(December 2012 note: See update link, below.) GUESS I'LL have to set aside my search for the younger Batista’s 1956 Corvette. An even tastier trophy has emerged – a Mercedes-Benz 300SL, better known as the Gullwing. Even on the Island of Surprises, I’d be astounded to come across one of these rare beauties. But in a brief section on Cuba in Automobiles Lost & Found (Haynes Publishing, 2008), I see a photo of a battered 300SL observed by author Michael E. Ware outside a private garage near Havana. The Gullwing, unmistakable lift-up doors in place, is dented and rusting and missing its engine, yet still would be prized by collectors the world over . . . if only they could extract it from Cuba. Restored, the Silver Metallic example with Lipstick Red interior might be worth more than $700,000 U.S. Reached in England, Mr. Ware tells me he was holidaying in Cuba when an acquaintance brought him to an unnamed community to see the car. “I never asked whe
Now a division of Toyota, Hino describes itself as the world's third-largest truck builder. The Japanese manufacturer's buses and trucks are in use daily from Canada to Thailand. Rarely outside Cuba, however, will you see a veteran Hino like this still in service. Its round headlamps and old, winged logo mark it, I believe, as a survivor from the 1960s. Outside, it looked great. Inside, well, it needed some work.
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