Rumors of the Ambassador returning to India have been floating for a long time in the automobile market. But, it looks like another Legend of the Indian Automobile market named “Contessa” is expected to come back soon in the market.
According to the various Automotive Websites, Ambassador has trademarked the name “Contessa” which means that the Contessa is surely expected to make an entry again into the Indian automobile market.
Also, Hindustan Motors revealed that the new version of Ambassador is also under process. The company’s Director Uttam Bose also added that the mechanical and design work for the new engine has reached an advanced stage which makes sure that the car is not going to be an EV.
It is going to be a joint venture of HMFCI (Hindustan Motor Financial Corporation of India – a Subsidiary of Hindustan Motors) and the France-based Peugeot S.A. Group. Also, the car is expected to get ready in 2023 or 2024 maybe.
Unlike the Ambassador, the rights of Contessa are still reserved with the Hindustan Motors and it is expected to be built in the same factory(in Chennai) where Ambassador will be.
However, the rumors suggest that the new Contessa is going to share the same engine and powertrains with the new Ambassador but the EV version of Contessa is also expected to be revealed soon.
Earlier Hindustan Motors used to manufacture Contessa between 1984 to 2002. It was based on the technology of the Vauxhall VX Series from 1976 to 1978, which was wiped out from the UK in 1978. But when introduced in 1983 to India, it was one of the few Indian manufactured luxury cars in the market and was also a favorite car among Government and Officials.
Contessa came with a 50 HP 1.5-litre BMC B-Series engine, which was also shared by the Ambassador, in a different form. Later on, Hindustan Motor tied up with Isuzu to manufacture their 1.8 L 4ZB1 petrol engine and a matching five-speed gearbox for installation in the Contessa. This new car came up with a new name called Contessa Classic which offered a higher speed(160 km/h) as compared to the previous variant(125 km/h).
Despite minor changes, the design and interior of the motor were kept the same for years but in the 1990s, Hindustan motors started manufacturing the 2.0 L Isuzu 4FC1 diesel for the new variant named Contessa Diesel, and a turbo-diesel version was also introduced a few years later.
Discontinued in 2002, the most favorite car of Indians is now going to be relaunched as the best Muscle car-like looking vehicle in India. Also, If launched as an EV variant then Contessa is going to cater to the leftover EV lovers too.
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