhere in the endless wait for things to fall in place, we noticed that stretching our budget a bit more got us 6 airbags among other things if instead of the SN Z4 4x4 we looked at the SN Z8 4xplor. And that's money well spent, in my opinion. Further, the SN itself is cumbersome in tight spaces, can't imagine what it would be like with a Gurkha.

Future plans: when the Duster finally departs after a couple of years, and assuming we're seeking another 4x4 then, I'd probably want to revisit the Jimny. It indeed was love at first drive for me. Or, maybe, the new Duster!

Voted: Scorpio N