Tata Merlin to be based on Aria's X2 platform

The Indian consumers are waiting with bubbling enthusiasm for the upcoming launch of Tata Merlin SUV. The Merlin in other words is based on Tata’s Safari SUV. The most pronounced change in the Merlin SUV is the new platform upon which it is built.  A smaller X2 platform of Tata Aria 4x2 is shared by the new SUV to improve the overall driveability, performance  and handling of the car. However, one should not dare to forget the complete deviation of the new model from the original Tata Safari. With more upmarket looks on cards, the Tata Merlin price is expected to range around Rs 11 lakh to sit in direct competition with Mahindra XUV500.

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The tweaked engine for more power hungry consumers is certainly present to take them on a drive worth cherishing. However, it’s the same Tata Safari 2.2 L DiCOR engine to produce some impressive power of 140 Bhp and 350 Nm of peak torque. The aggressive stance of the Merlin SUV which has changed from the Safari model. The overall built of the SUV now looks more muscular. There is not a single feature on the new SUV to make us relate to the older Safari by any measure. Right from the grille in the front to the delicately shaped headlamps, Tata Merlin sits in a different league altogether. Another distinction is the chrome touches on the twin exhausts in the rear end of the car. To cap it all, the rear end matches up well with the extended makeover along the fascia.

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Though the interiors of the car are decked with wooden inserts, the lack of the much-in-demand steering mounted audio controls will pinch the consumers. The spruced up interiors are laid out neatly covering all the bare essentials in the SUV. However, Tata India has retained the age old side seating arrangement in the rear of the car again in the lines of the Tata Safari. Similar kind of AC vents and the tachometer arrangement on the instrument cluster is expected in the new SUV.

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