Historical car-acters

For an early Valentine’s celebration, we feature our love (and hate) relationship with the car.

Automobiles, in various forms, number of wheels, passenger capacity, makes and models, have been on Philippine roads for over a hundred years now. I am not really a car fanatic but the automobile has figured in our modern history both at the personal level as well as being one of the elements in historical drama.

Included in this week’s column are images I posted on my Facebook page (look for Paulo Alcazaren). From time to time I’ve featured images of these vehicles from the past and made them part of my popular MMM (Metro Manila Memories) quiz. The images strike a chord with Pinoys since cars represent functional transport as well as act as vehicles for aspirations of a better life.

One of the most interesting images I managed to collect (bought at auction on eBay) is an advertisement for a Lincoln Continental. This Lincoln ad, printed widely in the United States, is from the late 1950s. It shows a Filipino diplomat in front of the Philippine chancery. In front of him the huge black limousine (with uniformed chauffeur) is parked, waiting for him. Who is this dapper fellow (he was also UP president in the early 1960s)? Where was the ad shot?

2. What was this muscular 1980 Toyota car called?

From the 1960s is a picture of a flight stewardess getting out of a taxi. Manila taxis were operated in fleets and were generally efficient and clean until the mid-’60s. Some fleets could be contacted by radio, but most were still too expensive for most folks. What famous basketball idol’s family used to run one of the biggest fleets of taxis in Manila?

Taxis became cheaper to ride from the mid-’60s to the ’80s but they became rolling wrecks with no air-conditioning, tampered meters, hoodlum drivers and smelly interiors. Operators would run their taxis until the engines gave out or the brakes ran paper-thin. Many used them as last resorts when all other avenues (literally) were out.

Cars were part of the entourage of celebrities in show business and in sports. In the picture shown from the early 1960s we see a hardworking professional boxer on his morning run along Roxas Boulevard. He is trailed by his minders, who are riding what looks to be a mid-’50s Chevy

3. What famous basketball star’s family used to operate a fleet of taxis?

(Chevrolet). Who was this flashy boxer? (Take a look at the background and what seems to be a stand of pine trees — what are they, really?)

Here’s a common sight that emerged in the ’60s — a sprawling suburban bungalow with a three-car garage. The folks who lived here, though, were a tad wealthier than most. The cars were two Cadillacs and a Mercedes-Benz. The question: What famous TV vehicle from the ’60s did the black Caddy look like?

In the ’70s we aspired to build our own cars. Half a dozen manufacturers tried their hand at putting together a Philippine utility vehicle for the masses. One such creation was the Pinoy. The chunky-looking vehicle was the creation of the Francisco Motor Corporation. FMC, like the Sarao Motors company, started in the manufacture of jeepneys. The Pinoy, like most of the other Azkal cars, did not evolve past a few models. They just did not sell and many Filipinos abandoned the Pinoy option for second- or third-hand foreign models. It just was not Pinoy’s time. DMG, the local assembler of Volkswagens, made one of the more successful utility vehicles — what was the name of this basically built buggy?

In the ’80s we all lusted after powerful Japanese cars. This Toyota was a popular chick-magnet choice for many Filipino males. It was endorsed by this popular basketball star. Who is he and what was the car called?

The number-one vehicle in contemporary Filipino history is undeniably the jeepney. The contraption was invented after the war. The newly liberated Filipinos needed to be brought around their devastated cities and ravaged provinces. Surplus American combat jeeps were refitted to carry five to six passengers (later nine to 12). The jeepney concept was, in fact, older. Prewar Manilans rode similar public transport based on civilian autos. What were they called?

Finally, old cars don’t disappear in the Philippines. Many survive and are cared for with much love. I saw this car recently in the SLEX area. What make and model is this curvy car?

Hopefully our cars in the future are hybrid or pure electric-powered vehicles. We should also reshape our cities to be serviced primarily by trains, LPG or electric buses, trams, or bicycles. Other than that, we could (if we had sidewalks) walk more! Enjoy the answers to the questions below!

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Answers: 1. Carlos P. Romulo – Washington, DC; 2. Robert Jaworski – The Macho Machine; 3. Freddy Webb; 4. Sakbayan (Sasakyan ng Bayan); 5. auto-calesas; 6. Garbiel “Da Flash” Elorde – those were Agojos, not Benguet pine trees; 7. The Batmobile; 8. 1957 Studebaker.