Having successfully unveiled the 7 seater version of the Harrier earlier this month at the 2019 Geneva Auto Show, Tata Motors is getting ready the 7-seater version for its India launch and heavily testing it in our conditions. Our avid reader Adnan Shaikh sends us spy pics that he captured of the 7-seater version (H7X) of the Harrier spotted in Pune. Tata Motors have named the 7-seater version of the Harrier as the Buzzard for the European markets while in India it would mostly be called as the Cassini.
Its never was a secret that Tata Motors was working on the long wheelbase version of the Harrier the H7X. The test mule spotted looks similar to the Tata Harrier except for its length which is longer and the roof-line which is slightly raised around the tailgate to increase the headroom for the 3rd row passengers along with a large fixed quarter glass. Apart from this the H7X also gets a slightly wider wheel arches and a bigger sized alloys and a larger tailgate glass.
Rest of the body styling remains identical to that of the 5 seater Harrier. The Harrier is the first vehicle to sport Tata Motors’ ‘IMPACT Design 2.0’ philosophy and is built on the OMEGA Platform that is also used by Land Rover. Currently the Harrier is the flagship model for Tata Motors. The 5-seater Tata Harrier is powered by the 2.0-litre four-cylinder Kryotec turbo diesel engine here it will be tuned to hit out 170PS of power as against 140PS on the Harrier. Transmission options include 6-speed manual gearbox and also a 6-speed torque convertor automatic option. . For the start the Harrier is available with a single engine and transmission option. Later we expect the Harrier to come with an automatic option as well. The 7-seater H7X will also be powered by the same engine tuned for more power for the extra size and weight. We also expect the H7X Harrier to come with All Wheel Drive option from day one.
On the design front the Tata Harrier looks extremely different and futuristic, the exterior design and styling looks a lot like the Land Rover range of cars. The Harrier has a proper SUV dimensions. The front sports the unique DRL with turn indicators on the top with the xenon HID projector headlights placed much lower than on a normal car. Sides come with floating roof design, the styling is enhanced with with chrome finishers along with the Harrier branding. Flared wheel arches give the Harrier a rough and aggressive look. The build quality and the paint quality is extremely high and the Harrier is a complete head turner with its unconventional headlight styling and sleek 3D LED tail styling. The biggest difference on the 7-seater Harrier is the more upright placed rear windshield as compared to the slanting rear glass on the 5 seater Harrier along with the large third row fixed glass.
On the inside the Harrier gets good level of feature list and is loaded till brim in terms of safety features. Signature Oak brown interiors look very premium and classy. You also get a 8.8 inch floating touchscreen infotainment system with full connectivity options. Audio system is by JBL that plays through a 9-speaker system pumping out 320W of neat audio quality. The infotainment system comes with all the connectivity options along with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The Tata Harrier also comes with a Multi Drive 2.0 drive mode selector for Dry, Wet and Normal preset driving modes. The steering comes with leather wrapping not forgetting the Aero-Throttle inspired hand brake styling. The instrument cluster includes a unique 7 inch colored TFT screen along with the speedo dial.
The long safety list of the Tata Harrier includes 6-airbags, ABS with ESP, Corner stability control, Hill descent control, Hill hold control, Roll over mitigation, Hydraulic brake assist, ISOFIX anchor points for child seats, Fog lamps with cornering function, reverse park camera etc. Other features on the Tata Harrier include Auto headlamps, Rain sensing wipers, Full Auto climate control, cooled storage box, electric wing mirrors with auto fold.
The 7- seater Tata Cassini will mostly be launched by the end of 2019 and will compete with the likes of the Toyota Fortuner, Ford Endeavour, Honda CR-V and the recently launched Mahindra Alturas G4.
Also a big shout-out to our in-house sharp shooter Arya Borhade for the spy shots.