TEHRAN (AFP) – Earlier than they have been ousted by the 1979 Islamic revolution, Iran’s royal household loved a lavish life-style with a style for quick automobiles fairly not like any ever constructed.
Now, after half a century hidden away, the royal racers are again on present, with the Iran Historic Automotive Museum drawing in hundreds because it opened to the general public in latest weeks.
“We think about that these automobiles are a part of Iranian cultural heritage,” the museum director Mohammed Faal mentioned. “They belong to the individuals, to not the royal household.”
It’s run by the Islamic republic’s Bonyad Mostazafan organisation – The Basis of the Oppressed – which manages the confiscated property of the toppled regime of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.
The road-up is staggering, and features a automotive combining a singular engineering collaboration.
In 1972, figuring out the shah preferred German engineering, Mercedes, Porsche and Volkswagen teamed as much as construct an unprecedented vehicle.
They created the MPV Tehran, a brilliant orange painted single-seater, that was a “reward” to assist crown prince Reza, who was then 12, discover ways to drive.
It has two keys. One, fabricated from silver, limits the highly effective engine to a delicate 30 kmh. The opposite, in gold, permits the car to hurry at 170 kmh.
Whereas the automotive hasn’t raced since 1979, its smooth strains nonetheless encourage those that come to the museum.
Some 20,000 individuals have visited since its opening, greater than the quantity of people that go to the nationwide museum every month.
“I actually like this place, as a result of it brings collectively a number of the uncommon issues that remained after the revolution,” mentioned Farzaneh, a 55-year-old pensioner.
“These objects take us by way of our historical past,” she added.
Sprawling over greater than a hectare, the museum is situated in an industrial zone west of Tehran, near the nation’s automotive factories.
Thus far, it homes 55 automobiles, two coaches and 4 bikes, one among which was as soon as pushed by Farah Diba, the final empress and widow of the shah.
However 100 different autos are nonetheless in warehouses awaiting to be meticulously restored and placed on present.
One other prize exhibit is a black Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost, inbuilt 1922. This automotive is notable not a lot for its extravagant luxurious, however as a result of the Islamic republic saved maintain of the historic gem after an epic battle with the exiled former monarchy.
“Six months earlier than the revolution, the automotive had been despatched to Rolls-Royce for repairs,” mentioned Faal, the museum’s director.
“After the autumn of the monarchy in 1979, the Pahlavi household demanded that the manufacturing unit return it to them, claiming that it belonged to the dynasty.” It sparked a livid authorized battle.
However a British court docket dominated that, in response to its paperwork, the car belonged to the Iranian state and never the ex-royal household.
“The automotive returned to Iran,” Faal mentioned.
The jewel of the museum is a 1930 Pierce-Arrow “Mannequin A”.
At the moment it was the costliest automotive inbuilt the USA – and was purchased by Reza Shah, the founding father of the Pahlavi dynasty.
Its price ticket was an eye-watering US$30,000, equal to at least one eighth of Iran’s state funds on the time, and got here full with a gold-plated bumper and headlights.
The automotive, with the imperial crest mounted to the doorways, was utilized by the shah throughout ceremonies together with his marriage to his second spouse Soraya and on the funeral of his father Reza.
However when the shah was dethroned and exiled 42 years in the past, the automotive remained.
“It would not matter who owned these automobiles, they belong to the Iranian nation, to not a selected king,” Faal added, explaining why the decadent trappings of monarchy have been displayed by a regime that despised the shah.
“We like to admire the fantastic thing about the automotive considering its historical past, and we admire the efforts of its producers and designers.”
One other favorite for guests is the 1934 Mercedes 500 Okay Autobahn Kurier, a present from Adolf Hitler to Reza Shah.
The automotive is the final of its variety; of the six constructed by the German firm, 5 have been destroyed throughout World Battle II.
“Mercedes supplied to purchase it at a worth we might set, as a result of the agency was desperate to have it in its museum,” mentioned Faal. “We refused.”