In the 1980s, Suzuki’s first proper SUV arrived in India as a Maruti Suzuki Gypsy. For the next couple of decades it continued to go places where most everyday cars would shy from. In the process it became an icon and also set the strong foundation for its future iterations. The latest of which we now see in India – the Jimny.
Jimny is a body-on-frame SUV
Not a new name, not a new avatar but the Indian version is the first five-door variant of the SUV. Don’t be fooled by its relatively diminutive size because this body-on-frame SUV is the real deal. The Jimny currently sells in 200 countries across the world, predominantly in the three-door version. It was launched in India earlier this year, in this never-seen-before 5-door version that is more apt for the Indian buyer. But the India launch generated quite an interest for this bigger version. Maruti Suzuki has already started exporting this (left-hand-drive versions too). Even Japan, the birthplace of this marque gets the five-door version from India. Maruti Suzuki currently has three factories in India – Gurugram (the oldest), Manesar (currently highest in production capacity) and Ahmedabad (newest and biggest in size).
Jimny 5-door is made in the same plant as the Gypsy
The Jimny is in many ways a modern-day Gypsy and manufactured in the same plant in which the OG off-roader was made. The Gurugram plant might be the oldest, but the line on which the Jimny is being made is claimed to be the most modern. It is only the second in the world where Suzuki assembles a ladder frame chassis car using over 1500 parts. It is as automated as automotive production lines get. The press shop at Gurugram makes around 120 different kind of panels for cars being made there of which 21 are used for the Jimny. The crucial start is making the ladder frame on which the powertrain gets fitted. Welding is a delicate and risky process hence Maruti Suzuki employs around 38 robots that weld these. Together there are approximated 3200 welding points which ensures the uniform structural rigidity expected for something that will be treated less delicately that other cars.
There are 3200 welding points in the Jimny
For the record, there are four Jimny variants on sale in India but at the factory, it makes no less than 93! So, most of these are for the large export markets.
Two assembly lines work together for the cabin and chassis
There are two assembly lines that work simultaneously for the cabin and chassis. The two come to together – married by a robot, of course - before heading to the paint shop, and then demerge and head to their individual lines before finally coming together once again. While it is a sight to behold, what may get overlooked by anyone watching this process is the amount of digitisation with information being collected and if need be, process corrected, in real time. This will also ensure that if any issue is detected at a later date, Maruti Suzuki is able to correctly identify the date and parts used.
An interesting sight at these lines are automated guided vehicles (simply put, more robots or rather autobots) that transfer various parts to their designated areas around the shopfloor. These self-charging machines stop automatically if there’s an obstacle in their path and start moving only if the path is clear. The path are painted tracks on the floor.
Once the Jimny is prepared, it goes through multiple checks to ensure it's working just the way it is supposed to. These include a physical inspections, drum test at 120 kmph, long road test, short road test and interestingly also a heavy shower test which has the same intensity as the one seen in Meghalaya’s Cherrapunji – one of the wettest places on earth.
The Jimny undergoes heavy shower tests during production process
For a layman, the Gurugram plant can be mind-boggling as it makes everything from a seemingly ubiquitous Alto to a global star like the Jimny. The latter currently accounts for nearly 20% of its 5-lakh annual production. And making the Jimny production rather unique is that there are no foreign suppliers. All 177 vendors contracted for the five-door Jimny are Indian. The Jimny is indeed a shining example of how far automotive manufacturing has progressed in India and can now be counted alongside the best in the world.
Also Read: Maruti Suzuki Jimny 5-door Official Accessories: Complete List With Prices
