[KartikeyaL]

Originally Posted by Shwetank

My dad with his Hindustan 14 sometime in the early 70s. He has always been fond of the hills and the 14 has taken him places!

Wonderful pictures, thanks for sharing your treasure !

[travancore]

Originally Posted by travancore

Here is a car with circus performer Pete Mardo. The elephant and its head dress look Indian. The car is RHD.

There is no reference of him in India, however.

Can anyone identify the car ?

courtesy: forwallpapers.com

Attachment 1272349

Our own magician Karl has identified the car (off a similar logo on the Zapp's car).

It is a Graham Paige!

[karlosdeville]

Originally Posted by harit

Now I know that at least one Splitty Beetle existed in Bombay, it was even registered here.

Maybe even two, but can't say for sure whether the car is pre 57 (oval) or pre 53 (split)

Originally Posted by Shwetank

My dad with his Hindustan 14 sometime in the early 70s. He has always been fond of the hills and the 14 has taken him places!

Lovely. What was the badge above the Hindustan badge on the bootlid?

[Shwetank]

Originally Posted by karlosdeville

Lovely. What was the badge above the Hindustan badge on the bootlid?

That isn't a badge, merely some sticker, as my dad tells me. On top of the number plate is a spot beam acting as a reverse lamp.

The car was acquired in March 1966. Here it is before the registration plate was changed.

[karlosdeville]

Originally Posted by Shwetank

Here it is before the registration plate was changed.

Makes such a difference.

I wonder if the number '6' is from a different font set - it doesn't seem to match.

[Shwetank]

Originally Posted by karlosdeville

Makes such a difference.

I wonder if the number '6' is from a different font set - it doesn't seem to match.

I don't think it would be from a different set since even the front carries the same configuration. I guess a matching '6' would have meant deviating from the norm and shifting towards fancy, which wouldn't have been the norm then.



Note the full wheel caps. Ben Hur style, is it?

[ajay99]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

IIRC it was a 1962 model. Had a side valve engine and SU carb, later replaced with an OHV. It was sold c.1981, so I remember it reasonably well. The semaphore indicators were blanked out later for want of spares, and replaced with flashing lights.

Sorry to correct you sir,Although Mk1 ambassador was delivered till mid 1963, they were fitted with OHV engines since 1960. SU carb was still there,But I doubt whether semaphore indicators came in post60 models

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by ajay99

Sorry to correct you sir,

I'm probably making a mistake on the year of manufacture then. It may have been 1959/1960 in that case.

I am certain about the SV engine and semaphores being there in this car.

[FordDodo]

Found in FB/Bangalorebygone, pics taken in the IISC.

[Shwetank]

Here are some pictures of our 1950 Vauxhall Velox.
We had it till around 1975.





At my parents' wedding in 1973.

[Stanher]

Originally Posted by Shwetank

Here are some pictures of our 1950 Vauxhall Velox.
We had it till around 1975.

Awesome, both the pics. and the car!
Was the colour combo on the car a pale pink and chocolate brown btw? I've heard of someone's father had one in that colour combo years ago.

[Shwetank]

Originally Posted by Stanher

Awesome, both the pics. and the car!
Was the colour combo on the car a pale pink and chocolate brown btw? I've heard of someone's father had one in that colour combo years ago.

Thank you, Stanher, for the compliments. My Dad tells me the car was light gray with a dark blue top when we sold it.
Have you ever wondered where we've lost this dual colour scheme which made the cars look so much more special. Most prominent in recent days it was on the previous generation Pajero, and even that could've hardly been called a scheme.

[karlosdeville]

Originally Posted by Shwetank

Have you ever wondered where we've lost this dual colour scheme which made the cars look so much more special. Most prominent in recent days it was on the previous generation Pajero, and even that could've hardly been called a scheme.

Not taking the aesthetics factor into account, I guess a big hindrance to two tone colours today would be the painting process. A two tone job would need careful masking - a labour intensive process not feasible with robotics. One way to avoid that is to paint entire panels in different colours (like the Pajero), though the results are hardly pleasing.

The trend of bicolour roofs has seen a comeback in recent times (like the Mini and international Fabia).

[anjan_c2007]

Originally Posted by karlosdeville

Not taking the aesthetics factor into account, I guess a big hindrance to two tone colours today would be the painting process. A two tone job would need careful masking - a labour intensive process not feasible with robotics. One way to avoid that is to paint entire panels in different colours (like the Pajero), though the results are hardly pleasing.

The trend of bicolour roofs has seen a comeback in recent times (like the Mini and international Fabia).

Two tone colours were introduced by PAL for the Premier Padminis sometime in 1976. The shell white shade got a bright red roof, the moss green got a white hood (this combo was extremely popular), the saffron body colour got a white roof, among the ones I can recollect.

The panel shades have been introduced now for Vespas (Piaggio, Baramati, Maharashtra), Hondas (the Dio has "n" such shades) and even for some Maruti models, apart from some of bike models. The Skoda Fabia during its ICU and ventilator days here in India, had appeared in dual shades.

But it is truly not possible to replicate the methodologies used for painting the older two tone shades, commonly seen in older Dodge Kingsways, Suburbans and the other badged brands by Chrysler in India then, Standard 10 Pennants and the oldest Heralds and some other brands that offered two tone shades. Many cars in the 1950's, 60's and 70's were manually repainted in two tone shades then, by the respective owners.

Though PAL never attempted two tone shades for the several variants of the Fiat 1100 introduced here in its earlier days and HM too (never it did) for its variants of the Morris Oxfords, the original Italian and British versions respectively came with two tone options.

Lambrettas (white + shade) and Vespas from API and Bajaj Auto in their earliest days also had two tone shades, but their panels were painted in varying colours. The Vicky moped (white + shade) also came in two tone colours, but again it was the panels that were differently painted.

[schakravarthy]

Found this pic while sifting through an old family album.