Success in life isn’t an overnight journey. It is often built on the foundations of the milestones we achieve on our path to realizing our ambitions. As we move up and enjoy more success, there comes a deep urge to connect to roots, go back to the place of comfort and nostalgia. It’s like meeting yourself all over again.
Visiting the hometown to reminisce with old friends or driving the very first car we owned to the places we loved. These are memories that form the roots of our being and define our actions as we go far in our journey forwards. This is true for our Squad Spinny captain, Sachin Tendulkar, who has become the best in his field and now finds himself on a journey to meet himself again.
Back to Basics
Sachin’s lifelong passion for cricket that fueled his 24-year career is well documented. Starting at a young age, Sachin has represented India at the highest level and brought laurels for the country and himself. It is only natural that a man who has achieved so much, looks back at his past to reconnect with the things that hold sentimental value.
Alongside his passion for cricket, Sachin also indulges his love for cars, collecting several iconic cars over the years. Amongst his magnificent collection of supercars and sporty sedans, Sachin holds his first car, the humble 800, in the highest regard. As is the case with a lot of us, our first cars rarely stay with us throughout our life and Sachin had to part with his first car love.
“My first car was a Maruti 800. Unfortunately, it is not with me right now. I would love to have it back again with me.”
– Sachin Tendulkar on his first car
Meeting yourself again
Watching cars with his brother from his balcony, buying the 800 was a realization of a childhood fascination for cars. The small hatchback was the first car for millions of Indians and signified the freedom of personal mobility that the car made possible. For Sachin, it was a celebration of the success he had achieved in his early career.
“A car to me is more than just a mode of travel. It’s my second home, my co-passenger in the journey as one explores life and goes places. Our car reflects us, sometimes complements our personality.“
Having achieved the accolades, trophies, and adoration of the people, the humble Maruti 800 now represents a simpler time. A time when driving the car was a symbol of what it meant to go far, in his career as well as in his own life. It was a symbol of achieving what was impossible through hard work and determination. It’s not too difficult to imagine the sentiments that a small hatchback from the 80s can have attached to it, and why the desire to own the car again.
Recreating the feeling with Spinny
Despite its immense popularity, a Maruti 800 from the late 80s has become an incredibly rare car to see. Adding the layer of the car being in a Bayers Blue colour, makes the specific Maruti 800 Sachin owned one of the rarest finds today. An impossible task for an individual to undertake.
Impossible, but not unachievable.
Squad Spinny team began the search for a well-maintained Maruti 800 from 1989. After evaluating more than 30 cars, the team struck gold when they found not only a Maruti 800 from the right year, with complete paperwork. Putting the car through Spinny’s evaluation process further certified that the right car had indeed been found.
Time is not kind, especially to cars. Despite its regular maintenance, even this Maruti 800 required some tender love and care to return it to its former glory. The restoration of the Maruti 800 would be a complete job that would go through every component of the car to either repair or replace to match the car to its original specification.
“Even in its maintained condition, we knew we had to examine every component to make sure the restoration can be done as smoothly as possible.”
– Ranjeet – Technical Team
Opening the hood of the Maruti 800 at our Integrated Quality Centre, our engineers, technicians and mechanics appreciated the maintenance done by the previous owner. The engine parts, suspension, and brakes were all meticulously sourced with parts authentic to the parts available from the time.
Where time had the most impact was the buttons – sourced and found new on the inside and the paint on the outside. With regular use, it was expected that the buttons and controls would require a thorough check to ensure their functionality remained. The knobs, sliders, and dials were checked and replaced where required. Even the included clock was checked and set with the correct time.
“Every touch point was personally tested by us. Only when the feature performed as designed was it considered to be completely restored.”
– Indrej Kumar – Technical Team
The paint, on the other hand, had faded from years being out in the world. The Bayers Blue this particular Maruti 800 came in was a shade of blue that hasn’t been used on new cars in quite some time. With due research into the colour used, our paint technicians were able to recreate the exact shade of Bayers Blue and give the Maruti 800 a fresh coat of paint.
Once the car was restored to its original specification, it was time to restore the Maruti 800 to Sachin’s memory of the car. Through extensive interactions with the Master Blaster himself, the Spinny team recreated exactly how Sachin’s Maruti 800 looked, felt, and drove. Without the passion and attention to detail of our engineers, mechanics, and technicians at our Integrated Quality Centre, the restoration of the car would not have been possible.
The Moment of Truth
After many hours of laborious love, it was time to reunite the two legends, both icons for millions of Indians, with each other. Rather than try to put into words the intimate moment of Sachin’s meeting with his 800, why not experience it along with him.
“When Squad Spinny re-created my first car, it was very special. The team had put in a lot of effort and gone to great lengths to bring back special memories of my first car. Spinny values the emotions behind car ownership and strives to provide an experience with timeless values of trust, transparency, and integrity”
A time machine might not be possible, but recreating the bond between man and machine is the next best thing. Making Sachin’s dream come true and seeing him drive down the same roads in the same car as he did in the 80s and 90s. Restoring the car for Sachin was not simply an exercise in restoring a car.
It was an example of what it means to Go Far where it matters the most. It’s this spirit that drives every Squad Spinny member to make the seemingly impossible seem achievable. This is the spirit we celebrate, whether it is going forward in life or simply looking back.
