Chinkara Motors, officially Chinkara Motors PVT Ltd, was a
Mumbai, Maharashtra
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' fin ...
-based auto, marine, ATV and aviation manufacturer. Chinkara operated from 2003 to 2016.
Automotive
Chingara primarily manufactured a 2-seat
sports car
A sports car is a car designed with an emphasis on dynamic performance, such as handling, acceleration, top speed, the thrill of driving and racing capability. Sports cars originated in Europe in the early 1900s and are currently produced by ...
called the Chinkara Roadster 1.8S, and the Jeepster, a classic 1940s Jeep look-alike. The vehicles were developed at
Alibag
Alibag, also known as Alibaug (Pronunciation: libaːɡ, is a coastal town and a municipal council in Raigad District of Maharashtra, India. It is the headquarters of the Raigad district and is south of the city of Mumbai. Alibag is part of ...
near Mumbai, India. The name Chinkara comes from a local word for an
Indian Gazelle
The chinkara (''Gazella bennettii''), also known as the Indian gazelle, is a gazelle species native to Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India.
Taxonomy
The following six subspecies are considered valid:
* Deccan chinkara (''G. b. bennettii'') ...
.
Chinkara Roadster 1.8S
The Chinkara Roadster is derived from the
Lotus 7
The Lotus Seven is a small, simple, lightweight, two-seater, open-top, Open-wheel car, open-wheel, sports car produced by the United Kingdom, British manufacturer Lotus Cars (initially called Lotus Engineering) between 1957 and 1972.
It was desi ...
. The car is put together out of parts from various Indian cars, including the
Maruti 800
The Maruti Suzuki 800 is a city car that was manufactured by Maruti Suzuki in India from 1983 to 2014. The first generation (SS80) was based on the 1979 Suzuki Alto and had an 800 cc F8B engine, hence the moniker. Widely regarded as the mo ...
and the now defunct
Standard Herald
The Triumph Herald is a small two-door car introduced by Standard-Triumph of Coventry in 1959 and made through to 1971. The body design was by the Italian stylist Giovanni Michelotti, and the car was offered in saloon, convertible, coupé, ...
. While this allows the car to be reasonably advanced, it allows the use of
intermediate technology
Appropriate technology is a movement (and its manifestations) encompassing technological choice and application that is small-scale, affordable by locals, decentralized, labor-intensive, energy-efficient, environmentally sustainable, and locally ...
to compete with a western equivalent that may be more an advanced. For example, news articles on the car say it uses
MacPherson strut
The MacPherson strut is a type of automotive suspension system that uses the top of a telescopic damper as the upper steering pivot. It is widely used in the front suspension of modern vehicles, and is named for American automotive engineer Ear ...
s front and rear taken from a
Maruti Alto Māruti can refer to:
* Maruti (मारुति), a Sanskrit name referring to Hanuman, son of the Hindu wind god, Pawan Dev
* Maruti Suzuki, a joint sector industry of The Indian Government and Japanese automaker Suzuki Motor Corporation
See ...
. The Roadster is available in several levels of tuning.
*Price: INR 740,000 (excluding taxes)
*Engine: In-line, Isuzu 4 cylinder, 1.8 liter/1816 cc (Petrol), @ 5000 rpm, @ 3000 rpm
*Transmission: Five-speed Manual
*Brakes: Ventilated disc (front and rear)
*Tyres: Front – 205/50 R16, Rear – 225/50 R15 Goodyear F1 tubeless
*Performance: 6.7sec 0–100 km/h, 187 km/h, 13kmpl (all figures claimed)
*Length:
*Width:
*Height:
*Weight:
Jeepster
The Jeepster is an
off-road
Off-roading is the activity of driving or riding in a vehicle on unpaved surfaces such as sand, gravel, riverbeds, mud, snow, rocks, and other natural terrain. Types of off-roading range in intensity, from leisure drives with unmodified vehicl ...
vehicle similar to the classic
Willys Jeep
The Willys MB and the Ford GPW, both formally called the U.S. Army Truck, -ton, 4×4, Command Reconnaissance, commonly known as the Willys Jeep, Jeep, or jeep, and sometimes referred to by its supply catalogue designation G503,According to i ...
. With its body constructed of lightweight
FRP, the Jeepster can be delivered with a diesel engine or a 1.8L Isuzu petrol.
Other automotive products
Chinkara Motors also produced the following automotive products:
*Hammer – a
sandrail
A sandrail, also called a sand rail, rail, or sand car, is a lightweight off-road motor vehicle specifically built for traveling in sandy terrain. Similar in some respects and often mistakenly referred to as a dune buggy or sand car, a sandrail i ...
fast attack vehicle
The Desert Patrol Vehicle (DPV), formerly called the Fast Attack Vehicle (FAV), is a high-speed, lightly armored sandrail-like vehicle first used in combat during the Gulf War in 1991. Due to their dash speed and off-road mobility, the DPVs were ...
for the
Indian defence forces
*Rockster –
All-terrain vehicle
An all-terrain vehicle (ATV), also known as a light utility vehicle (LUV), a quad bike, or simply a quad, as defined by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI); is a vehicle that travels on low-pressure tires, with a seat that is stra ...
*Beachster –
Dune buggy
*Sailster –
Wind-powered land vehicle
Wind-powered vehicles derive their power from sails, kites or rotors and ride on wheels—which may be linked to a wind-powered rotor—or runners. Whether powered by sail, kite or rotor, these vehicles share a common trait: As the vehicle increa ...
*
Motor homes
A recreational vehicle, often abbreviated as RV, is a motor vehicle or trailer that includes living quarters designed for accommodation. Types of RVs include motorhomes, campervans, coaches, caravans (also known as travel trailers and camper ...
Marine products
The Marine division specialized in the manufacture of
Fiber-Reinforced Plastic
Fibre-reinforced plastic (FRP; also called fibre-reinforced polymer, or in American English ''fiber'') is a composite material made of a polymer matrix reinforced with fibres. The fibres are usually glass fibre, glass (in fibreglass), Carbon fib ...
multi-hull (
Catamaran
A Formula 16 beachable catamaran
Powered catamaran passenger ferry at Salem, Massachusetts, United States
A catamaran () (informally, a "cat") is a multi-hulled watercraft featuring two parallel hulls of equal size. It is a geometry-stab ...
s &
Trimaran
A trimaran (or double-outrigger) is a multihull boat that comprises a main hull and two smaller outrigger hulls (or "floats") which are attached to the main hull with lateral beams. Most modern trimarans are sailing yachts designed for recreati ...
s) watercraft. They produced both powered and
sailboat
A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails and is smaller than a sailing ship. Distinctions in what constitutes a sailing boat and ship vary by region and maritime culture.
Types
Although sailboat terminology ...
catamarans and powered trimarans Chinkara also builds the Wave Striker power catamaran and Predator powered trimaran
work boats
A boat is a watercraft of a large range of types and sizes, but generally smaller than a ship, which is distinguished by its larger size, shape, cargo or passenger capacity, or its ability to carry boats.
Small boats are typically found on inl ...
.
Aviation Products
The Aviation division produced GFP
glider
Glider may refer to:
Aircraft and transport Aircraft
* Glider (aircraft), heavier-than-air aircraft primarily intended for unpowered flight
** Glider (sailplane), a rigid-winged glider aircraft with an undercarriage, used in the sport of glidin ...
s and
powered glider
A motor glider is a fixed-wing aircraft that can be flown with or without engine power. The FAI Gliding Commission Sporting Code definition is: a fixed-wing Aircraft#Heavier-than-air – aerodynes, aerodyne equipped with a means of propulsion (Mo ...
s,
Gyrocopter
An autogyro (from Ancient Greek, Greek and , "self-turning"), also known as a ''gyroplane'', is a type of rotorcraft that uses an unpowered rotor in free autorotation to develop lift (force), lift. Forward thrust is provided independently, by an ...
s and
Microlight
Ultralight aviation (called microlight aviation in some countries) is the flying of lightweight, 1- or 2-seat fixed-wing aircraft. Some countries differentiate between weight-shift control and conventional three-axis control aircraft with ailer ...
s.
References
External links
Chinkara webpagethe Business Standard Motoring page and search for Chinkara
The Chinkara roadster by BM
{{Lotus Seven
Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of India
Manufacturing companies based in Mumbai
Sports car manufacturers
Lotus Seven replicas
Indian brands
2003 establishments in Maharashtra
2016 disestablishments in India
Indian companies established in 2003
Indian companies disestablished in 2016
Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 2003
Vehicle manufacturing companies disestablished in 2016