Old cars

[ampmike]

As a lifelong auto mechanic, machinist and engine builder I am very interested in the classic cars that the Cuban mechanics have kept running with ingenuity by thinking out of the box.

I find a lot of excursions that you can take in classic car but I do not find places to go to see some as a group.

Thanks in advance for any ideas.

[riffatsea]

Hi,

I have been told that if you go to Revolution Square you will find tons of people bringing their cars there for you to see .

https://www.tripadvisor.com/LocationPhotoDirectLink-g147271-d546919-i254973928-Plaza_De_La_Revolucion-Havana_Ciudad_de_la_Habana_Province_Cuba.html

[pbenjamin]

On Plaza de San Francisco, directly across from the cruise terminal, there are typically several vintage convertibles lined up.  

[EatonDoolittle]

They also hang out in the Central Park / Theatre area

 

[Houndfish]

3 hours ago, ampmike said:

As a lifelong auto mechanic, machinist and engine builder I am very interested in the classic cars that the Cuban mechanics have kept running with ingenuity by thinking out of the box.

I find a lot of excursions that you can take in classic car but I do not find places to go to see some as a group.

Thanks in advance for any ideas.

Our tour guide in Havana last year said the old classics are regulated by the gov't and an association that accredits them. He said they must be 80% original although most have been refitted with small diesel engines. Also said they are pretty much limited to Havana.

[pbenjamin]

2 hours ago, Houndfish said:

Our tour guide in Havana last year said the old classics are regulated by the gov't and an association that accredits them. He said they must be 80% original although most have been refitted with small diesel engines. Also said they are pretty much limited to Havana.

 

These were all in Cienfuegos

[Houndfish]

Tour guide must have been wrong

[FredZiffle]

7 hours ago, riffatsea said:

Hi,

I have been told that if you go to Revolution Square you will find tons of people bringing their cars there for you to see .

https://www.tripadvisor.com/LocationPhotoDirectLink-g147271-d546919-i254973928-Plaza_De_La_Revolucion-Havana_Ciudad_de_la_Habana_Province_Cuba.html

Revolution Square was deserted when we were there around midday.

[riffatsea]

Well Fred, Sorry about that! The picture I posted was taken there and you can see lots of cars.

Not sure if they are only there on certain days or at certain times??

 

@Houndfish,

I thought ALL the cars in Cuba were classic cars???

I didn't think anyone could import newer ones at least not from the USA!

[Houndfish]

Not from USA but all others do. Saw an audi a 8 there ib 11-18

[rvmike]

All new cars in Cuba are purchased by the Govt. The few new ones you see are politicians or owned by Embassy’s. We drove in a 49 Ford with a Mitsubishi diesel,a 60 Ford with a Mercedes diesel and a 57 Chevy with a Mercedes diesel. All ran great.

 

[EatonDoolittle]

Fred Z - I think the spot referred to as Revolution Square is actually the shaded parking lot across the street, where the drivers and guides park and wait  for the tourists walk over to the actual square and get pix with the giant Che Guavara. 

Both times I've been there , there have been a half dozen or so cars waiting for their people to return.  

Drivers, of course, stay with the cars, and yes, there are usually folks peering under the hood.   

 

Regarding all the cars being in Havana - I learned that many of the guides (example: Blexie and all his guides) live outside the city - in Blexie's case, they all live in a town about 90 minutes away. Housing in Havana proper is super limited, and very expensive . That's what you see people living in abandoned, falling down buildings. 

The cars will go home with their owners at the end of the day, many outside if the city. 

[Cienfuegos]

As mentioned above, there were many classic vehicles in Cienfuegos, and also in Santiago de Cuba.  Also rebuilt Jeeps, Willys sedans, and various GMC trucks.  Many older Lada vehicles, and newer Geely or Kia and Nissan looking vehicles were visible.  And ubiquitous newer Chinese tour buses.

 

One lecturer used examples of home made brake shoes, air filters, clutches, etc as an illustration of the Cuban people's ability to persist.  Replacement tires are often available as hand me downs from the government, military, and police.  Premium gasoline is in extremely limited supply, although diesel and regular are available to authorized users

[ampmike]

3 minutes ago, Cienfuegos said:

As mentioned above, there were many classic vehicles in Cienfuegos, and also in Santiago de Cuba.  Also rebuilt Jeeps, Willys sedans, and various GMC trucks.  Many older Lada vehicles, and newer Geely or Kia and Nissan looking vehicles were visible.  And ubiquitous newer Chinese tour buses.

 

One lecturer used examples of home made brake shoes, air filters, clutches, etc as an illustration of the Cuban people's ability to persist.  Replacement tires are often available as hand me downs from the government, military, and police.  Premium gasoline is in extremely limited supply, although diesel and regular are available to authorized users

What lecturer? That is what I am interested in.

[Cienfuegos]

Our November Viking cruise featured several on board cruise lecturers.  One, Mr Franz Schneider, offered several slide and video presentations on the old cars.  Including material about building your own brake shoes, how to reface a clutch, etc.  And included interviews with Cuban craftsmen.

 

Mr Schneider continued the discussion informally with a number of guests for at least a half hour.  I found him to be exceptionally informative, and very engaged in the efforts of the Cuban people to maintain the integrity of these vintage vehicles.  I highly recommend any lecture he provides.

 

Link to his cruise enrichment bio

[mac1_131]

God they are everywhere just get off the ship there will be dozens of them. We took a cab to Tropicana, a 1941 Chevy convertible [emoji41]

[princeton123211]

On 3/30/2019 at 11:43 AM, ampmike said:

As a lifelong auto mechanic, machinist and engine builder I am very interested in the classic cars that the Cuban mechanics have kept running with ingenuity by thinking out of the box.

I find a lot of excursions that you can take in classic car but I do not find places to go to see some as a group.

Thanks in advance for any ideas.

There are also garages you can visit. We did a trip to one owned by a guy named Nidialys Acosta (had to go back to the itinerary to find the name) and he gave us a tour of his operation. He owns a car service company you can hire drivers from but also restores cars they drive himself. Was very impressive to see especially given he has to bring parts in one by one usually packed in suitcases. 

[ampmike]

3 minutes ago, princeton123211 said:

There are also garages you can visit. We did a trip to one owned by a guy named Nidialys Acosta (had to go back to the itinerary to find the name) and he gave us a tour of his operation. He owns a car service company you can hire drivers from but also restores cars they drive himself. Was very impressive to see especially given he has to bring parts in one by one usually packed in suitcases. 

How did you find out about the garage?

[princeton123211]

6 minutes ago, ampmike said:

How did you find out about the garage?

It was handled by our guides-- we had a 3 day itinerary planned a few years ago and stopping at the garage was part of it. Im not sure if we were using his cars for transportation but I suspect we were. From what I saw you can google him and he has a website but it doesn't mention garage tours-- I'm sure if you contact him in advance you could set one up.