(first posted 4/23/2017) We’re come to the home stretch of our Cuban virtual vacation, thanks to Eric Clem. This is a great collection of shots, and I’d like to thank him for sharing them with us.
And yes, this Fiat 600 Multipla with a front radiator caught my eye. Note also the solid front and rear axles. Who knows what drive train it’s now sporting?
Those twin exhaust pipes are a give-away that there’s a VW engine back there, as well as the too-wide track. And there’s apparently not enough weight on it to keep the rear wheels from pretty wild positive camber. or maybe the torsion bars were adjusted to increase ride height. Hopefully the rear wing will keep it stable.
Another awesome bunch. Gotta love that red Pontiac. And the late ’40s Buick Super…
Also nice to see the old Soviet iron still there. A yellow GAZ Volga lurking in one of the pics, quite a few Moskvitches and Ladas — a Niva! Haven’t seen one of these in a while.
But that Multipla is the day’s puzzler, for sure. Who knows what’s going on under there?…
This series was really such a treat! Thank you so much for having shared those with us. Makes one almost tempted to board a Cubana Tupolev, go there and sip rum on the Malecón, watching the traffic go by…
The drive trains must be a little like the story of Grandpa’s axe. I want to ride in them all, but I want to drive that Jeep!
I find it notable that, lacking abundant resources, the owners of these cars have mostly styled and personalized them in a way I find tasteful, rather than garish or overdone.
Thanks gents for the vacation series. Hats off.
Anybody have speculation on the vocation of the Willys “dumpbus” seen in the 12th photo?
Be polite to the driver – or else….
All the cars pictured in all 5 parts have been very interesting. But as interesting as the cars are, I’d be just as interested in seeing what the owners look like. I mean, do older cars attract a certain demographic?
Being a Ford fan, I’d be most interested in meeting the owners of the 58 Fords and the 55 (?) Mercury.
Anyone know how license plates work in Cuba? I mean, I noticed all the cars in this part have plates that begin with P0 or P1..
“P” for “Particular. A privately owned car.
Until a few years ago, the plates were colour coded, Private plates were orange, different colours for different type of owners.
Thanks for this series! My head was on a swivel the entire time we were in Cuba – I hit the trifecta in spotting a Hudson pickup, a Kaiser Manhattan and a Packard 120 limousine; none of which I had never seen live before. Museum versions yes, but never as daily drivers..
That yellow Ford Aerostar kept catching my eye, any idea how it would have ended up there?
loved this series eric. i’m glad you captured it at this moment in history. as the embargo’s grip lessens, cuba’s car culture is bound to become homogenized and less interesting.
it’s astounding that not that long ago, general motors thought it was ok to have that racist hood ornament on the pontiac. although, i do admit that from a design aesthetic it is fantastic.
it reminds me of when i was a child in nj, many front lawns in our neighborhood were adorned with lawn jockeys. after the ’67 newark riots, those that weren’t removed, had there faces painted white.
The Pontiac ornament, as well as the use of Native American names for sports teams, etc. is not “racist”; it’s racially insensitive, although in Pontiac’s case, maybe not even that. There’s a big difference.
“Racist” is defined as actions and thought that one race is superior to another. The use of Native American names and symbols, although insensitive, were invariably based on a certain respect/glorification for the courage and other qualities of them. That’s why there’s been so much resistance to having those names be forcibly not be used any more.
Do you know who Chief Pontiac was? He attacked the British Fort Detroit, and essentially started the “Pontiac War”, a long rebellion against the growing British influence in the Great Lakes region.
One could well argue that the use of his name on the Pontiac brand is not even “racially insensitive at all, but simply the acknowledgement of an early anti-British resistance fighter.
Now the picture you posted of the lawn ornament is of course racists, for obvious reasons. If American Indians were shown in belittling circumstances, that would be too. But Chief Pontiac is being honored on the hood of that Pontiac, not belittled.
Having said that, obviously no one would start a car company (or anything else) these days by using a Native American name or symbol, regardless of the intent. It’s just not a good idea, and it’s cultural appropriation at the very minimum.
“Racist” is defined as actions and thought that one race is superior to another.
so putting the likeness of a great leader’s skull on the hood of a car as a trophy isn’t racist? not to mention that detroit is built on land stolen from his people.
No it is not racist.
And boo, hoo, cry me a river about Detroit being “stolen land.” There is hardly a square inch of land anywhere on this planet that is in the hands of the people who originally arose or settled there. On the scale of nations, territory is acquired and held by the aggressive application of force. That is just the way it is due to millions of years of evolutionary pressure on organisms driving them to survive and dominate. It’s nature and you are not going to change it.
That’s easy for you to say. You don’t have native american ancestry. I do and I find the use of indian mascots and symbols to be more than racially insensitive. You would not see a sports team with a racial slur towards whites or blacks or asian people but yet, it’s fine and dandy to do so to native americans?
Seriously, don’t claim to speak for others if you’re not personally affected.
Otherwise, I enjoyed this piece and continue to enjoy this site. I rarely speak up like this but I couldn’t let that slide. I hope that you understand.
You may have misinterpreted my comment. I find the use of Native American names and mascots totally inappropriate, and support the movement to pressure their non-use or even ban them, as Oregon here did recently.
Nevertheless, speaking semantically, I still stand by what I said; there is a decided difference between “racist” and racially-insensitive”.
The appropriation of Native American names was a romanticism of the American Indian myth, which was a huge thing in the late 19th century and into middle of the 20th century, once Indians had been subjugated, of course.
This romanticism of the Indian’s courage, independence, athleticism and other positive qualities led to a wave of appropriating Indian names, like Pontiac, and of course for so many athletic teams. There’s no doubt an athletic team would never use a name of another race in the actual definition of “racism”, as that would be the exact opposite of the intended effect.
It rightfully has come to be seen as inappropriate and insensitive, and I am all in favor of stopping that practice, regardless of its intent. And although racial insensitivity can cover a wide spectrum, in these uses it is not “racist” as that word has been defined. Definitions are important, and unless you want to start a movement to redefine that word, the current accepted definition of it does not apply.
I’m not trying to invalidate your experience or feelings; I’m just a stickler about definitions, especially in touchy subjects like this. And I’m certainly not trying to suggest that racism/racist actions weren’t a huge/overwhelming factor in the actions of whites to natives. It obviously was. I’m talking specifically about the use of native names in certain situations, and the origin and intent of that usage. But perhaps that’s too subtle of distinction.
And I’m not in anyway trying to give more less weight to one or the other. They’re both wrong; period. But different.
As I said earlier, that lawn ornament is a very different thing, as is all-too obvious. There was no romanticizing intent in its creation and its intended effect.
I don’t want to get in a big discussion of race relations or politics on this site dedicated to cars, but as one with Irish ancestors , I don’t think the Notre Dame Fighting Irish is exactly a compliment. And, no, it really doesn’t bother me.
There were still a few in modern times if one wants to overreach on the sensitivity thing: Aztec, Cherokee…?
There are probably others too.
Eddie Bauer? LoL
Non-automotive products it seems like there hasn’t been much slowdown at all in the naming free-for-all.
Does the mascot in question appear to be a hand carved wood replacement of the original plastic piece? If so, would the offensive nature of said mascot be diminished since it was designed and executed by a Cuban artisan who likely had limited knowledge of Native American history.
DeSoto used a likeness of Hernando DeSoto as a radiator mascot, is that offensive to Spanish people? Packard used the Goddess of Speed as a mascot, is that offensive to women? Pierce Arrow used an archer as their mascot, is that offensive to bow Hunters?
Back in the 1980’s I drove a delivery truck delivering hardwood flooring throughout New England. I’ll never forget the house on Cape Cod that I delivered to that had a lawn jockey in the front yard. This one was different though. The face was white. Just as white as my face. The home owners were black which made this all so funny. We had a good laugh over it.
Wow an Aerostar!! Wonder how that got over there and wonder how easy it is too keep it on the road? I heard Cuba adopted Chinese sized plates a few years ago after decades of U.S sized plates.
https://i1.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/34006963905_8bdbff43bc_k.jpg
Those current numberplates with DIN FE-Schrift typeface are Mercosur standard adopted by the participating members of South American trade union in 2014. The size is 400mm by 130mm.
Even though Cuba has yet to be a member, the non-Mercosur countries in South American and Caribbean regions can peruse the Mercosur numberplates if they like with some variations in design.
The Continental kit on the Dodge is incredible! I love the hubcap, it works. Best of all is the CB-type antenna mounted so it’s perfectly concentric with the Continental kit. Makes for a huge display of circles. Genius!
The red Pontiac has a similar CB-type antenna, mounted more conventionally straight up and down. Does Cuba have something like CB radio? Hard to imagine in a dictatorship. If not where’d they get the antennas?
yes, that is incredible! i’m pretty sure that is an am antenna. we had a similar one on our ’67 buick.
Not a huge ’59 Chevy fan, but that white one with the red trim sure looks nice. I also like that ’55? Plymouth in black with the white top. Nice looking cars.
Weve had a UK MK2 Ford Consul every day and now a rare Abbott estate conversion, where are the Zephyrs and Zodiacs?
Of all of the automotive oddities in Cuba (relative to the US), the strangest thing I saw was the Aerostar! Like Teddy above, I wonder first, how did it get there and second, what does it take to keep it on the road.
The Dauphine with the alleged VW conversion must be um, interesting to drive. I would love to know what happened to that Multipla, too.
There must be decades of blog posts of these cars in Cuba…
I’ll vote the blue 59 Chevy as “Most Likely To Have Its Original Frame And Drivetrain, Or At Least *A* Chevy Drivetrain.” Even in Cuba, I have to think Chevy parts are somewhat available from one or other of the countries that never cut off trade.
The crimson/white ’55 Buick looks almost stock, in good shape ……. except the wheelcovers which, I think, are ’57’s.
Without getting into the social issues, a rarity for me, and with no demeaning to any of the points of view.
The Cuban cars. The first one, the Fiat, I swear looks like it should be going backwards. The back looks like the front. Maybe a little bit of restyling to do a F-B swap, but very little. Radiator in the front, could use a little bit of a notch at the base of the windshield/rear window, and it works.
Guess it shows what I know.
Seeing the cars that are still daily drivers in Cuba always fascinates me. Great photos, I had to look back to find the Aerostar as I first missed it. Looks like an extended version, and as mentioned, how did it get there? I’ve read the Cuban mechanics have come up with ingenious ways to keep these vehicles running, such as making parts. I do wonder, if many of the vehicles have the original drivetrain? Most probably do I guess. I also wonder what kind of mileage they’ve accumulated. Owners would need to keep track of how many times the odometers reverted back to 00000.
The Multipla reminds me of VW Combis I saw while in Cancun in 1997.