Some Tata Motors managers however went on record and said that the “Safari badge” was always meant for the car, and denied that it was a last minute change. Well, here’s proof that the car was originally called the Gravitas.
When Tata announced that the 7-seater Harrier will be badged as the Safari, I was ecstatic! As far as marketing moves go, this is as good as it gets. I had said so as much in this post.
1. I think it’s an excellent move & fully support it. Brand Safari is worth 100 crores at the minimum & has instant recognition. Now, Tata doesn’t have another big SUV in development as far as I know. So why wait another 5 years to use the brand, if & when that next SUV comes? Instead, paste it on a ready product that is quite butch-looking too, mind you.
2. It could also have been an afterthought decision taken recently to revive Harrier / Gravitas sales as the Harrier’s market performance has been way lower than Tata’s expectations.
3. I can guarantee you that 10X more people will look at Gravitas advertisements now that it is branded as the “Safari”.
What the heck is the point of having ammunition in your bag if you don’t use it? This is an EXCELLENT move from the POV of marketing IMHO. I also understand the POV of purists & those who are passionate about the Safari brand, but the fact is, purist values don’t sell cars.
Lastly, for whatever it is worth, the Safari 4×4 was a terrible offroader. So, purists need to calm down a bit.
Some Tata Motors managers however went on record and said that the “Safari badge” was always meant for the car, and denied that it was a last minute change. Well, here’s proof that the car was originally called the Gravitas.
The Safari has got a feature where the MID prompts the driver to take a break if he has been continuously driving it for long. However, the image of the car shows the “Gravitas” nameplate instead of Safari. Seems the QC team missed it during the name change.
Thanks to the Team-BHP fan (he prefers to remain anonymous) who sent this information in. Heartfelt gratitude for sharing it with other enthusiasts via this page!
Here’s what BHPian SahilS had to say on the matter:
Not only that, even in Safari’s owners’ manual, although they have removed all mentions of Gravitas, but they forgot to change from Gravitas to Safari in Headings under ‘Bookmarks Section’. See for yourself.
Attaching a snippet here too.
2nd point, while comparing Harrier vs Safari’s owners manual, I found out that maximum gradability in Safari is 16.7 degrees as compared to 35%(sic) in Harrier. Why such a big difference? 16.7 degrees is too less for a so called SUV.
One more minor point, even though in our official review it has been mentioned that Laden Ground Clearance of Safari is 143mm, however as per owners’ manual, it is 150mm. Please rectify.
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