Go Electric-10

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WHAT'S ON FOR INDIA ?

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The other day --to be precise on 4 October, 2010 -- readers of Kerala's 'Mathrubhumi' daily ( the Trivandrum print edition) were treated to an exclusive interview on page 9.  The writer, Mr K K Subair, had buttonholed none less than Shashank Srivasthava, Chief General Manager, Maruti-Suzuki, the Indian car giant.

(Available on-line at:

http://epaper.mathrubhumi.com/index.php?id=16265&cat=14&date=2010-10-04 )

The two-line headline is a direct quote from one of the top men in India who decides what India will drive tomorrow. A rough translation would read: " India loves fuel economy", "The electric car is a distant dream".  Very succinct, as can be expected from a person of Mr Srivasthava's calibre.

Maruti, as we all know, is the biggest car maker in India with a popular range of cars that meet everyone's needs. Those of us who are slightly long in the tooth would remember the dream small car that carried the name of 'Maruti' and that was the twinkle in the younger entrepreneur son of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Years of 'research and development' later no car was seen in the roads of India, and suddenly one fine morning Suzuki, the Japanese car giant was invited for a tie-up, and finally in 1983 a canny little runabout was announced. I checked the Maruti-Suzuki site and this was the only thing

( http://www.marutisuzuki.com/milestones.aspx ) that was there to refresh my memory.

Another page gives you an insight into the core values (http://www.marutisuzuki.com/vision-and-core-values.aspx ) that drive them.

Their environmental concerns are reflected by their commitment to develop environment-friendly engines, their K-sries being the latest and the best in that regard. No wonder quite a lot of us love and prefer a Maruti.

Good for them. Good for us. Or, is it?

Now let us get back to Mr Srivasthava and the interview. After talking about his company's plans to invest about Rs 1,700 crores additionally to ramp up production,  he touches on that favourite India topic--fuel economy. As an 'insider' who knows the 'pulse' of India, he knows only too well that the average Indian car buyer rates mileage/fuel economy above other things, including even looks and that evasive quality, performance, and he says as much to the interviewer too.

The next question put to him  : 'What is the progress on the electric car project?'

Ans: ' It is only a distant target. It will take a long time for that to happen in India. The experience the world over re. the electric car is not very attractive. Even in America electic cars make up only about 4% of all the cars."

So that is how he sees it. So let us write to him to plead our case!

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AN OPEN LETTER to Shashank Srivasthava, CGM, Maruti-Suzuki, India

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Sir,

We have come to know from the recent interview that you gave to the Mathrubhumi daily of Kerala that Maruti is NOT comtemplating releasing an electric car in the recent future. You have said it is only a DISTANT dream/target.


How distant, Sir? Five years, ten years,  or longer???

You remember how back in 1983 you came out with the small hatchback called the Maruti-800? How long did it take for it to change the Indian auto scene beyond recognition? Not much as we all know. As they say, the rest was history.  Why did it happen? India was one of those countries which enjoyed a ready market for the traditionally 'classy' cars since day one of their introduction. Dont you remember that story about Bhagwan Rajneesh who 'owned' the largest number of Rolls-Royces in the world?

The little Maruti became popular because the only two cars available then in India --the venerable Ambassador and the Fiat; no, the Standard is not forgotten-- were 'behind the times' and the companies that produced these cars were smug and complacent and took the poor Indian customer 'for granted'. Maruti did not simply enter the Indian market; it exploded into a staid market and created waves.


Here was finally a 'dream car' to meet the needs of the average Indian--looks, technology, reliability and fuel efficiency too! So far as I know and remember, it was the first and only car in India (no, I am NOT counting the R-Rs, Benzes, Bugattis or the BMWs) that offered 'driver comforts' such as steering-mounted switches, a good air-conditioner, adjustable seats, good electrical systems, and a nice car stereo too! It was a 'complete' car, and VERY attractive at its original first-release price of, if I remember right, less than half a lakh.

Maruti has remained a top-rung company by listening to the needs of its range of customers. Now for some reasons it is showing signs that it is departing from that model. Sir, will you tell us more about the Maruti-Suzuki electric car project? Share with us the findings of your brilliant research teams. What are the factors that have put 'spanners in the works' so far as the electric car research is concerned? Please do not tell us that the scientists and engineers of top-notch companies like yours are unable to repeat what is being done by do-it-yourselfers the world over, namely, converting and using electric cars? Yes, we know, a one-off attempt is one thing, and manufacturing a successful range of vehicles is another. But surely it cannot be beyond the capabilities of large corporates like yours.

Look at Tesla in the US ( http://www.teslamotors.com/ )

 Renault ( http://www.renault.com/en/capeco2/vehicule-electrique/pages/vehicule-electrique.aspx  )

and now Benz ( http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-31349_7-20018367-282.html ) in Europe

and the Japanese giant Toyota with the Prius -- the Indian response for which has pleasantly surprised even Toyota--

and the Nissan 'Leaf' electric car (http://www.nissanusa.com/leaf-electric-car/index#/leaf-electric-car/specs-features/index ) too!

And what about the EV scene in China ?
( http://feedroom.businessweek.com/?fr_story=a9bb57fe7112274dff061f0683489688197bf0f1)

And in the home-turf now Mahindra is planning EVs is collaboration with Renault and the Indian pioneer Maini-Reva. Surely you must have brilliant researchers not only in your parent company's R&D labs, but in India too. It may not be too much to ask you to share with us the progress --or the lack of it-- that you have made in the field, and the real reasons for that.

Let us point out an inconsistency in your comment regarding the electric car and the American scene. Since when has the American auto scene begun to serve as a model for either Suzuki or your company? The urban small car was not even in the distant viewfinder of the American auto giants when Suzuki in Japan pioneered and made it a success story in Japan and later in India and many other countries. Your predecessors did not say that it was not successful in America and so it was foolish to go after it. Far from it, Sir...

Suzuki, your parent company, saw a definite need for a small urban car to meet the peculiar needs of the crowded Japnese city streets and they planned and researched and designed for that. Don't you admit that spending a minute in any road junction in any city, large or small, in any developing country, will convince you that more than ever, you need to design a small non-polluting small urban car. It is for the researchers to decide on the appropriate technology to realize that target-- hydrogen, compressed air, fuel cells, solar, electric or even nuclear ??!!!

What are you doing about it--NOW? And what is your summing up about that work? We need to know, Sir, and we think we have a right to know. Please dont tell us that today in America there are only less than 4% electric cars. You can easily find out that once they numbered 100 %. And they were 'killed' not because of an inherent flaw in their genes. We do not think for an instant that a person of your calibre is an ignoramus. We see it as your unwillingness, for your own complicated reasons, to be willing to wake up to the realities of the present day and age.

Sir, look at the wall...not only the wall in Facebook, but The Wall ..... the writing is on the wall. If Maruti, with its penchant for innovation and hard-nosed practical wisdom, can lead from the front and come to the market with a simple, practical electric car, in many ways like the little runabout that made Maruti a household name, well, you can work that old magic again, and put smiles on the faces of your customers. If not...??

With an intelligent man like you, Sir, we dont think we have to 'spell it all out' for you.

The choice, Sir, is yours to make!

And we are waiting!

Most sincerely yours,

The Eco-conscious Indian drivers

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more to follow

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