Cuba's Car Culture

2016-10-01 Transportation

Author : Tom Cotter
Release : 2016-10-01
Genre : Transportation
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 810/5 ( reviews)

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Book Synopsis Cuba's Car Culture by : Tom Cotter

Download or read book Cuba's Car Culture written by Tom Cotter. This book was released on 2016-10-01. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Cuba's Car Culture drives through Cuba's love of American cars of the '40s and '50s, and the ingenuity that keeps them running despite the U.S. embargo.2017 Silver Medal Winner of the International Automotive Media Competition! The story of how Cuba came to be trapped in automotive time is a fascinating one. For decades, the island country had enjoyed healthy tourism trade and American outpost status, and by the 1950s it had the highest per capita automotive purchasing of any Latin American country. But when Cuba fell to communist rebels in 1959, so ended the inflow of new cars. Since then, trade embargo forced Cuba's car enthusiasts to develop a unique and insular culture, one marked by great creativity, such as: -Keeping a car alive with no opportunity to acquire replacement parts -Customizing a car with no access to aftermarket parts -Drag racing with no drag stripIn many ways, Cuba is an automotive time warp, where the newest car is a 1959 Chevy or perhaps one of the Soviet Ladas. Cuba's Car Culture offers an inside look at a unique car culture, populated with cars that have been cut off from the world so long that they've morphed into something else in the spirit of automotive survival.Authors Tom Cotter and Bill Warner (founder of the Amelia Island Concours) take readers on a whirlwind tour of all things automotive, beginning with Cuba's pre-Castro car and racing history, up to today's lost collector cars, street racing, and the challenges of keeping decades-old cars on the road.Cuba's Car Culture is illustrated throughout with rare historical photos as well as contemporary photos of Cuba's current car scene. For anyone who enjoys classic cars, whether they're old Chevy Bel-Airs, Studebakers, or Ford Fairlanes, a cruise around Cuba will make you feel like a kid in a candy store.

Cuba Cars O/P

2017 Antique and classic cars

Author : Harri Morick
Release : 2017
Genre : Antique and classic cars
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 371/5 ( reviews)

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Book Synopsis Cuba Cars O/P by : Harri Morick

Download or read book Cuba Cars O/P written by Harri Morick. This book was released on 2017. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: - A snapshot of Cuban culture, focusing on the amazing classic cars that can be found across the country - Blends the conventional travel guide with a car enthusiast's bible - A must-have for any avid car fan Cuba is worth a visit. Or, as the authors of this book discovered, several. The average package holiday is simply not long enough to visit this country's myriad of sights, all of which are worth seeing. Like so many visitors to Cuba, after their first trip more than fifteen years ago, they returned again and again to trek the sandy beaches shaded by swinging palm fronds, to marvel at the splendid topography of the Vinales Valley, and to admire Cuba's selection of classic cars, which function as part of everyday life on this Caribbean island. As such, this uniquely illustrated book is a product of love. The authors have made it their mission to portray this resplendent nation in all its glory, and to bring Cuba's stunning scenery to your living room. This book represents the "best of" Cuban tours, led by passionate photographer Rainer Floer and his cousin Harri Morick. Morick speaks fluent Spanish, and thus he ensured that the pair were seen as classic car fans rather than regular tourists. They conducted numerous interviews, and in doing so also made friends with the interviewees. Spare parts came from Germany, stories from Cuba. Cars and culture blend in this snapshot of an evolving nation. But this evolution brings with it the threat of change. Who knows how much longer we will find classic cars on Cuba's streets? Includes splendid photos of classic cars dating from before the revloution; American limousines, taxis, and wedding cars; the history of the first Porsche in Cuba; an interview with an artist and his VW Karmann-Ghia, and the Harley Club in Cuba; and amazing scenes of Cuban streets and landscapes.

Che's Chevrolet, Fidel's Oldsmobile

2004 Transportation

Author : Richard Schweid
Release : 2004
Genre : Transportation
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 922/5 ( reviews)

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Book Synopsis Che's Chevrolet, Fidel's Oldsmobile by : Richard Schweid

Download or read book Che's Chevrolet, Fidel's Oldsmobile written by Richard Schweid. This book was released on 2004. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A car-centered history of life on Cuba over the past century explores how vintage U.S.-made cars long extinct in the U.S. and held together with mechanical ingenuity and willpower provide a common representation of Cuba.

Cuba Classics

2004-01-01 Photography

Author : Christopher P. Baker
Release : 2004-01-01
Genre : Photography
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 462/5 ( reviews)

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Book Synopsis Cuba Classics by : Christopher P. Baker

Download or read book Cuba Classics written by Christopher P. Baker. This book was released on 2004-01-01. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This unique homage to Cuba’s astonishing wealth of antique cars is also a paean to the extraordinary people who keep their weary cacharros running with resourcefulness, ingenuity and great good humor. In a collection of vibrant images, Cuba Classics reveals the time-worn splendor of classic American automobiles spanning eight decades. From Model-T Fords and ’40s-era Buick Roadmasters to late ’50s Edsel Citations and Chevrolet Impalas with fins sharp enough to draw blood, this book evokes the nostalgic and seductive world of Cuba’s car culture. Blurry action shots of moving cars…scenics with backdrops that celebrate the island’s beauty…close-ups of hood ornamentation, grillwork and dashboards, illustrate the subject magnicently. This rich array of photographs, complemented by captions that provide fascinating anecdotal detail while celebrating the four-wheeled survivors of a bygone age and the passion of their owners. This magnificent portrait of today’s classic cars is also an exploration of the island’s tumultuous history. Tracing the evolution of motor madness in decadent pre-revolutionary Cuba, the author surveys the tough realities of caring for vintage cars in the modern age of embargo and shortages. These challenges have produced exceptional skill and inventiveness among the owners and mechanics who somehow keep a legion of gas-guzzling leviathans on the road. In a dynamic photojournalistic essay that traces the long love affair between Cubans and the U.S. automobile, Christopher P. Baker also celebrates Cuba’s landscapes and colors, his images putting the beloved cacharros within a tropical setting both sensual and surreal. Written in the lively, engaging style that has won the author numerous literary awards, Cuba Classics draws upon memoirs, museum records, personal interviews and Cuba’s own dusty archives. Mixing history with present-day impressions, technical detail with personal observations, the evocative text proves both absorbing and richly entertaining. Baker’s volume captivates everyone from armchair travelers to classic car connoisseurs with powerful imagery that reflects the beguiling other-worldly charm of Cuba, the Caribbean’s most compelling and intriguing isle.

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