Why an old Maruti 800 is 16 years my daily driver
The first product from Maruti Suzuki that put India on wheels - FILE 800 HT.
At this stage in his life where he has to play with his grandchildren or going on long cruises, Osamu Suzuki 85 years old shows no sign of slowing, it is still the president of Suzuki Motor Corporation and SMC CEO the oldest in the automotive industry with 37 years at the helm.
A bundle of energy and with a mind as sharp as the sword of a samurai, the bushy browed patriarch over two hours and several cups of green tea good for longevity tells, for the first time, his story about how Maruti which really happened.
His elephant as memory for dates and details make it seem like it was yesterday and not 1982, the year Suzuki jumped faith in India with joint venture Maruti.
Unknown to most is the fact that Suzuki's association with India and Gandhi family began 13 years ago, a little 360cc Suzuki Fronte two cylinder participation in Rally 1969 road Asia rolled in the Hotel Ashoka New Delhi.
Osamu Suzuki reminded I'm not here for the rally personally, but the Suzuki team has been approached by a rather polite man who asked them to come to the house of his boss, whose son was very interested in the Suzuki car.
Osamu Suzuki, the former chief of the oldest management in the automotive industry with 37 years in the Malaysian bar Karmakar Illustration 85.
When the Suzuki team arrived in the house, it turned out to be the official residence of Indira Gandhi, the then Prime Minister of India The Suzuki team was welcomed by Rajiv Gandhi and Sanjay Gandhi At that time, Sanjay had just returned from the UK and plans to start a project car of people in India Rajiv had a keen interest in cars as well, and so they both took the wheel and took the Fronte SS for test drive on the streets of New Delhi and returned impressed the brothers expressed their intention to enter into technical collaboration with Suzuki and Suzuki asked the team to immediately transmit the same to the headquarters in Japan.
Unfortunately, the situation surrounding Suzuki does not allow us to accept the offer at this time 1970-1975 were difficult years and we were busy trying to save the company, however, it seems a wonderful link between India and Suzuki was intended.
In 1978, Osamu Suzuki became the President of MSC, and it was under his leadership that a new small car was developed Alto This micro car has become the staple for the company for decades Alto was very popular in the Japanese domestic market and we have grown by leaps and bounds with this particular model in fact, it was the same car we brought to India as the Maruti 800, it gave us the confidence to develop new markets overseas, especially since there was an economic crisis in Japan, Suzuki says.
The Suzuki India's story is the fairy tales are things made out it was a matter of chance and luck, but finally it was Osamu doggedness that won the contract with Maruti.
One of our engineers was on his way to Pakistan, where we established a factory, he had taken an Air India flight in which he read magazine in India today that the government asked manufacturers to come to a small car for India I told the person who brought this article to Japan to go to the embassy of India and check if they are still accepting applications for the project, but the embassy of India refused the request because the time limit was over then, I said to that person the actual sales process begins when you refuse I told him to keep visiting the Embassy of India until they accepted our request, what they did on his third visit.
After several twists that saw-shot partners such as Volkswagen and Daihatsu back at the last minute, Suzuki seemed to be the only choice for Maruti also Osamu saw India as a potential jackpot he didn t want to lose you see, India has been a great opportunity for SMC who happened to be the smallest automaker in Japan, ranking 13 So I took India as an opportunity to show what we can do abroad and is my resolve to complete this project successfully.
Suzuki agreed to help in the production of popular car in India provided that V Krishnamurthy, then president of Maruti Udyog, finally leaves the project for Krishnamurthy said yes HT file.
The management of Maruti Udyog Ltd newly formed were novices in automotive During his first meeting with President V Krishnamurthy and RC Bhargava, Osamu Suzuki recalls explain the basics of setting up a car factory, I ' Krishnamurthy and Bhargava met at the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo for about three hours, during which all kinds of questions have been asked as what is needed to set up a car manufacturing plant, which will be the size and so I borrowed a whiteboard, explaining everything, and then I asked them to visit our factory.
Entering an unknown country without culture manufacturing or suppliers upon necessary step and an appetite for risk, which was known fire Osamu Suzuki But was it ever, at any time, fear.
Krishnamurthy I asked if he would leave the project myself 100 because that was the condition in which I move forward Krishnamurthy said yes and entrust everything to me also, Indira Gandhi to Krishnamurthy and Bhargava trust I told them both I would give my 100 if the project was left to me.
More automotive, I showed how to set up a factory, how management should be done and the first time I went to India, I also visited the semi-finished factory built by Sanjay Gandhi.
Suzuki quickly established a benchmark for manufacturing efficiency Besides the massive economies of scale, it was legendary cost reduction Osamu Suzuki and frugal ways that made Maruti's most profitable car maker in India by far.
Suzuki admits that the low cost, low margin end market that dominates Maruti is a challenge that requires special skills The key to making a small car is to make a success of the concept of a minimum standard for the cost and quality in small vehicles, the total value of the car is less and the profit on them is as small to ensure the basic quality level in the vehicle, you must get the right cost, especially for small cars this precisely the challenge, he said.
Does the Suzuki experience with aid bikes Two wheel experience and even the base of two-wheelers providers came in handy during the development of the car, he admits.
India is secondary to Osamu Suzuki, it has a permanent suite in the Maurya Sheraton in Delhi and his favorite restaurant is the Bukhara, where he has already donned the hat of a chef skewers and cook a chicken So what is it that India still fascinates people, traffic, food.
All these elements Otherwise, I would t have visited India more than 200 times when we settle, I personally check on my concrete floor of the factory and everything I'm 85, and I know what Japan was before World War II These days, the highway between Osaka and Nagoya was not opened, there were poor people, so for me, I know what people from misery lived and when I see people poor in India, I can understand.
Because we sell more cars in India than in Japan, I thought about moving our headquarters in India, but my family won t me.
This point is best taken as fact jokingly, as he handed the reins of the company to his son, President Toshihiro Suzuki and head of the oldest operating, it is unlikely that someone will say Osamu Suzuki, who has only one hand-shaped fortune SMC for nearly four decades, what to do.
How Suzuki of Japan became cars of Maruti India Hindustan Times, japan, suzuki, became, India.