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-   -   Restored Fiats (Super Select & Others) (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/post-war/37052-restored-fiats-super-select-others-15.html)

Karl that was quite a treatise on the 1100 in her various Avatars !
By the way, that (cosmetic) restorer's guide to the fiat 1100.. Do you take advance orders ?!? :D

Oh absolutely. As advance you can drop off your bumpers at my place next time you are there to spy.:)

He he, sounds more like Gabbar Singh - "yeh Bumper.. yeh bumper.. HUM KO DE DE THAKURRR !!"
:OT

Here's a Fiat 1100 Super Select,spotted by me in Kolkata. Its very well kept and has a neat bodyline.

Thet looks like a select with an SS grille to me, but its taken care of i guess!

Ref. post no 210, I am posting a photograph of a super select with "MILLICENTO" on the dicky. Is it authentic? Please let me know.

Best regards,

Behram Dhabhar

I think that is a Dashboard badge off a 54-55 Millicento if i am not mistaken. Do try and get the badge off this car. It looks cool. Also, Where is thi car? Nashik or Devlali?

Edit: got your new net connection??

The owner of this car was working in Bombay Cycle, and had even trained 6 months in Italy with Fiat. He was a keen enthusiast, and had fitted this boot badge at some point personally. It was offered in Italian market cars. He had also fabricated a bonnet scoop like the Spyder, and a few other alterations. Last I knew car has not been started (or even cleaned) for 8- 9 years.

It is Mr.Banaji's car in Pune. I had met him last year. He is above 90 years old and not keeping well. I offered to buy the car but he did not understand what I was saying and so I just came back, respecting his age and condition. The scoop on the bonnet is still there. He could not locate the keys so I could not open the bonnet etc.

I have grown up next to Mr Banaji and his car. Genuis of a Fiat enthusiast, but sadly unwell these days. I too have been trying to locate the keys in vain.

And believe me, he understood what you were saying if you offered to buy the car, he was probably politely dissuading you if I know him well. I too have tried many times:D

yes,to the best of my knowledge it is genuine and a few cars(1958fiat1100) down here still have this badge . also cyrus please note that the 55millicento dash badge is GOLDEN colour and not metallic.

I purchased this car almost three years ago and had Sanjay Ghosh do a 80% restoration as I wanted to use it as my daily driver while visiting Calcutta every winter, home being Toronto. The problem with Concours Restorations is they seldom see the light of day and the Italian Fiats had the right look, size for the mad streets of Calcutta, was repairable and equally important affordable to buy, restore and maintain.

I purchased the car from P. K. Choudhury, a fellow collector/restorer, who had purchased it from the original owner the Bengali Movie Star Pranati Das with a WBF-1 plate and a Deluxe trim kit that included the chrome side moldings and a one piece grill. He had purchased the car for to do up for his daughter-in-law but with her consent sold it to me.

The interior was very much Indian and in good shape with new vinyl . It showed about 46,000 miles on it and I haven't been able to determine if they are correct. The car was in good shape requiring little body work, so the milage might be correct. Mechanically I had the brake system redone, repaired the rad, new water pump, valve job and milled the head.

It took longer to have it finished off than I had expected and some areas could have had more attention to the detailing even though it was what I would consider a 85% Concours Restoration at a comparably reasonable cost.

At the end of the day the car looks great, drives well, still sorting out some of the mechanicals on it before I venture out of Calcutta for a weeks "Drive about". I've been doing a few things that I chosen not to originally such as changing out the door windows that were scratched, the difference and feel of the car was quite significant. Put a set of new MRF white walls on it, special order here in Calcutta and finally was given a set of original aluminum hub caps by a friend.

I've done a lot of research here and on the web and have only two photos of the Deluxe Model and a brochure. They seem to be very rare. I decided to restore it to the Italian model that shows a different interior with carpets. The new interior is currently vinyl and once I can confirm that the deluxe came in a cloth and the colors offered will have it redone as close to original specs as possible. The blue color is as close I could make it with out the paint specifications. It still is a work in progress which is Ok by me.

It has been a pleasure to drive and show! The attention and appreciation that it has received and then the amazement that a westerner is driving is always a delight. We see very few Fiats on the roads these days and I would say that 90% of them have disappeared in the last 3 years.

In the Baby blue color, deluxe trim and WBF-1 plates it's what we say back home "eye candy". Being the only one on the streets having been done up like this, I hope the few remaining owners of Fiats and other old cars will give a second thought before they sell them more likely to the scrap yard.

Lots more photos to come!

Here are some of the restoration photos.
Seams the original color was white+ dr. blue + grey, any comments?

Here's my current photos at the Tolly Show.

I will be scanning the complete book when I return to Toronto.
These photos I took with my camera.