Morris Garages India has silently been developing a facelift version of their best selling Hector 5 seat Crossover SUV and now this facelift version has started to arrive at showrooms a few weeks ahead of its expected launch. Here's a quick summary on what to expect on the updated Hector.

The 2021 MG Hector gets cosmetic and feature upgrades to the exterior and interior.

Exterior updates:

• New front grille with Chrome studs (similar to Mercedes Benz cars)

• Glossy black strip connecting the tail lamps, replacing the red reflector.

• 18” dual tone alloy
  

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Apart from these updates, the 2021 Hector will look largely the same as the current model and will carry forward the same features including LED headlamps, DRLs and tail lamps, Roof rails, Panoramic sunroof and surround body cladding.

Interior and feature updates:

• Dual tone, beige and black interior theme

• Ventilated front seats

• Wireless charging

• Proximity auto door locks

While the design layout and quality will remain exactly the same, the 2021 Hector will get a dual tone colour theme while also offering some new features to have an edge over the Seltos and Creta. It will also receive Proximity sensing auto door locks which can automatically lock or unlock the car by sensing the distance of the key fob, without the need to press the request button on the door handles.

Other features including the large portrait-style touchscreen system, 100+ voice commands, ambient mood lighting, digital instrument cluster, powered seats, leather upholstery are expected to remain the same on the top spec variants.

The Hector will continue to offer class leading 625L of boot space, while also offering smart powered tailgate.

Powertrain:

The current range of engine will be carried forward to the facelift Hector as well:

• 1.5L turbo petrol non hybrid producing 145PS through 6 speed manual or DCT

• 1.5L turbo petrol with 48V mild hybrid producing 145PS through 6 speed manual

• 2.0L Fiat-sourced turbo diesel producing 170PS through a 6 speed manual.

Launch and price:

The new MG Hector facelift is expected to be launched officially before mid-January and the top spec Sharp Variant is expected to be priced around ?30,000 higher than the current Sharp trim level.

       Just as before, the new Hector will compete against the Tata Harrier, Jeep Compass. Hyundai Creta and Kia Seltos.

Stay tuned for further updates.

Tata Motors have revealed their flagship Safari 7-seat SUV on the 26th January 2021. The new Safari will be available in 6 variants in total.

The Variants include:

XE, XM, XT, XT+, XZ, XZ+

The new gen Safari is essentially the 7 seat extended version of the Harrier 5 seat SUV based on the Land Rover derived OMEGA arc platform. Earlier this SUV was named the Buzzard at the Geneva auto expo, which was then changed to Gravitas for the Delhi auto expo last year. Now, Tata motors has finalized that it will be the successor to legendary

Based on the Harrier, the Safari will be around 60mm longer than the Harrier to accommodate the extra 2 seats while also being taller to provide better headroom for the 3rd row. Except for the larger dimensions and extra seats, the Safari is largely similar to the 5-seat Harrier. However, the front grille gets a slightly different treatment, featuring the signature Tri-arrow pattern finished in Chrome.

The tailgate is more upright, giving the Safari a more boxy appearance and the SUV will also feature long functional roof rails for lifestyle utility. The top spec variants will receive 18” dual tone alloy wheels with the design similar to the Harrier's whereas the lower spec variants will carry forward the exact same 16” Steel wheels seen on the Harrier’s lower variants. The higher variants are also offered with a Panoramic sunroof.

The new Safari will be available with 7 seats as standard while only the XZ and XZ+ will be optional with a 6 seat configuration.

Here’s a detailed walkthrough on the features available on the different Variants:

XE:

Projector headlamps

Functional roof rails (75kg load bearing)

Halogen bi-functional DRLs

Central locking

All-black interior

Telescopic steering wheel

Front center armrest with cooled storage

Power windows

Manual Aircon

Rear AC vents

Digital MID

60:40 split 2nd row seats

Boss mode 2nd row

50:50 split 3rd row

16” Steel rims

Standard safety features include:

Dual airbags

Pretensioner seatbelts

All wheel disc brakes

ABS with EBD

Corner stability control

ESP with traction control

Hill hold control

Roll over mitigation

Hydraulic brake assist

Electronic brake prefill

Brake disc wiping

Engine drag torque control

ISOFIX child seat mounts

Reverse sensors

Engine immobilizer

Perimetric alarm

XM:

Front fog lamps

Rear wiper/washer and defogger

Electrically adjustable ORVMs

Driver seat height adjust

7” touchscreen system

Reverse assist display

6 speakers from Harman

Steering mounted audio controls

Rear armrest

Remote central locking

Multi drive modes : City, Eco and Sport

XT:

18” single tone alloys

Soft touch dash top

Dual tone interior

Reverse camera

Android Auto & Apple carplay

IRA connect features

What 3 words

Smart key access

Push button start

Power folding ORVMs

Cruise control

Auto climate control

Auto Headlamps & wipers

Mood lighting

Auto dimming IRVM

Tyre pressure monitoring system

XT+:

Panoramic sunroof

XZ:

Dual tone machined 18” alloys

Xenon projector headlamps

Oyster white Leather upholstery

Leather wrap steering and gear lever

7” semi digital instrument cluster

8.8” touchscreen system

9 speakers from JBL with subwoofer

6 way Powered driver seat

Driver lumbar adjust

Terrain response modes (Wet and rough modes)

Additional safety features include:

6 Airbags

Hill descent control

XZ+:

Panoramic sunroof

Powertrain:

       The Safari, just like the Harrier will be available with a diesel engine mated to a 6 speed manual transmission as standard. A 6 speed torque converter automatic transmission will be available only on the XMA, XZA and XZA+ variants. The 2L Kryotec turbo diesel produces 170PS Power and 350NM torque. From the XM variant onwards, the Safari will be available with three drive modes; Eco, City and Sport.

Launch & price:

        The new Safari is expected to be priced from ?15L to ?20L for the Manual variants and ?17.5L to ?21L for the Automatic variants. Bookings for the new Safari will commence from the 4th of February onwards and when launched, Tata’s new flagship SUV will compete against the likes of the MG Hector plus and the next generation Mahindra XUV500.

Stay tuned for further updates on the pricing.

Ford C-Segment SUV Design Almost Completed by Pininfarina. The front design Spotted Ahead of Launch. The spy image reveals the new attractive front chrome and glassy black design and Mustang-inspired LED DRL's. Also, It will get a completely different design, different wheelbase and It will be more enthusiast-focused, gives better driving dynamics than XUV500.

Ford India and Mahindra had formed a strategic alliance last year. The collaboration, using the strengths of both companies to deliver operational excellence and value to stakeholders. The partnership will allow Ford and Mahindra to offer a new product to

Ford Midsize SUV:

 This new mid-size 5 seat Ford C segment SUV is likely to be based on the next-generation Mahindra XUV500 which is currently in the testing phase. Both, the underpinnings and the powertrain of the XUV500 will be shared with the Ford SUV. The ford Version of the SUV will get a completely new design and different wheelbase and it will be enthusiasts focused and get better driving dynamics than the XUV590.   The Mahindra XUV500 is likely to be powered by a mHawk 2.2-litre diesel producing 156PS and a 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine from the mStallion engine family producing around 170PS. The new Ford ‘CX757’ SUV will rival the Jeep Compass, Tata Harrier and the MG Hector in the Indian market with a market launch expected to happen only after the launch of the new XUV 500 next year.

Ford Compact SUV:

 A smaller 4300mm length B-SUV will be launched after the C segment SUV. Codenamed ‘BX745’, the B segment SUV is likely to be based on an extended version of the XUV300 and is also expected to be designed by Pininfarina. The B-SUV is likely to arrive with a 1.5-litre TGDi (turbo-petrol) from Mahindra mStallion family producing around 150PS and a 1.5-litre diesel producing 120PS as well. The smaller B segment SUV will compete against the best selling Hyundai Creta and the Kia Seltos when launched later in 2022. 

Ford Sub Compact SUV:

  The last of the three new SUVs is the next-generation Ford EcoSport subcompact SUV. This new EcoSport is codenamed ‘BX744’ and is also likely to get the design inputs for Pininfarina. The next-generation EcoSport is expected to be powered by the Mahindra XUV300’s 1.2-litre TGDi (turbo-petrol) engine producing 130PS along with the familiar 1.5L 4 cyl diesel engine producing 120PS.

Stay tuned for further information on these new SUVs from the Ford-Mahindra alliance.

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