My take on the Harrier on why it has what it takes to be winner
1. Looks, no to ways about it. Enough has been said about it.
2. Space. for about 70% of times its one or 2 occupants in the car. 7 seater makes little sense. Unless you love the MUV design (which l love) But other than that, I have use the last 2 jump seats only once for 25KM rest its only the 5 seats being used. So 5 seats are more than sufficient for majority of the usage. So 5 stater car with very good space is more than welcome than having compromised space to accommodate 7 seats.
3. Boot space is great I bet you can put a 165 ltr fridge in it. should be ableto carry international luggage for a family very easily.
4. Power is good, Torque is good. I have a Storme which weighs over 2 tons, its has 2.2 ltr varicor engine 140hp,320nm torque. And power is more than enough. Now you have same power, 30mn more torque and 600kg shaved off. imagine what kind of beast you will have. So talk of underpowered engine is all "bovine excreta". Drive the car to get the feel of it.
5. Ground clearance is great.you have LR front suspension, lotus tuned rear suspenses. So on ride and handling this car will be top notch. So driving in uneven roads will not be botheration.
6. Safety wise, top end has more than enough features, base variant has basic safety features in place. So safety is uncompromised. Build quality and I can definitely vouch for it. So that aspect is taken care. of
7. Interiors are very elegant and have all the required bells and whistles which can be used on daily basis. Great ICE, great elegant interiors, airy feel, upmarket upholstery quality materials used.
8. After sales should not be a problem, I have experienced Tata service for last 6 years and has been Good to very good. In Hyderabad and in Chennai now. plus if you have premium car, you have access to the GM of the workshop and things do get moving. So I don't see problem in that.
What there is perceived problem is No AT, which many would want mandatorily, will be 100% available in Harrier, Petrol variant will come. Will be part of the product lifecycle. IF they provide every thing in one go, what else should company provide as part of refresh? Sunroof. Which again will make way into the product later.
So all in all I feel this car has what is expected of a car of this stature.
[RANT]
Now people can crib all their heart out, about panel gaps are more, (which again feel is part of design, SUV will have higher gaps to give some tolerance for the car on abuse) people may crib about bad plastics, again that is subjective. Crib about bad paint, that I have not found. Inface I feel paint quality of Tata cars from Storme , zest onwards have been one of the best in the country.
So people who crib will crib no matter what Tata do. Let them.
[/RANT]