Tata Harrier Dark Edition gets only cosmetic updates but is too little, too late?
The night is dark and full of terror but no Dark Edition can hide the terror created by the Tata Harrier’s rivals and the Indian manufacturer is surely facing the heat. A great product but not so great product planning is the reason why the Tata Harrier will never be as much as a success as it deserves to be but more on that later, let’s first talk about what is this Dark Edition all about.
14 design enhancements is what the press release states but none to the mechanicals, nor are there any feature additions, it doesn’t need the former but definitely needs the latter. The Tata Harrier Dark Edition is priced at Rs. 16.76 lakhs (ex-showroom) and is available in the top-spec XZ trim, its price is the same as the Harrier Dual-Tone (which was launched to celebrate 10,000 unit sales), thus being Rs. 20,000/- more than the regular model and a lot more than its feature loaded competitors.
The Tata Harrier Dark Edition gets a new atlas black body colour with 17-inch Blackstone alloy wheels (they are the same regular alloys seen on all other Harriers but have been blackened). The outside rearview mirrors, door handles, rear spoiler have also got the black treatment. The story is the same on the inside too with the Blackstone theme, right from the dashboard to the carpet and to the Benecke Kaliko (whatever that means!) Blackstone leather seats. Instead of wood inserts on the dashboard, the Dark Edition gets a gunmetal grey finish to complement the black treatment.
Tata Motors sold just 740 units of the Harrier last month although they recently announced the availability of an electric sunroof as an accessory for a staggering price of Rs. 95,100/- (installation charges extra). The company should focus less on the paint job and work on bringing in a new higher trim with a sunroof, wireless charger, electric driver seat adjustment, auto-dimming inside rearview mirror and an automatic gearbox option (I am not even asking for connected car features, 360 degree parking camera or a heads-up display), because colours aren’t enough to boost sales.
Don’t believe us, Tata Motors’ press release states the black treatment “make it a perfect blend of design flourish and premiumness” and “interiors are completely refreshed.” I will leave you guys to judge that while I am out painting everything I see in black!
Tata Harrier Dark Edition
– Gets a blackened theme
– No mechanical changes whatsoever
– Still misses out on the slew of features offered by rivals
