Made in Pakistan
Made in Pakistan and distinctly proud of it
The writer is editorial consultant at The Express Tribune, news junkie, bibliophile, cat lover and occasional cyclist
It is not every day of the week that you meet a bona-fide magician. A person who conjures wonderful things from seemingly thin air. But behind a red door in deepest ‘Pindi there lives and works Mr Ibrahim, a prestidigitator par-excellence. He doesn’t do rabbits, Mr Ibrahim. Or saw people in half. He does cars. Cars. And they are a wonder to behold.
Not any old cars of course, dear me no. These are cars with a pedigree that reaches back to 1909 in England when the first Morgan cars rolled off the production line. They were a front-engined 3-wheeler and went like stink in their day. They still do and the Morgan Motor Company remains a thriving business. The likelihood of their knowledge of a remote outpost wherein the Morgan ethos and handbuilt ethic still runs strong and true is remote, and I doubt that Mr Ibrahim presents much of a threat to the marque as he runs what is probably the slowest production line in the world at around 4.5 units per year.
He does not pretend that these are ‘real’ Morgan’s — they are four wheels rather than three for starters — but there is a close family resemblance. Up front there is a 660cc Suzuki engine rather than the very grunty 1300cc’s that power the ‘regular’ version, and it rolls on motorcycle rims, has Fiat tractor headlights and does about 17 miles to the litre. If you want one it is going to cost you around $10,000, not cheap but then class never is.
And the workmanship! My-my the workmanship! The workshop has a small team of what Mr Ibrahim called ‘engineers’ which for me places them somewhere above the run-of-the-mill mechanic who are the magician’s assistants, and in true magician style there is going to be a lady assistant in the future. A young girl who put in a brief appearance during my visit and who, I was informed, ‘is a natural’ when it comes to all things nutty and spannery. She will be offered a traineeship once she completes her education. My opinion of Mr Magic Fingers went up a notch.
There were two ‘Morgans’ in the shop, one that belongs to a doctor in Lahore that needed a couple of tweaks, the other an in-production vehicle. But the real dream job was at the back. A replica of the world’s most expensive car (…so I am told, correct me if I am wrong) — the Bugatti Royale, of which only seven were ever made, is in-process. The original monster was a seven-litre straight-eight and it was too expensive even for the European royalty of the 1930s for whom Ettore Bugatti designed it. The Mr Ibrahim version will have two V-4’s coupled together and it is several years off completion, but given the level of magical forces surrounding his workshop I feel sure that one day it will grace the probably astonished streets of ‘Pindi.
And why bother to rattle on about a luxury product in a country that is poverty-stricken and prey to all manner of ills and vices? Because this is the best of Pakistan, that’s why. I have singled out the micro-production of Mr Ibrahim’s faux-Morgans because there is a considerable ‘hidden industry’ beavering away under the radar. The industry that restored the 1914 model Rolls-Royce that graces the foyer of a five-star hotel in Islamabad. It is worth paying a visit just to get your selfie taken standing next to it. The industry that is nurtured by the Vintage Car Club of Pakistan and the numerous and sometimes slightly batty enthusiasts that keep any number of Volkswagen Beetles on the road, some of them rather exotic. A bright yellow restored VW Combi recently got itself on the silver screen in Chalay Thay Saath. Another Combi in urgent need of some tender loving care passed through Bahawalpur a couple of years back. Also in Bahawalpur there is the 1939 model Ford V8 station wagon having pride of place in front of the museum.
None of this is the stuff of headlines, but all of it is worthy of some quietly modest recognition. Made in Pakistan huh? Yup…and distinctly proud of it.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 4th, 2017.
Not any old cars of course, dear me no. These are cars with a pedigree that reaches back to 1909 in England when the first Morgan cars rolled off the production line. They were a front-engined 3-wheeler and went like stink in their day. They still do and the Morgan Motor Company remains a thriving business. The likelihood of their knowledge of a remote outpost wherein the Morgan ethos and handbuilt ethic still runs strong and true is remote, and I doubt that Mr Ibrahim presents much of a threat to the marque as he runs what is probably the slowest production line in the world at around 4.5 units per year.
He does not pretend that these are ‘real’ Morgan’s — they are four wheels rather than three for starters — but there is a close family resemblance. Up front there is a 660cc Suzuki engine rather than the very grunty 1300cc’s that power the ‘regular’ version, and it rolls on motorcycle rims, has Fiat tractor headlights and does about 17 miles to the litre. If you want one it is going to cost you around $10,000, not cheap but then class never is.
And the workmanship! My-my the workmanship! The workshop has a small team of what Mr Ibrahim called ‘engineers’ which for me places them somewhere above the run-of-the-mill mechanic who are the magician’s assistants, and in true magician style there is going to be a lady assistant in the future. A young girl who put in a brief appearance during my visit and who, I was informed, ‘is a natural’ when it comes to all things nutty and spannery. She will be offered a traineeship once she completes her education. My opinion of Mr Magic Fingers went up a notch.
There were two ‘Morgans’ in the shop, one that belongs to a doctor in Lahore that needed a couple of tweaks, the other an in-production vehicle. But the real dream job was at the back. A replica of the world’s most expensive car (…so I am told, correct me if I am wrong) — the Bugatti Royale, of which only seven were ever made, is in-process. The original monster was a seven-litre straight-eight and it was too expensive even for the European royalty of the 1930s for whom Ettore Bugatti designed it. The Mr Ibrahim version will have two V-4’s coupled together and it is several years off completion, but given the level of magical forces surrounding his workshop I feel sure that one day it will grace the probably astonished streets of ‘Pindi.
And why bother to rattle on about a luxury product in a country that is poverty-stricken and prey to all manner of ills and vices? Because this is the best of Pakistan, that’s why. I have singled out the micro-production of Mr Ibrahim’s faux-Morgans because there is a considerable ‘hidden industry’ beavering away under the radar. The industry that restored the 1914 model Rolls-Royce that graces the foyer of a five-star hotel in Islamabad. It is worth paying a visit just to get your selfie taken standing next to it. The industry that is nurtured by the Vintage Car Club of Pakistan and the numerous and sometimes slightly batty enthusiasts that keep any number of Volkswagen Beetles on the road, some of them rather exotic. A bright yellow restored VW Combi recently got itself on the silver screen in Chalay Thay Saath. Another Combi in urgent need of some tender loving care passed through Bahawalpur a couple of years back. Also in Bahawalpur there is the 1939 model Ford V8 station wagon having pride of place in front of the museum.
None of this is the stuff of headlines, but all of it is worthy of some quietly modest recognition. Made in Pakistan huh? Yup…and distinctly proud of it.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 4th, 2017.