Ravi Shastri’s iconic Audi 100, which he won in 1985 at the Benson and Hedges World Championship of Cricket in Australia, was fully resorted by industrialist Gautam Singhania Super Car Club Garage (SCCG).
Ravi Shastri, an Indian former cricketer and former head coach of the Indian national cricket team, received his fully equipped Audi 100 luxury automobile today. The car was refurbished by the Super Car Club Garage (SCCG), which is run by Gautam Singhania, the Chairman and Managing Director of the Raymond Group. According to SCCG, the car arrived in terrible condition after going through several garages who were unable to repair it due to a lack of parts. SCCG spent around 8 months patiently putting this automobile back together, and the entire procedure took roughly a year from beginning to end. Singhania finally passed it over to Ravi Shastri today.
- Ravi Shastri won the car 37 years ago in World Championship of CricketÂ
- The car was part of the Champion of Champions award he got in Australia
- SCCG took around 8 months to fully restor the Audi 100
Shastri received the Audi 100 in 1985 at the Benson & Hedges World Championship of Cricket in Australia, where he was named Man of the Series and received the Champion of Champions title. The occasion was made much more memorable by the fact that India had defeated Pakistan in the finals to win the World Championship of Cricket trophy. After Ravi Shashtri won the Audi, the entire squad was so ecstatic that they all jumped on it around Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) in Australia.
“It looks like the automobile I won 37 years ago,” Ravi Shastri stated, expressing his delight at getting the Lamborghini in its fully repaired condition. Nothing has changed, nothing has changed. Hats off to Gautam and the Super Car Club Garage for handling things so professionally. Unbelievable! … You know what it does; it transports you back 37 years to that same day. What was going on when the keys were handed to me? What exactly did I do? Who were the passengers in the car? What was the amount of champagne on the seat? Who was perched on the car? When we took it for a drive without a licence, how many folks were around? All those memories come jogging back.”
Shastri also mentioned how the then-Indian Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, cancelled all taxes so that he could import an automobile that he otherwise would not have been able to purchase due to the heavy taxation at the time. In truth, Shastri has repeatedly stated that the car belongs to the India national cricket team and the country, and he reiterated that sentiment today. It was also one of the very first Audis brought into India. The only modification to the car is Shastri’s signature, which has been affixed to both sides of the front fender.
Gautam Singhania, speaking about the restoration procedure, said, “When the car arrived, it was completely broken. We thoroughly dismantled the car and rebuilt it piece by piece from the ground up. We had to look for a lot of original pieces, which took a long time. Because it’s a 37-year-old discontinued model, getting a door panel here and a dashboard there was a bit of a challenge. It took just over a year, but thanks to the garage’s tireless work, we were able to complete it.”
The process became even more difficult, according to SCCG, because Singhania made it plain that he would not utilise any imitation parts. In fact, only a limited number of Audi 100s survived over the years, and SCCG had to go through various countries’ old part auction sites and brokers and scrap yards to source the necessary parts.
“Different bits and pieces were bought, collected, and shipped from all over the world. Bodywork painting had already started by that time, the original colour code was also procured from the manufacturer so we could have the original colour shade which was on the car when the car was presented in 1985. The engine, wiring, air conditioning and all electrical including power windows have been worked on at SCCG,” the restoration unit said in its statement.
While the current specs of the car have not been revealed, the Audi 100 owned by Ravi Shastri, the 2.3e model, was powered by a 2.3-litre in-line five-cylinder petrol engine. Back in the day, the motor was capable of churning out a good 134 bhp, while mated to a 4-speed automatic transmission.
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