A new test mule of the Force Motors’ 5-door Gurkha has been spotted. This time around, we have noticed some new details of the SUV. Apart from the spy shots, there are no updates with regards to the launch of the vehicle. That said, with the launch of the new 5-door Suzuki Jimny and the upcoming 5-d00r Mahindra Thar, Force could do well by launching this SUV sooner than later.
We know that Force has been testing out the 5-door Gurkha for a long time now. However, this time, the test mule gets a different front end. It now resembles the Force Citiline MUV and has rectangular headlamps. The bumper gets camouflage, but it bears resemblance to the Citiline bumper as well. This is a welcome departure from the 3-door Gurkha’s circular headlamps and dual horizontal slat grille.
Other bits like the 18-inch alloy wheels, snorkel intake and the overall ground clearance of the vehicle remain the same.
Looks like Force is not yet sure on the seating configuration of the 5-door Gurkha. We have spotted multiple test mules with a variety of seating options. There are 5-seat variants with two rows, a 6-seater triple row layout and a 7-seat option with middle row bench and dual captain seats in the 3rd row.
The dashboard also appears to be similar to the current Gurkha. However, there is no touchscreen infotainment system.
One more change is the updated 4WD control. Earlier 3 and 5-door test mules had a manually operated transfer case. These also came equipped with lockable front and rear differentials. However, now it seems the SUV has gained a shift-on-the-fly knob for 4WD. This is positioned adjacent to the driver’s seat.
Like the 3-door counterpart, the 5-door version is likely to retain the same Mercedes-derived 2.6-litre diesel engine. It will be paired with a 5-speed manual gearbox.
Also Read – Force Gurkha pick-up spotted testing with soft top.