Tata Harrier: Top 5 Highlights

At the 2018 Auto Expo, the carmaker grabbed attention with two stunning concepts – H5X and 45X. The former was christened as the Harrier and it is being positioned as the most premium offering from Tata’s stable till date. Launched in India a few days ago, at a surprising price bracket, the Harrier is one of the many SUVs that will foray into the Indian car market this year. So here are top five highlights of the Harrier that we think you should know about. 

Design and Platform:

The Harrier can be regarded as the first outcome from Tata’s ownership of JLR. The OMEGA Arc (Optimal Modular Efficient Global Advanced) platform which underpins the Harrier is derived from Land Rover’s very capable D8 architecture.  As we know, the Discovery Sport is based on D8 architecture and is a very capable SUV. Thus, the Harrier is expected to inherit its genes and be competent enough too. 

Meanwhile, the design debuts the new IMPACT 2.0 design direction from Tata. The imposing design of the fascia is rather distinctive owing to the low-placed headlamps and sleek LED strip atop the bonnet line. The profile is masculine with flared arches and simple-looking 17-inch alloy wheels. The rear is reminiscent of the Discovery Sport with its sleek LED taillights joined by a blacked out panel and a well-sculpted derriere. There are five colours to choose from – copper, silver, white, grey, and thermistor gold.

Modern Interior:

The cabin of the Harrier reminds us of more expensive JLR vehicles. The large 8.8-inch (largest in its class) floating touchscreen is nicely integrated onto the button panels below it. The wood-finish panel running across the dash adds a premium touch to the modern cabin. There is a large multifunction steering wheel while the seven-inch TFT screen of the instrument cluster is flanked by analogue speedo- and tachometer. High-quality material is seen all around the cabin with leather upholstery adding to the premium feel of the Harrier. 

Features list:

Being a premium offering from Tata’s stable, the Harrier comes with all the bells and whistle that you can expect from a modern day SUV. The feature list includes projector headlamps, power windows, electric ORVMS, rear parking sensors, as standard.

In higher specs, the Harrier comes loaded with an eight-way adjustable driver seat and four-way adjustable co-driver seat, dual-zone climate control, cooled storage box, umbrella holder, auto headlamps, cruise control, JBL nine-speaker music system, six airbags, driving modes, and ESC with hill hold features. However, it misses out on a sunroof, inbuilt navigation which nearly all other cars in this price range offer.

Powertrain:

Tata Harrier is currently available with a single powertrain option. There is a diesel-manual combo with no option of a petrol engine or automatic transmission. The Fiat-sourced 2.0-litre four-cylinder ‘Kryotec’ diesel engine produces 140bhp of peak power and 350Nm of twisting force. The six-speed manual sends all the power to the front wheels only as there is no AWD layout offered with the Harrier. 

Price and Competition:

Before the launch, Tata said that the pricing will be between Rs 16-21 lakhs. This allegedly placed the Harrier in the Compass territory. However, at launch, the carmaker announced that the Harrier would be priced from Rs 12.69 lakhs to 16.25 lakhs (ex-showroom all-India). So now, the Harrier comes as a feasible alternative to everything from Hyundai Creta, Mahindra XUV500 and Marazzo, newly-launched Nissan Kicks, Maruti S-Cross, Renault Captur, Honda BR-V, to the top-spec variants of C-segment sedans, Jeep Compass and mid-spec Toyota Innova Crysta.