Coupes, better known as two door cars are popular the world over owing to their sportier and desirable looks as compared to their four door counterparts. The absence of two doors at the rear ensures that these cars are lighter and quicker, becoming an obvious choice for the driver-centric audience. Besides that, two door cars can also make a good runabout for someone who lives alone or for a small family of 2-3.
Some of the best driver's cars ever sold internationally such as the Volkswagen Golf GTi, Honda Civic STi , Mini Cooper , Lancia Delta Integrale et al have two doors. These cars happen to have four door versions too. However, the four door models aren't half as desirable. Hence, establishing that two door cars have a strong fan base and often enjoy the upper-hand when it comes to resale value and demand.
In India, we have seen various cars come and go. Some like the Maruti 800 became a runaway success and ply on Indian roads even today whereas others sadly had an early date with their fate. The hatchback segment, for example, and now the compact SUV segment have been observed to be a favourite of the average Indian car buyer owing to factors such as size, space, practicality and usability. That must have you thinking…What about two doors ? Where do they stand on an Indian scale of preference ? The honest answer is , they do not !
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We Indians can be rather stubborn and not budge with respect to the things we expect from our cars. An average Indian who picks up a car wants it to firstly be fuel efficient because “Kitna Deti Hai” is of paramount importance. Secondly, it should be practical and spacious enough to seat the family members comfortably. Thirdly, it should be light on the pocket. Car enthusiasts and driver oriented audiences who would be open to the idea of owning a two door car in India are few and far between. As a result of these strict pre-requisites, the two door segment could not find a place in our Indian car market. Will it take off in the future? Hmmm.. chances look bleak !
It takes two to tango, so let's see which manufacturers were brave enough to put out a two door car for the Indian car market. Do note that this article shall not include sports cars and super cars from BMW, Porsche and so on because they aren't everyday cars in our country and neither are they affordable by anyone and everyone. We shall also be excluding imported cars from the list. So here goes :-
Standard Motors was an Indian car manufacturer that was born in Madras in the 1950s. They were known to manufacture trucks and heavy vehicles.
In the 1960s they introduced the Standard Herald-The Indian sibling of the Triumph Herald, a successful two door sedan introduced in Britain in the late 1950s. Standard Motors collaborated with Triumph and got the Herald to India. The initial cars had plenty of British parts, soon after they were made indigenously. The Herald had a 1.0 litre 4 cylinder petrol engine which made about 40 horsepower. Although the original car was a two door, a four door model was introduced in the 1970s to cater to the needs of the Indian public. The Herald was the only other car one could purchase besides an Ambassador or Premier Padmini back then . However, the lack of two doors and expensive maintenance costs made it an unpopular choice.Today it is a collectible car in India and can command a fortune !
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The very name of the car and its manufacturer might have you wondering if such a car even existed in India. Of course it did. Sipani Automobiles LTD was an Indian car manufacturer headquartered in Bangalore. It originated in the 1970s, soon after a ban was imposed on imported cars. Sipani Motors was known to produce subcompact cars which had fibreglass bodies. The Badal was introduced in 1975. It had two front doors only, stood on three wheels loosely based on the British Reliant Robin and was designed to be a people mover. Did it move? NO. It did not. In terms of sales it was a disaster and its single cylinder 198cc two stroke engine ensured it didn't go places. The Badal lived a very short life and was often mocked in Hindi movies thanks to its quirky design and looks.
Sipani's next attempt to win over the audience came in 1981 with a hatchback called the Dolphin. Like the Badal, it had a fibreglass body and two doors. Unlike the Badal however, it stood on four wheels and looked digestible. It was based on the Reliant Kitten.
Under the bonnet, it withheld a 848cc four cylinder engine mated to a 4 speed transmission and a real wheel drivetrain producing about 38 horsepower. For a brief stint, the Dolphin was used by Rally Drivers due to its dynamics. The average Indian buyer however didn't want a fibreglass car and one which had no rear doors. The interior felt ancient and underequipped. As a result, sales were poor, deeming it a flop. The introduction of the Maruti 800 in 1983 was the final nail in the Dolphin's coffin.
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San Motors is another company that might sound unfamiliar. It originated in 1995 to produce sporty contemporary cars that would appeal to the youth and driver centric crowd. Their plants and headquarters were in Bangalore and the cars were assembled in Goa.In 1998, they introduced the San Storm,a home grown two door sports car . It loosely resembled the Suzuki Cappuccino kei car and was supposed to be a roadster. Under the bonnet it had a 1.1 litre Renault D7F engine which made about 60 horsepower and was mated to a 5 speed manual transmission. It was front wheel drive , hence not being the quickest or best handling sports car. Furthermore, it was built horribly. The quality of metal was pathetic and on sitting inside one could identify that several interior parts such as the steering wheel, gearknob etc had been borrowed from other cars that were on sale in India at the time. Hence, it's the sports car that never tookoff ! San Motors had plans to introduce a two door SUV called the Dune. Sadly though, today it is just a part of history that never materialised.
Tata Motors surely needs no introduction. The Tata Sierra was Tata's ticket into the world of cars in 1991. Until then, they only made trucks and heavy vehicles. The Sierra was a two door SUV based on the Telcoline Pickup and looked quite like a Ford Bronco, thanks to the massive wrap around rear glass. For the time, it had exemplary features like power steering, power windows and a factory fitted AC.It found takers immediately and had amazing road presence. It was a tough car and had metal bumpers, often called the Bad Boy's car. Under the bonnet it sported a 2.0 litre NA Diesel engine mated to a 5 speed transmission making about 64 horsepower. In 1998, Tata introduced a 2.0 Turbo Diesel engine for the Sierra which made it roar about. It is surely one of the coolest looking cars to have been sold in India and has gathered a decent fan base over the years.
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Back in 2003, the immensely popular Maruti Suzuki Zen turned 10 years old. It was then that MUL came up with something superb. An advertisement on the front page of the Times of India for the cool new products carried the tagline, ‘Hot New Singles from Maruti' . They were the Maruti Zen Carbon and Zen Steel.So how did Maruti get this amazing idea ?
Back in the 90s, Maruti exported 2 door versions of the Zen to Europe and some other countries. In 2003, they converted the left over stock of 2 door cars into Zen Carbons and Steels. Only 600 such cars were sold, 300 being black Carbons and 300 being silver Steels.
Engine wise, they retained the same 1.0 litre 16 valve MPFi petrol engine of the regular Zen, but were quicker due to the missing rear doors and man they looked hot !
India fell in love with the Zen all over again and Maruti sold all 600 cars.
These are surely the most well known two doors sold in India, firstly, because they are Marutis after all and secondly due to the crazy recent demand that's built up for them in the used car market. The want for these two door Zens is insane and so are the prices that people ask for them !
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And that finally brings us to the most recent two door hatchback to be sold in India. The Volkswagen Polo GTi. The Polo GTi was launched in 2016 and was indeed a true hot hatch. It looked chic and droolworthy thanks to the missing rear doors. Unlike its 4 door sibling, it had a 1.8 TSi petrol engine mated to a 7 speed DSG gearbox which made it absolutely divine with four disc brakes. It was the real driver's car that VW gave us. Unfortunately, good things come at a price and the GTi commanded a price of 20.6 lakhs , ensuring it had few takers.
In conclusion, the two door car segment doesn't really exist in India. Manufacturers have tried and failed, while others like Maruti have sold the two door versions of the Zen as limited editions and gotten somewhere. In my opinion however, anything sold in India with two doors has/will have collectible value in the future thanks to the sheer rarity of two doors, be it something as desirable as a Polo GTi and Zen Carbon or something as unknown as the Sipani Dolphin.
