Spied - Entry level variant of Force One testing

Force Motors had earlier announced that they will come up with new variants of the Force One SUV to improve numbers. Our reader spotted one!

Our ardent reader codenamed "Skyline GT-R" managed to click the bare bones version of the Force One which is being tested in India. Force Motors announced that they will introduce two new variants of the Force One, but declined to provide further details.

The test mule falls in line with our prediction that one of those two variants will be a low cost one. The other variant may be positioned higher than the current version perhaps with 4x4 system.

The test mule misses ornaments and visual enhancers like LED daytime running lights, chrome accents, roof rails, fog lamps, body colored bumper, wheel arches, ORVMs and door handles. And the alloy wheels are replaced by ordinary steel wheels.

Skyline GT-R reports that the entry-level variant of the Force One SUV does not use the Mercedes sourced 2.2 litre FMTEC diesel engine but instead resorts to the non CRDI BS3 diesel motor which is used by the Trax series of people carriers to turn its wheels.

The 2.6 litre DI engine produces only 60 bhp under the hood of the Trax but the Force Once will certainly get the motor in higher state of tune. The use of this motor would significantly reduce the cost and Force Motors could price the entry level variant of the SUV at Rs. 8-9 lakh.

Force is aiming to sell around 5,000 units of One SUV next year and has proposed to double its dealership network to 40 outlets at the end of March 2013.

The low cost Force One is expected to be launched in early 2013 but bearing an old school engine would seriously limit its prospect as a personal vehicle.