CHENNAI:When 135 brand new vehicles are brought to Chennai to enable the City Police patrol the city in a better way, meandering through the narrow allies, it is likely to evoke a bit a nostalgia. It was the same car that was born in December 1985, and endeared itself to a generation. Small, uncomfortable and an appallingly profligate fuel guzzler, many remember it as the worst ride of their lives. But for the thousands who fell in love with it, its shortcomings were and remain trivial. According to them, the Maruti Suzuki Gypsy made SUVs cool even before the term was coined.
For many who grew up in the 80s and the 90s, the iconic Gypsy has defined their aspirations of being ‘butch’. “It has become a cult vehicle,” said Vijay Krishnamurti, who owns not one, but two.
As small as it was, it was the choice of every police force in the country.
Owning it meant that the man loved the outdoors, says George Thomas Kuruvilla. “It was and is an appalling ride in cities. But take it off the road and it is then you see just how brilliant it is,” he adds.
Even for people who would never take it off the road, the Gypsy had its charms. “I grew up watching an olive green Gypsy ferrying my dad, who was an army colonel. For me, it will be the car that defined my childhood, because wherever he was transferred, it was the one mainstay. It was always an olive green Gypsy that dropped us off in school,” adds Amrita Kulkarni.
Others have similar memories. Fathers, uncles and childhood heroes drove around in a Gypsy. “I have friends who dream of owning one. Even if they have never sat in one, let alone sat behind its wheel, they want one,” adds Vijay Krishnamurti.
But Krishnamurti owns them not because he dreamed of owning one, but because he feels it is ‘the car’ for him. “I am part of the Terratigers offroading club. And for me, nothing beats a Gypsy there. I learned off-roading on a jeep, but the first time I sat behind one, it just clicked. I decided this was the car for me,” he says.
According to almost every owner and fan CE spoke to, the Gypsy is a car that either inspires the utmost devotion or visceral hatred. “You either love it or hate it,” points out Amrit John, “There is no middle ground.”
But off-roading, the sport of driving cars over anything and anywhere you feel is a challenge, is where the Gypsy has found its most enduring home. Chennai’s off-roading enthusiasts form the largest section of the Gypsy- owning public. If you see one on the road that isn’t a armed services vehicle, its probably one of their brethren, they say. Someone like Sidharth Varman for example. “I do occasionally take it around for a spin in the city. As uncomfortable as it may be, it has its own charm,” he said.
Charming or not, the Gypsy has come close to being one of the rarest breeds of private vehicles on the road. It is only available through special order and isn’t available off the shelves, and there have been constant reports of Maruti discontinuing production. In production or not though, the Gypsy is likely to remain one of the most iconic cars to come out of Maruti’s kitty.
Began production
December 1985
Produced 144,000 in India
Armed forces share 22%
In Private possession: 100,800
Current showroom price: Rs 5.95 - Rs 6.05 lakh
Used
Rs 1 lakh to Rs 4.5 lakh Older Gypsys produced in the 90s in Mint condition cost as much as Rs 5 lakh
Fuel economy: 8 kmpl (Petrol)