Its been almost a year since we saw the new-gen Force Gurkha at the 2020 Auto Expo. Since then, Force Motors have been spied testing the Gurkha on our roads many a times but it just does not seem to hit the market. Now, the Force Gurkha has been spied testing once again and this seems to be in near production guise. More importantly. there are a few updates over the version that was showcased at 2020 Auto Expo.
On the outside, the Gurkha remains largely
unchanged to the version that was showcased at the Auto Expo. The Gurkha has a
classic, rugged SUV design like no other, not even the Mahindra Thar. The round
headlamps with LED DRL surrounds, slatted grille, and the upright and boxy
silhouette are in fact reminiscent of the Mercedes-Benz G-Class and that's only
a great thing. The two-door configuration, rugged body cladding, raised
suspension and 16-inch tires with chrome-plated alloys all look very purposeful
as well.
It is on the inside where we see some
changes over the model that was showcased at the Auto Expo. The dashboard
layout remains the same but its still very utilitarian even when the Thar has
massively stepped up on this front. Force Motors have however spiced up things
with a new gloss black trim around the AC vents. The interiors here are also
finished in an all-black theme as opposed to the black-brown finish of the show
car at Auto Expo 2020.
The infotainment system is however still
an aftermarket unit. For seating, the Gurkha comes with captain seats for the
rear occupants with jump seats for the third row. The Gurkha is however not all
bare bones as it covers the basics with features such as front power windows,
remote locking, and a multi-info display. The air-conditioning is however
manual. Safety features on the Gurkha will include dual airbags, ABS with EBD,
and rear parking sensors. This test mule can also be seen sporting a snorkel
but that could come as an official accessory.
Under the hood, the Gurka will be powered
by a 2.6-litre common-rail diesel engine
which puts out 90 hp and 260 Nm. The engine will come mated to a 5-speed manual
transmission along with a low-range transfer case. The Gurkha also gets
manual-locking front and rear differential which the Thar completely misses out
on. Force could also introduce a 140 hp/321 Nm 2.2-litre diesel engine at a later
stage. The previous iteration of the Gurkha retailed in the country with prices
starting from INR 9.75 lakh (ex-showroom). The new-gen model will certainly
come at a premium and apart from the Thar, it will also take on the Maruti
Suzuki Jimny. We expect the launch to happen soon.