Mahindra Thar 4WD Vs 2WD : Which One To Buy? || The Bhaukal SUV Conundrum

Mahindra Thar is an iconic SUV that needs no introduction. Everywhere you go with the SUV heads turn, people gasp, and most importantly they give way to you (even the autowallahs). Mahindra Thar started its journey in India as a Willys Jeep which when manufactured under Mahindra was first called CJ3A in 1949 and finally CJ3B in 1953. The latter became popular and spawned several iconic Mahindra SUVs like the MM540, Commander 650, Armada, etc. Then came the iconic Mahindra Classic in 1996, featured in several Bollywood movies and got an image of a carefree, stylish, and cool dude attached to anyone driving it.

The Classic wasn't a commercial success but sure pulled the heartstrings of many youngsters of that day and age. So Mahindra went back to the drawing board and came back with a new Thar in 2010 which was designed keeping in mind off-road enthusiasts and was positioned as a lifestyle vehicle. But the body-on-frame design with leaf-spring suspension was not everyone's cup of tea to drive and it took a significant amount of coaxing and convincing to the family for anyone to even get one in his garage. And once it was done it was an endless money pit for customization. 

Nearly a decade after this Mahindra again gave a complete makeover to the Thar and brought an all-new model in 2020. This new Thar was a generational leap compared to the old one in almost all areas while still retaining the rugged DNA of a Jeep. Speaking of Jeep, Fiat-Chrysler did accuse Mahindra of copying the design of its Jeep Wrangler JL but couldn't prove anything. Coming back to the Thar now it got an Independent double-wishbone front suspension and multilink solid rear axle with coil-over dampers and stabilizer bar. It had two engine options a turbo diesel and turbo petrol along with a choice of a 6-speed manual or a 6-speed automatic. The cabin was redesigned and modern amenities were thrown in like touchscreen infotainment, AC, supportive seats, electrically adjustable side mirrors, etc.

And boy these things turned the night into day on the Mahindra Thar, people flocked to the showroom screaming through their lungs to take their money and give them a Thar. Okay, that's an exaggeration but you get the drift here. Just after launching the SUV Mahindra quickly sent it for a GNCAP safety rating and the Thar once again stunned the critics but grabbing a 4-star rating for adult safety. The culmination of all these was a long waiting period for Thar and those getting their hands on one were considered no less than a celebrity. After all, this hullaballoo died down Mahindra showcased the Thar's prowess on its off-road track and that really caught everyone's attention, a special drive featuring women drivers made sure the SUV was as much for the fairer sex as for the brawny male. 

Things went on well but now because of Thar's image and the product being so good many ended up buying it and using it as a mall crawler and a daily driver. This was overkill for an SUV made to conquer uncharted territory. On top of that these Thar 4WD were unnecessarily lugging extra weight of the 4WD and MLD (mechanical locking differential). To solve this issue Mahindra launched a Rear-wheel drive RWD or 2WD of the Thar in January 2023. The SUV got rid of the off-road hardware and the 2.2-liter turbo-diesel mHawk engine. Instead, it got a 1.5-liter turbo-diesel lifted from XUV300 and Marazzo while the mStallion turbo petrol engine was retained as it is. Also, the diesel is only offered with a manual (as this engine is mated to an AMT, and putting that on a Thar was no less than blasphemy). 

While the petrol engine comes mated to only a 6-speed torque convertor automatic gearbox. Other changes on the Thar 2WD include an updated Mahindra logo all-around, the 4x4 logo and engine badging deleted, a 4x4 lever removed and its place an empty slot to store stuff, a new auto start-stop button added, the ESP button shifted to the center console below the AC controls, and two new color options Bronze and White. 

Coming to the driving and performance, the Thar 2WD is lighter and the new turbo-diesel makes 117 bhp and 300 Nm of torque (the 2.2 mHawk turbodiesel made 130 bhp and 300 Nm of torque), so in terms of performance there is nothing noticeable. It still has oodles of power and the engine is very tractable. The city drivability is even better with less weight to lug around and the fuel economy has also gone up. Not only that, the smaller 1.5-liter engine and under 4-meter length qualify Thar for the small car tax bracket (so it pays only 3% instead of 22% as compensation cess on top of 28% GST). As a result, Mahindra is able to aggressively price under 10 lakhs ex-showroom. 

Coming to the turbo-petrol mStallion engine the performance has gotten even better due to weight reduction (the petrol engine makes 150 bhp and 320 Nm of torque). So to conclude, if you are looking for a proper and rugged SUV without needing for a hardcore off-roader the Thar RWD is a good bet while if a diesel+AT combo is your priority sadly you have to go with the Thar 4WD. Those with less running and no use of an off-roader are better off with the petrol Thar RWD over a petrol Thar 4WD.

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