Classic Cars at the ZigWheels Heritage Car Drive 2011

1946 BENTLEY MK VI

1946 BENTLEY MK VI
The Bentley MK VI model was a favourite amongst many Maharaja’s in the 1940’s. An this model is an example of what came to India in the hands of Maharaja of Panna, which is a principality in Madhya Pradesh. It went through a few owners before Press Baron Hormusji Cama bought it and restored it from the ground up, and it is today in absolutely striking condition.

1949 BENTLEY MK VI

It is one of the six 1949 Bentley MK VI models owned by the Maharaja of Mysore. He bought all the six cars in a single transaction, some of which were saloons, some cabriolets and coupes’ etc. It is one the last big orders given by any Maharaja in India to a car manufacturer. This is one of those six cars and remains till date in gorgeous condition.

1937 ROLLS-ROYCE WRAITH
The 1937 Rolls-Royce Wraith of United Spirits, is a part of Vijay Mallya’s car collection. It is one of the most desirable cars of its kind in the country.

1929 FORD MODEL A
Fali Dhondy’s 1929 Ford Model A is one of the rare models, which has a rumble seat at the back. Absolutely original and in great working condition, the car is virtually used daily.

1929 MERCEDES-BENZ Nurburg

1929 MERCEDES-BENZ Nurburg

This car belongs to Press Baron Viveck Goenka, and was found in very derilic condition by Viveck. It is one first large cars made by Mercedes after its merger with Benz in 1928-29. It is a big-tourer and also bagged an award at the Cartier Classic Car Event this year.

1934 LANCIA SPECIAL

The 1934 Lancia Special is a racing car created in Hyderabad in the 1930’s, using a lot of parts like the chassis, suspension uprights and other details from an old Lancia DiLambda. It got its mechanicals from a standard Avon engine, which is also incidentally the engine which Jaguar cars used to use in the 1930’s. The engine and gearbox came from there and the entire racing car’s bodywork that was put together in India and Hyderabad was based on the racing cars that were in use at the time in Europe.

It used to be raced quite frequently in Eastern India, and in a sense was one of the unique racing cars of its time, not only in India but also the world. So it is rather unique and has been restored in good shape, and owner Harit Trivedi has really kept it in fine nick.

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1938 SS Jaguar 100

1938 SS Jaguar 100

This was the only SS 100 ever to be sold by the company directly to customer here in India. It was raced quite extensively in Mumbai, Kolkata, Cholavaram etc. It was previously owned by the former Managing Director of Castrol India, Dr Burman, before actor Jackie Shroff bought the car and restored it. It continues to be one of the finest examples of a two seater British sportscar in India till date.

1957 STUDEBAKER GOLDEN HAWK

1957 STUDEBAKER GOLDEN HAWK
This is the last car to be manufactured by the American car maker Studbaker. It was known for its gorgeous styling and is the design brainchild of one of the best designers in the world, Raymond Loewi. It’s a large Supercharged V8. There are only four known examples of this that exist in the world, of which this is one of them. It was bought brand new by Homi Commissariat’s father, who used to race it quite extensively in India at Lohegaon in Pune, at Barrackpur in Kolkata and Cholavaram in Chennai. It was a sheer straight line performance car, which meant that no Jaguar, Bentley’s etc could keep up with it. Studbaker made 500 units of this car out of which only 4 are known to exist. This car is in pristine condition.

1963 LINCOLN CONTINENTAL

1963 LINCOLN CONTINENTAL
This 7litre V8 was originally used as the Presidential cars in the United States. It was originally purchased by Late Mr. S.L. Kirloskar. The car was passed over three generations and finally came into the hands of his grandson Mr. Atul Kirloskar, Chairman of Kirloskar Oil Engines Limited. Mr. Atul was keen on getting it restoredfor which he originally thought about sending the car to US, but later decided to do the restoration in Pune itself. Our very own ZigWheels’ Chief Road Tester Mr. Dilip Desai restored the car to its original form which consumed three years of hard work. Today, all the parts are restored and the ones that couldn’t be manufactured in India were brought from US.

1928 CADILLAC V8 SERIES 341
This car was owned by the Erstwhile Maharaja of Burdwan in West Bengal, and this was sold for a song to someone before Rishi Agarwal bought it and restored it completely, and is truly one of the most original Cadillacs of its time in the country today.