Tata Safari

The Tata Safari is an SUV produced by Tata Motors of India. It is the first SUV to be designed, developed and manufactured entirely in India. The Safari is said to deliver almost the same power and torque as the Mitsubishi Pajero, but available at 60% of the Pajero's price (although this hasn't been thoroughly confirmed). It was released in 1998 with a 1.9-litre Turbo Diesel engine.
The Safari was extensively modified in August 2005, which included the addition of a new 3-litre DiCOR engine along with modified interiors and exteriors. This 3-litre engine is the first diesel engine from Tata Motors with common rail technology. A 2-litre petrol engine was also added to the range that same year. It was this modified version that won the Motor Forum's Car of the Year for 2007, in the SUV category. Voted by the users, it beat out rivals such as the Toyota RAV 4, Land Rover Freelander and Honda CRV.
Launched in 1998 in Turbo Diesel form, the Safari had 90 bhp (67 kW) power. It came with a synchromesh forward five-speed gearbox, with a 4X4 option. However, it was regarded to be grossly underpowered, with a heavy body rollover.
The new Tata Safari DiCOR (DiCOR standing for "Direct Injection Common Rail engine") is powered by a 3000 cc inline-four cylinder engine that develops 114 bhp (85 kW) at 3000 rpm and 30 kgf·m (300 N·m) of torque between 1600 and 2000 rpm. The engine is taken from the Tata 407, a truck manufactured by Tata Motors.
The new engine is mated to a five-speed gearbox, with a new, sporty gear lever. Tata recently displayed a EURO 4 compliant 2.2-litre DiCOR engine with 143 bhp (107 kW) at the 2006 Bologna Motor Show [2]. A new Safari DiCOR 2.2L VTT (Variable Turbine Technology) with 140 bhp (100 kW) and 320 N·m (236 ft·lbf) of torque launched on October 5, 2007. It has some improved interior features like two-tone upholstery and leather seats. The high end version of the Safari comes with full safety features like airbags and ABS with EBD, and is priced at almost $20,000.
The main issue with the Safari is that it is quite a heavy vehicle; it tilts the scales at 2115 kg (4663 lb) (kerb); adding an extra 110 kg (243 lb) for the 4WD variant [3]. The consequence of that is though the engine specifications sound great on paper - 30 kgf·m (290 N·m) of torque at 1600 rpm is decent by any standards - it is not a great leap in terms of outright performance [4]. Nevertheless, with the DiCOR engine, the 4WD Safari is substantially quicker than the 2000 cc turbodiesel model.