recently unveiled their barebones off-roader Gurkha to compete with the likes of the Mahindra Thar. Both the SUVs are engineered to tackle different set of terrains seamlessly with their great off-roading capabilities. Some luxurious features and advance safety equipment like ABS and airbags are missing on both the vehicles. In terms of design, the Mahindra Thar has a classic rugged stance, whereas the Gurkha with a smiling grille has a soft look upfront but with some elements coming from the legendary G-Wagen.
Coming to the tech specs, the Force Gurkha gets powered by a 2600cc diesel
motor sourced from Mercedes-Benz producing 82 PS of power at 3200 RPM and 230
Nm of torque between 1800-2000 RPM, mated to a 5-speed manual gearbox with Hi
and Lo option on transfer case transmitting the power to all the four wheels.
The Gurkha is based on the Mercedes G-Wagon. It comes with three locking
differentials, 210 mm of ground clearance and a high mounted snorkel that makes
it a very capable off-roader.The Mahindra Thar is designed on a ladder frame chassis and has a strong body on frame structure. The Thar is available with two engine options including Di and CRDe. The 2523cc Di is capable of producing 63 BHP of power with 180 Nm of torque, whereas the CRDe with a capacity of 2498cc can churn out 105 BHP of power at 3800 RPM with a 247 Nm of torque between 1800-200 RPM, mated to a 5-speed manual gearbox transmitting the power to all the four wheels.
Both the Gurkha and Thar come with an optional AC variant. The Gurkha offers both hard-top and soft-top variants, whereas the Thar comes only with a soft-top variant currently. In terms of prices, the Force Gurkha gets a heavier price tag over the Mahindra Thar.
The Gurkha comes with a starting price of Rs. 6.25 lakhs (ex-showroom Delhi) for the basic soft top 4×2 variant whereas the Thar comes at a starting price of Rs. 4.67 lakhs (ex-showroom Delhi) for the basic Di 4×2 variant.
The Force Gurkha is currently not available in BS4 markets but Force Motors is expected to launch a version which complies with stricter emission norms. While the Mahindra Thar does look more appealing, the Gurkha is expected to be more capable.
Force Gurkha Variants
| Variants | Transmission | Engine Description | Mileage | Power | AC | Power Steering | Central Locking | ||||
| City | Highway | ||||||||||
| (Diesel) | Manual | 2596cc 2 Cylinder |
14.0 | 17.0 | 80.5bhp @ 3200rpm | Standard | Standard | Not Available | |||
| (Diesel) | Manual | 2596cc 2 Cylinder |
14.0 | 17.0 | 80.5bhp @ 3200rpm | Standard | Standard | Not Available | |||
| (Diesel) | Manual | 2596cc 2 Cylinder |
14.0 | 17.0 | 80.5bhp @ 3200rpm | Standard | Standard | Not Available | |||
Force has left no page unturned towards building up a strong, powerful and a safe SUV. The company has loaded the Gurkha with numerous safety features which ensure of full safety to the passengers. The SUV structure is made up of a high tensile strength metal and the company claims of minimal damage which ultimately increases the safety of the passengers.
This new Force Gurkha has been given a tubular chassis which is not only very flexible and is really strong and bringsin extra safety during the crashes . For providing a jolts and jerks free ride, Force Gurkha has got an advanced suspension system, which consists of an double wishbone shock absorbers for the front tyres and dual leaf springs on the rear tyres. This combination of indigenous suspension system at both the ends provides a jerk free ride experience to the passenger and thus enhancing the overall pleasure.
Additional stabilizer bars has been fitted on to the rear axle and anti roll bars are present at front axle. All these class leading features work together for amazing you by giving superb smooth ride even on the toughest grounds.
Force Gurkha is powered by an extremely powerful engine which strives for delivering a flamboyant performance on long hour off road journeys. Under the hood you will find a 2.6-litre OM611 turbo-diesel engine which has replaced the previous 2.2-litre engine . This new engine is tuned in perfectly for moiling out a whooping 81bhp of power and a peak torque amount of 320Nm. However, at this moment we do not have the exact power and torque specifications which would put a light on the amount of rpm this engine takes for producing such monstrous figures. The engine has also got a new EGR cooling unit along with a EGR valve. This engine is mated with a 4x4 system with lockable differential feature. Thus, Force Gurkha is blessed with the an advance All Wheel Drive(AWD) capability for putting up an exceptional tough performance over the high grounds. The engine is mated with a 5-speed manual transmission system. The gear shift ratios are very smooth and prove their mettle on uneven terrains ridden with potholes. The SUV glides through the potholes without any hassles and there is a total absence of bounce and body rolls. The Force Gurkha waves over the undulated roads very swiftly and gives an overwhelming ride experience.
