Over the two and a half decades of operation, the Japanese company has achieved far more thanjust clever marketing. The Ladakh ad with a ‘kancha’ directing lost travellers in a Gypsy to a Maruti sefice station in a most uninhabited, remote and desolate place, epitomizes Maruti’s nation transforming achievement.

When launched, the 800 was light years ahead of the vehicles on India’s roads then, ike the Morris Oxford-derived Hindustan Abmassador, the Fiat 1100-derived Premier Padmini and the Triumph-derived Standard Herald. Given their obsolete quality and dismal lack of power, safety or comfort, these vehicles now seem like relics of Indian automobile industry’s anthracite period.

Based on the European Alto IV (SS80 in export markets) the 800 is a four-door two box hatchback with the tailgate opening only from the externally hinged rear window that gave access to the boot area. The front-wheel-drive car is powered by a 796cc, three-cylinder, SOHC, 6-valve, carbureted engine. The 39PS of power, though meager, still made for a respectable power-to-weight ratio because the car weighed just 650kg. With a price tag of Rs. 47,500 at launch, it was the cheapest car in India at the time.

Sure enough, the 800 turned to a status symbol almost overnight, an owner’s pride and neighbor’s envy. Far from being flashy, pure practicality was what the 800 was all about. Prospective buyers made a beeline for bookings, in spite of an interminable 3-year-long wait thanks to the coils of the license raj and the abysmal divide between demand and supply.

The 800 for the Indian buyer was as modern as automotive had ever gotten. One could swear by its reliability, ease of operation, refinement, construction quality and fuel efficiency. The coil-sprung rear suspension and bucket seats in the front were the icing on the cake.  Today its drum brakes feel prehistoric and the steering has more play than a jeep’s. but it still runs just fine, which for a 25-year-old car is admirable. Its nifty pick-up and smooth acceleration ensure super manoeuvrability.

The 800 has faced numerous challenges to keep up with the times. In 1986, it was given its first face-lift complete with air-conditioning and music systems. In 1997, the company moulded the 800 into jelly bean contours with no change in technology. In 1999, Maruti launched the 800 EX with a multi-point fuel injection (MPFI) system, gas-charged shock absorbers and coil spring suspension.

By the turn of the century, the Alto which was the 800 replacement internationally was being sold alongside the 800. Despite the more modern Alto and its competitive price tag, India’s original peple’s car continued to hold sway over the faithful.

The 800 generation grew up with – and in the 800. As years passed, they moved from one variant to another. Though the first owners of the 800 went to a general store to but their daily needs and the owners of the A-star today would probably go to mall to pick up groceries, the 800 remains a symbol of India much in the same way that landmarks and monuments illustrate a country’s history. But more importantly, it has lived up to the expectation of countless Indian consumers over a long and happening 25 years. It was even Indian cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar’s first car….