[Vintagesoul]

Originally Posted by joshtronic

Guys just a curious question, how do the 3 carburettors compare ie Nikki, Mikuni and Pacco, like not technical figures, just driving comfort and feel, also as compared to the MPFI system? Is it possible to install the MPFI system on a carburetted car or is that too technical?

Hello Joshtronic ,
The nikki carburettor is powerful and has a good driveability, servicing the Nikki is again a task as the spares aren't available now a days.

The Mikuni infact is the same carburettor design of the maruti 800 and esteem with just some changes in Idle jet , pilot jet , primary and secondary jet and the venturies with a larger throttle body but holding the same petrol chamber of the maruti type. This is very economical and easier to maintain and gives good FE.

So you have to decide between power or Fuel factors.

The kpacco is a replica carburettor of mikuni which is not reliable at all.

Meanwhile switching over to mpfi with existing engine setup will be very difficult and it is better to buy an engine and swap. The process is complex

Thanks and regards
Armaan

[UB_007]

Restored my 1995 Contessa

I have been owning this Contessa for last 12 years and she never disappointed me. Without fail the engine roars in single crank every single time. Back in 2016 when I relocated to Germany for job, the car was moved to my parents home where my father used to occasionally start the car, move it a few meters and then park again. It is a stock 1.8L Isuzu petrol engine with no power steering. This made it difficult for my dad to drive her around. I occasionally drove when I came down for holidays.
Here is how she looked back then




As we live in coastal area, over time the salt content in the air triggered rust on the body and in 2 to 3 years she had rust patches all over. Even in this condition the engine cranked up without any problems.
In 2022 when I returned for good, I wanted to give her a new look. I also wanted to change her color from white. The interior also had to be done since the original cloth seats had fungus and had deteriorated over time. My daughter who is 10 is very much fond of this car and at time when I thought of selling it, she wanted to keep it.
I started enquiring around on who could restore the car in Udupi (Karnataka). Not many wanted to do the job since it is time consuming, and they were not sure if the parts were available.
After some search found Santhosh, who runs a workshop called Good Gear in Udupi. He agreed to take up the job and told me it may take 6 months to 1 year (eventually it took almost 2 years ). Only condition to him was no modifications. I wanted to maintain the stock condition of the car.

After first assessment, the major work on the car were listed down.
- Body work was needed, to scrape rust, tinkering and then painting.
- Interiors and the roof cushioning had to be re-done.
- I asked him to do the wiring new
- Headlights and lamps had to be replaced
- Air conditioner had to be serviced
- Carburetor had to be cleaned
- Fuel tank had some leak and had to be fixed along with fuel level indicator
- Needed new tires 175/70R13 (Not a standard size in todays cars)

Engine and gearbox were still in mint condition and we could drive the car to the workshop.
Soon the work started. Choosing a color that everyone agreed upon was challenging. I wanted a subtle looking color (similar to former Vauxhall Victor) and I picked Metallic Blue. My wife wanted to keep it White, and my daughter's favorite was maroon. Going through multiple photos and reviews, we finally settle on blue. The closest color of my choice was of New Wagon R, the pool side blue.
New parts were procured from Delhi, Mumbai, Cochin and Germany.
Getting her ready took almost 2 years.

Tinkering work in progress


Rust and a big hole cleaned up on A-pillar.


Getting ready for painting


Tinkering, painting, Interior work, window rubber beading/felt, and 4 new tires costed me roughly 70% of the total restoration cost. Other jobs were minor but time consuming. Fixing the front windscreen with rubber beading was quite the craftsmanship. The windscreen glass was the original brown tinted curved glass which to be frank I was really scared that they would break it. But they did a good job.

Finally, she was ready, and we had a test drive. Cruises quite comfortably on highways. Had no issue in last 6 months. I love the attention we get when she is on road. Random people walk by and start conversing.






And here I present the studio picture


Interior pic. I am still looking for nice classic window winder handle. Tough to find.



Finally Santhosh and his team who worked on the restoration. We have become good friends now.


What I learnt during this time is, patience is the key for any restoration and you need to get your hands dirty, otherwise nothing progresses.

[hemanth.anand]

Ah! Finally you got time to pen down the restoration journey. Lovely to see a classic this condition. Congratulations

Like I mentioned when me met last, please look at adding more chrome. While I hate chrome on modern cars, Chrome is what adds character to classics.

[rakesh_r]

She looks beautiful. I always had a fondness towards Contessa, we used to joke that the Ignition key is as long as the car .
Just a suggestion, if possible try to get some good alloys, something subtle.

[Rev2Serenity]

Kudos... That's a beauty! Much deserved restoration for a legendary vehicle.
I guess I have seen this car in a workshop near Santhekatte, Udupi while it was under restoration. Am I correct? Was drooling over it while my car was there to fit an Android system and was wondering if the owner is a TEAMBHP member.

[Vinod_nair]

Wonderful restoration, attention to detail, OEM 2 spoke stearing wheel and dashboard.

Is the transmission 4 speed? Why don't you try PS to make life easier Old school Wagon R unit should be a direct fit.

[Archisman]

Wonderful pics. Car looks awesome

[TheSMG]

Wonderful restoration of the Indian Muscle Car. How difficult it was to source the parts. Since long time, I am mulling an idea to get a good example and restore it but cannot find a good example.

[Albatros]

Well, your patience has finally paid off..

I too had a Vauxhall (the contessa is a ditto copy) and the car used to sail like a boat ! Your detailing brought back my memories afresh.

Thanks for sharing your experience.

[JediKnight]

Circa 1992 when I was in school in Shimla, I used to go home by bus. One of my friend used to be picked by and dropped to school in a contessa. One day I missed my bus and hopped on to the contessa for a drop to home.

Man was I blown by the sheer smoothness and comfort of the car. Also how easily it would pick up speed and not whine ( like my bus ) while climbing slopes. I had not experienced anything like that before. Became a lifelong fan of the contessa after that.

[mack.mehul]

Well that was a very good restoration of a grand car i.e. contessa. One of my relatives had a white one and we as kids used to queue up to be taken for rides. This car looks absolute grand with that long body and the classic design and is one of my favorite cars.

[majumon]

Awesome looks it was one of the best looking cars way back and heard the suspension is wonderful.i had a car magazine long ago which had pictures of imported cars and the only indian car was Contessa. Still is a head turner. Congratulations on keeping her in great shape. Seats looks rich.

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by Albatros

Well, your patience has finally paid off..

I too had a Vauxhall (the contessa is a ditto copy) and the car used to sail like a boat ! Your detailing brought back my memories afresh.

Thanks for sharing your experience.

The Hindustan Contessa was ‘derived’ from the Vauxhall Victor. The fully depreciated old Vauxhall dies and tooling were actually purchased by Hindustan Motors in West Bengal and imported in order to produce the vehicle in India. They plonked in the wheezy 35-40 bhp BMC 1489 cc engine from the Ambassador and this caused it to wheeze even more because it was underpowered and the higher weight of the Contessa caused poor fuel efficiency. Luckily, sense prevailed in the latter half of the 1980’s and they took a license from Isuzu and plonked their 1.8 litre engines (a petrol variant and a diesel variant) into the Contessa. That made the car much more acceptable with its 88bhp.

The Standard 2000 of course was derived from the Rover SD1 (and it was indeed originally inspired by the Ferrari Daytona!) - again Standard Motors Madras bought the depreciated used dies and tooling and plonked the equally wheezy and unrefined Standard Van engine into that lovely car. That was a huge let down. So most folks who bought that car got them retro fitted with Nissan diesel engines from small trucks.

The Contessa was India’s first luxury sedan from Hindustan Motors, followed quickly by the Standard 2000, the big luxury hatch from Standard Motors.

These looked like spaceships next to our old Ambassadors and Fiats in the days of the old protectionist economy-led, license Raj of the 1980’s.

Only the seriously well off folks or Chairmen of companies could afford such vehicles.

[HooghlyBoy]

In my schooldays, this was the aspiration of middle class who could afford mostly the humble Maruti 800.
I remember the Chairman of Jaysree Textiles, an Aditya Birla Group company using it as his daily office commute. The blue colour you chose brought back those memories.
Kudos to your love for Contessa Classic !!!

[DicKy]

Congratulations (with a tinge of envy)

Glad to see a stock one after years of seeing people try to make it into a muscle car

Personal preference, but would advise to change the wheel covers to something more ..err.. stock OEM looking. Best would be to go coverless, let the steel wheelies be seen and put a chrome ring for that classic Contessa look. Something like this (Contessa Classic). Alloys would be too expensive, especially for a period correct one.

Are the middle AC vents stock from factory. Cause have seen Contessas with the vertical vents like the side ones in your car, but the vast majority have these chrome horizontal vents (Super King?)

Was Contessa crazy during my teen years, and in fact, it played a huge part in me becoming a member of TeamBHP. Tried over the years, but couldn't get one and now it is a case of sour grapes for me.

Originally Posted by Vinod_nair

Is the transmission 4 speed?

The BMC had 4 speed. The Isuzu engined ones always had 5 speed from day one I believe.