Mahindra Thar vs Force Gurkha: The Direct One-On-One

In this comparison, the Mahindra Thar is among the bestselling Mahindra cars in the segment and the country. As you may know, the Gurkha isn’t seen much on the road, which possibly translates to that it has decent sales.
Both the homegrown off-roaders can be had with a four-wheel drive system but the Mahindra Thar is now also available with a rear-wheel drive system.
Apart from that, these two vehicles are currently available in a three-door layout but, as per sources, they will soon have a five-door layout. However, the direct rival of these two vehicles, the recently-launched Maruti Suzuki Jimny, has a five-door layout. You may check out the Jimny price here.
However, there are several differences between these two vehicles, as far as specifications are concerned. Let’s begin to weigh them and understand which one should be a better pick.

Specifications
For starters, let’s talk about the Force Gurkha’s specifications. Since this off-roader’s inception, the Force Motors company has been powering the Gurkha with a Mercedes-Benz-sourced diesel engine(s) only. It is worth mentioning that each generation of the Gurkha had a different engine output. Currently, the Mercedes-Benz-sourced F M 2.6 CR CD turbo-diesel engine, which is tuned to churn out 90 bhp at 3200 rpm and 250 Nm of peak torque is powering the fourth-gen Force Gurkha. It has only a diesel engine available. No petrol version is on offer, unlike the Thar. Check out the Gurkha price here.
Moreover, if you didn’t know this, Force Motors produces engines for BMW and Daimler-Benz in India. Yes, you read that right. It’s the only Indian company that was awarded contracts from those two German luxury carmakers to produce engines for their vehicles.
Further, the Gurkha is exclusive to a five-speed manual transmission.

In parallel, the Mahindra Thar RWD version offers two engine options: 1.5-litre D117 CRDe (Diesel) and 2.0-litre mStallion 150 TGDi (Petrol). It is worth noting that the RWD version has less-powered engines than the 4x4 versions.

As for figures, the 1.5-litre D117 CRDe diesel engine is tuned to pump out 116.39 bhp at 3500 rpm and 300 Nm of peak torque at 2500 rpm. In addition, the mStallion 150 TGDi petrol engine can produce 150 bhp at 5000 rpm and 300 Nm of torque at 3000 rpm. For reference, the Thar’s price starts from Rs 10.54 lakh (ex-showroom) onwards.
At the same time, the 4X4 version is equipped with the tuned-up version of the mStallion 150 TDGi petrol engine, which is tuned to unleash 150 bhp at 5000 rpm and 320 Nm of peak torque at 3000 rpm. The last engine option comprises a 2.2-litre mHawk 130 diesel engine that can churn out 130 bhp at 3750 rpm and 300 Nm of torque at 2800 rpm.
Both RWD and 4x4 versions can be had with a standard six-speed manual and an optional torque converter automatic transmission. Check out the Mahindra Thar’s price list here.

These two indigenous hardcore off-roaders boast the ladder-frame construction, which is an off-road-centric chassis.

Moreover, the Mahindra Thar has a fuel tank capacity of 57 litres, while the Force Motors Gurkha BS6 has a capacity of 63 litres. For your reference, a car with a larger fuel tank capacity will most probably have a better range than a car with a smaller fuel tank.

Keeping their engine outputs aside, let’s now jump to their suspension setups. As for the Force Gurkha, its front end stands on an independent double wishbone suspension with a coil spring, while its rear end stands on a multi-link with pan hard rod, coupled with a coil spring.
On the other hand, the Mahindra Thar stands on an independent double wishbone suspension with a coil-over-damper and stabiliser bar at the front, alongside the multi-link solid rear axle with a coil-over-damper and stabiliser bar at the rear. Interestingly, almost all Mahindra cars have a similar suspension setup to the Thar. They are tuned in such a manner that they can offer both on- and off-road comfort.
These two vehicles have more or less the same suspension setups but with a few differences here and there. However, they are engineered by adopting the off-road approach in mind. As per sources, the Force Gurkha isn’t as comfortable as the Mahindra Thar, especially on the tarmac. However, it is always recommended to take a test ride of your shortlisted vehicle(s) so that you can get a better understanding of it.
The braking duties on these two vehicles are taken care of by standard disc-drum brakes. It would have been better if either of the cars had optional all-disc brakes.

Prices and Variants
Force Motors sells the Gurkha in one variant only. The Force Gurkha’s price is Rs 15.10 lakh.
On the other hand, the Mahindra offers the Thar in two broad trims: AX(O) and LX. It has a total of thirteen variants. The Mahindra Thar has a starting price of Rs 10.54 lakh for the base variant, the AX Opt 4-Str Hard Top Diesel RWD, and goes up to Rs 16.78 lakh for the top variant, the LX 4-Str Hard Top Diesel AT.
All are ex-showroom prices in Delhi, as of June 2023. Please note that these prices are subject to change without any prior notice to the customer. You can, however, visit the autoX website to access the latest location-based price list for your dream vehicle.

Verdict
These two cars can satisfy a customer in their respective ways. Both are capable off-roaders but Force Motors has focused solely on off-roading, while Mahindra focused on on- and off-road comfort in mind. All-in-all, it all narrows down to a customer’s choice and preference.

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