In the mid-80s, apart from Suzuki, some other Japanese brands, perhaps better known globally than Suzuki, also entered India. As was required at that time, all of these entered through a joint venture to provide quality trucks in the much-needed sub-10-ton commercial vehicles segment. The category was referred to as LCVs - Light Commercial Vehicles. Before these, Indian freight operators didn’t have much choice in the category.
As India was developing - albeit slowly due to the License Raj and semi-open economy - the need for smaller trucks to ply city roads and make inter-city trips with smaller payloads was also growing. The available trucks from Tata and Ashok Leyland were much larger and not suited for smaller workloads. Essentially, there were no product offerings to fulfill this need for the Indian businessmen who were dependent on truck operators for transporting their goods.
To cover this massive gap that existed in the country’s supply chain, four light trucks were launched at the encouragement of the Indian government -
DCM Toyota - Collaboration between DCM group India and Toyota, Japan. The truck was called Dyna. A small bus version, the Dyna Clipper was also made.
Swaraj Mazda - Collaboration between the Swaraj Group India and Mazda, Japan. Swaraj was already in the automotive sector with tractors. Though they started with trucks, small buses made on the same platform gained more popularity than trucks.
Eicher Mitsubishi - Collaboration between Eicher Group India and Mitsubishi, Japan. Eicher also manufactured tractors. The truck they produced was named Canter. It turned out to be the most successful of the 4 ventures. A small bus made on the Canter platform also gained good traction in the market seeing adoption from Schools, Factories, etc.
Allwyn Nissan - Collaboration between Allwyn Group India and Nissan Japan. Allwyn group was also into automobiles making two-wheelers. This truck was named the Cabstar and it was the smallest of the four. It was also available as a small bus.
The Toyota, Mazda, and Mistubishi (Canter) trucks were very similar in their dimensions and payload. The Nissan Cabstar was the smallest of the four but not much cheaper. Hence, it didn’t see much success. It had an innovative anti-theft feature. It was the first Diesel vehicle in India that couldn’t be started without its key.
The introduction of these LCVs created an entirely new sector of transportation. Because the cost of owning and operating these trucks wasn’t as high as the full-sized ones, for the first time, smaller businesses started owning trucks for their own needs.
The boost to the economy from these trucks was momentous. They increased the purchasing power of business owners and allowed for a quicker supply of perishable goods. This helped farmers and dairy producers immensely. Wholesalers and distributors began establishing new B2B supply routes to retailers in small towns and villages, thereby opening up new markets. CPG manufacturers could not only advertise their products to the entire country, they were now able to sell them too.
Not just goods, life-saving medicines started making their way to such places because transporting them became possible. Overall, these led to improved quality of life for people in the smaller towns and villages.
The success of these small trucks didn’t go unnoticed by the incumbents Tata and Ashok Leyland. Of the two, Tata was quicker to respond with a small truck - the Tata 407 soon followed by a larger brother - the Tata 608. A cousin, the Tata 709 came along a few years later.
Developing and launching a brand-new vehicle typically requires several years for any manufacturer. Particularly in 1980s India, where there were limited R&D facilities, a lack of technological knowledge, and poor quality standards, the government had to seek a collaboration with the Japanese to bring quality trucks for this segment. Hence, it is somewhat ironic that Tata launched the 407 almost overnight and entirely through indigenous efforts. The success the 407 (and the 608) enjoyed was unprecedented. The immense popularity they achieved was beyond anyone's expectations. To the point that of the four Japanese rivals, only the Mitsubishi Canter could survive for a few years against them.
The 407 and 608 were great trucks, no doubt. But one important reason for their success was the already existing country-wide service network that Tata had. The Japanese trucks simply couldn't match the combination of product quality and service availability.
Tata has consistently demonstrated its resilience and ability to compete against foreign rivals across various segments. The small trucks category was the initiation of this motion which later expanded to personal cars and now into EVs. With the purchase of JLR a few years ago from Ford, they also have access to technology and global markets. I am eagerly watching how and when they start entering global markets with their vehicles designed and produced in India.
Side note: Of the 4 Japanese manufacturers, Toyota and Nissan sell passenger cars in India. Mitsubishi had a collaboration much earlier with Hindustan Motors to build Lancers but has since exited the country. Mazda is yet to enter India again.