Full of Car-acter

Some people see vehicles merely as a means of getting from A to B. Not me. I relish the ride and appreciate the story behind a vehicle. And I’ve always found that if you take a closer look, there’s often an interesting tale behind the transport (or sometimes even a tail).

Herewith a handful of my favourites for one reason or another:

Vietnam
As recently as a dozen years ago, bicycles outnumbered motorbikes on the streets of Hanoi by about 100 to 1. Now the opposite is true. The Vietnamese are impossibly hard-working and incredibly motivated people. So it only makes sense that staggering economic development has been matched by a passion for wheels that are faster, sleeker, stronger (and more capable of carrying the whole family). If ever that appetite transitions to a taste for cars, the country is doomed.

Cuba
Ever since Castro muscled into power in the 50s, it’s been a challenge for Cubans to import and/or afford new cars. Apparently 10% of the vehicles on the road these days are at least 50 years old, and 100% of those are American. Ironic, when you consider that the median age of a car on US roads is only 9.4 years. How Cubans keep their classics rolling is really and truly beyond me, but they sure are a sight to see.

Africa
When the going gets tough, the tough get rugged. I’m guessing that was more or less Land Rover’s strategy when they started making 4x4s in 1947. Since then, the iconic off-roader has evolved considerably, but it’s not really changed that much. They’re still uncompromisingly boxy and tough, and continue to be as adaptable as box of Lego. And nowhere on this planet are those qualities handier than in the wilds of Africa.

France
I once heard a charming line, attributed to a Frenchman, that goes something like, “It works in practice, but does it work in theory?” At the risk of unfairly knocking a generation of French automotive engineers, I often think the reverse when I ride in my friend’s Citroen DS. It’s staggeringly sensual and packs an amazing amount of space age punch for a design that’s almost 50 years old. It’s a wonderful idea. But the damn thing never quite seems to work. I guess when you look so fine it doesn’t really matter what you say. Ahh, la France.

Bhutan
42% of the residents of this ultra mountainous Himalayan kingdom live at least an hour walk away from the nearest all-season road. And many of those must hoof it a day or more to reach a road. Little wonder that vehicles aren’t such a big part of local life. I’m sure this reality makes life extra challenging for many people, but it’s also what keeps the country so spectacularly clean and fresh.

Morocco
There’s something wonderful about arriving at a hotel and being told you can only cover the final approach by donkey. Or visiting a city of 100 000 people who rely almost exclusively on donkeys to move stuff around because the roads are too narrow for cars. They may not be a globally practical solution to the fossil fuel crisis, but it does make me wonder if it’s time to trade in my car and buy a horse.

Cambodia
I’ll never forget the backpacker who told me they heard gunshots at night (every night) when they first visited Phnom Penh, Cambodia’s capital city, in the ‘90s. The country was still emerging from a deep, dark period of Khmer Rouge terror, and the streets were tougher than the main drag of Dodge City at high noon. Mercifully (and remarkably) Phnom Penh is a safe place these days, but you don’t have to look far to see homemade buses that capture the lawlessness of the wild days.

California
Let’s face it, the USA has been taking it on the chin lately. Between the debt ceiling debacle, lackluster economic growth, and internecine politics there’s plenty of speculation that the American dream is turning into a nightmare. Who really knows. What I can say for certain is that the Chevrolet Corvette is still a reliable conduit for California dreamin’. This confident, consistent classic is every bit the bravado bullet it was when the model was launched almost six decades ago. Don’t believe me? Fly to San Francisco, rent a 436 horsepower Corvette ZHZ from Hertz (amazingly, without needing a pilot’s license) and cruise down the coast on Highway 1. I’ll pay for your trip if you can make it to LA without smiling (and getting a sunburn).

Guatemala
The Mitsubishi L200 compact pick-up truck is the triple threat performer on the bumpy dance floor that is the Guatemalan landscape. For a vehicle to win the love of the locals it’s got to be tough enough to handle the often-appalling road conditions, cheap enough to purchase and maintain, and large enough to carry heaps of people and/or gear. We used a fleet of these trucks to schlep supplies deep into the jungle (down roads that weren’t roads) where we built a luxury safari camp. The frighteningly talented Mitsubishis were the stars of the show.

Italy
Ferraris and Lamborghinis may be the hot-blooded poster children of the Italian automotive industry. But the Fiat 500 (aka ‘Cinquecento’) is the cute little granddaddy that set the wheels in motion—an amazing accomplishment for a vehicle that had just13 hp. The original 500s (produced from 1957-75) are getting harder and harder to find (perhaps because they are so very small), but there’s a company in Florence that affords patient drivers the rare opportunity to cruise around town in them. For a peppier ride, slip (or squeeze) behind the wheel of the new Fiat 500, which maintains the charm of yesteryear and delivers a sweet 101 hp.

New Zealand
Depending on whom you ask there are 10 to 20 times as many sheep in NZ as there are people. So it stands to reason that for many Kiwis, travelling from A to B, is in the pursuit of sheep. Or rather, involves the wrangling of sheep. And no vehicle is as adept at the job as the ATV (all terrain vehicle). In most countries ATV’s are essentially toys, but in New Zealand they actually use them as they were meant to be used.

India
Britain and India have had a long and curious relationship. By any measure they are very different countries. And yet, there’s an undeniable chemistry, a subtextual attraction. India kicked it’s colonial ruler to the curb more than half a century ago, but vestiges of British influence can be seen everywhere. Take the Hindustan Ambassador, for example. Based on the Morris Oxford (manufactured in the UK from 1946-1959), the bubbly Ambassador has been king of the Indian road since 1948—and is still in production.

Charlie got his first car at age 14 (don’t tell the Canadian authorities) and his love affair with the automobile hasn’t waned in the slightest since then.

Note: This article was originally published on September 1, 2011.