[hdman]

Originally Posted by arun1100

Wow, any pics of the Padmini? Thank you!

Surprisingly, I had a few pictures but unfortunately the Padminis are partially visible in both (better than nothing though)

The first one's with a pre-owned Padmini my dad bought, actually it was our second pre-owned Padmini as the first one turned out to be terrible and had to be sold off. This is the one we used the most out of the three we had owned (not at the same time).

Some of my best memories about this car include my sister and me dividing our territories on the back seat (to maintain peace and cooperation, of course); as many would know Padminis are water cooled and require frequent top-ups, and as kids it used to be our jobs to fill the water before hitting the road; hang to the half opening window glass on the rear, we were so jealous of the Maruti kids - they got the whole window to themselves; as the key goes in the middle of the dash, my dad would let me twist the key to crank it, on a lucky day

Here's a picture from my childhood (me on the left with my cousin)


This one belonged to my grandpa, the picture quality is as bad as it gets (me on the bonnet). This was the last one we owned before moving to a Maruti 800. I remember it being very posh, so much so that it had grab handles to close the doors from inside (the earlier ones had a faux-leather strap hanging out)

The car was actually parrot green. How odd does the black number plate looks now?


Too bad I couldn't find any good pictures of the car. I remember learning the word 'Premier' from this car, had no idea what it meant at the time. We used to always refer it to as 'Fiat' - it's embarrassing to admit how long it took me to finally understand what Premier Padmini written on the boot meant.

[TheHelix0202]

Beautiful cars and awesome pictures! My parents used to own one around the time when I was born - an S1 Deluxe - that I don't remember obviously, and my grandad, another blue one.

As a side note, I've notice a man that lives nearby sit in the middle of the front seat while driving, such that it gives the impression from outside that the steering wheel is in the middle! I wonder if there's any particular reason why someone'd do this, or is it just his own weird, quirky behaviour?

[samish_g]

Hats off Arun for your indefatigable diligence in maintaining the beauty. I too learnt my first lessons in Premier Padmini (1980 model) in the late 80s. Kudos for keeping the original parts as much as possible (especially the dynamo generator). Nowadays, all technicians advocate the switch over to the much eulogized alternator. In this regard I have 2 questions.

1. In the photos, I think I spotted the external voltage regulator too, tucked neatly in the right side fendor apron area. However, in the dashboard, the ammeter is not to be seen? Have you relocated it somewhere else? I think the voltage regulator requires periodic adjustments (maybe once in 2 months) based on the output in the ammeter. My question is how do you monitor the performance of the dynamo? What is the current output setting?

2. My second question is regarding the horn. You made nostalgic with the "Jalwa" horns. It was regular after market feature in the iconic Ambassadors and Fiats back in the 80s. I wanted to know, did you use any special gauge wire for the Jalwa?

Regards,
Samish

[arun1100]

Originally Posted by justin.das

Superb review Arun. Fiat cars are really something special which can only be experienced once we own one. It slowly grows on you and becomes a part of our life .Here is mine

Congrats Justin. I know with great efforts you have sourced the spares and restored the Delight. Superb outcome!

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

Compliments to you on lovingly and scrupulously maintaining the old girl and dressing her up in her best saree :-) The car has handsome clean Italian lines. Even today they appeal after 6 decades since it was first introduced in Italy. Our first car bought with our own money was a Premier Padmini - white cream colour, bucket seats and floor shift.

Thank you Sir. I am sure you are missing your Premier Padmini. If in case you come to Bangalore anytime, we can go on a quick drive. Atleast to the Airport.

Originally Posted by Stribog

I was almost born inside a 1960 model Fiat. Mom was being taken back to my grandpa's house (a tiny village near Theni), in her 9th month of pregnancy. Her doc said there was another 2 weeks min. Well, a gigantic speed breaker on the Periyakulam road decided otherwise, despite being driven very gently this started the labour pains and 4-5 hours later....yours truly arrived.
So many memories. Thanks dude for this post.

Whoa, this is some very interesting nostalgia. Thanks for sharing!

Originally Posted by bimal_67

Dear Arun, your passion shines through this excellent "walk-through" on the commendable effort on the classic Fiat.
Bravo Zulu man for this outstanding effort

Thank you Sir. I enjoyed reading your travelogue which is one of its kind. And I shared the link across my Fiat friends too. A Superb one!

Originally Posted by 51morris

Hi Arun,
Great thread, really enjoyed reading through every bit - clearly shows your passion towards Fiats! Hope you enjoy many years of motoring pleasure with the Fiat. When I am in India next, I will drive my Morris Minor over for a catch-up with you and your Fiat!
Cheers,
Praveen

HI Praveen, long time! Thank you. Recently I read your Morris thread; whatta beautiful car. Congrats. FIAT Select - CAC 444 was an absolute beauty too!

[arun1100]

Originally Posted by MMV

Arun, Your passion for the car is shown in your post as well as in your handle, Kudos. It's very well written.
Sharing a picture passed on by a friend. As told to me, the car made more than one somersault and landed belly up. The incident happened more than 30years ago in Bandra and the occupants came out nearly unscathed. (though the car was badly damaged).

Thank you for sharing the Padmini's pics. Rarely we get to see accident pics of a Padmini. Glad to know the occupants were safe! Though the FIATs and Amby were very strong, did not necessarily mean they were safe.

Originally Posted by RockingHorse

Doesn't this car meet all the specifications of sub 4 metre car rule? The length (3930mm)as well as engine size (both petrol and diesel) fit the specifications I believe. Quite an amusement.
This car has a proper 3 box shape and barring the aerodynamic considerations, excels in design over today's sub 4 metre sedans in my opinion. Wish I had skills to superimpose something like Hyundai Xcent over the Padmini to understand the shape differences better.

Very true! The other small sedan I always admired is the Opel Corsa. What a cute and proportionate car.

Originally Posted by hdman

Surprisingly, I had a few pictures but unfortunately the Padminis are partially visible in both (better than nothing though)

The first one's with a pre-owned Padmini my dad bought, actually it was our second pre-owned Padmini as the first one turned out to be terrible and had to be sold off. This is the one we used the most out of the three we had owned (not at the same time).

Here's a picture from my childhood (me on the left with my cousin)
Attachment 1988323

The car was actually parrot green. How odd does the black number plate looks now?
Attachment 1988324

Beautiful pics, thanks for sharing. Such nostalgic childhood pics are priceless.

Originally Posted by TheHelix0202

Beautiful cars and awesome pictures! My parents used to own one around the time when I was born - an S1 Deluxe - that I don't remember obviously, and my grandad, another blue one.

Thank you!! Please share if you have any pics of your Padmini.

Originally Posted by samish_g

Hats off Arun for your indefatigable diligence in maintaining the beauty. I too learnt my first lessons in Premier Padmini (1980 model) in the late 80s. Kudos for keeping the original parts as much as possible (especially the dynamo generator). Nowadays, all technicians advocate the switch over to the much eulogized alternator. In this regard I have 2 questions.

1. In the photos, I think I spotted the external voltage regulator too, tucked neatly in the right side fendor apron area. However, in the dashboard, the ammeter is not to be seen? Have you relocated it somewhere else? I think the voltage regulator requires periodic adjustments (maybe once in 2 months) based on the output in the ammeter. My question is how do you monitor the performance of the dynamo? What is the current output setting?

2. My second question is regarding the horn. You made nostalgic with the "Jalwa" horns. It was regular after market feature in the iconic Ambassadors and Fiats back in the 80s. I wanted to know, did you use any special gauge wire for the Jalwa?

Regards,
Samish

Thank you for the kind words, Samish!

Regarding the voltage regulator, no adjustments were done to it so far in both my Padminis. The Ammeter and oil pressure meter on the dashboard usually were retrofitted, atleast in the '90s Padmini cars.

The Jalwa horns were bought from Shivajinagar gujiri for 500 bucks. The wiring to the horns is stock ones.

[arun1100]

A decade since Bhpian funkykar gave me the opportunity to own this beautiful Padmini, today I gave back the same opportunity to him to look after the Padmini for the coming years! All the best, Karthik!

Today's drive on a cool summer morning of Bangalore's empty roads.

[Moontan]

Wonderful memories. I learned to drive on this beauty. It had a column stick shift with a Philips cassette player. It's registration was MEN 104 (Bangalore)

[Sahilrai166]

Congratulations on owning this beauty. This car really brings back all my childhood memories as we had two Premier Padmini's at home owned by my grandpa and Dad.
Attaching a picture of my dad's Premier Padmini.

[Captain Slow]

Originally Posted by arun1100

Servicing and Greasing

Diesel spray
[u][b]Attachment 1985614

Sir where do you get this greasing done?

[arun1100]

Originally Posted by Captain Slow

Sir where do you get this greasing done?

This was at the Gogers Petrol Bunk near Cantonment railway station. Unfortunately, the petrol bunk and the service center do not survive anymore.

[arun1100]

Our beloved 331 is running well. Driving around occasionally during the weekends. Here are some pics taken recently.

[naadopaasaka]

This is such a wonderful thread! Thanks to all the Padmini owners, in particular to Shri Arun.

I grew up in two Padminis. The first ten years of my life (1992-2002) were spent in Padminis. I used to sit in the driver's seat with the car off and pretend to drive it when it was parked. When my cousin (elder to me) started driving, I taught him how to shift the gears on the column-shifter because he had learnt on a floor-shift Maruti 800.

The first of our Padminis was blue and was purchased before I was around in 1989. The second was purchased in 1996 - white. I still remember going to Sundaram Motors on Kasturba Road and taking delivery. Kasturba Road didn't even have a median and we could park happily on either side (even the wrong side) of the road.

There were so many quirky little things in those cars - the ash trays everywhere, for instance.

We moved from a Padmini to a Tata Indica in 2002. Sadly, I haven't been able to even sit in a Padmini in fifteen years, and have never driven one. This thread brought back quite a few memories. Thanks.

[arun1100]

Originally Posted by naadopaasaka

This is such a wonderful thread! Thanks to all the Padmini owners, in particular to Shri Arun.

Sadly, I haven't been able to even sit in a Padmini in fifteen years, and have never driven one. This thread brought back quite a few memories. Thanks.

Thanks for those words!! If you live in Bangalore, we can surely meet up and get to drive the Padmini again, once the Covid thing settles.

Here are some latest pics of 331.

[naadopaasaka]

Originally Posted by arun1100

Thanks for those words!! If you live in Bangalore, we can surely meet up and get to drive the Padmini again, once the Covid thing settles.

Thanks! That's very kind of you. I do live in Bengaluru. I will figure out a way to get in touch with you. Newbie here so still can't send PMs.

How much do you drive the Padmini(s)? Do you use it like you would any other car?

[arun1100]

I drive them mostly during the weekends now that I am working from home.

This Padmini I have parked in my farm near Yalahanka and hence get to drive it often. Roads are great and no people around!!