CARS
Vintage Treasure
Vijaya Mallya’s collection has some rare iconic cars
23 May 2008
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| (Pic By Subhabrata Das) |
Motorheads looking for a glimpse of the first ever car to bear the combined Mercedes-Benz label, the 1926 K Type, which also spawned Mercedes-Benz’s long line of sports cars, need to go only as far as a garage on Pandurang Budhkar Marg in the erstwhile mill area of Lower Parel in Mumbai. It belongs to United Spirits and the company’s chairman Vijay Mallya uses it for servicing and parking his astonishing collection of vintage cars. The 1926 K Type, which also featured in the 1942 Hollywood classic Casablanca, is often seen there with other iconic cars of the early and mid 20th century such as the Humbrette 1903, Alvis Speed 25, De Dion Bouton and FMR Messerschmitt bubble car.
Looking at the 1926 K Type is like studying history — the First World War had left the German economy weakened, which forced competitors Daimler and Benz to merge to survive. The new company needed a winning premium touring car and it assigned the task to Ferdinand Porsche — who later designed the sports car named after himself and also the first Volkswagen car in the 1930s. He developed the 6.2 litre, 240-bhp car that was among the first touring cars to go faster than 100 miles an hour. The stately car was a commercial disaster but its platform was used by Porsche to create the more hunkered sports or S model, which became a roaring success thereafter.
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Priced Possession: 1926 K Type
spawned Mercedes-Benz’s long line
of sports cars |
Another astonishing piece in Mallya’s garage is a 1903 Humberette, literally the little version of the big Humber cars made by Thomas Humber in Nottingham, England. This 611-cc car with a maximum speed of 25 miles per hour was the first attempt in Britain to introduce a small, people’s car.
The garage also offers a chance to see the De Dion Bouton, which was made with steam engines from 1883 to 1894 before its makers switched to the internal combustion engine. And there is also the cute FMR Messerschmitt or bubble car made by the German company of the same name that produced war planes during WW II.
It is an automotive treasure trove for sure, but the restricted access denies ordinary folk an opportunity to appreciate the genius of those who had few precedents to work with and forged new paths in the automotive world.
(Businessworld issue 27 May-2 June 2008) |
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