Ambassador drives into history: HM kills India’s oldest car

The venerable Ambassador, India's first indigenous car, on Saturday drove into the sunset, as Hindustan Motors said it is suspending production of the car that was considered a status symbol as well as a workhorse for two generations.

The 'Amby' was the official car for government officials till 2003, when the then Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee opted for a reinforced BMW and thus changed the trend.

However, the clumsy but spacious and sturdily-built Ambassador continues to be used by many taxi drivers, especially in hilly regions. There are reported to be 33,000 Ambassador taxis in Kolkata alone.

Hindustan Motors said it had suspended work at its plant at Uttarpara on the outskirts of Kolkata, owing to weak demand and financing problems (See: Hindustan Motors suspends operations at loss-making Uttarpara plant). 

''The company's best efforts to revive the unit have failed. Under the circumstances, it has no alternative but to declare suspension of work at the [plant] from 24 May,'' a spokesperson for the C K Birla Group company said.

Modelled on the British Morris Oxford, the design of the Ambassador has changed little since it first went into production in 1957.

The Ambassador was earlier the only car used by politicians and government officials - but the company only sold 2,200 Ambassadors in the financial year ended in March 2014.

In a statement on Saturday, Hindustan Motors blamed the shutdown on "worsening conditions at the Uttarpara plant, including very low productivity.''

The statement also pointed to ''growing indiscipline, critical shortage of funds, lack of demand for its core product the Ambassador, and large accumulation of liabilities".

The statement further said, "The suspension of work will enable the company to restrict mounting liabilities and restructure its organisation and finances, and bring in a situation conducive to reopening of the plant."