[ghodlur]

Do we want the Contessa back? Of course its a yes.

It was a dream vehicle back in those days and was the cult car to be used in almost every Hindi movies. Was a favourite of our yesteryear stars who today have moved on to the Rolls Royce, BMW and other high end luxuries.

[ravi_23]

HM should strongly think about relaunching the contessa, it need not be launched as a luxury sedan...they can launch contessa as a full fledged muscle car as the likes of mustang/camaro. Throw in all the modern amenities and there you get a new breed of indian car in india. I am sure there would be a lot of takers for a muscle car if reasonably priced.

[Sankar]

No. What is its USP now?

Contessa in its heyday was a luxury car and that was its USP. Today we have better alternatives.

Would luxury car buyers want it? Imho, No.

It has that (pseudo) muscle car look and RWD which enthusiasts enthuse about; but it doesn't have the real muscle and neither the handling. Of course the Vauxhall Victors did have some decent engines to match its looks, but in not in the Contessa not in India.

So to satisfy the performance requirements HM will have to put in a powerhouse of an engine in it. But then everything else will have to be uprated around it to make the car safer and reliable - GB, Drive train, brakes, suspension, safety features etc etc. Since this car is obsolete and dead in the Intnl market who will help HM in updating this platform? Does HM have the in house ability to do it themselves? Looking at HM Veer... i'd have to say i don't think so. LOL Also the car was infamous for catching rust.

So will petrol heads with money in their hands ready to buy a car buy it? Imho, it might be No for a majority. There are more faster and safer alternatives out there. But i admit no RWDs though.

The car is huge, but the space offered inside is not in line with its huge exterior proportions, IIRC it is longer than an Innova. The interior space is more or less similar to that of an Amby. So doesn't even make a good taxi.

Would fleet operators want it? Imho, No.

So who would really buy it? Only a few guys i hope. So will it be viable for HM to invest in and revamp an already dead car?

I too was a Contessa fan when i was in school and i did own one a few years back, bought it used from a fellow BHPian. I liked the car for its robust solid feel. But in this age as a new car its a definite no no for me.

[MARCUS_520i]

Fans + Enthusiasts v/s the masses = No prizes for guessing the winner!

I am a die hard fan of this beautiful product from HM. Always will be. But come to think of the normal population, I feel the Contessa would hold nothing but a slim chance of survival if given CPR and relaunched. Why? Look at all the Japs, Koreans, Americans and the Germans in the Indian market and all their fleets of various models available in gazillion trims and variants! They've made cars that have stood their ground for 20+ years and are still as much in demand.

And then comes poor old Conty from the HM 'stable' of sorts! The brand has always had major windows as far as new launches and beautification and development of the cars associated with it goes, but never made hay while the sun shone. Take the example of Mitsubishi Motors, which in India run shop in sync with Hindustan Motors. And they have this beautiful car, not just cosmetically, but also by heart and brain, called the 'Cedia'. Excellent styling, gorgeous colours, great stonker of an engine available at a killer price. How many of those do we see around? Maybe just a couple/hundred others. Now this car in question isn't a dated design or anything of that sort. It isn't even crazily priced for that matter. It's the marketing of their products that HM has always and forever failed at miserably.

I, for one, have been chasing Contessas for over 5 years now; but in the used-car territory. For there, this one is a major major bang for the buck!

So how many of those talking about muscle and V8 think that our baby Conty could survive in this mad race against the pocket-friendly, fuel injected, hybrids and what nots selling like hot pancakes that already own the market?

Anyone?

[shekaran]

if mahindra can make a THAR out of the old MM540 base platform, why cant HM make a powerhouse out of the Contessa ? all aggregates are there, only mix and match is needed.

2.5L Tavera (Isuzu) engine (Turbo) or the latest 2L Isuzu Crde Engine with more than 80bhp can make the old lady (conti) move in a brisk way on the roads.
a more performance oriented differential ratio will make the diesel burner spin the wheels (burning rubber) from standstill.
15 inch 195/205 width tyres with improved ambassador brake booster will solve the braking department, and if possible (if HM people can think) add an ABS and ice the cake for effect.
add disc brakes in the rear and all braking problems are solved.
suspension of the contessa is already at its best, so just adding a stiffer gas shock absorber with more damping would make the old ship rock and roll on the highways literally.
PU Foam seats, power steering, power windows, central locking, alarm system - all these cost peanuts, if HM sends enquiries to requisite vendors.
a chilling a/c finals the list of most wanted things in a contessa.

HM - you have a option of retracing the mahindra way, are you listening ?
a muscle car look, superb performance aggregates, all available - only you need to retrofit all into a single package and deliver it for anything around 4-4.5lakhs - i am sure there will be lots of people who will buy such a car - just for its simplicity, low maintenance and superb looks.
best regards HM, in advance.

[Zed]

Originally Posted by pb10gagan

Considering the fact that Contessa was rip off of old Maserati Quattroporte.

Why don't we demand they bring in a rip off of new Quattroporte?

I feel like im preaching to the choir but just for the record The Contessa was the Indian licensed version of the Vauxhall Victor.

Should it be brought back to life ? Sure - if it can be resurrected the same way that old classics like the beetle and more recently the Fiat 500 have been brought back from the dead. However, HM would be the last company on earth id trust to pull off a half decent job. Perhaps a smaller specialist manufacturer \ Kit car maker ought to have a go....

[specialist1968]

Originally Posted by devarshi84

Anybody and I mean anybody I have met till date has good things to say about how Contessa looks. Either on the Net or off the net.

It is also a perfect example how Dodge Ford and Chevrolet have rebuilt their brands on Muscle cars off late.

H.M. is also trying hard (not sure if smartly but they are trying) to make the cut and they have the Contessa platform at hand.

Will HM see this thread? Will HM bring back the Contessa? Will the company be able to do justice for what the car stands for in the eyes of enthusiasts?

Yes dear. It will cater to the nostalgic market for the like minded people. Only thing is that it may sell much lesser than the Lancer Cedia (one in a year or two) and the price should justify the manufacturing costs

[suhaas307]

Do people know why it was stopped in the first place?

The Contessa had serious suspension issues, I'm told by reliable sources. The car flopped in our market. And honestly, I don't see what's so great about it.

At the end of the day, it's just a Vauxhall Victor which was a run-on-the-mill car in the UK.

It can be considered as an Indian classic, and it probably is.

Do we want a new Contessa. Yes. But do we want the same sort of car? Well, no. If HM can do justice to its design, equipment, and quality, it would make sense.

[Sankar]

There's a mistake on the Contessa wiki page. It says Contessa was the second car in India to have a fully independent suspension, but in reality it had only independent front suspension.



Prolly the writer must've thought that it had independent rear because of the looks of the rear trailing arms when the car was viewed from behind.

[YaeJay]

How ironic, there are so many takers for the amby (me included) and for the contessa ( me with it too). I/we have never owned a contessa. we were lent one for a month for a wedding. one of few other cars that were lent out by close friends of my dad. A couple of hours is all it takes to know that car. And these two cars had to come through HM!

So do we need it back on the streets? There are a lot of folks (including the groom) who to even this day thinks it is crap ( he is kinda short cant reach the pedals you know). I may never buy it if its launched again ( engine upgrade, suspension upgrade thats about it, let them not get fancy with HM designs we know who works there!). I would love it to be in the market again, I'd be tempted, I would even get a piggy bank.

to cut it short, yes Id want it back.

Please forgive the blah blah, one liners ( id have liked to say yes and leave it at that!) launch you on Mars or some planet with apes I hear these days. I do love primates and have read about apes, but I guess I love cars better .

[devarshi84]

I assume that the company can leave the interiors, exteriors and engines intact for starters but they definitely need to work on suspension, brakes and build quality.

I am not looking at the sales chart fight between the Toyota Corolla and Contessa but 100-200 units for a Cruze sized niche sedan will definitely bring in money for HM.

IIRC the car was priced about 1/3 of what similarly sized sedans sell for today. If there is a fighting chance, why not?

The Challenger, Camaro and Mustang were written off even before they brought the American cars back in the buyers perspective. ICML, Premier, Force and HM are working hard to make something click. It just takes one smart chap at HM to make it happen.

[yogeshnaik]

Yes, ofcourse, I would like to see the HM Contessa back. If Hindustan Motors comes up with new design with a shorter length or slightly cabfront, this should click. Contessa is one of the most beautiful cars which gives a royal look, also comparable to statsman cars.

[vb-saan]

My last memory of Contessa is from the late 90s – 98/99. There was this blue number parked outside our gate in Bangalore. Our old neighbor couldn’t move it from there as it refuse to start, and it was used by the local laundry/ironing man to store the clothes (for a fees of Rs. 10-20) a day!!

Do we want the HM Contessa back? I will say No. But do we want the Contessa brand back? Maybe Yes. If HM is bringing it back, it will be another eye sore to pollute and add chaos to our traffic situation. But I would love to see some able manufacturer to buy those brands (Ambassador and Contessa) from HM, and revive as modern classics.

[MARCUS_520i]

Originally Posted by Zed

Sure - if it can be resurrected the same way that old classics like the beetle and more recently the Fiat 500 have been brought back from the dead.

Dead?? Those cars are far from dead. They're immortals. Only difference is they now come with modern day looks, gizmos and prices!

Originally Posted by yogeshnaik

If Hindustan Motors comes up with new design with a shorter length or slightly cabfront, this should click.

The Contessa's sheer size is it's actual beauty. Why would you want HM to rip that off of it? I mean, when there're several plus-size sedans running and selling around, why not Conty?

Originally Posted by vb-san

If HM is bringing it back, it will be another eye sore to pollute and add chaos to our traffic situation.

Another eye sore? Which are the other ones? Please elaborate.
Pollution and traffic chaos..hmmm, interesting debatable subject. But I reckon it's better you take a look at/participate in the following thread and leave the Contessa out of it.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...-good-bad.html

[SCORPION]

A mile of bonnet in front. Sitting a few inches above the road. Yeah, I remember the Contessa. Most beautiful thing on four wheels back then. The 1.8 Isuzu engine was reasonably good at that time. If the spy photos of HMs compact Amby compact sedan are anything to go by, are anything to go, I did rather not have them resurrect the Contessa. Better to let it remain a fond memory and let my jaw drop at the odd one I may come across on the road. A Contessa classic. Let it remain that way.