Vintage cars delight the Capital

The charm of yesteryear's motoring marvels lit up the city roads at the 46 edition of the Statesman Vintage and Classic Car Rally, with 82 cars revving up their engines on a balmy Sunday morning before a large number of vintage enthusiasts. Chief of Army Staff General V. K. Singh flagged off the rally and sat through the opening phase of the motoring extravaganza. A 1909 Willys Overland owned by Dipak Sood led the way, making its rally debut, followed by the all- time favourite – the 1914 John Morris fire engine of the National Rail Museum. Then followed cars of all description like the Austin Seven and the original Morris Minor. Also participating were Buicks, Lagondas, Chryslers, Pontiacs, Chevrolets, Bentleys, Mercedes and Jaguars. The Rally also displayed the evolution of automobile design, with some of the early models inspired by horse-drawn carriages, and the more recent ones based on the aero-dynamics of a jetliner. There were also a range of military jeeps and troop carriers. Avid spectators cheered the vintage cars on as they made their way from Connaught Circus to Fortis in Gurgaon, where singer Raja Hasan regaled the participants with his performance. The atmosphere at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in the evening, when the judges made their final evaluation, was also merry. That majority of the cars were in prime condition testified the commitment of their owners towards preservation. With as many as 24 of the cars on the list being “first timers”, it became evident that the stress laid on restoration was paying dividends. Quite a few of them were said to have been salvaged from junk in the past two years. General Singh's wife Bharati Singh presented a glittering array of trophies to the winners at the Stadium. Prizes were awarded on the basis of age, maintenance, performance and restoration. Quite a number of cars picked up more than one piece of silver. The Statesman Trophy for the oldest participant was awarded to the 1914 John Morris fire-engine of the National Rail Museum, while the 1909 Willys Overlander was adjudged the oldest car on show and won the Indian Oil Trophy. The Rolls-Royce company presented a special memento to every prize-winner of that make. The prestigious C. R. Irani Trophy for the Queen of the Rally went to the 1937 Rolls-Royce entered by J. Housing and the Bikram Singh Memorial Trophy for restoration was awarded to a 1930 Stutz, owned by Diljeet Titus. The Kanti Kathpalia trophy for the best lady driver was awarded to Ms. Bhavana and her 1934 Ford.