15 car ads from the PAST that your dad & uncle loved: Tata Mobile to Mahindra Commander

With modern means of communication, the way advertisements reach the viewers has changed quite a lot. Earlier, most of the advertisements for products were done using print media. It is purely enthusiastic and nostalgic advertisements from the yesteryears. Probably something the eldest in the families must have noticed in the newspapers in their younger days.

Fiat 1100

Premier Automobiles Ltd (PAL) collaborated with Fiat to sell the 1100 sedan in India and their first product was assembled in 1954 for the domestic market. The sedan was targetted at the young buyers as it offered a sportier design than the Hindustan Ambassador. The car came powered by a 1.1-litre 4-cylinder petrol engine that was good for 35 Bhp. Ten years later, the Padmini Premier was launched, which was the Indianized version for the sedan.

Hindustan Landmaster

Hindustan Motors, the manufacturer of the Ambassador sedan in India launched the Landmaster as their first vehicle in the Indian market. The Landmaster was the rebadged version of the Oxford Series II, which was launched in England in 1954. The Landmaster was replaced by the Ambassador later. The Landmaster was offered with a 1.5-litre petrol engine.

Padmini Premier

After the successful run of the Fiat 1100, an India-specific version of the car was launched, which was known as the Padmini Premier. It was built by PAL at the Kurla factory and the production of the car started in 1964. It remained in production till 2000. The Padmini Premier offered a sharper design and a more powerful 1.1-litre engine that generated a maximum of 40 Bhp – 71 Nm.

Mahindra Commander

Mahindra first officially started assembling the Commander in India after gaining a license from Willys, the iconic manufacturer based in the USA. The engine for the Commander came from Peugeot, France. It was first launched in 1990 with the 2.5-litre direct injection diesel engine. It produced around 50 Bhp and could carry up to 10 passengers.

Fiat 1.38D

The Fiat 118NE was a popular model. It came powered by a 1.2-litre petrol engine sourced from Nissan. However, before 1985, the car used to be powered by a 1.4-litre naturally aspirated diesel engine that generated a maximum of 41 Bhp and peak torque of 70 Nm. It was an RWD vehicle with the gear lever coming out of the floor instead of the steering column.

Hindustan Contessa diesel

The Contessa is known as the Indian muscle car because of its dimensions and design. The Contessa was the most expensive vehicle in the Hindustan Motors line-up. In 1984, when it was initially launched, there were a 1.8-litre petrol engine and a 2.0-litre diesel engine from Isuzu. Later a turbocharger was also added to the diesel engine to increase its power. There are quite a few well-kept examples of the Contessa in the Indian market.

Sipani Montana

Sipani, a lesser-known brand sold the rebadged version of the three-wheeled Robin Reliant in India. Sipani also sold the Montana, which was a 5-door hatchback with a fibreglass body. In that era, Sipani offered safety by equipping the vehicle with a collapsible steering column. It was fun to drive a car and came with a petrol engine. However, after the launch of the Maruti 800, Montana’s popularity went downwards and it was discontinued in 1990.

Hindustan Ambassador Mark II

The iconic Hindustan Ambassador is the car that remained in the production for the longest time in India. the Ambassador was the chosen vehicle of the businessmen and politicians in India. The Mark II version was launched in 1962 and was replaced with a newer version in 1977. The car was powered by a BMC 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol engine that made around 55 Bhp of maximum power.

Standard Herald

Since the Indian automobile market was still setting up, a lot of rebadged vehicles were sold in the Indian market. The Standard Herald, which was the rebadged version of the Triumph Herald in Britain was launched in 1968. It was manufactured in then Madras, which has now become Chennai. The five-door elegant looking sedan was powered by a 948cc, four-cylinder Triumph petrol engine.

Standard 2000

Standard launched the rebadged version of the Rover SD1 in the Indian market in 1985. The car came with a 2.0-litre petrol engine that produced a maximum of 83 Bhp. The car never became popular due to low fuel efficiency and was discontinued three years later in 1988.

Peugeot 309

The French car manufacturer Peugeot was first launched in India after collaborating with PAL. The brand made an exit only after launching its first car in the market. The Peugeot 309 offered both petrol and diesel engine options and the diesel version became quite popular in the market. The naturally aspirated TUD5 diesel engine that came with the car produced a maximum of 65 Bhp and 119 Nm.

Tata Sierra

The legendary Tata Sierra is known as the first Indian-made SUV that was manufactured by an Indian company. The Sierra is said to be much ahead of its time when it was first launched in 1991. The car came with a 2.0-litre naturally-aspirated diesel engine that produced a maximum of 68 Bhp and 118 Nm while a turbocharged version of the same engine produced a maximum of 90 Bhp and 186 Nm. It came with modern features like power steering, puddle lamps and 4X4 option.

Opel Astra

The Opel Astra was a luxury premium sedan that was sold with features like wooden inserts on the dashboard and sunroof. It was a dream car of many but since it had too many electronics, the European car could not keep up with the harsh Indian weather and used to a nightmare when it came to maintenance.

Toyota Qualis

The Toyota Qualis has to be discontinued to make space for the Innova in the Indian market. The extremely popular Qualis was popular for its spacious interiors and ultra-reliable diesel engine. It came powered by a 2.4-litre engine that generated a maximum power of 72 Bhp and 151 Nm of peak torque. Qualis came with various configurations including a 10 seater version.

Tata Mobile

The TataMobile was one of the first pick-up trucks in the Indian market and it was built extremely rugged. The pick-up came with a 2.0-litre diesel engine that was also available with the Sierra and the Estate. There are quite a few Tata Mobile pick-up trucks available in India, which are extremely well-maintained by the enthusiasts.