Apr 28, 2015 10:54 AM
27127 Views
It was a long and tedious search to find a good condition Premier Padmini with steering mounted gear lever and the old fashioned steering wheel with horn ring. Lots of padminis are available for sale, but one with a column mounted gear shifter was rare, at least in my part of the country. I think, when floor shifter became the trend.
The first drive was scary. The evening traffic of bhubaneswar town felt like hell. It took me a while to get adjusted to the controls. Once settled, she felt smooth like butter. I wouldn't say that she was in pristine condition. A little bit of body work and interior refurbishment was needed. The mechanicals were in perfect order. Only a greasing was needed. Loved the 60km ride home from bbsr to puri. I felt that the Padmini was the perfect car to have a relaxed'windows down' Sunday drive.
The ride comfort is something that has to be experienced. I will not say that the car will pamper you on bad roads. But your back will not suffer no matter how bad the roads are; that is for sure. The leaf springs give a soft cushiony ride, something which even some of the new generation cars cannot provide. The bench type seats accommodates two in luxury and three pretty comfortably. The most surprising thing is that squeaks and rattles are not there even at the age of 35! Do not expect the vehicle of this age to take you above 60 km/hr. Let me tell you, the Padmini is pretty stable for the speeds that she can manage.
It is hard to believe that this car is under 4-metres in length. I wonder whether there is any hatchback available in the market which can give such a roomy interior and a large boot when the length is limited to under 4-metres. You will have to compromise on a stylish dashboard; but still you do get a decent glove box and a platform for the full width of the car, under the dashboard, to keep your belongings. The armrest provided on the rear seat, might have been a luxury in those times, is of real convenience. The front seat has a slider mechanism so that more room can be made available for the rear passengers. For a car of the late 1970's these many features would have been more than enough to attract buyers.
