pl8ster
April 23rd, 2016, 11:09 AM
Spent four days in Jamaica this week, and was fascinated by the vehicles there. They seem to come from all over - North America, Europe and Asia. Unfortunately, almost all of my spotting was done while on buses (which were predominantly large Chinese Yutong buses owned by Jamaica Tours Limited), which meant that I didn't take any pictures. I was struggling to identify most of the vehicles I saw, which was both exciting and frustrating.
First, Jamaica is overwhelmingly a Toyota island. The Succeed was a very popular choice for taxi service, and Coaster buses were *everywhere*. I was stunned by the amount of late 80s/early 90s Corollas on the road, especially the early 90s wagons which were largely being used as taxis. I saw both Hilux and Tacoma (LHD) pickups, and a fair number of Tundras of different generations, which were all LHD. As you may have guessed, Jamaica is a RHD country. Fair number of RAV4s of all generations, including the current one. Lots of small Noah vans.
There were a good number of Hondas as well. Mostly Civics, but a lot of CR-Vs and even a few new-style HR-Vs around. Saw a few Euro Accords, and a RHD '03-era North American-style one, which confused me as I thought North America was the only market that got that larger generation. Managed to see one '09-14 Accord Tourer similar to my TSX wagon as well.
Straight trucks were almost all RHD, including a Mercedes with its Jamaican plate bolted right over a UK one and a couple of Leylands. There were a few NA-looking Internationals that were LHD. All of the semi tractors were like you see here in the US - Kenworth, Peterbilt, etc. - and were LHD.
What I didn't see, other than the semi tractors, were a lot of US brands. I would see the odd F-150 or Silverado or S-10, but they were older and scarce. I did see a NA-market last-gen Focus that was LHD, which seemed odd. Saw one house which housed two Volvo 740/760 models, but they were back to and I couldn't tell which side the steering wheel was on. Those were the only Volvos I saw. There was the occasional Subaru and Nissans were not uncommon, though nowhere on the scale of Honda or Toyota. Also a fair number of Suzuki Vitaras, including some used as police vehicles.
I had forgotten, since it had been almost 30 years since I had visited the Caribbean, but holy damn, there was a lot of poverty. That's why it was especially jarring to see the odd new-ish Land Rover or Range Rover, maybe a nod to the old British heritage? The occasional BMW was almost always LHD.
Only got one picture, at the airport as we were leaving. I believe this is a Toyota Noah van, and I got a kick out of the TRD Off Road decal on the back.
1691
First, Jamaica is overwhelmingly a Toyota island. The Succeed was a very popular choice for taxi service, and Coaster buses were *everywhere*. I was stunned by the amount of late 80s/early 90s Corollas on the road, especially the early 90s wagons which were largely being used as taxis. I saw both Hilux and Tacoma (LHD) pickups, and a fair number of Tundras of different generations, which were all LHD. As you may have guessed, Jamaica is a RHD country. Fair number of RAV4s of all generations, including the current one. Lots of small Noah vans.
There were a good number of Hondas as well. Mostly Civics, but a lot of CR-Vs and even a few new-style HR-Vs around. Saw a few Euro Accords, and a RHD '03-era North American-style one, which confused me as I thought North America was the only market that got that larger generation. Managed to see one '09-14 Accord Tourer similar to my TSX wagon as well.
Straight trucks were almost all RHD, including a Mercedes with its Jamaican plate bolted right over a UK one and a couple of Leylands. There were a few NA-looking Internationals that were LHD. All of the semi tractors were like you see here in the US - Kenworth, Peterbilt, etc. - and were LHD.
What I didn't see, other than the semi tractors, were a lot of US brands. I would see the odd F-150 or Silverado or S-10, but they were older and scarce. I did see a NA-market last-gen Focus that was LHD, which seemed odd. Saw one house which housed two Volvo 740/760 models, but they were back to and I couldn't tell which side the steering wheel was on. Those were the only Volvos I saw. There was the occasional Subaru and Nissans were not uncommon, though nowhere on the scale of Honda or Toyota. Also a fair number of Suzuki Vitaras, including some used as police vehicles.
I had forgotten, since it had been almost 30 years since I had visited the Caribbean, but holy damn, there was a lot of poverty. That's why it was especially jarring to see the odd new-ish Land Rover or Range Rover, maybe a nod to the old British heritage? The occasional BMW was almost always LHD.
Only got one picture, at the airport as we were leaving. I believe this is a Toyota Noah van, and I got a kick out of the TRD Off Road decal on the back.
1691