DC2 e Amby – modern-day Hindustan Ambassador EV

The Hindustan Ambassador is a motoring icon in India and during its long production run from 1958 to 2014, the four-door sedan was commonly referred to as the “king of Indian roads.”

While there’s no direct successor in sight, Indian company DC2 (formerly known as DC Design) has reimagined the Ambassador for modern times by creating the e Amby. According to a report by Electric Vehicle Web, the electric vehicle is set to be launched in the country by the end of 2021.

While it may have styling inspired by the original, the e Amby doesn’t carry the “Ambassador” name due to copyright issues. This is because Hindustan Motors agreed to the sale of the Ambassador brand, including the trademarks, to PSA Group back in 2017.

Currently, the company has four completed prototypes undergoing development in Switzerland. The plan was to bring the units to India at the end of the month, but due to the country being lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic, this has been pushed back to June.

“In the last few days, a lot of our images are floating around the social media and the car that has most of the attention is for the Ambassador,” said DC2 founder, Dilip Chhabria, who added that the prototypes were meant to gain public feedback.

While specifications have yet to be revealed, the company says the EV in its prototype form will come with four electric motors – one for each wheel – allowing for a zero to 60 km/h sprint time of four seconds. However, the final production version could adopt a lesser two-motor setup – one for each axle – to suit the affordability needs of customers.

In terms of dimensions, the e Amby measures approximately 170 mm longer and 125 mm wider than the Ambassador. The car will also utilise an aluminium space frame chassis, with carbon-fibre composites for the body. Other details like the vehicle’s weight, battery energy capacity and range remain unknown for now.

The company is aiming for an annual sales target of just 5,000 units, which will allow them to manage the production budget appropriately while keeping financial risks at bay. “We have many options to build the car – either we put it in production ourselves, which most likely is the case as we want to use the infrastructure that we have, or it can be sold as a project,” he said.

“Before the current lockdown, I had received a very serious enquiry from a Chinese company who are world leaders in electric cars. They wanted to buy this program for production in India for their own brand, and it is now on hold because of the lockdown. Nothing is set in stone but looking at the response that the car has garnered in the last 10 days, I’m quite emboldened to put it into production ourselves,” he continued.

Chhabria also hinted that the e Amby could even be sold in markets outside India. “Each country has a minimum number of vehicles which are allowed to be sold without the usual certification procedure. So wherever there is a sizeable Indian diaspora, like England, Dubai or Singapore or USA, why wouldn’t an Indian want to flaunt his own car which has an identity,” he explained.

Looking to sell your car? Sell it with Carro.