Maruti Suzuki Jimny vs Mahindra Thar: Battle Of The Off-Road Giants

There was clamour, there was hype, and finally, after a really painful, long wait, Maruti Suzuki launched the Jimny in India. The tiny off-roader packs a fair bit of capability, but let’s face it, the appeal lies in that hype in many ways. Most who wanted one didn’t really care so much about the great outdoors. In many ways, this one’s really late to the party, right? Like, we really waited for this generation of Jimmy to get launched here in India, and the only good part is that we got a world first, after all, that waiting. But Maruti may have taken the hype a little too seriously and went for gold with more premium pricing than expected. Either they just want to keep it niche since manufacturing capacity is only so limited, or yeah, they just really got the prices horribly wrong.

But today it is not just about this car; it is also about this one. Yes, the Thar! Everybody immediately started talking about the Thar the minute we said Jimmy; it seemed like a natural comparison. But guess what? I’m here to tell you today that they are not really rivals. Don’t make a face. Don’t frown. Yeah, I can see that it’s you. Don’t do it. I’ll tell you why. While they may seem on paper to be direct rivals, there are actually a lot of differences between these two cars that’s what I’m going to explain to you now. So yeah, they’re both off-roaders, they might attract a similar buyer, and now they’re also close on price positioning. But the Thar is the butch brute, while the Jimny is, well, the cute yet capable type.

Dimensions

Both cars are purpose-built and of course, they are very capable off-road that is a similarity we’ll get to that in a bit. First I want to talk about the size, the footprint of these two cars is nice and compact they are both sub-compact SUVs and they are both exactly the same length that’s a similarity too. But on wheelbase, a huge difference of 140 mm more of wheelbase is what you get here which is just as well because, of course, you got the rear doors.

Now on the Thar, we’re still waiting for that 5-door version to come in, there is a lot of talk about when it will come, not happening this year. So that gives an advantage to Jimny. In terms of width, you can see very clearly the Thar is definitely the bigger more butch-looking car its wider there is a difference in height as well but that wheelbase becomes a compelling difference.

Boot Space

Both cars get side-opening rear doors with the spare mounted on them. On the Jimny it’s a proper door, on the Thar it’s a swing gate with the additional glass fold-up. That’s coz the Thar also gets soft top or top-less versions, while the Jimny does not.

But here’s the surprise. The Jimny also packs in a decent boot at 211 litres. And that goes up to 332 litres with the rear seats folded. On the Thar, it’s kind of a joke to call that a boot, though you can fold those seats down. Still not that great.

Tech & Interior

On cabin finish and fit, while the Jimny isn’t going to set your pulse racing, and though spartan, everything feels well put together. On the Thar, it remains crude, and the huge wheel wells, make the rear seat uncomfy. It also sits right above the rear axle, making the ride jumpy and not great. The rear seat is a big win on the Jimny, and will easily accommodate average-height adults. The Thar won’t.

The two cars come with touchscreens. One of Jimny’s top-end variants is bigger and overall feels way better in its quality, interface, and features. The Jimny has a 7-inch screen on the Zeta and a 9-inch on the Alpha. The Thar only has the 7-inch option. Suzuki Connect is optional for connectivity while on the Thar you get Bluesense. The smartphone connectivity interfaces are wireless or wired on the Jimny.

On the Thar, it's only wired. The Suzuki gets a better music system and the instrument cluster on the Thar is better laid out and has the TFT colour screen at the centre. On the Jimny, it's meant to be retro, but retro shouldn’t be archaic if you ask me!

Which Is Better Off-Road?

Now It's time to take this thing where it really belongs, offroad! The ease with which you can take the Jimny on and off the road is really what sets it apart, I mean that’s the whole point of this car, it is Manoeuvrable, it’s easy and remember, I may have gone completely off-road with it, but it also will then do really well in bad road conditions and broken roads and yes during the monsoon. That’s going to be a big advantage and that’s why a lot of people are going to buy into it as well, from that perspective it’s comfortable, it’s quick and efficient.

Now unlike my first experience with Jimmy where I predominantly spent time with the manual out of sheer excitement. Today I have really focused on this automatic gearbox, lot of people will argue that it’s not sophisticated enough it should be a more modern gearbox.

But remember the whole point here is how much torque you get and how manoeuvrable is the car for the purpose it's built for and frankly if you want something that’s really sophisticated, well there are several DCTs available in the market CVTs as well, go ahead and buy one of those, don’t buy this car.

This car is for people who can do all of this whenever they feel like it and yet be comfortable on the road and yes this car is comfortable on the road.

Ride & Handling

So that’s the thing, it is not for everyone if you really think about it, and you don’t have to think too hard. But, in the context of people who’ll buy this car and drive it every day the right quality, the seating position and the comfort by the way at the back as well, is also going to be a massive USP.

Now the thing which surprise most people about the Thar when it first came out, was the refinement, the ride quality, the comfort and the seating position, here in the driver’s seat those things remain their big strength even today. The previous generation of the Thar crude as it was still had a bit of a cult following right, I mean there was a whole lot people did with that car, especially off-road, and the good news is that Mahindra took all of those learnings and put them into this car to just make it a whole lot better. But as I said earlier, at the back the Thar isn’t that great, and hopefully the longer wheelbase 5-door will improve on that in a big way.

The Thar boasts better figures on this front. Ground clearance is 16mm more. The wheel travel is also a lot more. The approach and breakover angles are higher too, though the Jimny has a better departure angle. On water wading there is a huge difference, though the Jimny will do the usual shallow stream or river bed with ease. So while Jimny holds its own and really surprises you off-road, the Thar will do more. The shift to 4X4 on the fly is way easier on the Jimny, and while it feels more sophisticated, it also feels light and bouncy, while the grunt and heft of the Thar will inspire more confidence.

Engine & Transmission

The Thar’s sheer size is an advantage, but its creds go beyond that. And it also gets the advantage of two diesel options. The Thar also gets a lot more power and a whole lot more torque. So there’s no doubt that both these vehicles are pretty capable. In fact, the off-roading capability is baked into both, but also no doubt about the fact that the Thar can do a lot more because it is designed to do that it's wider it’s got fatter tires and it’s got a lot more grunt with that diesel option as well. But does that mean that I’m naturally saying this becomes the obvious choice?

Well at the start I told you this isn’t a comparison but take into account the fact that most people who buy both these cars are probably never going off-road, they’re probably doing it because they want to look cool and they think the cars are extremely cool. In that scenario, the one thing that makes the big difference is pricing.

Price

Now neither car gets the sub-4-metre benefit, that you get on GST because of their engine size. So there’s always going to be pricing pressure. Yes, Mahindra was smart about bringing out the 2-wheel drive version just on the eve of the Jimny launch and there is all that talk about a 5-door coming from Mahindra, that’s why it became important for Maruti to really get aggressive and get the pricing right.

And don’t forget that at this kind of pricing, you have so many more sophisticated urban options that give you so much more in terms of better cabins, better features, better screen connectivity, and all kinds of stuff. That’s where this starts to look just a little bit too pricey.

Yes, Maruti may have missed a trick here. About Rs. 60-80,000 cheaper and the car would have become a hot commodity – challenging the likes of the Sonet or Venue, and even the Creta in some ways. But only on volume.

Verdict

The Jimny remains different enough from those since they will continue to compete with Maruti’s other SUV models – namely the Brezza, Fronx, and Grand Vitara, And there it seems lies the reason why, though with a limited appeal, the Jimny will still gain its legion of fans, price notwithstanding, and the cult will thrive.

It is definitely game on, and it is your move Mahindra. With not just the 5-door Thar, but the BE05’s Rall-E version that sure comes to mind.

Photography by: Prashant Chaudhary