Maruti is one gritty company and if it all there is a triumph of marketing of any product, it has got to be the Wagon R. Twelve years after its launch the Wagon R has crossed the 10 lakh milestone. For the last many years, the Wagon R has been selling consistently and has been in Maruti ranks the second largest selling car after the Alto month after month and year after year. It has also been in the top three or four selling cars in India and has been averaging a very healthy 12,000 units per month. Nice and warm story, isn’t it? But the Wagon R did not begin its innings so positively. It was met by the tough Indian customer with a fairly cold reception and the first first couple of years the car struggled to sell in three digit figures. But Maruti believed in its product and its dealers believed in Maruti and due to the sheer hard work from all involved the Wagon R transformed into one of the best selling cars in India, in the process overtaking the sales of its main tall boy rival, the Hyundai Santro. The success of the Wagon R shows what a good dealer strength can do. Fiat in India, we are sure, will give an arm and a leg and more to have dealers like Maruti has. Its a pity that they don’t have such dealers, because that is the key differentiator that decides on the success or failure of a car in the market place.