Gwalior, 16 November 2014: Titular princess of Gwalior Priyadarshini Raje Scindia an Indian public figure drives a two-seater roadster Mazda Miata in Gwalior. Known for her appearance, she is a member of the Maratha ruling family Gaekwad and is married to Congress politician Jyotiraditya Scindia, who is a scion of the Scindia dynasty of the Marathas. She holds positions in various Scindia family interests.
She has been awarded for her elegant style and grace by Verve and Femina. And when it comes to cars one might think her ride to be any kind of luxury vehicle like BMW 7 Series or Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class, but no, its totally opposite. Its a lightweight two-seater roadster with a front-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout called as Mazda MX-5 Miata. Registered as DL 1CF 6221, the car features a Scindia dynasty logo on its registration plate and below the door handles.
This model is named as Mazda MX-5 Miata Eunos Roadster B6ZE(RS). Its a first generation of Mazda Mx-5. In Japan, the car was not badged as a Mazda, as the company was experimenting with the creation of different marques for deluxe models, similar to Nissan’s Infiniti and Toyota’s Lexus (both brands of which launched at the same time as the Miata). Instead, the Mazda MX-5 was sold as the Eunos Roadster in Japan, and was joined by the MX-3/AZ-3/Eunos Presso (based on Japanese Mazda dealerships).
The car was produced from 1989 to 1997, so between these years it might got imported to Gwalior. It sits on Mazda N platform, all-steel with a light-weight aluminium hood. Overall dimensions are 3,970 mm in length, 1,675 mm in width, and 1,235 mm in height. Without options, the Miata weighed only 980 kg. It also has the cool retractable headlamps.
Its is powered by 1.6 litre dual overhead cam inline four-cylinder engine which emits a power of 115 bhp and 136 Nm of torque. The engine employs an electronic fuel injection system using a vane-type air flow meter and an electronic ignition system with a crankshaft angle sensor instead of a distributor. This engine, codename B6ZE(RS), was specifically designed for the MX-5 and featured a lightened crankshaft, flywheel, and aluminum sump with cooling fins. It has a 5-speed manual transmission which can take the car form 0-100 kmph in 8.1 seconds and clocks a limited top speed of 180 kmph.
Scindia has gifted her roadster with a rear spoiler, new low profile tyres and matte black alloys. The car also holds a sticker of DC on its rear bumper which suggests car has went under the hands of DC Design for some upgrades. Wait until we drive this roadster someday!
Price in 1989: Rs. 8.64 lakh
Check out the ride of Jyotiraditya Scindia.
