Automobile beauties grace Delhi roads at vintage car rally

February 21, 2018 Adam Rizvi

India Gate in New Delhi went back in time, all thanks to around 125 vintage cars and 35 vintage two wheelers, which gathered here as part of the 21 Gun Salute International Vintage Car Rally & Concours Show 2018.

From a 1903 Humberette owned by Abbas Jasdanwalla from Mumbai to an array of Rolls Royce’s, including the 1908 Silver Ghost, the 1930 Phantom II, the 1938 Phantom III and the 1965 Silver Cloud III, the 8th edition of The 21 Gun Salute International Vintage Car Rally and Concours Show 2018 showcased the most beautiful creations from from the world of automobiles.

Over 125 exceptional vintage cars and 35 two-wheelers were paraded on the streets of the national capital which was inaugurated by Union Minister Mahesh Sharma from the India Gate on Saturday.

The event also showcased a few last surviving editions, such as the legendary 1939 Delage D-8 from the US and the 1965 Silver Cloud from the Britain. The 1942 Packard 180 Limo the sole survivor of the pre-world war Packard’s along with the restored 1938 Armstrong Sidley, previously owned by Maharaja of Kapurthala was also among the head turners.

The 1935 Chrysler Airstream C 6, owned by Yuvraj Sri Yograj Singh ji Chavda, the 1937 Steyr Daimler 220 owned by Yuvraj Shri Harshvardhan Singh, 1929 341 B Cadillac and 1931 370 A Cadillac, owned by Dhananjai Singh Khimsar are a part of the event this year. Other vintage cars were participated from Delhi, Kanpur, Jaipur, Udaipur, Chennai, Ahemdabad, Mumbai, Pune & Nagpur.

1922, three liter Bentley (Le Mans) and the 1937 4 ½ ltr Bentley 2 door tourer were also the highlights of the event.

Abbas Jasdanwala with his grandson Yahyah Jasdanwala. Photo courtesy: Lulu R Rana

The 33km rally passed through many iconic places of the national capital. Starting from India Gate it moved through the Inner Circle Road, following the Raj Path Road, Vijay Chowk. Moving on to the South Avenue Road, the rally moved ahead from the Nehru Memorial Museum on the Shanti Path Road, following the Panchsheel Marg crossing the US Embassy and Taj Hotel and ended in Gurugram.

“Every year, as a tribute to the golden era of the automotive industry, we organise this International Vintage Car Rally and Concours Show and this year we have special entries and esteemed guests from the global motoring brotherhood The 8th edition also witnessed entries from the US, Britain, Australia, Seychelles and Italy that created an international array of what is most refined and most elegant in the field of exceptional motor cars,” Madan Mohan, Founder, 21 Gun Salute Heritage and Cultural Trust said during the inauguration.