Its owners fondly call it Amby. For years, it was the virtual monarch of the Indian automobile market. Today, the Ambassador faces its toughest survival test in nearly seven decades of its existence.

The iconic brand’s manufacturer, Hindustan Motors (HM), is pulling out all stops to work out a revival script. Its top management announced recently that it was scouring for investors in its Chennai and Kolkata plants.

Monthly sales of the Amby are barely 500 units and it has virtually no emotional connect with the GenNext. Its traditional customer base, consisting of politicians and bureaucrats, has shifted loyalties to more contemporary offerings. The taxi segment is one of its most critical lifelines but even this is restricted to West Bengal and parts of the South.

Is it then the end of the road for the old warrior? HM has already indicated that it is working on a sub-four metre version which will cost less. It is a million-dollar question if this will translate into larger volumes especially with competition from top global brands in this space.

Yet, this smaller Amby option could just do the trick in smaller centres across India so long as it is attractively priced with a host of swanky features.

The Ambassador association can also be played down since there is a lot of legacy baggage in this brand.

Like HM, Premier Automobiles is one of the country’s older carmakers. It also had a strong brand in the form of the trusty Padmini which dominated Indian roads for many years.

The company eventually stopped producing the model a decade ago but Mumbai’s cabbies still use it even while the numbers are rapidly falling. It is only a matter of time before the last of the Padminis eventually makes its exit.

Premier, in the meantime, reinvented itself and began focusing on its engineering business.

The company is now attempting a quiet comeback in the vehicle space through a tie-up with Zotye of China.

As for HM, it is keen on roping in an investor at its Kolkata plant but a lot more needs to be done in repositioning the brand. And even while Top Gear (the popular auto show) rated it the best taxi in the world, this will be of little help in wooing buyers back home in India. HM’s Chennai plant caters to contract manufacturing for Mitsubishi and Isuzu models. Going forward, the best bet would be to rope in a committed investor. At one point, there were talks doing the rounds that Mitsubishi would pick up a stake.

If this were to happen, it will at least ensure that the Chennai facility stays relevant in the HM roadmap.

> murali.gopalan@thehindu.co.in

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