Tata Motors unveils new Safari

Mumbai: Tata Motors has launched the Safari Exi Petrol, a new version of its Safari premium utility vehicle, with a more powerful petrol engine.

In recent times there has been a plethora of new sports utility vehicle launches in India, providing intense competition to existing sports utility vehicle (SUV) makers in India.

The Safari Exi Petrol is priced at Rs 9.35 lakh for the two-wheel drive and Rs 10.22 lakh for the four-wheel drive option, says Tata Motors vice-president (passenger cars) Rajiv Dube.

According to him, the Safari Exi Petrol is fitted with a new 2.1-litre petrol engine, which delivers 135-bhp of power, which the company feels will help it to compete with new SUV models, whose engines deliver power ranging from 120-150-bhp.

Tata sold 1,400 units of the Safari between April and August 2003. The Safari sales grew by 18.5 per cent last fiscal and are growing by 18 per cent this year, Dube says. The company hopes to find a big market for the vehicle overseas and is studying potential markets in China, the Middle East and Latin America for the Safari.

Tata Motors has also re-launched the Safari in the UK through a tie-up with a new distributor, Phoenix Venture Holdings, which owns MG Rover. The vehicle has been homologated for local conditions.