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Written by Jack Rix
Three months into the build and the finish line is in sight. Quite literally in fact, because I"m in India to witness it being crossed and to lend a hand with the finishing touches. I"m writing this perched on a stool in a dusty workshop at DY Patil University in Pune, to my right the fruit of the team"s labours, freshly painted and pristine, to my left a tangle of wires with an angle grinder, welding machine and paint gun poking out, possibly still plugged in. Health and safety around here might be questionable, but the commitment of the men who have taken an Ambassador and turned it into a Peugeot 208 GTI tribute is not. Before I get all gushy, a status update. The bodywork is complete fibre glass front and rear ends have been painstakingly blended with the steel roof and the hand-rolled steel doors. Authentically chunky side sills have been welded on, holes cut and wiring for the real headlights and taillights hooked up. Oh, and it"s also been painted no shortcuts here, a proper Coupe Franche" two-tone job using the closest to real Peugeot colours the team had lying around. Next job is to glue in the glass windscreen and acrylic rear windows and screen (it was impossible to find a glass maker who could cut a piece in the perfect three-dimensional shape). Then it"s over to me, old Johnny-come-lately, to put the finishing touches badges, wing mirrors, wheels back on and a final quality check using my patented fingertip technology. Glitter, basically, after all the hard work has been done. I"m the equivalent of a goal hanger. But I"m also here to take it for its maiden drive and film a remake of the advert it was built to star in.
Date written: 24 Jan 2018
More of this article on the Top gear website
ID: 10658
Three months into the build and the finish line is in sight. Quite literally in fact, because I"m in India to witness it being crossed and to lend a hand with the finishing touches. I"m writing this perched on a stool in a dusty workshop at DY Patil University in Pune, to my right the fruit of the team"s labours, freshly painted and pristine, to my left a tangle of wires with an angle grinder, welding machine and paint gun poking out, possibly still plugged in. Health and safety around here might be questionable, but the commitment of the men who have taken an Ambassador and turned it into a Peugeot 208 GTI tribute is not. Before I get all gushy, a status update. The bodywork is complete fibre glass front and rear ends have been painstakingly blended with the steel roof and the hand-rolled steel doors. Authentically chunky side sills have been welded on, holes cut and wiring for the real headlights and taillights hooked up. Oh, and it"s also been painted no shortcuts here, a proper Coupe Franche" two-tone job using the closest to real Peugeot colours the team had lying around. Next job is to glue in the glass windscreen and acrylic rear windows and screen (it was impossible to find a glass maker who could cut a piece in the perfect three-dimensional shape). Then it"s over to me, old Johnny-come-lately, to put the finishing touches badges, wing mirrors, wheels back on and a final quality check using my patented fingertip technology. Glitter, basically, after all the hard work has been done. I"m the equivalent of a goal hanger. But I"m also here to take it for its maiden drive and film a remake of the advert it was built to star in.
Date written: 24 Jan 2018
More of this article on the Top gear website
ID: 10658
