- Gets a six-seat layout
- Expected to be introduced in India in 2023
While the five-door Mahindra Thar and Maruti Suzuki Jimny began testing in the country a few months back, there’s one automaker which has a production version of its five-door SUV ready to go on sale. It’s the homebred Force Gurkha whose three-door avatar was launched last year and has now showcased its five-door iteration at the Indo Defence Expo and Forum in Indonesia.
Christened as the Kstaria SUV, Republik Motor will produce the Indonesian-spec of the five-door Gurkha. As for the styling, the Kstaria looks identical to the Gurkha sold in India with circular LED headlamps, a flat bonnet, and chunky wheel arches. However, the evident differences on the outside are the new design for the alloy wheels, rear doors, and a bull guard on the front bumper.
Inside, the cabin of the Kstaria resembles to that of the Gurkha with circular aircon vents, an analogue instrument cluster, a manual air conditioner, and a three-spoke steering wheel. That said, the black and beige theme for the dashboard and the door pads breaks the black colour monotony and looks good.
The Kstaria can fit six occupants with captain seats in the middle row and there are more aircon vents that can be seen on the roof. Under the hood, it will make use of the Gurkha’s 2.6-litre diesel engine that produces 90bhp and 250Nm of peak torque. The motor is mated to a five-speed manual gearbox.
We expect the five-door Force Gurkha to be introduced in India early next year. With its launch, the Gurkha is looking to rival the likes of the Mahindra Thar five-door and Maruti Suzuki Jimny both of which are also expected to make their debut in 2023.
