Moartea unui Renault Dauphine Gordini / Death of a Renault Dauphine Gordini

Aceste poze au fost puse cu mandrie pe site-ul primariei Sectorului 2. Arata ultima calatorie a unui Renault Dauphine, zis Gordini pe piata romaneasca. 3,000 exemplare au fost importate oficial in anii 60, fara discutie mai multe au ajuns prin alte metode. Astazi calcul ca mai sunt in viata vreo suta, din care marea majoritate in stare proasta.

Masina din imagine nu rulase de mult si desigur, ocupa un mult ravnit loc de parcare bucurestean. Nu era intr-o stare extraordinara, aceste masini ruginesc si nu au cotatie enorma. Totusi nu putem trece peste faptul ca ce a fost odata piesa comuna pe strazile patriei a devenit rara avis. La un eveniment de masini de epoca (sau chiar pe strada) ai usor mai multe sanse sa vezi un Mustang sau un Cadillac decat o masina, cum se spune in limba engleza, de "bread and butter". Nu pot sa nu regret faptul asta, mai ales ca, pentru mine cel putin, farmecul masinilor vechi este unul nostalgic, si noi nu prea am crescut cu Cadillac in curte.

In plus, nu pot sa nu regret bucuria cu care siteul a semnalat distugerea acestui Gordini - mai ales ca, in aceeasi serie de ridicari, s-au luat (si, punct important, de multe ori fara sau chiar impotriva acordul proprietarilor) alte masini precum doua Opeluri Olympia P2, un Ford Taunus, un Rambler Ambassador, un Lastun, doua Saaburi clasice si o mana de Dacii 1100. Trist.

These photos were displayed with much prode on the website of the Bucharest Sectory 2 mayor. They show the last journey of a Renault Dauphine, sold in Romania as the Renault Gordini. 3,000 of these were officially imported in the 60s, with several more making their way over by other means. These days, I estimate about a hundred have survived, most of them precariously.

The pictured car clearly hadn'd been driven for a long time and was probably occupying a much-needed parking space. It didn't look great; Dauphines rust notoriously; restored, the value's not great. Yet I can't help but feel sad. This car, once common on Romanian roads, has become a rarity. At a show (or even on the street), you're far likelier to see a Mustang or a Cadillac than a bread-and-butter model such as this, which is a great shame because, to me at least, a great part of the charm of old cars is the nostalgia value, and, bluntly, we didn't exactly grow up with Cadillacs.

Again, I am saddened by the glee with which the demise of this old Renault was presented on the website. Esepcailly so because, alongside it (and, crucially, many without or against the owners' wishes) other cars met their end, including two Opel Olympia P2s, a Ford Taunus, a Rambler Ambassador, a Lastun, two classic Saabs and a handful of Dacia 1100s. A shame, that.

Acum 90 de ani / Ninety years ago

Recent pe okazii a aparut aceasta carte postala, care se spune ca ar fi circa 1920, aratand un superb automobil in Olanesti. E una din cele mai detaliate vederi din Romania cu o masina. Marca imi e necunoscuta dar pare a fi un phaeton de prin 1910. Din pacate vanzatorul vrea 80 Euro deci nu va face parte din colectie!

Recently, on the okazii auction site, this splendid postcard, apparently circa 1920, with a vintage car in Olanesti appeared. This is one of the most detailed shots of a car on a Romanian postcard of that era. The car itself is a mystery but looks to be a circa 1910 phaeton. Sadly the owner wants 80 Euros for it so I won't be buying!

Chevroletul nemuritor / The Chevrolet that refuses to die

Multi dintre voi probabil cunoasteti siteul "vanatorii de epave", vanatoriideepave.3x.ro . Pozele de acolo, majoritatea facute in zona Craiovei acum peste zece ani, sunt de-a dreptul spectaculoase si arata ce fel de masini interesante existau chiar in provincie in acei ani. Chiar si antebelice. Bine inteles, majoritatea sunt fier vechi dar recent s-a redescoperit un Chevolet din 1937. Masina se gaseste de vanzare pe un site britanic. Dupa numarul de Oltenia nu a circulat dupa 1966, si vizibil conditia s-a deteriorat dupa anii 90 cand a fost fotografiata. Totusi, e bine ca a supravietuit si, cine stie, poate se va si restaura. In Romania mai sunt cel putin 5-6 Chevroleturi din 37-39, majoritatea in stare precara desi unu, in Tecuci (GL99POD), e restaurat intr-un mod destul de rudimentar.

Many readers may be aware of the "Wreck Hunters" website, vanatoriideepave.3x.ro . Most of the photos there were made in the Craiova region over ten years ago, and provide a fascinating snapshot of the spectacular vehicles existing in the Romanian provinces at that time - even pre-war vehicles. Unsurprisingly, most of the cars have disappeared, but recently, a 1937 Chevrolet was rediscovered on a British website. Jusging by the Oltenia plate it has not been driven since at least 1966, and the condition is visibly worse than when it was photographed in the mid 1990s. However, it has survived and may perhaps get a new lease of life. In Romania there are at least 5 or 6 other Chevrolets from the 37-39 generation, most in precarious condition but one, in Tecuci, restored, albeit rudimentarily.

Tuning anului 1988 / Tuning from 1988

Per total, in Romania anului 1988 masinile nu se modificau foarte frumos. In cel mai bun caz proprietarii puneau fel de fel de birizbrizuri pe Daciile lor personale: beculete, perdelute, diverse instrumente de bord, o gramada de chestii care nu prea ajutau cu nimic. Antebelicele inca se "modernizau" cu fel de fel de piese luate de pe modele romanesti sau sovietice. Uzina Dacia si fel de fel de service-uri incercau sa faca din biata Dacie Sport un Porsche sau poate un BMW M3. Pana si uzinele TV din Bucuresi au facut o serie de TV-uri tunate pentru brosuri vestice. Deci am fost uimit sa vad o poza in revista Autoturism cu o masina extrem de rara in Romania anilor 80: un Audi 50. Audiul 50 era o versiune de lux a Volkswagenului Polo. Nu s-a vandut bine deloc si dupa 4 ani si 108000 exemplare s-a retras de e piata. Banuiesc ca apartinuse unui student strain ; intr-adevar, multe masini simiplare deveneau epave, nefiind posibilitatea de a procura piese necesare. Oricum, a fost salvata si modificata, rezultatul, in parerea mea, aratand chiar OK. Presupun ca in Clujul anului 1988 facea furori!

By and large, in 1988 in Romania cars were not being well modified. On locally-made cars, each owner strove to imprint his personality on it: extra lights, curtains, dashboard instruemnts, and a vast array of other useless things found their way on the unsuspecting cars. Pre-war vehicles were still being "modernised" with whatever bits coul be cannibalised off Romanian or Soviet cars. The Dacia factory, and various workshops, tried to make the poor Dacia Sport into a Porsche or a BMW M3. Perhaps most ridiculously, even a tarted-up series of TV light vans was made, for use in Western brochures. Therefore, I was astonished to find in the Autoturism magazine a photo of a very unusual car to find in Romania at that time: an Audi 50. The Audi 50, basically a deluxe version of the VW Polo, sold badly and was quietly withdrawn after 4 years and 108,000 examples. Probably this one belonged to a foreign student and, like many Western cars, was abandoned when parts became too much of a difficulty. But it was saved and modified and, to my eyes at least, looks pretty good. At any rate, at the time, I bet it caused a stir in its native Cluj!

Camping in Romania, 1975...

... Nu doar pentru parliti!
... Not just for poor people!

O sovietica peste hotare / A Soviet Abroad

Nu numai romanii plec peste hotare! Acesta Pobeda se afla intr-un sat italian. Inca este intr-o stare decenta de conservare, numai stopurile de TV fiind semnele exteriorare de o viata in Romania. Dupa numere, emise prin 1985, inca circula in anii 80. Intr-un fel e pacat faptul ca 99% nu mai va vedea meleagurile romanesti, mai ales cand e probabil cel mai bine conservat exemplar de Pobeda Mk1 inmtriculat in tara. Pe de o alta parte, banuiesc ca va fi restaurata in Italia, iar daca ramanea in tara cine stie in ce hal ajungea. In Romania inca sunt poate 10-20 Pobezi, una (crem) restaurata (cat de cat OK desi cu repere de Warszawa), una, in Satu Mare, in curs de restaurare, celelalte nu. In plus inca exista cel putin un model 4x4 care arata extrem de bine.

Not only Romanians emigrate! This Pobeda is in an Italian vollage. It's still in a decent state of preservation, only the TV tail-lights belying its life in Romania, where the numberplates, issued in about 1985, mean that it was still driving around until at least the 80s. In a way, it's a shame it will probably never return to Romania, especially as it's probably the best-preserved Mk1 Pobeda registered in Romania. On the other hand, in Italy it will probably be restored, while in Romania who knows what state it would end up in. Romania still has about 10-20 Pobedas, one (cream), restored (relatively decently though with Warszawa parts), one being restored in Satu Mare, the others unrestored. There is also at least one 4x4 version which looks superb.

Brosura Dacia, 1974 / Dacia brochure, 1974

Un pliant in limba engleza cu Dacia 1300. Desi nedatat, pliantul dateaza din 1974, primul an in care Dacia 1300 Break a fost amenajata ca autosanitara (Dacia 1300S), si ultimul an in care s-au folosit capacele de roti in stilul celor din pagina 4. Un fapt interesant e ca unele din poze (spre exemplu, cele de pe pagina 3) nu sunt totusi din 1974 ci din 1969, aratand masini cu specific 1969: 1300 sub stopul drept, capace roti Renault 12, semnaliatoare pe aripi, lipsa de crom pe portbagaj, lipsa de vipusca peste aerisire, s.a.m.d.. O alta imagine interesanta e cea cu Dacia 1301 lux super, poza care arata incontrovertibil ca Dacia 1301 a avut, cel putin la inceput, scaunele suprainaltate de Renault 12 TS. (Un fapt de mult disputat de istoriografi Dacia....) In acea perioada Dacia se vindea, printre alte tari, si in Grecia si Algeria.

English-language Dacia 1300 brochure. Although undated, it is possible to say it's from 1974, the first year in which the 1300 estate was also sold as the Dacia 1300S ambulance, and the last year for the type of hubcaps seen on page 4. Some of the photos (eg those on page 3), however, are not from 1974 but rather 1969 and show chracterisitcs of the (very rare) 1969-model cars: 1300 written under the right-hand tail light, Renault 12 hubcaps, wing-mounted indicators, no chrome on the leading boot edge, no crease on the C-pillar, etc. Another interesting photograph is that of the 1301 Lux-Super. The photo shows without doubt that at least the earliest versions had the higher front seats of the Renault 12 TS. (A keen point of debate among Dacia historians...) In this period, the Dascia 1300 was being sold, among others, in Greece and Algeria.

Prin Romania in 1968 / Travelling in Romania, 1968

Un album ceh cu poze din Romania, 1968. Majoritatea masinilor sunt inregistrate in Cehoslovacia. Cea mai interesanta poza din punct de vedere automobilistic e cea cu magazinul Ciclop de pe Magheru, unde, in epoca comunista, se puteau comanda multe piese pentru masini din vest, fapt iubit de proprietarii de FIAT, VW sau Renault.

A Czech album showing pictures taken in Romania in 1968. Most of the cars seen are Czechoslovakian-registered. The most interesting photo for me is the one taken on Magheru boluevard in Bucharest showing the Cyclops store, a parts dealer where you could get almost anything for Western cars, making it a mecca for FIAT, VW and Renault owners.