Like many humans, I love beach sunsets, puppies, kittens, and of course, traveling. I enjoy it for many of the same reasons as my fellow earthlings (experiencing new cultures, food, architecture, etc.) but as an Autopian, car spotting is another juicy item on the menu of possibilities.
The global automotive marketplaces have become more homogeneous over the last few decades due to merging brands and the realities of economies of scale, and thanks to the Internet there are fewer surprises when it comes to late-model products. Nevertheless, each country still possesses its own unique automotive ecosystem and culture, past and present, and like an avid birder I relish documenting these specimens.
![Vidframe Min Top](https://images-stag.jazelc.com/uploads/theautopian-m2en/vidframe_min_top1.png)
![Vidframe Min Bottom](https://images-stag.jazelc.com/uploads/theautopian-m2en/vidframe_min_bottom1.png)
This report features the more interesting sightings from a recent trip to Thailand, the birthplace of my lovely wife and home to her family. Some of the photos were taken from a moving vehicle whilst squished by a few extended family members, hence the zoom grain and non-ideal crops – my apologies. Now on with the show!
Tuk-Tuks are popular in Thailand, as in many other Southeast Asian countries, and we’re all familiar with the traditional design which looks like the front of small motorcycle grafted onto a utility cart with canvas gazebo slapped on top. In more rural areas, I spotted larger, dare I say, more luxurious Tuk-Tuks that recall the Kei-sized Mazda K360 and second-gen Daihatsu Midget three-wheelers of the 60’s.
![Tuk Tuk + Hypnotoad Cop 1y](https://images-stag.jazelc.com/uploads/theautopian-m2en/Tuk-Tuk-Hypnotoad-cop-1y.jpg)
They flaunt more integrated streamlined bodies, which I’m assuming are made of fiberglass and cutting-edge design elements such as square headlights which give off Hypnotoad vibes. All glory to Hypnotoad! Fancy taillights and door handles cribbed from mass-production vehicles complete the ensemble. The cockpits are downright posh by Tuk-Tuk standards and feature roll-up glass windows, padded steering wheels, and luxuriously cushioned bench seats. Disappointingly, passenger accommodations are not much better than the OG Tuk-Tuks, which means basic padded benches and zero seat belts or cup holders.
![Tuk Tuk + Midget Copy 2](https://images-stag.jazelc.com/uploads/theautopian-m2en/Tuk-Tuk-Midget-copy-2.jpg)
The canopies are metal for added rollover protection. Like regular Tuk-Tuks, and somewhat surprising to me, they’re all powered by 4-stroke engines, with performance enhanced by bespoke, sonorous exhausts.
As you may have gathered by now, automotive passenger safety standards in Thailand differ a bit from the ones in the US, with private cabs focusing on practicality and low cost, while Kei vans and pickups are popular foundations for people movers. With 33% more wheels than three-wheelers, the Kei vans are more stable, sturdier, and more comfortable for chauffeurs and passengers alike. Based on mass-produced vehicles, they allow more opportunities for customizing with body kits and the integration of expressive light assemblies from larger vehicles. The nicer examples sport aftermarket wheels and roll-up vinyl windows for passengers riding in the bed. I even saw a few that enticed riders with the decadence of air conditioning.
Climb another step up the ladder you’ll find luxury VIP vans like the one we rented for a five-hour drive from Bangkok to a beach resort. They’re Japanese or Korean full-size passenger vans, in demure shades of silver, white or black, rolling on custom wheels and complemented by dark tinted windows and often, high roof caps for more headroom. The interiors tend to be a bit more, uh, expressive. Our lux bus featured plush custom leather captain’s chairs, blackout curtains, well-stocked built-in drink coolers, and an ornately sculpted, upholstered and mirrored ceiling that looked like it was ripped from an 80s Vegas casino. Not only did it integrate a smattering of map lights, speakers and directional AC vents, but quizzically, Transformers logos etched into custom-framed cocaine mirrors. Sadly, it did not transform at any point in the trip.
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Vehicle mods are common throughout the world, but in Thailand, even ambulances get faster and furioser! While walking through a Bangkok suburb, I stumbled upon an auto accessory shop that had just finished installing high-performance rubber, aftermarket alloys, and custom exhaust tips on two of Emergency Team Thailand’s slick rescue shuttles. The stylized emergency graphics were on point, and overall they were a much cooler way to get your mangled body to a human repair shop than a box welded to the back of a van or pickup cab.
But what if you spent all your money on go-fast bits and you want to let people know? Easy, just cut a Plexiglass window into your hood. This Isuzu D-Max also had a viewing window cut into its bed to show off the shiny rear axle bits, which obviously influenced the ’25 Mustang GTD’s suspension window.
A lowered and body-kitted Juke ‘Impul’ with a triple rear wing surprised me by actually looking kinda cool and slightly ridiculous, like a tough and funky Dakar Rally car in search of ground clearance. It stood out because it’s not a car I’ve ever seen modded, Nismo Juke R excepted.
Old cars don’t escape the tuning culture as this wide body Mk I Civic demonstrated. Coincidentally, before my trip I had customized a Hot Wheels‘ 73 Honda Civic Custom, repainting yellow with black wheels that looked remarkably like the one I captured. Maybe it came to me in a dream?
The highlight of my car spotting adventures was this early 70’s Peugeot 504 muscle car with its subtle “corps large” fenders and classic raked stance. I supposed the GT badges on its flanks indicated this belle bête was powered by the top-of-the-range 2.0-liter fuel-injected inline four churning out 103 angry chevaux, but then I noticed the massive intercooler and understood the need for the steamroller stretched tires on a +3 tire/wheel package. Its intent and capabilities were conveyed by the mismatched front and rear wheels, as found in modern endurance racers. I surmised this to be a rare example of Peugeot’s answer to the Dodge Hemi Coronet, featured in the French remake of the Road Warrior, the seminal “Le Guerrier de La Route,” filmed in black and white of course. I’m hoping to see Hot Wheels make this in 1:64 scale soon.
Some random sightings included an early 70’s 4-door Ford Maverick with racing stripes, and a super cool early ‘00s Alfa Romeo 156 GTA, which was powered by a 250hp 3.2-liter 24V version of the iconic Busso aluminum V6. I’m betting most would be surprised to know that Alfa produced 156s in Thailand from ’02 to ’04 for Asia-Pacific markets.
Last but not least on my automotive safari, I spotted various Nissan NV Wingroad Queen Cab pickups. These are based on the AD family of subcompact vans and wagons produced from 1994-2005, and are essentially N14 Pulsar El Caminos propelled by a 1.6-liter, 5-speed manual FWD drivetrain. Their softly rounded lines, compact size, and overall approachable design contrast starkly with the road-rage-inducing angry origami robots that are the current trend in SUVs and pickups in the US. Their outré pickup shape appeals to me, looking a bit like a smoothed-over Subaru Brat, but most I saw had color-matched model-specific bed caps, which I assume were offered from Nissan as they integrated seamlessly and made them look like little shooting brakes.
Some brilliant individual decided to give this particular Wingroad some wings by swapping the stock 1.6 power plant with a 2.0 DOHC 16V Turbo SR20DET from a WRC homologation special ‘90-’94 Pulsar GTI-R and throwing on its rally-ready front fascia and hood too. The 227 hp it made in OEM spec is a significant increase over the 1.6’s 110hp, and with only 2,600lb to haul around, it boasts a better power-to-weight ratio than a GMC Syclone, just saying. Sadly, it didn’t get the R’s AWD system, but still, it’s the brattiest of Brats. It can be had for the low-low price of £5,500, which is under $7k USD.
While on this exploration I also discovered a Lost World of peak Autopian-ness in a quirky car museum outside of Bangkok, but its density of funk requires its own article. Stay tuned!
Carlos Ferreira is Creative Director and Environmental Designer with a BFA from the College for Creative Studies. A professor of Spatial Experience Design at Art Center College, Carlos lives in Pasadena with his wife, six cars (four of them Italian, four of them running) and four cats (none Italian, all of them running).
All photos by the author unless noted
I Share A Small House With 7,042 Model-Cars. Here’s The Obsessive Way I Organize Them – The Autopian
These Amazing Concept Cars Were Sold By The Thousands, Just Not Full Sized – The Autopian
These are all awesome and that Toyota HiAce lux bus is fucking slick looking
That orange W I D E B O I 504 is amazing
What part of Thailand is that? I’ve never seen those kinds of tuk tuks in Thailand
I spotted them in the south, in the rural area around Phuket.
This cities name induces two feelings from me “OK let’s do this” and “forget about it”.
“Origami Robots.”
Band name, called it.
Judging by what I see online and even here in NYC (used imports), Thailand is the world’s #1 haven for engine swaps. Cheap labor, lots of technical skills, permissible laws. And lots of old JDM steel floating around.
Small point: the GT badge on that Peugeot is actually off a Nissan Skyline GT.
So now wondering if this was a rare some low production Nissan-Peugeot collab. Skyline 504 GT-R? It would explain the large baguette warmer in the front.
I was just typing that and the Autopian hamsters kept messing me up. Anyone else have this problem of not being able to type? It typically happens if I left the window open for a few hours.
Usually hitting refresh will fix it.
So THAT’S what happened to my old Maverick.
Living its best life…
“Our lux bus featured plush custom leather captain’s chairs, blackout curtains, well-stocked built-in drink coolers, and an ornately sculpted, upholstered and mirrored ceiling that looked like it was ripped from an 80s Vegas casino.”
Needs moar crystal chandeliers.
Nice Nissan ute. More about that one, please!
If you like that, you should Google “Proton Jumbuck”.
All Glory To The Hypnotoad!
ALL GLORY TO THE HYPNOTOAD!
HYPNOTOAD FOR PRESIDENT 2024!
What? No AMCs??
https://youtu.be/b_BfyTXj7O4
The river boats in Bangkok (at least while I was there in 1985) were a trip!
J.W. Pepper: What the hell are you doin’ now, boy? The bridge is that way! You’re not thinking of…?
Bond: [Before performing the 360 degree jump] I sure am, boy!
Oh… and the 504 GT made my day!
Did we just see a slip up? Does the Autopian have to kill off the current Bishop and replace with a new one, like the Stig?
Whoa whoa whoa!…there are already enough wacky conspiracy theories floating around! My access to the Autopian’s formatting software wasn’t, uh, accessing, so the Bishop used his account to load my article. I assure you he has not been launched off an aircraft carrier and is alive and well.
Silly, he’s just off the board. And there’s another bishop. And then two rooks. And a queen.
No, it was Bo and Luke Bishop, now it’s the “cousins” Coy and Vance Bishop
Are you currently the Dick York or Dick Sargent version of The Bishop?
Did I just spot a reflection of the mysterious and enigmatic Bishop in that ceiling cocaine mirror?!? o.O
Nope, that’s me! Your beloved author and my good lady wife! However, the Bishop and I were roommates in college, so for the right price I can send you some pics. Embarrassing / funny ones will cost you more.
I want pictures of The Bishop in the pink pajamas. You know which. Do you accept bitcoin?
Now that I think about it, you never see The Bishop and Carlos Ferreira together at the same time O.o…
Article just got re-attributed to Carlos instead of the Bishop, likely a backend error on upload or something similar, and alas, no Bishop lore to add.
But was it really an error? Or did you just see something you weren’t supposed to?
Nothing to see here, move along.
ENHANCE!!!
qoʜƨiઘ?? Who the hell is qoʜƨiઘ?
My Husband and I spent a week in Bangkok for our “Pre-Moon”
Tuk-Tuks are deeply cool – but hold on to your hat!
You’ll also find that taking a taxi is a sure-fire way to be stuck in traffic – take the water taxi or ride on the back of a moped instead. Yeah, there’s no AC – but the breeze will help keep you cool.
I’d be willing to bet that the Maverick was brought over and sold by a US GI stationed at Korat RTAFB during the Vietnam years.
I worked in Bangkok for a couple of weeks in 1985. Tuk-Tuks were definitely the way to get around. However, one afternoon my colleague and I had a meeting with a US ex-pat businessman who had sent us a card with his address in Thai on one side and English the other. I was developing a sense of the local (sprawling) geography. After about 20 minutes zig-zagging around what felt like the wrong part of the city my colleague gave the driver the business card a second time and he looked at both sides, rotating it through all orientations.
I said to my colleague, “Stan, this guy is illiterate.” Stopped at a red light, I threw the guy what seemed like a reasonable amount of baht for his time and fuel and bolted.
Sure enough, we were several km away from where we were trying to get to.Tuk-Tuk #2 driver got us to where we needed to be.
I don’t know if it’s true, but ex-pats told us that the term Tuk-Tuk stemmed from the distinct sound of their two-stroke engines.
I’d like to go back some day and I’m sure I will be amazed by the change in ~40 years.
“…I’m sure I will be amazed by the change in ~40 years”
The new King is getting rid of all the excess loops of overhead electrical wire.
But the ping-pong shows go on.