The news from
Hindustan Motors regarding the stoppage of production of Ambassador Cars has
led to a host of people writing about this old war horse which ruled the passenger
car market in India for over five decades. Let me add my bit of nostalgia about this `Hold All’ of a car!
Yes, the first thing
that struck you about the car was the sheer space – both for passengers and for
their luggage. In the model I had, with
the gear stick attached to the steering wheel, there was space for three adults
in the front (including the driver) and four adults in the back, apart from any
number of kids. The moving space on the
rear side was such that old people could literally walk into the car as against
struggling to get into the modern day car with its low seat and limited
space! As for luggage, the dicky could easily hold 3 to 4 large
suitcases, apart from a host of other small bags. Amby was truly a `Hold All`.
I remember once while
on a visit to a water fall near Arkonam my Amby had 15 passengers including my
cousin`s family whom we picked up from their home in Arakkonam! On another
occasion four kids were accommodated in the open dicky of the Amby, while driving a short distance from my home to a
nearby marriage hall.
While in terms of
capacity it scored high as compared to any other car in the market, on all
other parameters it failed miserably.
The old fuddy-duddy
look of the car which the company never changed suffered heavily in comparison with the sleek contemporary looks of the new generation
vehicles which were naturally preferred by the younger generation.
Speed was a
limitation in the car. On highways it behaved
well as long as you were driving at 60 kmph or less but the moment you stepped
on the accelerator to take it beyond 60 kmph, the engine would start protesting,
the vibration was so bad that the
passengers would feel very insecure. Due to the speed limitation, it naturally
took longer to reach its destination.
Though the company tried to address this problem by offering a version
with Isuzu
engine, but that could not match the fuel-efficient-maintenance-free engines of
the modern day vehicles.
The hard steering
wheel was another sore point of the car.
For those who take power steering for granted, driving an old Amby could
be a nightmare. One needed a lot of energy
to steer the steering at turnings! Unless you were used to the vehicle you
would find it difficult to even change the gears in an Amby, (that was an art
by itself!).
During long distance
travels or while climbing hills, the engine would become so hot that one had to
stop the vehicle at periodic intervals to replace the boiling water in the
radiator with cold water. During our trips to Tirupathi in the good old days we
had to stop atleast three to four times on the way to perform this ritual.
Similarly during
rains, you would find maximum number of ambassador cars stuck on the flooded
city roads as water would have entered
the carburetor located at the lower end of the engine. In such situations the driver had no choice
but to wait patiently for the water to drain and the carburetor to dry before
he could start the engine, while
watching with jealousy as the small Maruthi-800s’, waded nonchalantly through
the flooded streets!
Amby was a favourite
of all the `hole in the wall’ roadside mechanics- because they had enough Amby
owners ambling along with some problem or the other. As long as Ambys’ were
ruling the roost, the mechanic`s life was good. Yes, Ambys’ were the mechanic’s
delight but owner`s nightmare!
My first car was a
1956 model `Morris Minor` which I acquired in 1969 and which belonged to the
Morris Oxford family, the parent of Ambassador car. I bought the vehicle for Rs
3500/- and after driving it for two years sold it for Rs 5000. Morris Minor was
such a popular car those days that inspite of my being the fourth owner, my 15 year old Morris commanded a good
resale value!
The first official car I got was an Amby with a
driver attached when I became the Dy CEO
of an ad agency I was working for in Delhi in the early 70s. I bought my own Amby -my first airconditioned
car in life-a couple of years after I started my agency in 1986. I progressed
in life and in due course could afford to buy Maruthi Esteem- with all the
advantages of a modern day vehicle. I was proud of my new acquisition, but my
parents thought otherwise.
I
distinctly remember my parents` comments after I took them on a joy ride in my
new vehicle- ` “What kind of a car is this? It is so difficult to get in and
get out! Your Ambassador was any day a better car than this!”
And I am sure that a
lot of senior citizens of that generation would be inclined to agree.
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