It has seen the best of times, it has seen the worst of times. But none would rebut its quintessential Indian-ness. From being the ‘official vehicle’ of politicos, bureaucrats and movie stars, to the darling of many a taxi driver, the Ambassador, fondly referred to as the Amby, still holds its head high on the roads across the country.
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In these days of high-powered cars and up-to-the-minute automobile specs, it is certainly not the ‘cool factor’ that makes the Amby a revered darling of petrol heads. What then? “The car has got character and the thing about the Amby is that you sort of develop a relationship with it over time,” says Meraj Shah, an automotive writer from Delhi, who drives a silver-coloured, 2005 model diesel Ambassador Avigo.
“For me, however, it has been more give and less take (laughs). It is analogue-based and hence carries a different nostalgic appeal from today’s cars,” adds Meraj.
Flagged off by Hindustan Motors in 1958, the sturdy Ambassador with its distinctive bull-nose enjoyed a rather up-and-down ride in its long and storied presence in every nook and corner of the country until 2014, when the iconic car was finally taken out of production. In between, the Amby, originally modelled on the British Morris Oxford series, went through a number of facelifts and upgrades, never compromising on its core features.
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The Ambassador inevitably holds a ‘sentimental value’ for many owners, both the young and the old. For 22-year-old Aritra Chakraborty, a student of automobile engineering from Kolkata, it is the “fond childhood memories” that bring him to the driver’s seat of his Amby. “My dad used to drop me to school in his Amby when I was little. Now, I go for long drives during weekends in my Ambassador. Earlier, my friends used to make fun of me and urge me to ‘chuck the oldie and get a more modern car’. The irony is, they now prod me to take them for drives in my Amby.” Aritra owns a fifth-generation 1997 model Nova that he has painted maroon and retro-fitted with snazzy side-view mirrors on the outside.
Shashank M V from Mandya, Karnataka, echoes a similar sentiment. “My dad has been driving the Ambassador for over 40 years now. So, naturally, I grew up travelling in Ambies. He adores the car and never shifted to another model. It is like a legacy of taste for a particular automobile,” says Shashank, who owns a 2005 model white Amby.
Taxi drivers hail the relative economy of fuel and luxury of space the car offers. Forty-nine-year-old Senthil Kumar from Chrompet, Chennai, a private taxi driver, says his diesel Amby has been his bread-and-butter for close to two decades now. “Though many of my taxi-driver friends have upgraded to latter-day models such as Maruti Swift Dzire or Tata Indica or even Ford Figo, I have been adamant about not letting my prized possession go. I initially felt it would affect my business prospects, but the truth is many senior citizens pick an Ambassador given a choice for the ride,” he says. One way Senthil maintains his big beast’s ‘sleek looks’ is by giving it for a professional water wash at least once a week, apart from manually doing it himself “every morning”.
Apart from a large cabin space that facilitates a comfy ride, the Amby is also deemed a handy utility vehicle for its generous boot space. Anil V R from Thiruvananthapuram, a construction company worker who owns two Ambys, finds it quite convenient to ferry the ‘load’ himself rather than hailing a goods autorickshaw. Anil also feels that the Ambassador is one of the safest cars out there. “Due to its strong build, long bonnet and a robust rear-end, it minimises the impact on passengers in the event of an accident. Also, it is not a car that allows for sudden acceleration, ensuring steady control,” he points out.
Seventy-four-year-old Manjit Dayal from Delhi, a founder-member of Heritage Motoring Club of India, is restoring his third Amby he bought off a friend in Dehradun. “Apart from my Toyota Corolla automatic, I always keep another car and that has always been an Amby. My fascination for the automobile started with my dad’s Landmaster. We later upgraded to Amby Mark 1, then 2 and 3. Many think it’s a troublesome car and that it faces issues of overheating. But ever since Hindustan Motors came up with its reliable Isuzu engine, the quality improved dramatically. My crystal-white 2006 Amby takes me to the mountains every summer,” he says.
Although spare parts may be a matter of concern, Aritra says he never really faced any issue, thanks to having had an Amby production plant at Uttarpara not far from Kolkata. The Ambassador Encore, launched in 2013, was even BS IV-compliant, making the model roadworthy for years to come.
The iconic Amby continues to be a brand ambassador of the post-Independent automobile era.