They've been driven every day for sixty years repaired with parts that can be cobbled together from local materials.

That longed after '57 Chevy two door probably has a Lada or Zil engine a Fiat tranny and seats and interior from who knows what.

I think it was Nat Geo that did a program a few years back on the old "American" iron in Cuba. They had underhood shots of engines I've never even seen and I've been working on European cars for over 40 years.

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If they want to, that is...and if they're allowed to sell. There are restrictions on who can sell what to whom. It's not a free market economy.

A lot of those cars are no longer original, not even close--they've been modified six ways to Sunday, out of necessity. They are beautiful, though--colorful, modified works of art. A testimony to the ingenuity of the people of the island.

If they are allowed to sell, though, that's up to them. If you've been living at the end of a hallway in a "home" that used to be the landing of an apartment building in the bad old days, and you can gather enough money to buy a house with your own bathroom, you might not be so worried about the cultural heritage of your ride, if you're given enough money to buy a house and a new or newer car.

I have a problem with people drooling over the possibility of buying them with the unstated assumption that they will bake a big profit on resale.

Glad you were able to start a new thread instead of responding to the existing one!

If there's no demand, no one gets a deal.

People buying those cars will be aficionados of a particular culture--like people who buy old Ladas out of Russia, old Peykans out of Iran, or old Cinquecentos from Italy or Deux Chevaux from France. It's more the quirkiness and artistry of the car, not that they are "representative of the breed" like a classically restored vehicle.

Guys like Jay Leno, who run the gamut when it comes to things automotive, would buy a good example of a creatively restored car--but an auto "purist" who wants everything to original specifications wouldn't want one of those. They are works of art, creative masterpieces, the good ones--and market value would really depend on the artistry of the modification/restoration.

Even the nicest ones look very rough by American standards. I think the cost to rectify 60 years of daily use and replacing homemade parts would offset any savings in buying a car from the Cuban market (shipping included). Paying a few hundred bucks for some '55 Buick taillight bezels isn't such a deal.

As an old car enthusiast, I have always admired the ingenuity employed by the Cubans to keep these things on the road. I have often told myself "If they can keep a 50's car alive in Cuba, then I have no excuse for not being able to in California".

parts. It turns them from just "antique cars" to rolling sculptures, IMO...

the artistry of these vehicles to make them a "thing." And since many of them have Russian diesel engines under the hood, they aren't what they started out to be--they're something else entirely.

is available to them. They won't sell unless there is an alternative. Also a flood of classic cars to this country would drive down values here. My first car was a new 1964 1/2 Mustang which I bought for $2,500 with my dad's help in 1965. I saw one just like it this summer and the asking price was $25,000.
If they can be imported from Cuba that price might drop some.

She used to organize trips for herself and other 'lefty' art collectors (vultures) under the guise of "humanitarian" missions, and go buy stuff for cheap to bring back. Or she'd get Cuban artists to visit, and have them make works for her to sell.

Because she identified herself as a socialist 'leftist,' she got away with it. Of course, the artists, desperate for money and ways out of Cuba, were over a barrel. She got upset with me one time when I refused to join her on her little capitalist crusade.

She made herself quite a little nest egg, selling off the backs of Cuban artists. She gave me and my then-husband a few pieces of art....and I made him put them away. I could still see the blood on them.