If you have been following IAB quite closely (and we recommend you do), you must have seen the full monty of the new Safari that we exposed to the world. However, those images only reveal the frontal portion of the new Safari Merlin. Now, thanks to Goa on Wheels, we get to see the newly designed rear of the Safari Merlin.
One can easily notice that the spare wheel on the tail gate has disappeared. Probably, it has found a new place under the body. A new chrome strip runs on the tail gate connecting the newly designed tail lamps.
See fully revealing snaps of the Tata Safari Merlin
Like the Aria, the Safari Merlin flaunts twin exhausts and a curvy profile. A small rear spoiler completes the rear profile.
Just like the front, the rear hasn’t been changed much by Tata’s designers. You can still see the hints of the old design in the new Safari. However, the underpinnings are completely different. The vehicle continues using the same 2.2-liter DICOR engine paired to an improved manual transmission. The new Safari Merlin is based on Aria’s X2 platform thus ditching the older one. There are speculations that the new Safari will use a suffix ‘Storm’. We will have to wait till the Auto Expo for confirmation on that speculation.
Do you think the Safari Merlin will fend off its arch rival Mahindra Scorpio and interest waiting list customers of the XUV500?
Indian Autos Blog has left no stone unturned in cracking Tata’s next big launch. The Safari Merlin has featured constantly on our front page over the past year. Right from the first clear shots of the interior, close-up pictures of a skin-camouflaged mule, providing the recipe through listing changes in the car, airing multiple sets of spyshots as our readers couldn’t stop spotting the mule, we’ve been there, done that!
Today we have a substantial development in completing the puzzle – revealing images of the next generation Tata Safari, codenamed Merlin, from Pune clicked by our friend Shatrughan Saxena. Considering the new Safari has been spied before by friend blogs and forums, this is not a groundbreaking development.
What is however is the product looks ready for an Auto Expo unveiling. New details unearthed from the spyshots such as boomerang shaped headlamps with ribbed edge, fat chrome block between the radiator grille and hood, pushed-in front fascia, circular fog lights, chromed, indicator-embedded side mirrors and side step similar to the retiring model confirm our first prediction – the makeover is along the lines of Suzuki’s new Swift – from a distance it looks like a facelift though virtually everything is new.
click through for additional spyshot
Tata Motors maybe planning a grand premiere for the next generation Safari at next month’s Auto Expo but that isn’t stopping them from testing the wheels off it. Codenamed Merlin, the new Safari on first glance is not a complete redo despite not sharing any body panels with the outgoing model.
Image sent in by Chaitanya Pise from Pune
Images show the new Safari taking a more upright stance, drawn back headlamps and spare wheel moved to the vehicle underbelly. Faux wood finish, chrome inserts and parts lifted off the Aria’s inventory are details that interior photographs of the pre-production models revealed.
The 2.2-liter DICOR engine carries on under the bonnet with additions to reduce NVH. Paired to a G76 MkII gearbox, it could produce slightly higher power and torque.
Sources have revealed to IndianAutosBlog.com that Tata Motors is evaluating all possible options for the launch of the next generation Safari that’s been testing since early 2010.
The company is likely to exhibit the model at the Delhi Auto Expo next year and launch it in early 2012. This was the strategy followed with the Aria crossover in 2010.
See interiors shots of the Safari Merlin
The new Safari will not grow significantly in dimension. It is based on the Aria platform and every body panel is different. Interiors are built making use of better quality plastics.
Merlin will borrow features and functions from the Aria. Technical changes have reportedly made the car much easier to drive in the city with a reworked steering system and gearbox. The engine and gearbox have been retained and the power and toque outputs could rise marginally.
IndianAutosBlog can reveal that the name ‘Merlin’ is only an internal code. The commercial name will be different. Given that this is replacement for the existing Safari, it could use a suffix or continue without additions.
Sources recently told IndianAutosBlog.com that Tata Motors is unlikely to conduct the launch of the Safari Merlin in 2011.
From where it stands now, a debut or showcasing of the Safari replacement is not in the vicinity. Tata has the option of making a splash at the Auto Expo in January 2012, but showcasing the new model can lead to the death of sales of the existing Safari. Dealers loaded with stock will find the going tough if Tata opts to display the Merlin as customers will be tempted to wait for the new model before making a decision.
See inside-out spyshots of the Tata Safari Merlin
The source adds that Merlin is seen as the replacement to the current Safari hinting that the original may not stay on.
Barring any further delays, the launch of the Merlin is not expected to take beyond May-June 2012. Prices are touted to reside in the current zipcode as the XUV500 in the immediately higher segment with so many new features takes the game to a different level. The Merlin will hence be sandwiched between the Sumo Grande and the Aria.
Spyshot sent in by our regular reader Bhushan P from Pune.
Sources familiar to the Safari Merlin project told IndianAutosBlog.com that Tata Motors will not launch the vehicle on the last week of this month.
There were many speculative reports and news articles stating that the Merlin comes a day before or after the Mahindra XUV500 to intensify the war of the SUVs. We have learned that this is not true.
There is little doubt that the next launch from Tata Motors is the Merlin, but before pulling off the dust sheets Tata wants to ensure they leave nothing to chance.
The Merlin was caught testing by IAB fan Bhushan P on the NH4 just before Pune. Bhushan says the Merlin was easily doing 120kph. The same mule was caught testing by IAB fan Kapil Jagtap last month near Pune along with interior shots.
Equipped with disc brakes on all four wheels, new steering system, improved gearbox, and many new features borrowed from the Aria parts bin and a 2.2-liter DICOR engine that could produce higher power and torque outputs, the Merlin is on a mission to unsettle the Mahindra Scorpio.
The Safari Merlin is gradually shedding its camouflage and piece by piece the entire puzzle is coming together. Now, a forum member from TheAutomotiveIndia.com has spotted an uncovered Merlin in a parking lot.
We are not surprised to see the Merlin because exactly the same design was previewed in a spy shot taken in November 2010.
click through to see more
After the Aria 4X2 and the Vista upgrade, the next big launch from Tata Motors is going to be the Safari Merlin. Ever since the Safari was launched in 1998, it has achieved a cult SUV status like the Scorpio from Mahindra.
The Tata Safari was always an aspirational product from Tata Motors. You didn’t buy the Safari because it fitted your budget, but because you wanted one badly.
It was also a popular car for the who’s who of the country such as the politicians and film stars. But over the years, the Safari aged and the sales started dwindling. So Tata Motors has decided to breathe new life in the Safari with the Merlin.
Kapil Jagtap, an ardent IAB reader and a Tata Safari fanboy from Pune has sent us some kickass images of the new Tata Safari Merlin completely revealing the interiors.
can’t wait for the images? click through to see a bunch of them
One can easily notice that the spare wheel on the tail gate has disappeared. Probably, it has found a new place under the body. A new chrome strip runs on the tail gate connecting the newly designed tail lamps.
