CARISTAS

     Until this year, private taxis in Cuba weren't supposed to pick up tourists. Visitors who wanted a ride in one of the island's famous old cars had to be satisfied with the small fleet of government-owned classics operating from the Hotel Nacional in Havana, or make an under-the-table deal with a car owner and hope they weren't stopped by police.     Then, late in 2010, in an effort to breathe some entrepreneurial life into Cuba's slumbering, state-run economy, the government announced that 178 self-employment activities would now be permitted. Among them: the transportation of passengers without restriction.     Now, visitors can see the sights from cars like this sparkling 1957 Ford Fairlane Town Sedan without fear of sparking an international incident. Tour the island in this 1957 Ford Fairlane Town Sedan.

  The minimum driving age in Cuba is 18. Some sites say 21, but that's to rent a car (it's 25 or even 30 for certain agencies and models). But in a country where incomes and car-ownership rates are low, you don't see many young drivers. And regardless of the applicant's age, getting a licence in Cuba isn't easy, as Here Is Havana author Conner Gorry explains so colourfully here . Strollers and a '54 Chevy in Matanzas.

Tony Robertson photo. Used by permission .     ANOTHER GREAT   Havana shot from Tony Robertson. Looks like a 1956 Ford sedan at centre and a 1958 Ford Thunderbird hardtop on the right. And the red-and-white monster on the left? My best guess is a 1949 Buick with a custom grille.

    WE'RE HEADING to Cuba soon. And for the first time in a long time, we haven't booked a rental car.    It's not that I fear to drive there, though I'd certainly want to be cautious, given the experiences of Cody LeCompte, the young Canadian forced to remain on the island after a traffic accident until public and government pressure helped win his release (see Driving In Cuba Reconsidered ).   It's more about the money. Last year we paid nearly $400 for a subcompact for three days. (I see the rates have dropped a bit since, probably because of the strength of the Canadian dollar).   Following the advice of the Cuba hands on TripAdvisor and the more prickly types at the (well named) Thorn Tree travel forum, we'll probably hire someone with a car   —   not an official taxi  —   to take us where we want to go. It should be cheaper than a rental, and will certainly be interesting.   In fact, we did just this  —  hired ...

The Geely MK: Smart styling, uneven materials.    Reserve a rental car for your Cuban holiday, and chances are you'll find a Geely waiting for you.    A product of China's largest independent automaker, the Geely has become Cuba's fleet car of choice. Since 2008 Geely has supplied nearly 5,000 sedans to replace the island's much-travelled Hyundai taxis and rental cars, and its purely ancient Lada police cars. The manufacturer reports that it has orders for more cars, these with automatic transaxles, and has set up a parts depot in Cuba to support its growing presence.   Geely is meant to be pronounced with a soft "g," as in Jili, a Mandarin word meaning auspicious or lucky. In Cuba, however, you're more likely to hear it as "Heely"  —  not to be confused with those kamikaze roller-shoes of a few years ago.   Geely is scarcely older than Heelys. Founded in 1986 by entrepreneur Li Shufu to make refrigerator parts, it expanded to mot...

   Pretty scooters come from Italy. For those who instead wanted a rugged scooter, the source for three decades was Lincoln, Nebraska, home of the Cushman Corp. factory that turned out tough, reliable two-wheelers between 1936 and 1965.    Cushman's most famous product? The Military Airborne Model 53, a foldable, lightweight scooter designed to be dropped with parachute troops in World War Two. It didn't work out so well on the battlefield, but is much valued by collectors today. Cushman logo, spelled correctly   I saw the above step-through Model 52 or 54 Cushman — never mind the missing "h" — in Varadero. Built, as it says, in 1948, it's had some reworking over the years. The tube-style forks and front disc brake, for example, would have been later additions, and the cowling has received some well-executed aluminum patches. I couldn't tell if that cowling concealed the original 221-cc, 4-horsepower engine. The bucket, I...

Bel Air convertible could hold its own at a car show anywhere.    Maybe it's because we share a birth year, but I've always thought of the 1955 Chevrolet as the first car of the modern automotive era. Certainly, it merits landmark status for the eager small-block V-8 it introduced; descendants of that engine can be found all over, including under the hood of my 2009 pickup.     But to me, it's the balance of the 55's proportions — the roundness of its profile and the squareness of its stance — that sets it apart. Look at it, and you see more of the cars that arrived later than those that came before. For collectors, the '55 Chevy to have is the two-door Nomad station wagon, of which just 8,386 were built. But for my money (and I'd need a lot of it to buy one), the Bel Air convertible is nicer yet. Chevrolet made 41,292 of the ragtops, and you know every one was a smile-producer.    Like this example parked at Juan...