Baby Boomer Nostalgia Galore – 50s American Cars in Cuba

This article prompted some bemusement and joy, as I recall how the boys at school talked on and on about exactly what was mentioned here. Late hubby was just that sort of gear head, and enjoyed the days of the "backyard mechanic."
So well did he enjoy collecting them, I found myself having 9 to sell after his untimely death, plus a "boneyard" of non-runners. Well, there is still one left. It is a 1959 Thunderbird convertible, 352. We still take it out for a cruise every now and then. It gets a lot of attention. It is kinda cute. We haven't tried very hard to sell it, yet we really should get serious.
Thanks for the memories!

We also toured Cuba this past November. We quite enjoyed our short tour. We would have preferred to travel independently, but because Americans, unlike everyone else in the world are precluded, by law, from independent travel, we participated in our first ever tour. So, with regard to the cars: nearly all those cars are merely shells as no replacement parts have been available. Most actually get far better mileage than the original because they have more modern Korean engines. Perhaps most interesting to us, was the nature of the embargo. The embargo not only applies to American companies, but to any company with an American subsidiary. Thus Japanese or Korean companies that also sell in the US or do business in the US, cannot sell anything in Cuba without incurring a hefty fine. There is a significant black market economy in Cuba as most of the goods sold by the government are well beyond affordability for the average person. So much needs to change in the future. We highly recommend the trip.

Michael Fisher responded with identifications of 5 of these cars:

White Cadillac 1:
He is pretty sure this is a '53. Although compared to this picture he thought the Headlamps in his photo are more rounded and accented with more rounded midlamp with flair in fender

Dodge 1. He sent photos of a Dodge Coronet from '50 and '52. Probably looks most like the 52, but there was no light between front/back doors and the R=rear tail lights appear to have been added in our photo

Mercury 1: Notably, the medalion made as part of the bumper chrome upper lip was only evident in the ‘54’s.
The car in your photo looks like it has been stripped of its side moulding, and “woodie” trim if it had any. The roof line in your photo appears to be far more flat than in the found photo which was rounded. The rear window in your photo appears to be wider than in the found photo. All of the windows in your photo appear to be have more acute angles. The headlights in your photo were not “hooded” as they were in the found photo.

Rambler 1: Except for paint, this looks like a good match in all regards.

Studebaker 1: Differences:
Hood medallion in your photo is in the center of the grill and the found photo has it bottom center. I’m not sure, but I don’t believe the Lark has rearview mirrors. Overall, it looks like a good match.

Editor's note: Thanks Michael - we appreciate your detective work!

By the "stance" I'd say the Caddy is '54; hard to tell without seeing the tail. The Lark looks like a 58 or 9, both looked the same if I remember correctly. The Mercury wagon is likely a '53 but could be '52. Fun picts.

More from Michael on Yellow 1 - the one we had no idea about. He thinks it is a 1950 Chevrolet Stylline

Fender top tail lights in your photo were apparently added, maybe it was a Cuban regulation in that the Dodge you photographed had similar lights added.

There was very little rear slope of the roof in your photo compared with the found photo of the DeLuxe.

The rear window in your photo was much larger than the found photo. Probably to add to a sportier look to the DeLuxe model?

The trunk handle in your photo was much simpler and smaller than with the DeLuxe model suggesting that your photo was of a Coupe rather than a DeLuxe coupe.

The 1949 and 1951 were virtually identical except that:
The 1949 had a thin strip of chrome across the top of the rear bumper to emphasize the curvature and the two pieces extending upward on the rear bumper were much thinner.

The 1951 had a chrome accent on the rear of the front fender skirt and the accent on the front of rear fender skirt was larger. Also, the side chrome consisted of two stacked pieces in lieu of a single strip in the 1950. Finally, the 1951 also featured rear fender skirts. Even if they were removed from the car in your photo the angle of the wheel well is level in your photo and raised in the rear of the 1951.

(Editor's note: Thanks Michael!)

What a fun post and great pictures!

The red convertible is a 1960 Studebaker Lark; NOT a 1959. The grill has its medallion located at the center bottom location which is consistent with the 1960 model year. Also, Studebaker did not offer a convertible in 1959; it was introduced for 1960 as an expansion of the Lark line along with the four-door station wagon.

Editor's note: Thanks for the clarification Steve. That makes it doubly interesting, because the Cuban Revolution culminated in January 1959. So it appears that a few American cars entered even after the Revolution.

The white Cadillac is a 1954 model, I have seen it myself on Cuba a few years ago in Havana. According to the owner, the engine on this particular car has been replaced with some Russian V8 - an example of how the Cubans keep these cars running. Several of the original details have been lost over the years, even in your picture you see that the grille is missing some parts. It is great fun to see that so many of these cars are still running on the Island :)