I wanted an SUV when I returned to India after having lived in the US for more than 7 years. My favourite SUVs are Land Rover Defender 110, Discovery II and the Range Rover. AFter I started driving around in a Mondeo and a souped up Baleno, I decided that to go through the villages and the farms. I needed an SUV. Test drove several second hand Land Cruisers and a Discovery (1996 model), The asking price was too much. I had not touched Indian SUVs because Scorpio was terrible, looks as well as the ride and interiors and heard too much of the Safari electrical issues. But Safari was a real handsome offroader I had seen in a long time. Very understated presence and a heavy vehicle. I started test driving a Tata Safari 4 wheel drive. I insisted on 4 WD as I took one to the hills of Coorg and ent places where I could have got stuck with a 2WD. The ride is superb, cruising at 110 to 120 KMPH, the weight of the vehicle makes it sit and with a wide, soft compound tyres the ride is exceptional. Tha handling was near perfect too. I acheive an avergae of 10 Km/ltr ( I never open my windows, so the A/C is always on).
Bottom line, to carry 5 large size people, 3 dogs or some solid heavy equipmemt in the back, and for long long drives, look no further. Pajeroes and Land Cruisers are definitely good, but once you know a Safari, the differences fade become just academic.