We spent some enjoyable time around Lago Ranco , circumnavigating the entire lake and staying at different beaches. When we drove through the lovely town of Futrono, on a Sunday, the main street was suddenly blocked dead ahead by a number of historic vehicles lined up in two rows. Since I have always admired old cars I quickly found a parking spot and we hopped out to stretch our legs and inspect the collection up close.
Historical car meet in Chile
The line up wasn’t extensive, yet all vehicles were lovingly restored and sparkled in the midday sun. Surprisingly there were less than two dozen other people milling around; a far smaller crowd than such a meeting of historical vehicles would attract in Europe or at home in Australia.
The lines started with two old American cars side by side, representing different eras of the US automobile history. To the left was a dark blue Ford Model A, to the right a large Chevrolet convertible, painted yellow with a bright red interior. There were four or five old American Fords, all with some beautiful detailing, like chrome and polished wood luggage racks on the back, shiny mirrors mounted atop the spare wheels sitting on the running boards, and (in one case) a new Garmin navigation device on the windshield!
Another Chevrolet sedan, a classic Ford Mustang, several other “muscle cars” from the 70s (I was never interested in those and can’t name them) completed the American selection. There were also a few European classics: two Volvos, an old Peugeot 403, but only one German Mercedes – a W114 240D model from the mid 70s (I used to own one and I still love these cars).
All together there were maybe 16 vehicles dating from around 1920 to the 80s – not an impressive number, but then Chile is a small country by comparison and all cars are imported. It must take a lot of dedication to restore any historic vehicle, rare or not so exotic, as parts may not be readily available and probably need to be imported. The display definitely presented a nice break in our drive and was worthwhile stopping for.
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