New spy shots of the new Tata Safari have surfaced on the internet which was apparently caught during its ad film shoot in Pune. The new Tata Safari is going to be showcased at the upcoming 2012 Auto Expo to be held in New Delhi from 7th to 11th January, 2012. It has been under test for quite some time now and will compete with the Mahindra XUV500 at launch. The changes are not drastic but the Safari now uses the Aria’s X2 platform. This will improve the ride and handling balance of the SUV drastically. This updated Tata Safari is likely to get the name “Storm” along with Safari and not the name Merlin as was rumoured earlier. Looking at the spy shots, some of the changes are quite evident.
The front gets a more sportier and aggressive look with broader front grille and larger wrap around headlamps with projectors. The front grille and gets a thick chrome strip that projects into the headlamps. There has been some minor design changes made to the front bumper too. At the rear, it gets twin exhaust just like the Aria and they are neatly encapsulated inside the rear bumper. The exhaust also seems to have obtained some chrome linings. The Tata logo is more prominent and again a thick chrome strip runs right across under it between both the tail lamps. The tail lights also receive some design changes. However, on the overall the look of the car remains the same with the company just increasing the level of sport appeal. On the inside, a 4 spoke steering wheel design has been implemented. The dash also gets lots of wooden inserts to provide an upmarket feel. Safety features include 6 airbags, ESP, EBD, ABS and Hill Descent Control likely. The car is going t be powered by the same 2.2 litre Dicor engine that produces 140 BHP of power and 320 Nm of torque.
Source – GoaOnWheels
