15.07.2004 A recent order from the Bombay High Court aiming to tackle emissions, spells the end on the road of India for the legendary Fiat 1100 D-based Premier Padmini taxi

A recent order from the Bombay High Court that all diesel engined Premier model taxis in Mumbai should be either be phased out or converted to run on either natural gas (CNG) or liquefied petroleum (LPG) by next May, spells the end of the road for the legendary Fiat 1100 D-based Premier Padmini.

The Padmini, based on the little 50bhp Fiat diesel, was introduced back in 1962 and quickly became a hugely popular choice of transport. As a taxi it has reliably taken a battering on India's treacherous roads for more than forty years.

Rock-solid, the waiting list in the early days was reputed to have got as long as twelve years. Today in Mumbai it remains a stalwart with spares being plentiful and running costs minimal. Converting the cars to run on either CNG or LPG is expected to be prohibitive and the end of the Premier Padmini's role as a taxi is now seems imminent.

Built by the now defunct Premier Automobiles Ltd , the Padmini ruled India's roads undisputed, until the arrival of the Maruti in 1985. While accepting the need to make strides towards a cleaner environment, the Mumbai taxi driver's union is up in arms, describing the Judge's timescale as "both impossible and impractical".

Alongside the original 1100 D saloon, Fiat produced an estate version called the 'Familia', which for reasons unknown was never sold in India. In the early 1980's Premier decided to rectify this omission by hacking the rear off the Padmini and grafting on what can be best described as a 'glasshouse'. The Safari, as it was know, failed to catch on, and once the trickle sold to various government departments dried up, it vanished, quickly forgotten, off India's roads.