[Thar4x4]

Marriott owner brought 8 London Taxis for guest, 4 arrived in Pune, 2 Red and 2 White. London taxi is rocking presently.

[tushky]

spotted one in Pune. i think it is imported from china.

[scooby05]

I am told the Subhas Sanas 'London Taxi' is for Sale! Has he had enough of it. Maybe a practical car chauffer driven city car but still a piece of 50 year old technology, with just some cosmetic changes every few years.
30 years back I wanted to get one in, to replace our Ambassador for family use, but we didnt have the cars here then, that we have now!
And yes Subhas did own an older version some 8 years back, but bought second hand by him locally.

[noopster]

Spotted one of the Marriott ones just now outside my office- in fact these quaint eye-catchers are not an uncommon sight in Hinjewadi these days. Was curious about it so did some wiki-ing.

The TX4 is a purpose built taxicab (hackney carriage) manufactured by Manganese Bronze Holdings / LTC The London Taxi Company, formerly LTI London Taxis International. It is the latest in a long line of purpose-built taxis manufactured by LTC (previously as stated LTI and before that many years ago Carbodies). The design has loosely evolved from the Austin FX4.

The TX4 offers a 2.5 VM Motori diesel engine mated electronically to a Magna Powertrain automatic transmission (also used in the Jeep Cherokee). A manual version is also available.

The picture quite clearly shows an AT.

VM Motori S.p.A. is a diesel engine manufacturing company in Cento, Italy, in Emilia-Romagna, an Italian region which is also home to Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati and Ducati.

Its ownership today is rather complex.

Detroit Diesel Corporation (DDC) bought VM Motori in 1995.
In 2000 the DDC was purchased by DaimlerChrysler AG.
In 2003, Penske Corporation purchased a 51% stake in VM Motori; in 2007, Penske bought the remaining 49% from DaimlerChrysler and subsequently sold 50% of it to General Motors.[1] As of 2007, both deals were awaiting European regulatory approval and the value of the deal was not known.

The company's engines do seem to have their share of admirers, though.

The Alfa Romeo Alfetta, produced in Arese, rolled off the line with a VM Motori engine under the bonnet in 1979, signaling VM's move to the OEM automotive market.
During the 1980s British Leyland chose VM engines as the smoothest, most petrol-like units available for diesel models of their Range Rover and Rover SD1; the choice continued with the later Rover 800.

GM Daewoo has licensed the 1.5-litre and 2.0-litre common rail engine designs, and built a dedicated engine plant, which started production 2006. The 2.0 L diesel is used in the Chevrolet Captiva/Opel Antara/Daewoo Winstrom, the Chevrolet Optra/Daewoo Lacetti, the Chevrolet Cruze and the Chevrolet Epica/Daewoo Tosca.

Finally:

The latest vehicle to benefit from a 2.5 L VM Motori diesel engine is the purpose-built LTI (London Taxis International) London style taxicab - the TX4 is the first of the TX range of taxis to include a VM Motori engine.

A little about the powertrain:

R 425 DOHC2.5 L (2,499 cc/152.5 cu in) I4, with four valves-per-cylinder and common-rail direct fuel injection. Also available with variable geometry turbocharger (VGT) with upgraded power output of 120 kW (163 PS).[13]
Applications:
2001–2007 Chrysler Voyager Manual (power: 141 hp (105 kW); torque: 251 ft•lbf (340 N m))
2002–2004 Jeep Cherokee (power: 141 hp (105 kW); torque: 251 ft•lbf (340 N m))
LDV Maxus LDV Vans - LDV Van Dealers - LDV Van Parts - Eco Concept (power: 118 hp (88 kW) @ 4000 rpm; torque: 221 ft•lbf (300 N m) @ 2000 rpm)
A de-rated version of this engine putting out 100 hp was chosen in 2006 to power the new generation of the iconic London Taxi (TX4).

This is all quoted directly from Wikipedia, collated from different pages. Hope enthusiasts find it interesting.

[BuildUpGypsy]

A news in today's Mathrubhumi daily.

Kerala Minister using London Taxi as State car.

Link: http://www.mathrubhumi.com/story.php?id=354559

Minister Shibu Baby John is using a London Taxi as his state car. This car belongs to his son's friend in Pune. He will be using it for a few months. Guess it is the same car mentioned in this thread.

[Scorcher]

For the record,

London Taxi is officially being introduced into the Indian market. The Delhi based Bentley/Bugatti/ex-Lamborghini importer is the dealer.

They're in talks with major hotel chains to sell/lease fleets of cars.

[BANDHAV]

^^And those might look like this from the inside!

[devil_klm]

Originally Posted by BANDHAV

^^And those might look like this from the inside!

That is a luxurious one
Traveled in an old one last week in UK. Felt like a grown up Ambi. Getting in and out is not so easy as other cars with low seating position.

[gk1234]

Spotted these in Cochin tonight. Belongs to a family acquaintance. Was thrilled to see one in flesh after so many years, and for the first time in India. Never knew much about its history, but I wasn’t sure I’d see a thread here on the TX4 spottins in India. Apologies for the poor quality, taken in less than ideal lighting conditions with my iPhone.

[nsbhagwat]

I believe a couple of these imports were also employed by Panchashil Realty in Pune to ferry customers to and from their construction sites for the uber expensive apartments. This was way back in 2012.