[F1-Addict]

At the onset I would request all my senior fellow BHPians to feel free to correct any incorrect information provided below. These are purely my views and observations over the years.

I just thought I should pen my thoughts down on my views (a layman who likes to believe he is a petrol head ) of the Indian Car scene.
Please understand that what I've tried to do is put down my personal views, which I would assume are the views of the general public at the time - it could be possible that the facts were something else.

It would be interesting to know how perceptions matter over facts or is that even true?

The early years (for me):-
I come from a humble, middle class background, born and brought up in Bombay (oops Mumbai), so daily commutes were largely by auto rickshaws / taxis. We never owned a car at home and in the extended family too, there were all 2-wheelers - mostly Vespas & Chetaks. The first car in the family came when one of my uncle in Goa purchased a Premier Padmini.

That's when the bug first bit - those lovely drives in Goa when we kids pestered our uncle to take us out in the car. Seeing him change gears - left-hand side column shift for the manual transmission, the rain wiper buttons on the dash - 2 separate big buttons depending if you wanted only driver side wiper or both wipers. And of course, the L-A-R-G-E storage "Shelf" below the dashboard.



New kid on the block:-
Of course, post that, I kept a keen eye out on the cars being introduced and soon got to hear of a car called "Maruti 800". It was designed in Japan and was the talk of all the boys meetings downstairs in the building. We started to see a few on the road and were amazed by its size and looks - everybody wanted one. Then over the years, Maruti just kept releasing one model after the other and the public were absolutely loving it. The Gypsy, the Omni, 1000 (later Esteem), etc. and the rest as you know, is history.



Korea attacks:-
Hyundai came in with a bang if I remember correctly with a major marketing blitz and of course, we know they launched the Santro, which was an instant hit. From then on, all I remember is it was Hyundai vs Maruti Suzuki.

Local Heroes:-
Of course, our own Mahindra & Tata kept producing models that kept the wheels rolling pun intended. Mahindra Classic, Thar, Armada, Tata Sierra, Estate, Sumo etc. were often seen on the roads reminding us that the game is not only about the Japanese and the Koreans.



Spoilt for choice:-
The Indian consumer was now being spoilt for choice and there were some truly exceptional mass market vehicles around - MS Zen, Daewoo Cielo, Opel Astra, etc just to name a few.



The car that made heads turn (at least mine):-
We were now used to seeing quite a few different vehicles on the roads now. And of course, there were quite a few sedans as well. The Esteem was the major seller. There was competition from the Ford Escort, the Daewoo Cielo, Opel Astra, etc. But I would literally stop and turn whenever I saw a Mitsubishi Lancer on the road.I WAS IN LOVE WITH THAT CAR. Period.



This was the car that truly did it for me. From here onwards I started reading actively about cars, engines, gearboxes, Formula One, German perfection, Japanese just in time, Italian beauty and passion and so on.

Somewhere in 2009 - 2010 I was introduced to www.team-bhp.com and so started another reference point in my life.

So here is a BIG BIG SHOUT OUT to everyone over the years who have contributed to this amazing community!!! Thank you.

This is where I think is a good place to end because post this, I was reading and researching cars and keeping track of the automobile industry with a lot more information in hand. So, it was no longer about perspectives anymore. By the grace of God, my journey with automobiles too has come a long long way in terms of ownership, driving some of the best cars, going and seeing an F1 race live, etc.

Thank you for reading and hope my words have been a little entertaining and helped you understand the point I have been trying to convey.

Please do add your thoughts and observations.

Stay safe and remember - it's not the destination, it's the journey that matters.

Cheers.

P.S. - I have purposely not flooded the thread with too many images.

[GTO]

Lovely thread - thanks for sharing! I will post some titbits that BHPians who are <30 years of age will find amusing.

• There is lots of interesting stuff in my Car Trivia Thread.

• If you had to drive on the highway, you were expected to carry along extra hose pipes & rubber belts for your Padmini / Ambassador.

• Warranty periods were 1 year (or less!). Whether parts got replaced under warranty or not depended on your rapport with the service guy. There was no internet where you could complain. We used to send sweet boxes to them on Diwali, imagine.

• On hilly roads - even the Lonavla ghat - we would switch off the air-con, else the car would struggle to climb.

• Jugaad was common at the manufacturing level. My '92 118 NE had its air-con wires tied together by a handkerchief (presumably belonging to someone from the assembly line). The air-con stopped working at the time of delivery. The showroom guys untied the handkerchief, fixed the wiring and tied it right back .

• We had enthusiast cars back then too! The Sierra Turbo, Contessa 1.8, Gypsy 1.3 and more. The Esteem 1.3L was the "Octavia RS" of its time (I had one). In Kolkata, an Ambassador 1.8 ISZ was like a Ferrari.

• The Opel Astra was originally launched with such an anaemic engine that I told my friend "my clock needle moves faster than this rpm needle". Opel updated the engine soon after.

• Maruti came & blew everyone away with a car that was quick, reliable & genuinely modern. Maruti had 80% market-share in the 90s. We were amazed that the car could do Mumbai - Mahabaleshwar without breaking down or overheating...it was conversation at late night parties!

Don't miss this video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EebR3IffC9A

Originally Posted by F1-Addict

I have purposely not flooded the tread with too many images.

We love images! Please share all you got.

[evoker]

Originally Posted by GTO

Don't miss this video

What surprised me the most about this video is that almost all of the bikers are wearing helmets!

[libranof1987]

I don't have too many anecdotes to add but here's some:

1) My uncle had the Premier Padmini and then we got a M800 in '96. I remember being amazed by how advanced and sophisticated the M800 was compared to his car! When our car had to be moved a few metres to make space for his in the parking lot, I'd even asked him if he'd be to drive.

2) Our first two cars didn't have aircon or stereo. While lack of the aircon was never felt strongly (since we lived in Pune), we had a portable BPL tape recorder that we took on road trips!

3) Any new car purchase meant a day spent at the Accessories shop: sunfilm, front crash guard, guards for the side and rear indicators, stereo, seat covers and if your parents were in the mood to spend, wheel rims, side mouldings and what not.

4) A neighbor had the Tata Estate (they still do); courtesy lamps on all doors, power windows and a fairly techy dashboard seemed like from another planet!

5) The unmissable - carrying of paper maps (the kinds you got in hotels or travel shops) - and using them for navigation.

6) Travel speeds: 45 km/hr was standard speed, 60 km/hr was dangerous! On our first trip on the Expressway, 80 km/hr in the M800 felt surreal

Originally Posted by GTO

• On hilly roads - even the Lonavla ghat - we would switch off the air-con, else the car would struggle to climb.

And everyone either faced it themselves or knew someone who'd just had a burnt clutch traveling Mumbai - Pune. It wouldn't be surprising if that journey took 8-9 hours, at times 12, because invariably there'd be some accident or a broken down truck.

Originally Posted by evoker

What surprised me the most about this video is that almost all of the bikers are wearing helmets!

Helmet have been compulsory in Delhi for a while ('98)!

https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities...cle6362699.ece

[ramnaresh_2000]

I was born in 84 and I can only recall below cars when I was in schooling days

• Premier Padmini
• Ambassador
• Maruti 800
• Esteem
• Mahindra Jeep

One fine day I saw a Tata Safari parked outside my school and I totally lost it. It was the first time I was seeing an SUV in flesh. It blew me away, I can say since that day I have become a car nut.

Being from a Tier-2 city, the below mentioned 3 cars were not available in our hometown. Hell we did not even had Maruti showroom back then. When we used to visit big towns, I was exposed to these cars and again mind blown.

• Ford Ikon
• Mitsubishi Lancer
• Opel Astra

My grandfather had a Mahindra Jeep with soft top (I do not recall the model as I was just a kid at that time), it had no doors, so they had few rods welded to both sides, it had bench seats at rear and he used to drive it on empty roads, this love for Jeeps made me purchase TUV 300 today.

[rmz1088]

The transition to radial tyres from normal retreadable tyre made a world of difference to the ride quality. I do not know the exact timeline, but I suppose it happened in early 90's.

[landcruiser123]

Must admit, we've come a long way since the 80s and 90s where we had just 5-6 models for sale. Born in the mid 90s, I've many memories towards the end of the decade. My dad's first car in India was the Maruti 800 in 1998.

Here's was what I remember as 5 year old:
1. Omni was the larger car, 800 was faster car
2. Zen and Santro were for the rich people
3. Ambassadors could never make it up the Tirumala ghat without stopping to cool off and topping the coolant with distilled water
4. The Kawasaki Bajaj KB100 was superior to the all mass-market two wheelers
5. RX-100/135 was the noisy racing bike
6. All city buses had to grind gears (ughhh...that jarring sound) while starting due to the non-synchronous transmissions
7. Never knew what an AC was (car or home! Thank you Bangalore ) and was amazed and shocked by the cooled cabin of a Daewoo Cielo owned by dad's friend
8. Late 90s - Petrol used to cost around INR 20 per liter and diesel INR 10
9. Bullet was the bike used by the police or the milkman
10. Matador was the ultimate van or goods carrier

Here are some videos of the bygone era in which things seem to be organized better:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BeIlqWQC1ds

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3d6bRx8S_oo

[am1m]

Grew up (literally) inside an Amby. Would accompany my mom as a kid in the 80s while she did her hospital rounds around Bangalore and play on the top of the car, literally jumping on and off. Tough car could take it, can't imagine our Maruti Swift today handling even a cat jumping on it without major dents! Would fall asleep on the way back home in the very comfy back seat.

But what I remember most fondly about the car scene back then was ironically, the lack of cars! The neighborhood I grew up in had lovely tree-lined streets where kids could cycle and play cricket all day. Very few households had cars and those that did had them parked inside the compound. Today the trees are still there in that neighborhood, but the inside roads are full of parked cars!

I remember a buddy and I chasing after new Beemers or Mercs in '97 on my bike because we were so excited to see one on our roads. And a superbike 'sighting' would be discussed for days, now I don't even blink when I see a couple of superbikes parked in my office building!

[WhiteSierra]

I'm a 90's kid, I've taken a ride in almost all those cars, few belonging to us, few taxis and few either my school friends', relatives' and even dad's friends' cars.

My first ride to home from hospital after I was born was our Premier Padmini Deluxe BE. Dad bought it as a gift for my elder brother on his first birthday. Previously Dad was in Australia and he used to ride in Nissan Pathfinder and Mercedes Benz 300 SE, which explains his liking for SUVs and safe cars.

We also have 3 Tata Sierras, they used to do regular highway duties without any breakdowns. You can checkout my garage for pictures. Don't want to post too many pictures. I mean I don't know where to stop We also had a Tata Estate which used to do our school duties. We had to let her go due to multiple electrical and mechanical failures. Sierras were still holding up great. Not sure what went wrong with our Estate, may be we got a lemon!


My Dad's friend had an Armada, he used to take us out in his jeep and parents of my best friend Anirudh at school are IPS officers, he used to come to school in Mahindra commander Jeep. I used to ask him for a quick ride, used to sit on passenger seat (bench seat) beside him and the driver. There was a small door for ventilation for legs. I used to love that feature. Another friend of mine had MM 540. All these things made me a jeep lover, although we never owned one.

Our neighbor James anna (opposite to our house) had 2 Ambassadors, Modified Tata Sierra, Suzuki Shogun, Honda CBZ, Yamaha RX-100. He is a true enthusiast. They later replaced Ambassadors with Tata Safari TCIC. I've ridden in all of them. Back seat of Amby is very comfortable, even Tata Sierra's rear seat felt like a nice couch. I don't understand why sub 10 lakh cars these days don't have good rear seat comfort, especially proper back support and leg room.

We also used to spot Mercs W123s, W124s and W210 (E230) and BMWs (E34s) once in a while. We used to spot Mercs more often as they were the first luxury brand to enter India in partnership with Tata (Telco). Please correct me if I am wrong. Even the power window buttons of Mercedes benz and Tata Sierra / Estate were same or similar looking.

I often used to see cars like Maruti 800, Zen, Maruti 1000, Maruti Esteem 1.3, Daewoo Cielo, Opel Astra, Ford Escort, Matiz, Hyundai Santro , Fiat UNO, Premier 118 NE, HM Contessa, Mitsubishi Pajero SWB, Mitsubishi Lancer, Honda City , Peugeot 309, Tata Mobile, Tata Sumo, Toyota Qualis those days. Now except Esteem, OHC, Sumo and Qualis, I don't see any other cars on roads.

I've ridden in a few vehicles in the above list too. Those were good old days. Thanks for starting this thread and for walking down through my memory lane, all of those people, old friends, old neighbors and cars just flashed through my mind. That's the beauty of this forum. Thanks Team-BHP

[kamilharis]

I was born in 1994 so I can't recall too much of the 80-90s car stories. All I could recall is my commutes in our humble TATA Estate, Contessa, Ambassador, 118NE, Mahindra Armada etc at various stages.

As kids we always had oodles of space in the car then to play around. And AC was ON or not was't really a concern, at times windows rolled down was preferred !

Adjusting the passenger side ORVM for driver, pushing the car for push-start in case of break down, checking the radiator water level & engine oil level before any journey, Revving(diesel black smoke fills the parking!) and idling the car for good 10-15 min in the morning etc are not happening anymore, PHEW!

[anubhav7286]

Born in 1985, our first car came in 1990 when my dad bought a M800. I remember everyone trying to convince him to buy a Premier Padmini (Fiat) as it was commonly called. Stronger body, easy service, bigger boot were the reasons. However my dad was adamant on the M800. We had a non ac M800 and a stereo was retrofitted by cutting a hole in the dash.
I fell in love with cars since then and would go wow every time a Cielo, Lancer or an Astra drove by. I had kept a count of the cars I have sat in. Every time a new car launched, we would drive to the showroom and have a look - Santro, Matiz, Fiat Uno, Tata Sumo were all launched in the late 90s.
As a 10 year old, I had listed down all the cars available in the country and the total money I needed to buy all of them. The list was about 20 cars, and the money required was less than a crore.

My favorite from that era was the Fiat UNO. A neighbor had it and I would always go wow on the F.I.R.E sticker on it. It was the era when usual cars didnt have any stickering.

[jalajprakash]

Originally Posted by GTO

Don't miss this video

Another thing I noticed from the video is how amazing the road surface is. Seems like road construction people are somehow making worse roads over time.

[osp]

I was in love with the smell of petrol on the inside of cars those days; my grandfather had an office issued Ambassador. Absolutely fell in love with said smell.



Didn't care for the gear mounted on the steering column, but was absolutely fascinated with the floor mounted gear column in later models of Ambies. And more fascinated with the "short" gear sticks of the M800 and M1000. And of course the Contessa !

[sumeethaldankar]

I remember our Padmini days. Loved the exhaust sound and the floaty suspension. The need for constant correction of the steering while driving as the oldies needed to twist the wheel a bit left and right to keep the car going straight is a trait no longer present on current generation of cars and something which will be alien to the new generation of people.

I remember I was sitting in the front seat and a new 800 pulled up beside us at the signal and I felt envious looking at the plastic dash with all kinds of buttons etc while our Padmini had the plain jane (non ac) metal dashboard. Fast forward 15-16 years later we got our own 800 which we kept for a healthy 17 years.

Fuel was just 11 Rs or something in the 80's. I remember my dad forking out a 50 Rupee note and we would get close to 5 litres of fuel good enough for a close run about. During those days the choices were few when he had bought the Padmini. It was the default car and the only thing we had to choose was the color and yes the wait times, I believe they were atrocious. Even the Maruti had long wait times and a TK (tatkal) model was available who wanted the car earlier and did not wanted to wait and ready to pay more.

[Rajeevraj]

Being a middle class 80's and 90's kid, cars were something out of reach. Family never owned a car (Ironically dad worked for some time in Africa before I was born and actually owned a VW Beetle in the 70's). But once back in India and in the period after I came in, we never could own a car or any vehicle.

Earliest remembrance of close contact with a car was the Ambassador a colleague of my dad had purchased and my dad was teaching him driving. Another colleague had purchased a Dolphin and remember admiring it from a distance.

In the family an uncle was the first to buy an ambassador and all my older cousins learnt driving in that car. Was in the family a long time.

In the context of this thread, although deeply interested in cars now, growing up in the 80's and primarily 90's, the car scene was a different universe and life revolved around buses, autos and trains. Even a taxi ride was cause for celebration.