We have a confession. When Tata Motors opened-up about the Harrier’s package for the first time, we joined the list of several auto pundits in the country who thought that it would cost between Rs 16-20 lakh. But, as we saw yesterday, that wasn’t the case. Tata Motors shocked the industry by placing the ex-showroom prices between Rs 12.69 lakh and Rs 16.25 lakh. That means it is designed to take on the likes of the Hyundai Creta, Nissan Kicks, Mahindra XUV500 and the Jeep Compass. Here’s its variant-wise price list:

Tata Harrier Price List (ex-showroom Delhi)

Unlike its rivals, the Tata Harrier is available with just one engine-transmission combination. Under the bonnet is an FCA-sourced, BS IV-compliant 2.0-litre, 4-cylinder turbo-diesel engine that produces 140PS/350Nm. The oomph is fed to the wheels via a 6-speed manual transmission. The Harrier comes with an unladen ground clearance of 205mm, a 425-litre boot which can be expanded to 810 litres with the rear seats folded, a 50-litre fuel tank and an ARAI-certified mileage of 16.7kmpl. The homegrown automaker is offering the Harrier with a choice of five shades – Calisto Copper, Thermisto Gold, Orcus White, Telesto Grey and Ariel Silver.

Before we get to the main motive of this article, let’s quickly see how the rivals of the Tata Harrier are priced:

Tata Harrier Rivals Price List (ex-showroom Delhi)

With those vitals out of the way, it’s time to get cracking with the trim-wise feature list. The Tata Harrier is available in four trim levels – XE, XM, XT and XZ. As always, we’ll focus only on those features which car act as deal makers or breakers.

Trim – XE

Here’s the list of main features which the Harrier gets as part of its standard kit:

• Projector headlamps
• 16-inch steel rims
• Protective side cladding
• Dual airbags
• Rear parking sensors
• ABS with EBD
• Seat belt reminder for front passengers
• Speed sensitive auto door lock
• Manual AC
• 4-way manually adjustable driver’s seat
• Tilt and telescopic adjustment for the steering wheel
• Rear AC vents
• All four power windows
• Front and rear puddle lamps

The real pain area for this trim is that it doesn’t even have a basic music system, let alone an infotainment screen. There are no fog lamps, no shark-fin antenna and no parcel shelf in the boot. Our recommendation is to skip this variant altogether as you really don’t want to spend Rs 14 or so lakh and don’t get such basic features.

Trim – XM

Buying the Harrier in the XM trim will close you an extra Rs 1.05 lakh over the XE trim. Here’s what you get for the extra money:

• Front fog lamps
• Electrically adjustable dual-tone ORVMs with turn indicators
• Rear parcel shelf
• Chrome accents on the dashboard, AV vents and door pads
• 7.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system mated to a 6-speaker sound system
• Multifunction steering wheel
• Bluetooth/USB/AUX support
• Speed-dependent volume controls
• Multi-drive modes (Eco, City, Sport)
• Remote central locking
• 6-way manually adjustable driver’s seat
• Rear wiper with washer
• Follow-me-home headlamps

This trim is much more like it. If you don’t want the Harrier with all the bells and whistles, this is where your search should start. Is the added cost justifiable? We think so.

Trim – XT

You will have to spend an extra Rs 1.2 lakh to get to this trim. Is it worth it? The answer to that depends on what it offers over and above the XM trim. Here’s the list:

• 17-inch alloy wheels
• Dual-function LED DRLs with turn indicators
• Oakwood finish on the dashboard
• Soft-touch dashboard
• 8-speaker sound system
• Video playback and image viewer via USB
• Voice recognition and SMS readout
• Voice alerts for driver assistance
• Android Auto and Apple CarPlay support
• ConnectNext App Suit support
• Rear-view camera
• Rear defogger
• Push-button start/stop
• Automatic climate control
• 8-way manually adjustable driver’s seat
• Electrically foldable ORVMs
• Auto headlamps and wipers
• Cruise control
• Cooled storage box
• Rear armrest with cupholders

The answer to the question we asked earlier is yes, it is worth the extra amount. But since you have already touched the Rs 15 lakh mark (sort of), we wonder, should you just go ahead and buy the range-topper instead? Let’s find out!

Trim – XZ

It costs Rs 1.3 lakh more than the XT trim. Given below are the list of standout features that the Harrier gets in its fully-loaded form:

• Xenon HID projector headlamps
• Front fog lamps with cornering function
• Logo projector on ORVMs
• Shark-fin antenna
• Seats, steering wheel, gear shift knob and door pad inserts draped in leather
• Oak brown interior colour theme
• 8.8-inch touchscreen infotainment system with a 9-speaker JBL sound system
• 7.0-inch coloured TFT in the instrument cluster with media, phone and navigation information
• Terrain response modes (Normal, Wet, Rough)
• 6 airbags
• ESP, Hill Hold and Descent Control, Roll Over Mitigation, Electronic Traction Control and Corner Stability Control
• ISOFIX anchorages for child booster seats
• 60:40 split rear seat

Here’s what we recommend: If you are comfortable spending around Rs 15 lakh (ex-showroom) on the Harrier, you must stretch a bit more and get the fully-loaded trim. Even if you gloss over the added convenience of a bigger touchscreen, better sound system and high-intensity headlamps, the list of extra safety features are enough to justify the price difference.

There are a few features missing on the Tata Harrier. The list includes a sunroof and a wireless mobile phone charging pad. Also, there is no automatic transmission currently available and the engine isn’t the most powerful in its segment. Tata Motors will introduce a seven-seat version of the Harrier by the end of the year. That should address some of the aforementioned shortfalls, if not all.