Not Corvettes but interesting
Thread Starter
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 6,001
Likes: 113
From: Saginaw Michigan
Not Corvettes but interesting
Where were these pictures taken?
Maybe this one will help!
These pictures were taken by me two weeks ago in Havana and sorrounding areas. Here are some interesting facts about Communist Socialism in Cuba.
Cuban citizens are prevented from owning any vehicles! However, if someone owned a vehicle before the revolution (1959 or earlier) than they are grandfathered and may keep that one. A car can never be sold. There is no way to transfer a title. So the cars are passed around without official documentation as to sale or ownership.
You see more modern Toyotas, Hyundis, BMWs, etc. on the streets but they must be (owned?) by party officials or are being used by tourists. One rule for party members, another set of rules for the common man.
Jim
Maybe this one will help!
These pictures were taken by me two weeks ago in Havana and sorrounding areas. Here are some interesting facts about Communist Socialism in Cuba.
Cuban citizens are prevented from owning any vehicles! However, if someone owned a vehicle before the revolution (1959 or earlier) than they are grandfathered and may keep that one. A car can never be sold. There is no way to transfer a title. So the cars are passed around without official documentation as to sale or ownership.
You see more modern Toyotas, Hyundis, BMWs, etc. on the streets but they must be (owned?) by party officials or are being used by tourists. One rule for party members, another set of rules for the common man.
Jim
Last edited by Jim Shea; May 15, 2010 at 11:48 AM.
Team Owner
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 31,287
Likes: 4,375
From: Westminster Maryland
Hi Jim,
Interesting pictures!
Isn't it true too that that lots of the cars from the U.S. have 'homemade' parts on them to keep them running since service parts couldn't be imported?
Regards,
Alan
Interesting pictures!
Isn't it true too that that lots of the cars from the U.S. have 'homemade' parts on them to keep them running since service parts couldn't be imported?
Regards,
Alan
Race Director
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 10,977
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From: Canboro Ontario
I spent some time working there, back in the nineties, and saw alot of the old cars, guys would make alot of the parts they needed in machine shops, because they can't get parts, I saw them make valves and even a piston. It was primative, but they worked, a little talent can go a long way. I was done there for the Westmont Hospitality Group, from Houstin.
Thread Starter
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 6,001
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From: Saginaw Michigan
As you can see, a few of the cars are really in good condition. The rest have a million miles or more on them. Most have been used as taxis and as daily transportation by the common Cuban. Little if any rust, but the interiors are usually in really rough shape. A real tribute to the ingenuity of the Cubans in keeping them running with virtually no replacement parts from the States. A lot have been converted to diesels because the fuel is so much cheaper than gasoline. Most are running on bald tires.
Jim
Jim
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Le Mans Master
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 6,001
Likes: 113
From: Saginaw Michigan
BTW, the U.S. allows visits to Cuba on humanitarian grounds.
I do not recall seeing any 2-doors. 1954 through 58s are very common. I did see a 59 Catalina, diesel, taxi in really rough shape but still carrying passengers. (I don't know what vintage diesel engine.) Old U.S. cars are almost 1 to 1 with newer European, Korean, and Japanese passenger cars on the highways.
Three lane roads with a center suicide passing lane are common. On rural 2 lane roads you have large trucks, horse drawn wagons, bicycles, people walking, people hitchhiking, chickens, dogs, and cows all in your lane. At night you have people on bikes (without even a reflector) riding right down the middle of your lane. I never saw any accidents but there must be a horrendous number of people killed.
Note on the 1957 Chevrolet above, the high level turn signal lamps on the rear fenders. They are quite common on most old vehicles. I don't know if they are needed because dual filament bulbs are difficult to find or if they are just decoration. For sure it isn't because of Cuban NHTSA safety requirements.
Jim
I do not recall seeing any 2-doors. 1954 through 58s are very common. I did see a 59 Catalina, diesel, taxi in really rough shape but still carrying passengers. (I don't know what vintage diesel engine.) Old U.S. cars are almost 1 to 1 with newer European, Korean, and Japanese passenger cars on the highways.
Three lane roads with a center suicide passing lane are common. On rural 2 lane roads you have large trucks, horse drawn wagons, bicycles, people walking, people hitchhiking, chickens, dogs, and cows all in your lane. At night you have people on bikes (without even a reflector) riding right down the middle of your lane. I never saw any accidents but there must be a horrendous number of people killed.
Note on the 1957 Chevrolet above, the high level turn signal lamps on the rear fenders. They are quite common on most old vehicles. I don't know if they are needed because dual filament bulbs are difficult to find or if they are just decoration. For sure it isn't because of Cuban NHTSA safety requirements.
Jim