‘Fiat 1100 Club Bangalore’, has used Facebook to create a wider network of the car’s owners.

“Do not speak ill of the dead” is an often-repeated exhortation. And it is one that usually goes unheeded. But when it comes to automobiles that have gone out of production or ‘departed’, we follow it to the letter, all the time.

Even when the negative features are brought up, they only serve to further glorify the ‘departed’ automobile.

Sujith Thomas, a car enthusiast and an automobile engineer, ‘treasures’ memories of his family’s Premier Padmini stalling in rush-hour traffic, and them pushing the vehicle away from the chaotic blares of horns. There are also vivid and happy recollections of rainy days, when a loose distributor cap would allow water to seep in and cut off the electricity supply to the spark plugs. The Padmini has helped Sujith realise that the world is not as uncertain a place as it is painted to be; there are certain things one can count on. “The Premier Padmini’s radiator hose could be counted on to blow out anytime,” says Sujith.

Sujith will continue to add to these memories, because he is keeping a 1978 Premier Padmini 1100 Deluxe BE on ‘life support’, by connecting with other Fiat 1100 enthusiasts and scouring the scrap yards for spares.

In 2009, he joined three other Fiat 1100 enthusiasts – Arun Srinivasan, Karthik Makam and Karthik M.B. – to form the ‘Fiat 1100 Club Bangalore’, which has used Facebook to create a wider network of the car’s owners.

The club has over 200 members, with the majority coming from Bangalore, and some even from European countries. Sujith has learnt from them that sourcing spares for Fiat 1100 cars in Europe is more difficult than in India. The success of the initiative, according to Sujith, is the exchange of information on availability of spares.

What I find most impressive about the club is that it is helmed by millennials. When the club was formed six years ago, its founders were in their twenties. Sujith is 27 now and the other three are in their early 30s. The majority of the club members are in their fifties and sixties.

It augurs well for the Fiat 1100. It is a crucial time for the car. Unless youngsters carry the baton and pass it on to the following generation, the Fiat 1100 may not have a great future as an antique car.

Sujith, however, does not see anything unusual about youngsters being drawn to the car. He believes it could appeal to any car enthusiast, irrespective of age. “It has more pluses than minuses. The best quality about the Fiat 1100 is its simplicity — due to its simple design, it can be easily repaired by any mechanic. Even the owner, without a profound knowledge about how automobiles work, can understand its mechanism and, if he applies his mind to it, carry out a few repairs on the car himself,” says Sujith.

I am impelled to believe the millennials have done for the Fiat 1100 more than we credit them for.

The greatest tribute to the car has come from a young film director, S.U. Arun Kumar. He was the story and screenplay writer and director of Pannaiyarum Padminiyum, an engaging film woven around the love for this car.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> Metroplus / by Prince Frederick / June 10th, 2015