By Jim Brennan
Welcome to another special edition of Mystery Car. This time, I decided to revisit the tip I received from FacelVega on the Jidé 1600s Mystery Car Posting. To recap, this is what he stated within his e-mail:
Hey hoon editors. My brother suggests a car for the mystery car series, a Jidé 1600s. In other news, he’s trying to get me to import a …………………, which is obscure enough as it is.
This is the vehicle he is trying to import.
So, let’s see if the Hoons here can identify this very obscure vehicle. No, I will not be giving any hints. The picture is a big enough hint. Remember, try and identify the make and model, and possibly the year. Make me proud…
Kamil Kaluski
I don't know what that is, but when I did an image search for "french jeep" (What? Why are you looking at me like that?) I found this seemingly unembeddable image: http://picasaweb.google.com/m/zoom?uname=HarryEve…
That car reeks of communism.
I keep seeing Iveco Massif but that's just a licensed Defender.
<img src="http://i188.photobucket.com/albums/z241/expeditioncampers/massif-5.jpg"/>
I associate blinkers over the headlights with Lada, but it's clearly not an XXL version of the Niva pickup.
<img src="http://www.simoncars.co.uk/russian/soviet/slides/Lada%20Niva%202329%20Pickup%20side.jpg" width="600" />
If I remember correctly, Italy requires blinkers on the front fenders. By the way, was the Niva pickup ever sold outside Russia? Growing up in France there were quite a few "regular" Nivas but no pick ups.
An importer was working on bringing the Niva pickup to the UK just last year, but he's having enough trouble selling the hatchbacks. http://www.fwi.co.uk/Articles/2010/07/18/122285/L…
That almost makes me want to move to the UK! The Niva is everything you need in a small SUV and nothing you don't. Plus, it's a bit more luxurious than my current car.
It's also James May approved! http://www.ladaniva.co.uk/topgear.pdf
I was going to say, "If only it didn't cost $16,000," but what else can do all of that for $16k new?
There was a Niva pickup featured on Just A Car Geek recently. It was in Canada.
Maybe an Iveco Massif. http://www.spazioauto.it/scheda-auto.asp?id=ga-18…
Wow, I am astounded. Jim, you need to do the Mystery Car more often. I Googled every combo of 'france' 'H1' and 'obscure', yet alas, I am left with the first result I found for "French NSX"
<img src="http://kyushu-danji.com/img/hannita_nsx.jpg" width=500>
Surprisingly not as dirty as I would have thought. Damn Google filters.
fu-chi?
My best guess is a UMM Alter III since the nose is higher than an Alter II and the doors are more elaborate, unfortunately I can't find a good picture.
That's just a Mercedes, isn't it.
Whatever it is…I would love to own one. It looks like one tough bitch!
Santana PS-10?
Canyon-ero!
Peugeot P4 version of the M-B G-Wagen?
My brother lives abroad, which is what stuck this thought in his mind, but not in a French-speaking country– don't get thrown just because I called myself Facel Vega. I just didn't want people to think Gordon Keeble was my actual name, and somehow Iso Rivolta didn't have the right ring to it either.
This is the French answer to the Defender … the Surrender.
Hahahahahahaha…
I wish that I could "thumbs up" that comment about seventy-five more times! That was too G.D. funny!!!
2 forward speeds and 4 reverse speeds.
ARO? No
Portaro FMAT 250? No
Renault Sherpa? No
Iveco something? No
VEPR, Ukrainian 4×4 Vitali Klitschko bought? No.
Do I got dice? No
But I did found this:
<img src="http://listphobia.com/wp-content/uploads/shoecar.jpg">
<img src="http://www.lr-mad.co.uk/images/LR/jaclr.jpg">
1958 Cuthbertson Tracked Land Rover
<img src="http://www.seidata.com/~jmullins/IH001.jpg" width="555">
I wonder if that thing would try to tear itself in half if one were to engage 4WD.
In my imagination engaging 4WD wouldn't matter because the truck would be in a state of perma-wheelie, but physics may not back me up here.
Kia Sole?
Other things it isn't:
Iveco LMV
Iveco VM 90
Iveco Daily
Matra Rancho
Land Cruiser variant
Patrol variant
ARO Carpati or the Crosslander 4×4 that never made it to NA
SsangYong
Steyr-Daimler-Puch
UMM (as suggested above)
Most Panhard trucks
Things it bares a slight resemblance to:
The grille looks a lot like a Panhard TC54, but it isn't a direct copy
By shrinking the image and standing far away from screen I can get a good look. Honestly have never seen one…..
4 door 4×4 pick up with 8 lug wheels
Unique squared off fenders
Turn signals above headlights
I give up.
I got it. I'm not proud of it, because like Lotte on the last one, I resorted to the Wiki brute force method. Lucky it starts with an A.
It's an Askam AS 250. Askam is a Turkish former Chrysler joint-venture that still produces trucks under the DeSoto and Fargo nameplates. Very odd.
<img src="http://image5.sahibinden.com/photos/42/52/07/1542520743x.jpg" />
congrats! toughest one yet?
I was at the Iveco – russian – Indian part of the brain
Can I get a 2011 Desoto?
Looks like it. http://www.askam.com.tr/v2/urun_giris.aspx?id=19
Who could think that Dodge makes trucks on a brake press in Turkey?
That is damn cool, and you would get a lot of looks driving around Detroit with that machinery.
If my brother does send an Askam over, it's got to be one of the ones that says "DESOTO" across the front. Apparently these have the advantage that since they've been produced with only minor changes for decades, every little thing in the design has been worked out right. Still, what a spare parts nightmare. I'd be getting boxes from Istanbul every three months just to stay on the road.
And DEA, FBI and ATF raids a day after the package arrives.
Wouldn't that be a nightmare to register with the DMV? I would imagine that they wouldn't get the irony of the DeSoto either.
edit – hit enter too early
I don't think Turkey would trigger any raids. Very civilized place– yeah it's Muslim but at least Istanbul is essentially Europe.
Yeah, as soon as I saw that I understood why you'd want to import one.
it might not be that bad, but would require lots of research on your part. It appears that the engine is a Deutz diesel that is available in the US for industrial applications. The transmission is an Eaton unit. The axles are Dana Spicer units that probably aren't too uncommon. The transfer case is a Rockwell unit. As far as cosmetic trim bits, yeah care packages from Instanbul.
Here's a complete engine available in Texas: http://www.memo-omega.com/EngineDetails.aspx?Seri…
http://www.askam.com.tr/v2/english/product_techni…
It would be doable, and my brother apart from having a job in Istanbul is a solid hobby mechanic, but basically this was his response to my suggestion that we should buy an old M715 as a camp truck.
Does it have a Hemi?