I am aware it is German...they are pretty much the same as Russian cars though 
I am aware it is German...they are pretty much the same as Russian cars though
ValuePack wrote: ^German, but no less awesome. Nothing wrong with 2 stroke.
I did Eastern Bloc in the original post.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jg5wkZ-dJXA&feature=player_embedded#!
Kanye likes Tatras too.
Zomby woof wrote:
That pickup looks like it would have the ride quality of a pogo stick. Reminds me of my uncle's story about delivering a three axle short wheel base Peterbilt halfway across the country; he said he spent more time airborne than actually on the pavement.
that pickup has a lada rust.. love the absolutely NO front overhang though
92CelicaHalfTrac wrote:SyntheticBlinkerFluid wrote: Really, the Yugo was the only Eastern Bloc car available in the US. Everything else is an import. Love me some Tatra 603Whoaaaaa!!!!!! I want one!!
I know were one is in Northern Illinois.
I've always had a soft spot for the Volga 24.
ValuePack wrote: ^German, but no less awesome. Nothing wrong with 2 stroke.
The later ones came with a 1.1 VW engine. Judging by the taillights on this one, it's probably one of the 4 strokes.
want a lada niva so bad. I knows it is a bad idea but I want one.
In reply to EvanB:
The Traby wagon in my avatar must have been a previous generation.
HappyAndy wrote: I think I saw a ZIL once, but it was in NYC and probably belonged to a diplomat. Speaking of Russian vehicles, I want a Kamaz rally truck in the worst way.
In the late 90s there was a big black Zil parked next to a Getty station of exit 40 of the LIE. It never moved but no one at the station seem to know anything about it or want to part with it.
How to get an Eastern Bloc vehicle to the US in 3-easy steps 
1) go to Hasznaltauto.hu and find your dream vehicle within a "reasonable distance" from Papa, Hungary. (best keep it 25 years or older). Exchange rate is 200:1 (so 2000 forint is $10, 100,000ft is $500, and so on) and you shouldn't need a translator for the site as it's basically the same as any other site (make, model, year, etc). You can get all the info you need by copying and pasting the URLs into google translate and clicking on them again. Make sure you watch for valid paperwork, it means it passes the "technical" and "originality inspections".
2) Pay for the car (we'll work out a way that is safe for both parties), plus maybe a bit for gas and royalties for my Hungarian buddy Zsolt who will be doing all the legwork (Zsolt is a proficient mechanic so he's a good guy to lay eyes on the car).
3) Transport to your favorite city!
Trabants and Ladas are every bit as cool and as fun as you can imagine. Skoda 100's are amazing, and if you can find a "Zapo" it's like a Russian corvair. If you buy a Csajka I will personally meet you at the port and chauffeur you home dressed like a Russian limo driver
Speak to me on the climate of Hungary and how well cas of that era have weathered.
Doing something like this is a very real possibility for me in the next year or so and I would like to avoid shipping a rot box halfway across the world if at all possible.
If I'm not mistaken, this Lada is $600 US. I know that by the time it hit our shores it would be a $3k+ car, but that seems like a veritable bargain if I don't have to spend the following 6 months doing rust repair.
In reply to Hungary Bill:
So this 1989 Wartburg would be $250? 
petegossett wrote: In reply to Hungary Bill: So this 1989 Wartburg would be $250?
Holy crap...they don't even bother melting the old appliances before recycling them as cars
It does snow in Hungary, and they do sand the roads.
In all fairness I'm from the PNW so I have no idea what rust looks like, but I had a 1987 Lada 2105 that only had one hole in the floor pan less than a dime in diameter and it didn't scare me. I also had a 1982 Trabant that had surface rust, but nothing damaging. I have seen some that sent me running away scared. If you have a phobia you want to avoid but are honestly interested in a car just let me know and I'm sure we can find something that you'll be happy with. Please keep in mind though, that this isn't a business of mine. It's just a friend I have that happens to be in the area and I know would be willing to help out fellow enthusiasts
Burrito: That Lada is $600. But I don't see a city listed. Gas is $8 a gallon in Hungary so if we're going to send poor Zsolt on a long trip we should hook him up a bit.
Pete: Yup! $250 But again I don't see a city listed (I'm drinking so I could be missing it). Honestly though, that model of Wartburg is a dime a dozen. If you want one find one in a cool color
Now: As an american I think Hungarians have an "eh, it's good enough" attitude. So if you buy one of these, expect small things to be not quite as up to snuff as we'd expect (paint touch ups that don't exactly match, maybe a set of points that's way beyond gone, etc). It may not be something we think we need to look for, but if you decide to buy a car be understanding of the fact that what's a big deal to you might not be a big deal to someone who makes $400 a month. For instance my $13,000 Impala had mismatched break shoes on the back and spark plugs that had been discontinued in the '80s (the logic? change only what needs to be changed). If you buy a Lada expect a service book and receipts. People had to wait 7 years to get their Lada delivered, and when they did they kept dang good records of the maintenance they performed.
Seriously though, there's nothing like a communist car made in the 80's that should have been scrapped in the 50's That damn trabant I owned got almost 40mpg and was made out of imitation fiberglass! It didn't even have a fuel gauge, you had a measured stick you'd drop in the gas tank and see what part was wet.
Good times.
(ok, one more beer and it's off to bed)
In reply to Hungary Bill:
So home much of a hassle would living with a Trabant in the U.S. be? Parts availability?? Are they easy enough to troubleshoot that you only need a hammer & screwdriver???
Because my life isnt difficult enough:
http://m.hasznaltauto.hu/autobusz/gaz/gaz_paz_672_y_panorama-8865605
The Trabants and Ladas are great urban vehicles, but running one on the highway in Hungary wasn't really a possibility. The speed limits are a bit higher on the Hungarian highways (you don't get a ticket until about 95mph). A Trabant in good condition will do 60mph, and a Lada is good for a little more (110mph) but you wont be setting any land speed records. Basically geared like your typical 60's vehicle in the US.
Otherwise they're just really basic vehicles. No ac, no power steering, not a lot of insulation, etc. Supremely easy to work on. The Lada had a fuel pump that could be operated by hand, and the earlier ones had a provision for a hand crank to start the engine . Just like your typical 60's vehicle in the US, there's not a lot to go wrong. Usually parts are available to us through Germany (in the case of the Trabant), or e-bay (in the case of the Lada).
The Lada was really a Fiat 124 Sedan, so that made things extremely easy.
Wartburgs and Skodas I really don't have any experience with owneship but I would expect similar results. A couple other Russain manufacturers worth looking into are GAZ and Moszkvics.
When I shipped my vehicles I used a container for transport and was able to load them up in Papa. It was super expensive though ($5700 quoted, closer to $8300 by the time they got here). RORO is cheaper, but we might be paying to have Zsolt to drive the car to a port (Slovenia, or Italy). I'd have to talk with him a bit to see what it would take to do that (remember, it'd be all done without using the M-ways)
Wally: You are my hero
In reply to Hungary Bill:
So it sounds like the smart/cost-effective thing to do is try and import a whole fleet of cars...
So Bill, what's the details on the Trabi 800 RS? Are they available and relatively cheap too?
Not sure about the 800RS, honestly I've only ever seen the 601 and the 1.1 (the 1.1 just became eligible for import I think and has the engine from a VW Polo in it).
I almost forgot about Polski Fiat and Yugo too! Lots of those available. But all this isn't really limited to Eastern Bloc vehicles, Hungary's semi-close location to Germany and Italy mean there should be a fair amount their classics too (Fiat 500, old BMWs, probably a few Brits too). I also noticed a lot of 6-cyl Mustangs out there, and of course the occasional CKD Chevrolet (built at the old Opel factory).
Really, the income level of Hungary is pretty low in comparison to what we're used to and owning a car isn't a requirement because of the small city layouts so the "average" vehicles don't demand much money (like Trabants). Now if you get into the brand new stuff, or if you're looking for saaaaaaay an E-type Jag then you can expect to pay accordingly. I was trying to remember what cool old Fords were like price-wise, but I think there might be a few 80's Fords available (Cosworth?).
On Lada USA and Trabant owers forums I've heard of people buying from ebay.de to get their cars. I think most of the sellers there are willing to work with shippers as we're willing to pay a bit more than their German counterparts.
I just sent Zsolt an e-mail giving him a heads up that we may be dipping into the import/export business and he should think about what he wants as compensation. I'll let you know what he says after he's done laughing at us Americans and our weird obsession with (what he considers) crap vehicles.
Funny update, Zsolt was about to get in touch with me concerning us importing Russian vehicles to the US. He's all excited because Trabants tend to sell for $3500 here (that's a topic for another discussion).
Anyhoo, we figure he'll have to make two trips to any vehicle we decide to buy over the internet. One to go look at it, and one to bring it back. He figures $250 is fair compensation for his services to buy the vehicle (that covers 2-tanks of gas out there). If we try to ship the vehicle out of Slovenia or Italy we'll have to work out compensation accordingly.
You know: a $250 Trabant isn't uncommon, AND shipping fees don't count towards your challenge budget 
Hungary Bill wrote: You know: a $250 Trabant isn't uncommon, AND shipping fees don't count towards your challenge budget
If I had the time and money to play with it probably wouldn't be hard to sell The Wife on an Americans themed Lemons car
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