Cool Jeeps You Can't Have - Mahindra of India

[jscherb]

I've seen a number of Mahindra Thars on the road here in India with lights on the roof in pods rather than light bars. I haven't seen these in the US so maybe they're not a thing in the US (yet?) but they seem to be getting traction here in India. I didn't get a chance to snap any photos of them on the road, so this photo is from a web site of one of the companies that sell them here (https://automods.in/product/dual-led-bars-with-roof-mounting-for-new-mahindra-thar-2020-onwards/). There are a number of companies here in India that offer similar ones. I wonder if these will catch on in the US? Maybe they'd create less wind noise than a light bar? Of course they'd work better on a TJ/YJ/CJ hardtop that doesn't have Freedom panels, but they could be mounted on Freedom panels with plugs to disconnect when necessary.

 

[Zeep]

Were those Scrambler jump seats factory or aftermarket? Don't remember ever seeing those before!

 

[jscherb]

Were those Scrambler jump seats factory or aftermarket? Don't remember ever seeing those before!

They're factory, but not Jeep factory - they're Toyota FJ40 jump seats. They installed fairly easily in my Scrambler.

Scramblers were offered with factory jump seats overseas though, look at how the guys in the back are sitting in this ad:



Actually they weren't technically jump seats, it was a "troop seating option", but they did fold up. An interior view:

 

[jscherb]

This trip I'm seeing a lot of the new 4-door Thar Roxx on the road; here's an off-road test of the Roxx.



Looks like it could use a bit more suspension travel for more challenging off-road use, but it does have an electronic locking diff in the rear, which is why it's doing pretty well in the video above.

 

[jscherb]

I've been in New Delhi for the past week and this morning I took a walk in the complex I'm staying in to check out Mahindra Thars - there are quite a few in this complex. Here's a pair:



Something I've noticed on many Thars in my many trips over here - quite a few of them have hinge-mounted steps but almost none of them have a reason for the steps - very few roof racks. Can't figure out why.



Replacement grilles are pretty common too, they range from angry birds to more complex ones like this:



Here's a nice first gen Thar with an aftermarket hardtop:



It too has a custom grille - this one made to look sort of like a TJ grille. The stock first gen Thar grille looks very similar to a CJ-5/7/8 grille, but these "TJ-style" overlays seem to be pretty common.



I also came across a 2wd Thar in the complex, they're not uncommon here and at a base price of only about $13,500 and not too many trails (or snow) in the Delhi area, there's not much use for 4wd.