Norwegian gearheads on the right Way

  The Iran Khodro Paykan was built with that pure classic 1960s look — based on the old Hillman Hunter from the Chrysler orbit, which got sold all across Britain, New Zealand, an’ Australia before endin’ up reborn over in Iran under license by the Iran Khodro folks. An’ them boys kept buildin’ that sucker forever. Sedan versions rolled from 1966 all the way till 2004, while the pickup version — the Paykan Bardo — survived clean through 2007. Truth is, they barely changed the dang thing neither. In 1980 they gave it one tiny lil’ facelift so subtle most folks probably couldn’t spot it unless ya parked the two side-by-side with a magnifyin’ glass. After that it mostly went by the name “Paykan Deluxe,” though underneath it still looked like some ghost from the late ’60s refusin’ ta die. *“Drive the Iran Khodro Paykan like a completely feral Iranian cab driver with the high beams burnin’ straight into everybody’s soul at two in the mornin’. Just maybe try not ta fall asleep beh...

  “Check out the Kia Besta here, rockin’ those classic retro pics from around the ’80s, just like the photo I got of the Mazda Bongo in an earlier post. This thing’s badass and was built with that ’80s vibe by Kia all the way up till around 2000. The Kia Ceres is the truck version and kept roughly the same ’80s look all the way till 2000 too. Like the Kia Bongo, it’s still being made today, though with a lot more modern touches — but you can still see that ’80s style on the bed. You can drive a Kia Ceres Bongo like a wild trucker, and the Kia Besta van? Well, you’re gonna turn some heads and maybe even pull a few ladies!”

The Nissan King Cab got sold up in Norway with that unmistakable classic 1980s look clean from 1986 till 1998, an’ lemme tell y’all somethin’ — folks out in the countryside absolutely ate them things up . Farmers, fishermen, mechanics, fellas haulin’ snowmobiles, dogs, rusty tools, half-dead lawnmowers — everybody seemed ta have one parked outside the house with mud clear up ta the door handles. Now down in South Africa they cooked up a real nasty version called the Nissan Sani — tougher lookin’, meaner stance, built like it wanted ta start a bar fight. An’ over in Mexico? Shoot, they just kept crankin’ them rigs out clean through 2008 like the 1990s never even happened. Heck, y’all could even still buy the ol’ Datsun 720 with that glorious late-’70s styling all the way till ’92. Now that’s what Ah call stickin’ with somethin’ that works instead’a redesignin’ every dang thing every five minutes. (Nissan Sani South Africa)

Mercedes-Benz E-Class W124 wagon. They kept crankin’ these beauties out all the way ‘til ’96, and I still remember back in ’98 when some folks further down the road picked up a clean used one proper BP plates, straight outta Bærum. That family? Pure first-class cruisers. Daddy was the big boss, no doubt about it head honcho behind the wheel, lettin’ that three-pointed star lead the way like it was his own personal North Star. Mercedes E-Class W124 sedan. Built ‘til ’95, solid as a Texas oak. I remember ridin’ shotgun with a cab driver named Arne — real textbook taxi man. Quiet, steady, knew every road worth knowin’. That W124 just ate up the miles like it was born to do it. Now the coupes and cabriolets  shoot, those were everywhere in the cruisin’ scene 10–15 years back. Mercedes kept that strong ‘80s look rollin’ all the way ‘til ’97, sharp edges and all. Hell, a buddy I worked with was still daily-drivin’ a black coupe clear into 2010 or 2011. Thing still looked mean pullin’ ...

  Citroën C-Zero. Now, I’ve written ’bout a whole mess of cars, but I ain’t ever talked ’bout one I actually owned myself. So I reckon it’s ’bout time I tip my hat to my old Citroën C-Zero from PSA,  Peugeot Citroën, built on the same platform as the Mitsubishi i-MiEV, made in partnership with Mitsubishi. I talk a whole lot ’bout big ol’ gas-guzzlin’ rigs and all kinds of machines that ain’t exactly climate-friendly, and that whole culture that comes with ’em. But truth be told, I ain’t really into pollutin’ cars myself. I actually care a fair bit ’bout the climate. And I’m way more into design than what kinda engine’s under the hood. My Citroën C-Zero was straight-up badass. Rear-wheel drive, and a whole lotta fun to drift around with. Only thing is, that little thing barely had enough range to make it from Sandvika to Sundvollen, then barely squeak around Steinsfjorden through Åsa and back again without a charge, even in summertime. And from Bærum to Sjusjøen in summer, sur...

Now lemme tell y’all somethin’ ‘bout this lil’ ride right here. This here’s one of them cars that’s low-key badass as hell , but I ain’t gotten ‘round to writin’ a proper piece on it yet, ‘cept way back when I mentioned her cousin, the SEAT Marbella. We talkin’ ‘bout the one and only Fiat Panda , y’all. This tough lil’ critter rolled off the line all the way from 1980 clear through to 2003. And lemme tell ya, they made all kinds. You got yer low-slung city slicker version, then you got yer high-clearance four-wheel-drive son of a gun that’ll crawl up a mountain like a goat with nitro. Yeah, she’s a small fry, sure, but she had grit! They even made an electric version called the Fiat Panda Elettra — way ahead o’ her time, like a Tesla’s great-grandmama in orthopedic shoes. But them four-wheel-drive models? Oh lordy. That’s where the magic happened. They had all kinds o’ wild trims — one called the Rock Moretti that was open-air and ready to party, and one they used as a dang van . The...