Mahindra has just launched the all-new next-generation 2022 Scorpio-N in India. The brand is touting it as the “Big Daddy of SUVs” and aiming to take on the D-segment and C-segment SUVs. Helping with this is Scorpio-N’s wide range of variants, powertrains and drivetrains. Mahindra has added an ‘N’ suffix and also brought the Scorpio nameplate back into focus.
Another company to bring an old nameplate into focus is Tata. The company launched the Harrier and then revived the Safari nameplate for its three-row version. The old Tata Safari was one of the biggest competitors of the Scorpio in the past. And now, with both in all-new avatars, they go head to head again. In this price and specification comparison, we pin and compare the two so that you can make an informed buying decision.
The new Mahindra Scorpio-N will be available in 5 variants – Z2, Z4, Z6, Z8 and Z8L. The Scorpio-N will come with a choice of a petrol and diesel engine. There will also be an option of a 4WD drivetrain and an automatic gearbox. Pricing starts at INR 11.99 lakh for the Z2 Petrol MT. The same Z2 MT variant with the diesel engine costs INR 12.49 lakh. The Z4 Petrol MT and Z4 Diesel MT cost INR 13.49 lakh and INR 13.99 lakh, respectively.
The Z6 variant of the Scorpio-N is only available with a diesel engine. The Z6 Diesel MT costs INR 14.99 lakh. The Z8 variants are available in both petrol and diesel. The price for the Z8 Petrol MT is INR 16.99 lakh and INR 17.49 lakh for the Z8 Diesel MT. The range-topping variant’s pricing starts at INR 18.99 lakh for the Z8L Petrol MT. At the same time, the Z8L Diesel MT costs INR 19.49 lakh.
Mahindra will reveal the prices for the 6-seater, 4WD and automatic variants on 21st July 2022. Furthermore, it is important to note that the prices mentioned are introductory prices. As such, these prices will be applicable only for the first 25,000 bookings.
On the other hand, the Tata Safari comes in 9 main variants. Unlike the Scorpio-N, the Tata Safari does not come with a petrol engine option. The manual gearbox variants are – XE, XM, XT, XT+, XZ and XZ+. The automatic variants of the Safari add an ‘A’ suffix to its variants. The four main automatic variants are – XMA, XTA+, XZA and XZA+. The top-end variants of the Safari, XZ+ and XZA+ are also available in a 6-seater configuration.
In addition, the Tata Safari is available in four different editions – Kaziranga, Dark, Gold and Adventure Persona. The Kaziranga Edition pays homage to the Kaziranga National Park and comes with an exclusive colour option. Meanwhile, the Dark Edition gives a stealthy blacked-out look to the Tata Safari. The Safari Gold, on the other hand, adds hints of gold trims on the exterior and interior of the SUV and is available in two colour options. Lastly, the Safari Adventure Persona comes in two colour options and interiors that draw inspiration from the golden hues of desert sand.
The pricing for Tata Safari’s manual variants starts at INR 15.25 lakh for the XE variant. The next three variants, XM, XT and XT+ cost INR 16.70 lakh, INR 18.20 lakh and INR 19 lakh, respectively. The XT+ variant is also available in the Dark Edition and costs INR 19.25 lakh. The XZ and XZ+ and XZ+ with 6-seater configuration cost INR 19.95 lakh, INR 20.95 lakh and INR 21.05 lakh.
The XZ+ variant is available with all the different editions of the Safari. The Adventure Persona and Kaziranga Edition in the XZ+ variant cost INR 21.20 lakh. The XZ+ 6-seater configurations of the Adventure Persona and Kaziranga Edition cost INR 21.30 lakh. The Dark Edition in the XZ+ and XZ+ six-seater configuration costs INR 21.25 lakh and INR 21.35 lakh. Meanwhile, the Gold Edition costs INR 22.06 lakh for XZ+ and INR 21.16 for the XZ+ with a 6-seater configuration.
The pricing for Tata Safari’s automatic variants starts at INR 17.80 lakh for the XMA variant. The three other main variants, XTA+, XZA and XZA+, cost INR 20.30 lakh, INR 21.25 lakh and INR 22.25 lakh. The six-seater version of the XZA+ variant costs INR 22.35 lakh. Meanwhile, the Dark Edition of the Safari is available in a total of 3 automatic variants – XTA+, XZA+ and XZA+ with a six-seater configuration. The pricing for these Dark Edition variants is INR 20.55 lakh, INR 22.55 lakh and INR 22.65 lakh, respectively.
At the same time, the Kaziranga and Gold Editions and the Adventure Persona are available only in the XZA+ variant. The Adventure Persona and the Kaziranga Edition in the XZA+ variant cost INR 22.50 lakh and INR 22.60 lakh with the six-seat configuration. The most expensive models in the complete Safari range are the Gold Edition with an automatic gearbox. The XZA+ Gold Edition costs INR 23.36 lakh and INR 23.46 lakh in the six-seat configuration.
* Prices mentioned are ex-showroom prices.
The 2022 Scorpio-N will be available in a total of seven colour options. These are – Everest White, Deep Forest, Napoli Black, Red Rage, Dazzling Silver, Royal Gold and Grand Canyon. However, it is important to note that lower variants are not available with all the colour options.
Meanwhile, the standard Tata Safari is available in four colour options – Tropical Mist, Royal Blue, Orcus White and Daytona Grey. The Dark Edition of the Safari comes with an Oberon Black colour option and black alloy wheels. Meanwhile, the Kaziranga Edition gets a Grassland Beige colour option with black wheels. The Adventure Persona is available in two colour options – Tropical Mist and Orcus White, both come with black alloy wheels. Lastly, the Gold Edition comes in two colour options – Gold White and Gold Black. It features various gold accents and black alloy wheels.
Mahindra will offer the Scorpio-N with both petrol and diesel engine options. As for the petrol engine, it uses the same unit as the Thar and XUV700. The 2.0-litre TGDi mStallion engine uses a turbocharger and produces 200 PS of power and up to 380 Nm of torque. Meanwhile, the diesel engine is Mahindra’s 2.2-litre mHawk engine that makes up to 175 PS and 400 Nm of torque. Both engines will come with a choice of a 6-speed manual and a 6-speed automatic transmission. Furthermore, higher diesel variants will also be available with a 4WD drivetrain.
On the other hand, the Tata Safari comes only with one engine option. It gets a 2.0-litre Kryotec turbo-diesel engine which delivers 170 PS of power and 350 Nm of torque. Like the Scorpio-N, it is available with a 6-speed manual and 6-speed automatic transmission. However, unlike the Scorpio-N, it does not get an option of a 4WD drivetrain. And since it uses a monocoque chassis, it comes with a front-wheel-drive setup.
Mahindra claims the Scorpio-N will have the best-in-class front and first-in-category rear suspension setup. At the front, the Scorpio-N uses a Double-Wishbone suspension with Coil over shocks. While at the back, it gets a Pentalink suspension with WATT’s Linkage. Both the front and rear also feature first-in-category Frequency Dependent Damping (FDD) and Multi-tuned Valve Central Land (MTV-CL).
On the other hand, Tata’s Safari uses an independent, lower wishbone and McPherson Strut with Coil Spring and an anti-roll bar at the front. At the same, the rear uses a semi-independent twist blade with Panhard Rod and Coil Spring.
As for the brakes, both the SUVs use disc brakes at both ends.
The latest entrant to the segment, Mahindra Scorpio-N, measures 4,662 mm in length, 1,917 mm in width and 1,857 mm in height. The wheelbase of the Scorpio-N is 2,750 mm. The fuel tank capacity of the Scorpio-N is 57 litres.
Meanwhile, the Tata Safari measures 4,661 mm in length, 1,894 mm in width and 1,786 mm in height. Thus, the Scorpio-N is longer, wider and taller than the Safari. The Tata Safari has a wheelbase of 2,741 mm, which is 9 mm shorter than the Scorpio-N. The fuel tank capacity of the Tata Safari is 50 litres.
Also Read: 2022 Mahindra Scorpio-N launched in India at INR 11.99 lakh