Mahindra Needs To Offer The Thar In More Exciting Colours

Imagine if the only bright colour you could have was red… That’s what Mahindra needs to fix with the Thar

The second-gen Mahindra Thar has been a runaway success with its styling, powertrain options, comforts and off-road capabilities. It carries the legacy of the Indian jeep and thus enjoys a degree of popularity from a customer base that is either loyal to the Mahindra brand or to the jeep lifestyle. However, there is an obvious cosmetic aspect that the carmaker could improve to expand the Thar’s appeal: wider choice of exciting colours.

What are the current choices?

Due to the nature of the roof’s design with the choice of a convertible soft top or a fixed hard top, all Thars have a dual-tone exterior with the black top. The choices for the body colour, which can depend on the variant, are: Rage Red, Mystic Copper, Galaxy Grey, Aqua Marine, Rocky Beige and Napoli Black. While the red is one bright option, it's also a common one and not just within Mahindra’s lineup. The rest of the colours do cater to the more mature buyer but subdue the Thar’s presence which does leave some of the more excitable buyers without a favourable choice. It doesn’t even get the option of a bright white even though one such Thar has been spied testing.

Why do bright colours matter?

The exterior colour of the car can easily shape its perception, both for buyers and bystanders. Most carmakers try to offer a range of colours that can cater to a wide enough variety of their targeted customers with a mix of dull, mature and bright paint options. Different cars have varied purposes and they need to be offered with colours to match. This also applies to various vehicles from the same auto manufacturer. For example, there’s no point in Audi selling a bright yellow A8, they will offer that kind of colour with the A3 Cabriolet or the RSQ8. 

In the case of the Mahindra Thar, it has a strong appeal with off-roading enthusiasts and those who want an adventurous lifestyle. In many cases, these interests can overlap. So why not have a factory-spec Thar in a colour that will stand out in almost any circumstance or is a better expression of the buyer’s personality? That’s where bright paint colours could make this three-door sub-4m SUV look like a bundle of fun from a distance with an uplifting presence in an ocean of traffic.

What off-roaders come with bright colours?

Yes. Other iconic off-road vehicles in the world already offer the kind of bright colours not available with the Mahindra Thar. The most common option is usually a bright and youthful shade of blue. For instance, the new Ford Bronco gets the choice of a shade called Antimatter Blue, and the Suzuki Jimny has a brighter paint option called Blisk Blue.

Meanwhile, the Jeep Wrangler has the choice of two bright blues: Hydro Blue (pearl coat) and the slightly less shiny Chief (clear coat) paint option.

A peppy blue could give an entirely different presence to the Thar but it is still somewhat tame in comparison to another popular colour option for a lifestyle SUV: Yellow. Once again, the three aforementioned icons of these types of vehicles all offer such bright and uplifting exterior colours. The latest-gen Jimny is best recognised in its Kinetic Yellow avatar (which looks a bit like a neon green highlighter), which seems to be inspired by the Mercedes-Benz G-Wagon 4x4 squared which was offered in an equally outlandish paint called Electric Beam Yellow. You’d be hard-pressed to get a new Mercedes-Benz in this colour these days but it opened a doorway for crazy colours on large off-roaders.

The Jeep Wrangler is offered with the choice of both yellow and orange exterior paint options called Hellayella and Nacho respectively. The American carmaker certainly has a knack for giving colours fun names which also appeals to the targeted customer base. It is worth noting that Jeep does not offer the blue, yellow or orange paint options with the Wrangler in India.

While Ford does not have a summer yellow for its lineup of SUVs or pickups, the Bronco does get the option of vibrant orange. This triple coat paint finish is called Cyber Orange and it makes the off-road vehicle stand out in any crowd.

Final thoughts

Many older iterations of the old Mahindra jeeps have been resprayed with similar bright colours, a creative expression of their respective owners. With all these precedents, the Mahindra Thar could certainly benefit from introducing excitable colours that could even be offered on other upcoming models. Which colour option would you like to see be offered with the Thar? Let us know in the comments below!

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