I was curious as to which embassy the car came from. As you'd previously mentioned it was an ambassador's car, I thought maybe it was the Canadian Ambassador to the USA or UN as well.
It would have been a lot better than driving around in one of those "ZILs".
It's funny how the Commies, while always boasting about the superiority of their system, couldn't wait to get their hands on any western goods when they had the chance...
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Hillar
1970 LS4 (eventually an LS5) Laurentian 2dr hdtp -and a bunch of other muscle cars...
It would have been a lot better than driving around in one of those "ZILs".
It's funny how the Commies, while always boasting about the superiority of their system, couldn't wait to get their hands on any western goods when they had the chance...
'64 Parisienne CS "barn find" - last on the road in '86 ... Owner Protection Plan booklet, original paint, original near-mint aqua interior, original aqua GM floor mats, original 283, factory posi, and original rust.
I was curious as to which embassy the car came from. As you'd previously mentioned it was an ambassador's car, I thought maybe it was the Canadian Ambassador to the USA or UN as well.
How'd you find out it was the USSR ambassador?
It's all simply in the 1967 Pontiac owner protection plan (ProtectoPlate) book.
On page 21, the "Delco Energizer" Service adjustment certificate page, the original owner is penned in....
Owners name and Address. Mr G...(insert really Russian sounding and spelled name here), USSR embassy, Ottawa. Dealers name and Address. General Motors, Oshawa Ontario. The Ruskies always insisted on a good battery warranty seeing as their Lada's never start!
On page 29, original owner identification page... The same name and USSR embassy address appears with a date of June 20/1967.
The Zapora package lists the dealer as GM Oshawa Diplomatic sales.
Too Cool.
Perhaps I could eventually find some old shots of this car in Ottawa.
Mark.
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65 Laurentian post, 67 Grande Parisienne 4 door HT.
The Embassy The Embassy of the Russian Federation in Canada is the Russian embassy in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, It is located at 285 Charlotte, at the eastern terminus of Laurier Avenue. To the south it looks out on Strathcona Park while to the east it looks out on the Rideau River. Russia also maintains consulates in Toronto and Montreal.
History of the building The site was originally given to the Soviet Union in 1942. It contained a large manor that had formerly belonged to J. Fred Booth, son of lumber baron J.R. Booth. This manor had been the site of the marriage of Fred Booth's daughter Lois to Prince Erik of Denmark, son of Prince Valdemar of Denmark. The building was expropriated by the government during the Second World War for use by the navy, but was instead handed over to the Soviets to house their growing legation. It was in this building that Igor Gouzenko worked and from where he removed documents before defecting in 1945.
On January 1, 1956 a fire broke out on the third floor of the embassy, believed to have been caused by an electrical short circuit. Embassy employees tried to put it out themselves and did not call the fire department. They were unsuccessful and neighbours soon noticed smoke billowing from the building. When the fire department arrived the Soviets would not let them in, insisting they fight the fire from the sidewalk outside. Mayor Charlotte Whitton arrived at the blaze and demanded the fire department be let in, and threatened to have the embassy staff arrested. The dispute between the mayor and the ambassador was mediated by cabinet minister Paul Martin, who had also come to the scene. Eventually, the fire fighters were allowed in, but only after the Soviets had removed large numbers of sensitive documents and equipment. It was too late, however, and the building was gutted.
The remains of the manor were demolished and the current stark Soviet style building was erected in its place. The Canadian security service, in cooperation with MI5, infiltrated the construction site in an attempt to bug the building in an operation that was known as Operation Dew Worm. They concentrated on the northwest corner of the building, the logical site for a communications centre. The Soviets, however, built their communications centre in a sealed chamber elsewhere in the building and the bugs proved useless.
With the fall of the Soviet Union the building became the Russian embassy. The massive bust of Lenin was removed from the lobby and soon after the building's exterior was modified to make it less imposing.
It's all simply in the 1967 Pontiac owner protection plan (ProtectoPlate) book.
On page 21, the "Delco Energizer" Service adjustment certificate page, the original owner is penned in....
Owners name and Address. Mr G...(insert really Russian sounding and spelled name here), USSR embassy, Ottawa. Dealers name and Address. General Motors, Oshawa Ontario. The Ruskies always insisted on a good battery warranty seeing as their Lada's never start!
On page 29, original owner identification page... The same name and USSR embassy address appears with a date of June 20/1967.
The Zapora package lists the dealer as GM Oshawa Diplomatic sales.
Too Cool.
Perhaps I could eventually find some old shots of this car in Ottawa.
Mark.
Would they have bought it and/or leased it from GM ? Would they buy one every year? who would they sell it to?
My hat that everyone calls a Russian hat is actually Crown Cap Limited, Winnipeg Manitoba, I am always quick to point out it's Canadian heritage, It's great for dog walking.