What do film stars like Robin Williams and Shelley Duvall (Popeye), Rock Hudson and Gayle Hunnicutt (The Martian Chronicles), Doug McClure (Seven Cities of Atlantis), Patrick Wayne, Jane Seymour and Taryn Power (Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger), have in common?
They have all been taken around in a black 1968 Mercedes Benz 114, driven by its owner, David Zammit, while they were filming in Malta.
“They are only some of the many stars to sit in that saloon,” Zammit said. Zammit was employed by the local film facilities company between 1970 and 1980.
“Despite their glitz and glamour, they all treated me and the classic car with respect. The only hiccup I encountered was with Paul Smith, better known as Bud Spencer. His big and burly frame was too much, even for this comfortableMercedes, and although he tried to squeeze in, he could not make it into the car, and a more spacious car had to be found for him”.
The two-litre, four-cylinder, petrol-operated Mercedes was bought brand new by Zammit’sfather, Spiridione, who had a car hire garage in Ħamrun, with a fleet of 18 cars, including Buicks, Kesslers, Ford Custom Lines, and Consuls. Zammit always had a leaning towards cars and their maintenance, and as soon as he finished his mechanical trade studies at the Marsa Technical Institute, he went to work at his father’s establishment, where he stayed for many years.
After some time, Zammit’s father decided to close the business, and sold all his vehicles, except the Mercedes. Zammit was determined to hold on to it, as a living memory of the glory days of the family’s garage.
“Despite all the demands of a car hire business, the Mercedes is still in an impeccable condition, and needs very little maintenance,” he said.
The Mercedes Benz 114 was introduced in 1968 as a series of coupés and saloons, and was manufactured until 1976. It featured a three-box design, and was marketed as the new generation model, in line with the radical social changes of the 1960s.
It was the first Mercedes production vehicle to use a newly engineered chassis, unrelated to previous models, with semi-trailing rear arms, and a ball joint front end. The man behind the model was the French chief designer Paul Bracq, who later moved to Peugeot.
A Peugeot 403 was the second classic car to indirectly find its way into Zammit’s home. “This black 1957 model also has a long story,” he said. Originally it was brought by a Ħamrun Lyceum teacher called Edward, who had sold it to my father-in-law, Paul Ellul, who kept it for 15 years.”
When Ellul died, he left the Peugeot 403 to Zammit’s son, Dedrick.
“My father- in-law was well aware of my keen interest in classic cars, and so he wanted his old vehicle to stay in the family, but in the hands of his grandson. Dedrick was too young at the time to drive, and so for some years I acted as custodian of the classic car, until my son came of age. The Peugeot was in excellent condition, and very little was needed to bring the 1468cc family saloon back to showroom condition,” Zammit explained.
Designed by Pinninfarina, the 403 model was produced by Peugeot between 1955 and 1966. Also incorporating three-box styling, the straight four-unit harnessed pushrod-activated valves, and hemispherical combustion chambers. The vehicle also had a solid rear axle fitted to an aluminumdifferential case.
It came with a manual column shift, and fully reclinable front seats. Zammit’s model is one of a limited number of 403s to have an angular forward-leaning chrome lion pouncing powerfully from the leading edge of the car’s nose – the lion being the Peugeot trademark.
Alas, this iconic emblem was installed only in the first two years of production, for in 1959, for safety reasons, the lion was flattened into a shield.
Continuing with his film connections, Zammit says that the most famous driver of the Peugeot 403 was the recently deceased Peter Falk, better known as Detective Colombo, who drove a 1959 model in his well-known TV series.
There is a third classic car in Zammit’s stable, a 1968 red Mini Moke.
“Originally, it belonged to a leading local businessman, and later I also found out that it also spent some time at my father-in-law. I had seen an advertisement in the paper, and went to inspect the vehicle. It was definitely not in a very good condition. Despite this, I still decided to buy it believing that with my mechanical experience and the help of my son, we could convert it.”
The Mini Moke was produced by the British Motor Company from 1964 to 1993. It was designed by Sir Alex Issigonis, who when working on the iconic Mini, thought of another similar but smaller car which could share the main mechanical parts of the Mini, like the engine, transmission and suspension.
The Mini Moke was originally intended for military use, but was eventually turned down. However, it later became a highly successful beach buggy and cult vehicle. It is very often driven by Mary, Zammit’s wife, at Old Motors Club events, followed by her husband in the Mercedes, and their son Dedrick in his Peugeot.
Zammit considers himself very lucky since he always managed to combine his love for classic cars with his full-time work – firstly at his father’s garage, driving filmstars in his Mercedes, and being behind the wheel of a 1932 Bedford bus since 1990 – driving tourists around the narrow and historic streets of Cottonera.
“The 15-seater maroon bus, now named Fomm ir-Riħ, was imported in the early 1930s as a chassis with a unique body added on later by the local coach builders,” Zammit explained.
It operated as a scheduled bus for many years, and when it was finally taken off the routes, it ended up in Albert Town. A tourist entrepreneur finally bought it and restored it.
Zammit drove it again 21 years ago and feels it is now his baby. So much so, that when the old bus was recently sold to another company, he also “went along with it as part of the deal”.
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