You've got to love Cuban ingenuity!

"Employing the kind of ingenuity many Cubans have developed over decades of U.S. *sanctions, Pino, 56, modified his 1980 Polish-built Fiat Polski to run on charcoal, a cheaper and more abundant fuel than gasoline since Washington cut off oil shipments to the Caribbean island in January."


Amid fuel crunch, Cuba mechanic converts car to run on charcoal


"That's Cuba," ....... "A salad made of *everything."

Even better would be a vehicle that runs on garbage. Then Cuba would have an endless supply of fuel.

A great story and yes a vehicle that runs on garbage would be a greatest invention of the century! I am curious what else this man will get running on charcoal.

Cuban 'resolver' strikes again! That Cuban inventor should be hired by the government to help resolve numerous problems plaguing Cuba... including the garbage problem. YES! WICKED COOL!! Terry

Some more inventions/modifications from Cuba


Inventos Cubanos

The car is so cool but it would look funny going on a date with that barrel on the back of the car. Lol. Old and parculiar looking cars is one of the things that make Cuba fascinating!

I can remember seeing photos of other Cuban repurposing / inventions - the Granma newspaper converted to toilet paper on a roll - and an old Singer sewing machine having it's needle and bobbin replaced with a jigsaw blade for cutting wood. I also remember seeing a photo of an airplane made of empty Bucanaro beer cans. Can't find those photos now. But there's hundreds of other examples as well.

The Cubans that I know in Camaguey city regularly repurpose everything imaginable - from empty tin cans that we commonly throw in a blue box, to even my empty vape juice bottles - my best friend there uses those to feed and medicate his baby racing pigeons. I'd mentioned before about old children's school notebooks being repurposed as toilet paper too. Essentially, Cubans don't throw anything away if they can possibly convert that into something else that serves a new purpose. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle?? Cubans have been doing that for decades and far better out of necessity than anywhere else in the world. Terry

I hear ya Terry. It is too bad that it takes desperation for us humans to recycle, reduce and reuse as much as necessary. The Cubans are masters at this. I have seen some funny looking contraptions in my many travels to Cuba and there ain’t a darn thing wrong with getting things done with a whole lot of ingenuity greasing the wheels.

What Will They Think If Next? - Wasn’t that the name of a TV show from many years ago?

Correction above…
What will they think if of next - tv show.

How much does the Cuban inventor in the OP spend on charcoal to run his car?
Is the U.S. gov’t really now saying that they don’t care if other countries are shipping oil into Cuba?

Russian oil ship enters Cuban waters

It is going to take regular shipments of oil to Cuba for that man to forget about his charcoal car. Either that or a great big increase in solar power on the island. But I am sure the charcoal car is here to stay in Cuba and he will expand on it.

What a great invention for the times. I wonder how much pollution it creates. One time in Cuba I rented a car. After driving down the road for half the day I heard a scraping noise coming from underneath. I got out to take a look and I noticed the muffler was dragging. It was not an old car at all but the muffler somehow became disconnected. A cuban fellow that happened to see me came over. He told me to drive the one front wheel on a rock so we could get a good look underneath. The muffler was off alright. He told me to wait while he went for something. He came back with a coat hanger and the tied the muffler back up with it. Worked great. Cuban ingenuity again!

Jhenry, how do you think I got my piece of crap land barge Meteor Rideau 500 through my college years?? That coat hanger trick on the muffler and exhaust system isn't just exclusive to Cuba. jaja Terry

You know you are right but it was a relief that somebody else thought of it. On my own I am not sure what I would have done if it were not for the help of a stranger. I gave him a nice tip. I remember back in high school and riding in my friends car being careful of where I put my feet because there was a hole right through the floor on the passenger side.

jajajaja Sounds familiar too, Jhenry! Cubans will give you the shirt off of their backs to help me and other foreigners. There's been many times when I offer a tip to them (propina) for whatever they've done for me, and they just smile and say no, that's not necessary. At least in Camaguey city that seems to be the norm.

Jhenry, I always remember this song too - because I lived through those years making due when much younger. I'm doing much better these days, thank God! Terry

Hay Dios mio! Well, let's just forget about the video and song. Mierda! Terry

Jhenry #11 - Your muffler story could also be considered a "Bizarre Times in Cuba" story.

Check it out...

Bizarre Times in Cuba

Terry, what year was your Meteor Rideau 500? Was it more car than boat? What a great name for a car!

Hey there, CubanWater - mine was a 1972 land-barge. Built like a tank! That thing got me through all of my college years, and even helped pay for my gasoline back and forth to the school when I would load 'er up with other students without cars and taxi them from Burlington to Hamilton each day. Wish it could have been a 1957 Meteor Rideau 500 though - now that car was SWEET! Terry
https://www.google.com/search?q=merc...0oIEAEYASABKAE