How did I get to where I am?

"RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars" (rallydarkstrike) 02/23/2020 at 08:00 • Filed to: None

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I’ve loved cars since I was a kid. I can still vaguely remember taking my classic red ‘Power Wheels’ Jeep apart with some stubby Robinson-head screwdrivers, pretending I was a mechanic fixing things that had gone wrong, or tuning it up to go faster.

Not me - photo shamelessly stolen from the internet, though mine as the same as this...

The shelves and walls of my bedroom were filled with, predominantly, ‘50s American classics…’54, ’55, ’56, ’57 Chevrolets being the mainstay. A large cabinet in our foyer proudly displayed shelves of ‘50s Chevy models of all brands, models and size. I still have that cabinet, and all the models that filled it. It sits in a corner of our rec room...overfilled now, still with models from when I was a kid.

My love of cars has never changed, but my taste in cars has.

It all started in the basement of our first house. My brother and I had a massive dinky car city set up in an unfinished room, covering the bare concrete floor. Sadly, I have no pictures of that magical space, but I can still remember it vividly in my head. We would spend countless hours down there, the warmth of the wood stove in the room next door keeping the place cozy and comfortable, despite the cold cement. Hot Wheels, Matchbox, Majorette, Road Champs, Maisto…dinkies of all makes and models littered the room. Not in a haphazard way, but thoughtfully and carefully placed. That room was a city to us…literally AND figuratively. Building playsets scattered across the imaginary landscape. There were many garages and car dealerships, several Truck Stops, two airports, a Port, a race track, two military bases, police stations, a restaurant, construction sites…a Hospital…a Fire Department. A Police Impound yard sat prominently in the center of town…a tractor supply garage sat next to a farm on the outskirts, just across from the National Park/Camping area, which in-turn was a hop skip and a jump away from the new Housing Development going up near the mountains (i.e. the couch…)

I guess you could say we had some pretty creative imaginations…

Sure, there were race cars, supercars, concept cars and all sorts of high-powered performance machines spreading through the streets, but there were also a fair share of ‘normal everyday rides’ too. Ford Transit tow trucks plied the streets rescuing broken down Pontiac Firebirds. Citroen Xantias and Ford Sierras sat in dealer showrooms next to Mercury Sable station wagons and Pontiac Trans Sport ‘dustbuster’ vans. As a Canadian growing up in a vehicle market featuring predominantly American vehicles, these little plastic and metal models offered a window into another world…Buicks and Dodges shared the roads with odd newcomers to the car world in my head…the likes of Renault 12 Taxis, FIAT Coupes, Citroen , Scania…brands and models I’d never heard of as a young kid, making them all the more intriguing. As I grew out of that imaginary world on the rec room floor, I never lost the imprint these oddball wonders left on me in that basement city.

Those were the days in the late 90’s when the internet was starting to become a thing and I would spend what time I could find at my babysitter’s house on sweet sweet dial-up, and at school at recesses and lunches when I could. We had no internet at home, but computer games like Need for Speed SE, Test Drive Off-Road 2, Need for Speed 3: Hot Pursuit, Need for Speed 4: High Stakes and Screamer slowly replaced my time downstairs. Mod cars downloaded to floppy disks and safely carried home and self-tweaked config files for them let me personalize and add to my digital car collection in such games.

Ignore the ‘Supercar’ label on this disk. It contained a prized copy of my downloaded and tweaked mod 1st-gen Dodge Neon for Need for Speed 3: Hot Pursuit...

Books at the local library on foreign cars were few and far between in those days, so the internet opened up a way for me to learn about all these strange cars I’d never known as a child…their odd designs and the names stamped on the bottoms gained meaning and understanding!

The odd copper-gold Corgi dinky I usually parked near the Shell garage in the basement city? A Citroen Dyane! “WHAT? It only has TWO cylinders? How can it do anything?” And yet it was capable and it and it’s 2CV brethren sold well and were highly regarded by those that loved them. This seemed mind-blowing to little old me that grew up gorged on classic American Inline-6s, V6s and V8s…

That odd white hatchback race car with the massive clamshell REAR bonnet that sat proudly in the pits at the race track near the Port on the outskirts of town? Well…it shouldn’t have been there….as a Peugeot 205 T16, it should’ve been plying the gravel roads of the National Park with spectators lining the corners. How would I have known back then? Another moment of clarity gained!

As time ran on…passing through Jr. High, High School and into university, I was a changed petrolhead. I still have the classic Americans that birthed my love of autos. I respect them for their design and engineering. Gorgeous things in their own right…but they are not what tugs at my heartstrings the most these days. You could say I dove off the deep end completely when I first started watching Top Gear in my dorm room in university 2005. As examples: Jeremy’s review of the new FIAT 500 Abarth in 2007 hooked me on that brand and FIAT’s classic philosophy of wonderfully driving cars small cars with neat styling…even if they weren’t historically the most reliable or rustproof. Hammond’s plucky little Opel Kadett ‘Oliver’ surviving the punishment of Africa with almost no modifications grew my love of no-nonsense classics as well.

The latter nudged me on the course I now find myself. I still deeply respect performance and luxury machines for their engineering and capability…but they aren’t what excites me. Sure, they are EXCITING, but they are something of a pipe dream to most people. Amazing machines…but not for me. I came to realize I love the cars of the everyman, the underdogs - especially those that were forbidden fruit to us here in North America…my ties to foreigners from the city in the basement reaching back again. The cars that are simple, sturdy and, in some cases unloved; those are where I find my home. This applies to my daily driver philosophy as well. I ‘downgraded’ from a 2002 Subaru Impreza wagon to a 2009 base stripper-model Hyundai Accent and, as much as I loved that Subie, I think I love the plucky Accent more (as many of you likely already know, and undoubtedly question).

Nowadays my love lies in classic FIATs, Citroens, Peugeots and Japanese Kei cars. I find enjoyment in Eastern Bloc metal (and Duroplast) as well. Designing a 0-60-in-3-seconds supercar with a huge budget is all well and good, but developing something on a shoestring budget that is built to survive and last in the wilds of Siberia is a far more challenging task. I enjoy the creative engineering of those cars far more than the svelte carbon fiber of a Lamborghini...

FIAT’s weight and cost savings by producing almost every single classic FIAT 500 with a fabric soft-top (except for the two-year-only !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! and the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! FIAT 500 My Car!). Not only was this a ‘sporty’ thing for buyers to enjoy on sunny days, but in post-war Italy were metal supply was short, this saved material but also made the cars lighter for the performance of their tiny twin-cylinder engines!

The Trabant’s now-legendary use of the first recycled material in cars…Duroplast…and their as-simple-as-bricks engineering. As Jason Torchinsky once said, “It’s going to start and run sorta-shittily every single time you twist that key…because fuck you. Trabi doesn’t quit.”

The way many Polish engineers adapted vehicles like the FSO Warszawa (a license-built GAZ Probeda) into so many different vehicles to meet the Communist nation’s needs in the dark post-war times…the ZSD Nysa and FSC Zuk vans, for example. The license-built FIAT 126p taking up the reins as that country’s ‘everything’ car. The FSO Syrena sticking around into the early ‘80s with its archaic pre-war-DKW-based 2-stroke engines because…well, that was all they had.

FSO Warszawa sedan

ZSD Nysa...these vans were often used by the Polish Militia under Communist power.

FSC Zuk - also Warszawa-based. Far more common than their Nysa counterparts.

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I’m glad fancy and performance cars exist. They fill a niche and offer a glimpse of what the automobile can do when pushed to its limits. They provide people with thrills and excitement, from ‘cheap’ muscle cars like the Mustang to bonkers hypercars like Koenigsegg. But, me? I’m more down to Earth. You’re more likely to find me daydreaming about the cheapest Wartburg 353 on OLX that I could import, or contacting the local Transportation Minister on adding a specific ‘Autocycle’ class to the upcoming Motor Vehicle Act re-write that would let me import and register a Piaggio Ape TM.

Slow, simple, crude and basic doesn’t mean they can’t be fun – I wouldn’t have it any other way.

jimz > RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars 02/23/2020 at 08:25

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I used to build plastic car model kits like a fiend. Sadly most of them are gone; I’ve a huge stack of unbuilt kit s in the closet and I just can’t work up any interest in building them.

Wacko > RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars 02/23/2020 at 08:43

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My mother told me I always had toy cars and I made care noises with them before I even talked.(my 3 kids did the same)

I played with hot wheels, and I had a black 911 that I repainted at least 5 times. I then went to build model cars. 

sony1492 > RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars 02/23/2020 at 09:25

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My brother and I were obsessed with cars for as long as I can remember, playing with matchboxs, and trying to draw the coolest thing we could.

We were on private property and any time we weren’t at school we were isolated, our imaginations ran free with a box a hotwheels. We would make up stories and build road complex’s deep into the clay using a matchbox plow. (we had a few over time and eventually the wheels would fall off and the metal on the blade would get worn smooth) As time went on we got to the point of using hot glue guns to modify our favorite trucks, I remember how exciting it was to “perfect” the little diecasts . Everyday we would go up to our spot, plop down into the dirt and start making roads and stories. We would trade back and forth the best ones, it was always a matter of which ones had the best suspension, I distinctly remember paying my brother $13 for a landrover.

And of course we would use the vice on our porch to simulate car accidents, or with the 1:18 mastios we would get bored because they arnt easy to play with and light them on fire.(fun fact they get hot enough to melt their own steel) I regret destroying so many toys, especially the bigger ones but it was probably a necessary outlet at the time.

And we spent quite a bit of time doing drawing contests with each other to make cool sports cars or trucks, eventually he gave it up but I to this day still make art, though n ot necessarily cars anymore.

shop-teacher > RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars 02/23/2020 at 09:49

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I can very much picture your car world. I never had something quite as “permanent,” but I had my spots. My favorite was a patch of dirt under a tree next to our house, which I called “The Dirt Store,” for ... reasons. I played so much in the dirt store, that my knees had thick black calluses from kneeling down on the concrete sidewalk next to the dirt for hours on end.

When the weather didn’t allow for outdoor play, my go-to spot was an old partially thread bare Oriental rug in the basement. The patterns on the rug were the roads, of course.

It is funny how the way we play, affects our tastes as an adult. I think the dirt store certainly contributed to my love of trucks. That, and drooling over my dad’s electric blue ‘79 K10 pickup.

shop-teacher > jimz 02/23/2020 at 09:52

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Just last month I sold my off over a dozen unmade model kits that I finally realized I am never going to build. Weirdly, I kept two that I’m not quite ready to let go of.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars 02/23/2020 at 13:05

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Thank you for this amazing writeup! You really nailed the Genesis of the car enthusiast bug.

I played with toy monster trucks before I could speak (one of my first words too), but my older brother wasn’t interested. I had this saggy beanbag that didn’t have enough filler that I would transform into a mountain playground. I would contour the folds to make switchbacks and line up all my cars on the “roads.” Then, I would create police chases that had to dodge the traffic filled roads.

The disparity between the toy cars on the shelf and what is on the roads is actually what drove my interest in foreign cars. I actually cared to separate the realistic cars from the absurd to make my scenes more lifelike, but I was left wondering what sort of scene those wacky foreign vehicles would belong in.

I never played with my cars outside; all my outside time was devoted to helping my brother dig an enormous hole in our backyard, which grew to an alarming depth every summer before we filled it in. We still do this when we visit the beach together.

CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever > RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars 02/23/2020 at 13:27

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I hope one day you can buy a cool Fiat or eastern Bloc car

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever 02/23/2020 at 14:27

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I’m all saved up, hopefully! I just need to get my own place! :)

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > sony1492 02/23/2020 at 14:50

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:)

I was always very careful with mine and most of them are in very good shape to this day. A lot were ones we purchased second-hand at yard sales. Those often aren’t in as nice a shape, but even still, we were always careful not to make them worse. Those were the ones we usually took overnight to friends’ or grandparent’s houses. All the ‘best’ ones stayed safe and sound in the rec room. :)

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > Wacko 02/23/2020 at 14:51

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I got into collecting die-cast models...still do! Painting and assembling plastic or metal models....or repainting my dinky cars was not something I ever got into though, really! We had a lot of Lego, so the Lego was my outlet for ‘making and remaking’ things I guess! :D

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > shop-teacher 02/23/2020 at 15:01

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I still have some plastic ones I have for sale as well...I never really got into building the plastic or metal kits other than a few of the snap-together metal ones from Bburago and Maisto. Dinkys, collecting 1/24 and 1/18 models, and Lego were my thing the most, I think. I still have almost all of the models I’ve ever purchased, except for a few ‘50s Americans I let go of if they were duplicates or ones I wasn’t as interested in keeping.

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > jimz 02/23/2020 at 15:02

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See my reply to shop-teacher below! :)

I have one rare plastic model - a Monogram kit - it’s a ‘57 Chevrolet BelAir, but it’s a massive 1/12th scale!

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > shop-teacher 02/23/2020 at 15:20

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:) We had a few of those rubber-backed, roll-up ‘town’ mats with roads and stuff on them for Micro Machines and dinkies for when we went visiting. We never really played with our dinkies outside for fear of scratching them or getting them dirty, but I distinctly remember using the back of our grandparent’s couch as a mountain...

We had 3 old cars on our property as well growing up...my father, for whatever reason, decided to just park our old ones when he replaced them rather than sensibly selling them to get some value back. There were two Pontiac wagons and a mid-70's Chrysler Cordoba in various states of returning to the Earth. We used to play on, in and around those as well.

The ‘79 or so Grand Lemans wagon was exactly the same as this, except burgundy rather than black/brown....had the same wonderful ‘80s faux wood grain on the side though. Bur gundy interior :

The later Pontiac wagon was a Bonneville wagon...also in Burgundy with bur gundy interior, also with faux wood grain, much like this one:

The Cordoba was awesome...also burgundy (I guess my parents liked red?). Ridiculously plush cloth seats, burgundy interior. White landau vinyl top though, with coach lights! So landyacht-tastic! Pretty much exactly like this one:

shop-teacher > RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars 02/23/2020 at 17:20

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I only ever built 6 or 8 of them. I definitely sold more than I built.

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > shop-teacher 02/23/2020 at 17:42

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Same!

Wacko > RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars 02/23/2020 at 19:07

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I also played a lot with LEGO, even made citys for my hotwheels.  We also called them dinky cars.. 

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > Wacko 02/23/2020 at 19:43

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We always kept our Lego and dinkies separate. Dinkies was just the name I was used to calling any toy cars of that size growing up...Hot Wheels, Majorette, Maisto, Matchbox...

shop-teacher > RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars 02/23/2020 at 22:45

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I had outside cars and inside cars. Very few made the transition back and forth. The outside cars led a hard last few, no doubt, but the smiles and memories were worth it.

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > shop-teacher 02/24/2020 at 15:46

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Haha, sortof like my ‘bought’ cars versus my ‘yard sale’ cars :P

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available 02/24/2020 at 18:51

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I did the same with realistic cars an d ‘absurd’ ones! The really absurd ones I just gave to friends or never used (like cartoon character ones or the like), and the ones that were semi-realistic...concept car-like...lived at a dealership in the bas ement city known as the ‘Concept Car Dealership’ haha!

Sounds like we have a similar start in the way they shaped our love or foreign cars! :)

Your beanbag chair mountain reminds me of the couch in our basement city room and at my grandparents! We used to use them as mountains too...though switchbacks and car chases would’ve been awesome! :P

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars 02/24/2020 at 18:55

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Yeah, I appreciate your post because so many Oppos got the bug from the same source. I also never played with the really absurd ones.