Ghost Cars of the World

"QUANTUM SHOT" #144

Ghost Cars of Venezuela

Seeing these ghostly apparitions that still ply the highways and country roads of the (mostly) developing countries, makes us better appreciate what we have (even though we complain about high maintenance, repair and gas bills). The logistics required to make these cars marginally road-worthy boggle the mind. Driving them is similar to boarding abandoned roller-coaster, you never know if there is a crash waiting at the next turn.

Thanks to Tony Pearson, who sent in these photos, we now have a little better idea of what the driving in Venezuela looks like.

all-wheel steering

Taxis are not in any better shape:

Cuban Buses

Disregarding the condition of other cars in Cuba (almost all of them would throw US safety expert for a loop, and US vintage car collectors are amazed at how some ancient models still drive around), take a look at the public transit buses in Havana. Very strange.

(image credit: Simon Ward)

More ghastly vehicles

Most are from the former communist countries (Borat-mobiles)
(images credit: email, originals unknown)

The last image is a common practice in India - this is how they drive vehicles from one factory to the other, half-built.

Aggressive ghosts:

Convertible "wishful thinking":

The utmost in "wishful thinking":

but here is something that's even scarier than any old car road hazard:

Vehicles in Iraq

...deserve their own category. Some of them refuse to die even after being "freshly squeezed" by your friendly neighborhood tank: