After several decades and changes in ownership, a 36-year-old vintage limousine ended up in the garage of a couple it had served 31 years ago in Pingtung County.
Restored to its former glory, the vehicle — one of the first batch of the Yulon 803 model manufactured in Taiwan in 1979 — drew a lot of attention at a classic motor show in Taitung on June 21, owner and Pingtung resident Chung Yao-kung (鍾耀恭) said.
The indigo-blue sedan stood side by side with other vintage cars at the show in Guanshan (關山), Taitung, including a 1970 Volkswagen racing car owned by singer Gary Chaw (曹格), a 1950 Austin Mini, a military jeep active during the Korean War and an elongated Mercedes limo, with each vehicle valued at more than NT$1 million (US$32,134), Chung said.
Photo: Wang Hsiu-ting, Taipei Times
Chung and his wife, Lin Mei-hsiu (林美秀), said the car — purchased by chance at an auto repair shop two years ago — was the same one that they used for their wedding 31 years ago.
At the time, it was the only unlicensed for-hire vehicle serving the Pingtung-Taipei route, and Chung spent NT$1,500 to rent it for the wedding.
The much-coveted luxury car cost about NT$300,000 then — roughly equal to the value of 970m2 of farmland — and buyers had to wait for six months to get their hands on one, Chung recalled.
Riding in such a car was a special experience and the couple took a picture with the limo to mark the occasion, he said.
About two years ago, Chung visited an auto shop to have his car repaired, and the owner told him about a vintage black diesel sedan that he had been keeping for more than 10 years.
Chung thought the car was a good buy and purchased it for NT$150,000.
He started work on restoring the car, stripping off seven layers of paint, and to his surprise, saw that its original finish was an indigo-blue polish that was exactly the same as the car used at his wedding.
He took out his old wedding photos to match them with the car, and traced the vehicle’s ownership history. His conclusion: It was exactly the same limo used at his wedding, he said.
The car was looking for its rightful owner and it found the couple, Chung said, adding that he drove the car with his wife and nephew from Pingtung to the show in Taitung and was satisfied with its excellent performance.
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