Inca distrugem antebelice / Still, we destroy pre-war cars

Acest Steyr 50 "Baby", e drept, era in stare relativ proasta. Desi cat de cat complet, era modificat in ultimul hal, cu motor de Fiat 850, luneta spate de broasca, si unspe mii de piese modificate artizanal, piese Steyr fiind aproape imposibile de gasit in Romania. O restaurare ca la carte ar fi fost extrem de dificila din punc de vedere economic. Ca un "fun car" in stil retro, totusi, ar fi mers, mai ales pentru ca stiulul art-deco ramane extrem de cautat.

Dar, desteptii de la REMATul din Satu Mare unde ajunsese s-au gandit ca ar fi mai amuant sa striveasca pe biata masina, care supravietuise atatea ani si atate vremuri vitrege. La un moment era de vanzare la mia de euro si lumea a tipat ca nu face mai mule de cateva sute, sincer la cati bani se baga la oricare proiect antebelic cateva sute de euro aici sau acolo nu conteaza. In Anglia proiecte antebelice incep la cam 1200 lire, asta e penntru modele comune. Proiecte Steyr Baby sunt de obicei cam 5,000E, chiar pentru foste masini din Cehia sau Germania de Est, si ele modificate cu diferite parti, e drept mai putin ciobanesc. In Romania se pare ca lumea vrea sa fie date pe degeaba....

La domeniul vehicule istorice sunt destul de pragmatic si recunosc ca Romania inca are mai multe fiare decat pasionati si ca nu le putem salva pe toate. Totusi trebuie sa spun ca tot episodul m-a lasat cu un gust amar. Rusine!





This poor old Steyr 50 Baby was in a but of a state. With a Fiat 850 engine, VW beetle cut-out rear screen. and eleven thousand small parts cobbled together from what was available in Romania at the time, it was never going to be a viable restoration project from which you'd get a concours example. As a retro-themed fun car, however, it could have worked, especially given that its Art Deco lines are very much in vogue.

However, the geniuses at the Satu Mare scrapyard where it ended up saw fit to completely wreck it. It seems to me to be acrying shame that this little car, which lived through so much, had such an ignominous end. At one stage it was for sale at 1,000 Euros and people cried out that this was far too much and that it was only worth a couple of hundred. Frankly, considering the mony invested in any sort of prewar project, a few hundred here or there is small fry. UK prices for a prewar project car start at about £1200 for common models. An unrestored Baby project is about 5,000 Euros, even for an ex-Eastern bloc car modified with unoriginal parts (albet fewer of them). In Romania, however, people seem to want things for free...

I'm not sentimental about historic vehicles and indeed recognise that there are more old cars than enthusiaists and that you can't save them all. Even so, I cannot but conclude that this whole episode has left a very sour taste in the mouth. Shameful.