While the 4x4 enthusiasts of the country mourned the demise of the Maruti Gypsy, the Indian Army had placed new orders for a fresh supply. Now, at a crucial time when defence forces are engaged in a tussle with China at the borders, those orders have started rolling in. The Indian Army has received an order of 718 units of the brand-new Gypsys in the month of June.
While Maruti-Suzuki discontinued the Gypsy from its lineup of passenger car vehicles because it failed to comply with new safety and emission regulations. Now as these regulations don’t apply to defence vehicles, the Indian Army continued to put its trust in the humble Gypsy by putting in an order for 3,051 new units from Maruti. The Maruti Gypsy’s which have been delivered to the army are BS-4 compliant versions of the car. Powering the ‘Mountain Goat’ is a tried-and-trusted 1.3-litre four-cylinder naturally-aspirated petrol unit which delivers a total of 80bhp and 103Nm of torque. The vehicle gets a 5-speed manual gearbox with a high-and-low-range transfer case.
In terms of comforts, well, there are none to mention. The vehicles come as bare-bone weapons which get manual roll-down windows and an analog instrument cluster. While it may not rate high in comfort, it does very well when it comes to reliability and power-to-weight ratio. The kerb weight of the solid-axle four-wheeler is just 985kg. However, the gross vehicle weight is 1,585kg and a manufacturer-recommended carrying capacity of 600kg - 61 percent of the car’s total weight. When the Maruti Gypsy was under production for civilians, it had a starting price of INR 5.44 lakh (ex-showroom) for the soft-top version.
The Maruti Gypsy was first introduced back in 1985 and was launched as the Gypsy MG 410. It came with a the F10A 1.0-litre four-cylinder petrol motor making 45bhp and paired to a 4-speed gearbox. Over time, the Gypsy grew in track, engine capacity, style and popularity. Due to its capability, it was and still is the poster child in the world of motorsports and adventure sports. Bookings for the civilian-versions of the Maruti Gypsy were taken all the way till December 2018, with order fulfilled and production line packed up by March 2019.
Image Source: Planet 4x4
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