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Get ready to pay more for your dream car
Your dream car is getting costlier. While car makers are increasing ......Read more

Audi plans to sell 1200 units in India by 2008
Considering the boom in the luxury car segment in the country ......Read more

Mercedes set for hydrogen drive in 2010
Mercedes has given the B-Class a design makeover with more ......Read more

BMW 325i v BMW 325i
Safety features, a raft of new technology and Chris Bangle. In spite of all that's changed in 20 years, the E30 and E90 3-series still share the same spirit. ......Read more

Until the mid-80s, the only cars really available in India were the Ambassador, a relic of the Mark series, sold by Hindustan Motors and the Premier Padmini, a Fiat from the 60s, sold by Premier Automobiles. These two cars monopolized the Indian market for close to 40 years, both companies churning out similar looking units year after year. A change in a model typically meant the addition of a light here, a fan there or a different kind of number-plate, and it didn't take much to get a car-user excited. I remember the buzz generated in the early 80s when Premier announced that for a small extra amount we could get floor gears and bucket seats fitted in the front seat.

Today you can walk into a showroom and drive off with the car of your choice if you have the money. This may not seem like a big deal, but it was only 15 years ago when even money couldn't get you a car without a waiting period ranging from a few months to a few years depending on the model and your influence. In the 70s, the waiting period for a car was 3-5 years. I remember my Dad telling me that he managed to get a Fiat in those days only after he wrote an impassioned letter to the board of directors outlining how he desperately needed a car as part of his profession. And then too, he had to use the influence of another friend to get the car out of turn, a process that itself took a year.