Mahindra Thar Sand 2 Snow: We set a new national record with the Thar!

At 8AM on March 17, the Mahindra Thar set a new national record for the fastest Sand 2 Snow drive. Having covered a distance of 1299.4km in 22 hours, this record was the first of its kind and it was the perfect test of the Thar’s capability and versatility across our country’s diverse terrain. Two Mahindra Thars were used for attempting this record run and both were powered by the mStallion150 TGDI petrol engine mated to the automatic gearbox.

Our Sand 2 Snow record run was flagged off from the Sam sand dunes in Rajasthan at 10AM on March 16. In addition to the Editor Sirish Chandran from evo India and Engage 4x4 India, the two Thars would be driven by Arjuna awardee Gaurav Gill, 10-time Raid de Himalaya winner Suresh Rana and off-road veteran Madan Choudhary. The record run was validated by Mohit Vats, adjudicator for the India Book of Records. In order for the record to be validated, the Thars would need to cover 5km in the sand before hitting the tarmac.

During the record run, the crew would be sticking to the legal speed limit – 80kmph – and would drive non-stop from the Sam sand dunes to Jispa in Himachal Pradesh, which is just over 90km from Manali. After maintaining good average speeds through Rajasthan, the team would soldier on towards Haryana, having grabbed pack lunch on the go from Bikaner. The Thars were refuelled at the Haryana border at 6 PM, after having covered nearly 638 km in 8 hours. The team drove on post sunset towards Hisar, stopping for a quick dinner in Kaithal. Post-dinner, the average pace would drop as the crew headed towards the mountains with road works and traffic hindering progress. Despite those setbacks, the crew would reach Manali by the crack of dawn and since we had been on the road since with minimal stops, we halted at The Himalayan in Manali to grab some much-needed rest and scrumptious breakfast. Refreshed and ready, the Mahindra Thars made their way to the snow-clad surroundings of Jispa, ending the record run at 8 AM, which translated to 22 hours of driving time.

All said and done, this was a marvellous test of endurance for both man and machine, with the capability and versatility of the Mahindra Thar truly coming into its own, as a 4x4 SUV that is equally at home on the tarmac or off it.