Iron Man keeps a spot for his nephew
IT specialist has an alter ego in his steel-clad, superhero-decked car
YOU would be forgiven for halfexpecting legendary comic book superhero Tony Stark to step out of Denver Govindsamy’s customised 1999 Hyundai Tiburon.
The story of the fictional billionaire playboy and engineer’s alter ego, Iron Man, is the convincingly applied theme of Govindsamy’s first car.
“I’m a technology freak so Iron Man is interesting to me,” said the 26-year-old Phoenix information technology specialist.
“Iron Man is an attractive feature of the vehicle to people because everyone loves to watch Tony Stark and his adventures in inventing things. I wanted to go the extra mile with my vehicle, like he does with his.”
Govindsamy has added gold and red trim to the car — the same colour scheme as Iron Man’s metal suit — and graphics of the superhero in action on the bonnet.
He has also turned the car into a gaming and technology geek’s mobile haven.
Govindsamy bought the car in 2009 from one of the directors at his company after its original owner died. “It was his dad’s car and basically they had no more use for it.” He paid R30 000 for it.
“This vehicle is rare to get, and to get it at that price was a good deal.” He said he was grateful for the help of his father, Rogers. “It was his financial assistance that made it possible for me to purchase my first vehicle. I paid him back in full.”
Govindsamy saved carefully to buy the parts he wanted to add. “From then on, I started slowly modifying the car from what I could afford.”
He has installed a Sony PlayStation 3 in the boot, complete with a 20-inch LED screen. The driver and front passenger seat headrests sport smaller, 7-inch zip-up DVD screens and the dashboard has been customised with a front double DIN Sony DVD player. “It’s my home away from home.”
To control the battery levels for the sound system, the car has a capacitator — also wrapped in an Iron Man-themed design. There is more to come, but Govindsamy wants to keep it secret for now. “At the end of the month, she’s going to be a completely different car.”
Govindsamy said he appreciated his masterpiece all the more because he had to plan carefully and make sacrifices for it.
“I live with my parents and I pay them rent, so I have to be responsible. We were brought up that way — that you earn money and you see to your responsibilities at home first. This is all monthly savings — money comes and it goes to the car.”
Many parts are still original, such as the 2-litre, 16-valve engine and red body paintwork. The gold rims were a special find. “I actually went to the shop to get black ones and they didn’t have them in stock, so I ended up taking these, which were the last ones. They’re gold BBS, limited edition.”
Govindsamy misses working on cars with his elder brother, Vijen, who forswore their mutual passion when he got married. “His wife and their baby, Jamaine, have to come first now, so I’ve taken over.”
He plans to preserve the Tiburon for his nephew. “All this is going to get saved for the baby. He’s my first nephew — our family’s first grandchild. He’s going to be one month old soon.”
Govindsamy likes to think his nephew will one day love cars as much as he and his brother do. “He’s still too small [not yet a month old] to come into the car, but when he comes home his eyes are glued to the car and he’s like ‘wow-wow’ in baby language,” he said, grinning.
For now, the proud uncle is content to share his love of cars with strangers. “I actually like it when people come up to me and say: ‘Wow, you’ve got the best car.’ I love it! It’s good to know my hard work is appreciated.”