Tata Motors and Jaguar Land Rover are jointly working on new premium SUV for the Indian market, which will wear the former's badge. Expected to be priced around Rs 20-25 lakh, this Tata SUV will be pitted against the likes of Toyota Fortuner, Mitsubishi Pajero and Hyundai Santa Fe.
According to some reports, the new SUV will be built on a modified version of the LR2 platform, on which the Freelander is developed. The SUV is expected to have the Freelander's monocoque chassis and quality like other Land Rovers.
Powering the new SUV could be the same 2.2-litre diesel engine which does duty in the Aria and Safari Storme, though Tata Motors could consider coupling it with a new transmission. Since the project seems to be in the very initial phase, expect this vehicle to at least take two years to be rolled out.
Now, when both Safari Storme and Aria are struggling to attract buyers, the Indian automajor genuinely needs a good product to make its comeback in the game. So, it will be interesting to see how this new SUV from Tata does against Toyota's Fortuner.
