Hong Kong, there be car-pawn here...

Hong Kong, there be car-pawn here...

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rupertprocter

Original Poster:

326 posts

131 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
quotequote all
I'm a long-time lurker on the PH classifieds, spending fruitless hours speculating on how I would spend money I don't have and I've always meant to sign up for the forums but haven't got round to it until now. So, having done so, hopefully my first contribution to the PH community will be something that is right up your alley.

To cut a rather uninteresting story short, I've been living in Hong Kong as an expat for over a decade now and in that time I have built quite a collection of photos. As a hopeless petrol-head, when I arrived in Hong Kong I was blown away by the sheer amount of amazing and interesting cars on the roads here. From European supercars to obscure Japanese Kei-cars, there's something here for everyone. I'd say I have a broad taste in cars, so it is a perfect place for me.

About 7-8 years ago I bought myself a cheap (read crap) digital compact camera and brought it (and my camera phone) with me everywhere I went snapping stuff whenever and wherever I saw it. I managed to find some pretty interesting things, obscure Japanese cars like this Subaru Electra-One,


Subaru Impreza S201 (Electra One) 'JX 201' by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

Rare hyper-cars like this white F40 (ex-Sultan car and now painted re-sale red I believe) sitting at the lights outside my office


Ferrari F40 (Ex-Sultan of Brunei) by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

And this rather nice F50 (it was at this point when I must have started thinking about upgrading the equipment!)


Ferrari F50 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

A few legends like this rather flamboyant Diablo


lam_diablovt_bb7771_02 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

and this Countach (parked next to an XK120)


lam_countachlp500s_001 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

Rare classics, such as this Aston DB2/4


ast_db24_00a by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

This 190SL


mer_190sl_00b (2) by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

Some obscure supercars that you don't often (if ever) see like this Jalpa


Lamborghini Jalpa by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

and beautiful 550 Barchetta (one of my favourite cars)


fer_f550barchetta_002 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

I really enjoyed the car hunting lark and over time I became more and more keen on trying to snap as many cars that I could, so I bought a camera that could take photos which could handle faster shutter speeds and during lunch breaks and my days off started hanging out on the bridges overlooking the freeways... Tragic I know, but I did net myself some interesting cars.

Like this rare as rocking horse poop RHD Turbo S


Porsche 993 Turbo S 'KE 6086' by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

A Carrera GT, the only one I know of in Hong Kong


Porsche Carrera GT 'T11584' by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

This drool-tastic 3.0 CSL


BMW 3.0 CSL by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

The legend that is the McLaren F1


McLaren F1 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

A ridiculously rare 250 GT California, the same as Chris Evans' car


Ferrari 250 GT California by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

And this insane Pagani Zonda F


Pagani Zonda F 'T11649' by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

I kept this up for a while and built a collection of thousands of cars with thousands more still on the hard drive that will probably never see the light of day, whilst still snapping cars seen down back alleys and other random places. I bought a camera that could cope with low light and took more and more photos, like this Delorean


DMC Delorean by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

and hundreds of modified Japanese cars like this Skyline


Nissan Skyline ER34 GT-T by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

this Supra


toy_supra_00a-5 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

and this rare 4-door ITR


hon_integratyper_jj1394 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

After a while I started to get more into the photography side of the hobby and when the opportunity came up to buy a colleagues DSLR I jumped at the chance. I started to teach myself about composition, shutter speed and aperture and how to use them effectively for car photography. Over the last couple of years, I've made a few friends with a similar interest in cars and photography and we go out regularly at the weekend to take photos. Despite Hong Kong being a densely populated place, there are still a few places where drivers can enjoy their cars and early on a Sunday morning is the preferred time, before the police are up and about. So, I thought I would share some of the highlights of these last couple of years and as I go out almost every weekend I can update the thread regularly. And with that, onto the pics - I hope you enjoy them!


The eagle-eyed will be able to tell that there's something not quite right with this 911. It's actually a re-bodied 993!


Porsche 911 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

Taking photos of cars here has given me the opportunity to meet a few owners and this is one of a group of fellas I went out with last week. Drivers here are super-friendly and always give a smile or a wave. Some of them have even brought me coffee when they see me in position with my camera. This 430 is ridiculously loud, it sounds like a Scuderia.


Ferrari F430 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

A father and son contacted me recently and asked if I would take photos of their 911s together. I was more than happy to oblige!


Porsche 993 C2 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Porsche 997 GT3 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Generations by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

Another super-friendly guy, the owner of this great looking M-Coupe


BMW Z4M by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

The new Boxster looks utterly incredible. Nicest looking car in the Porsche line-up imo


Porsche Boxster by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

There are a few car clubs that get out at the weekend. The local Alfisti are certainly spirited in their driving. I love this 75


z_JH15222 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

Hong Kongers love their Porsches, which is nice!


Porsche 964 Turbo 3.6L by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

Many people seem to be trading in their supercars for cars that have a bit more soul, so it's quite common now to see interesting classics on the road like this awesome GTV 1750


Alfa Romeo GTV 1750 Iniezione by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


z_JH15485 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

McLarens have been popping up everywhere in HK this year. Maybe something to do with the excellent fuel economy and driveability?


McLaren MP4-12C by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

The road version of the Zagato is rare anywhere and I think this is the only one in Hong Kong


Aston Martin Zagato by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

A definite surprise to see on the country roads on a Sunday, usually see things that are a little more lightweight than this bruiser


Bentley Continental R by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

This is more typical


Sunday Morning Drive: Lotus Elise by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

The spirit of the AE86 has certainly caught on


z_JH15115 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

A few of them are being modified


Sunday Morning Drive: Toyota GT86 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

and this one does an even bigger nod to the original


Sunday Morning Drive: Toyota GT86 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

But there's no substitute for the original


Toyota Trueno* by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Out and About: Toyota Trueno by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

I've got to lock up the office now, but I'll leave you with a few highlights...


Sunday Morning Drive: Porsche 997.2 GT3 RS 4.0 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Sunday Morning Drive: Honda Civic Type-R by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Out and About: Nissan Silvia by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


BMW Meet Clearwater Bay by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


BMW M3 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Lamborghini Murcielago LP640-4 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


z_JH14082 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Porsche 911s by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Out and About: Ford Sierra Cosworth RS500 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Sunday Morning Drive: Alfa Romeo GTV 1750 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Sunday Morning Drive: Mercedes C63 AMG Black Edition by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Sunday Morning Drive: AC Cobra 427 S/C Recreation by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Sunday Morning Drive: Hawk Lancia Stratos by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Sunday Morning Drive: Isuzu Bellett GT-R by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Sunday Morning Drive: Ferrari 458 Italia by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Supercar Sunday by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Sunday Morning Drive: Ferrari 308 GTS QV by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Mazda RX-7 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Supra Shoot by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Subaru Impreza WRX Sti 22B by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


zDSC_9720 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Lamborghini Diablo SV by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Nissan GTR by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Nissan Skyline GT-R by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


z_JH17544 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Untitled by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Mercedes Benz C63 AMG Wagon by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Lotus Elise by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Ferrari 308 GTS by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Ford Sierra Sapphire Cosworth RS by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Porsche 911 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Lotus Esprit Turbo by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Lexus LF-A by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Lotus Esprit Turbo by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Lamborghini Aventador by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Ford Capri 2.8i by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

Most of these were on my old camera and photos aren't great but there are some seriously nice cars...


Porsche 993 GT2 'AA 3322' by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Ferrari 365 GTS/4 Daytona Spyder 'BB 50' by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Ferrari 365 GT/4 'FE 365' by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Ferrari Dino 246 GT 'DN 246' by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Ferrari 512 Berlinetta Boxer '512' by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Ferrari 575 Superamerica 'FE 559' by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Ferrari 365 GTB/4 'Daytona' by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Ferrari 599 GTO by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Ford GT by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Ford Falcon GT by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


lam_murcielagosv_pd2463 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


lam_countach25thann_003 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


lot_340r_001 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


mer_clk55dtmamg_t12098 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Mercedes 190 Evolution II by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Zonda F Roadster by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Mercedes SL65 AMG Black Series by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Ferrari 512TR by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Mercedes CLK55 DTM AMG by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Toyota Corolla Levin by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Porche 356 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Lamborghini Murcielago LP670-SV by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Porsche 959 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Gumpert Apollo S by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Pagani Zonda F Clubsport / Gumpert Apollo by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Lamborghini LP700-4 Aventador by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Lamborghini Diablo VT / Ferrari 550 Barchetta by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Italdesign Aztec by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Lotus Esprit Turbo by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Aston Martin DB6 Superleggera by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Porsche 911 Carrera RS by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


AC Cobra Lightweight 'Ex-Rod Stewart Car' by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


zDSC_2438 by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Lamborghini Miura SV 'Ex-Rod Stewart Car' by Rupert Procter, on Flickr


Toyota Celica ST by Rupert Procter, on Flickr

steveT350C

6,728 posts

160 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
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Thanks for sharing. Some cracking cars a great photos

Ray Singh

3,045 posts

229 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
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Thanks for sharing. Some really nice cars over there. I really like the Porsches and the Original RS Cosworth Sierra.

I wonder what these cars sell for over there? Is there any mileage in bringing them back over here?

Serious 'want' happening now.....

GC8

19,910 posts

189 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
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A worthy first post. Others take note.

soad

32,825 posts

175 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
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Gumpert Apollo looks like taken straight from the video game! Bonkers car. biggrin

Spiritual_Beggar

4,833 posts

193 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
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clap Yeah....thanks for sharing! Some great photos and cars there.

crazy about cars

4,454 posts

168 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
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Very nice photos thanks for sharing!

You can earn big bucks in HK with the right qualifications and experience. I know of a private tutor in HK who easily earns over £100k. Even a lot of middle grade office workers in Central takes home around GBP3000/month.

HariboLecter

4,432 posts

174 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
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Superb. Thanks for taking the time to share.

Davey S2

13,073 posts

253 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
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The orange Zonda may be Peter Saywell's old car as I believe that went to Hong Kong.

Of all of the amazing metal posted thee why am I being drawn to that gorgeous Alfa more than the others?

Montaver

20 posts

191 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
quotequote all
Great thread. I also spend far too much time browsing the classifieds.

I live in Hong Kong too, so much nice metal here. Seems like every other car is something interesting (bar all the MPV's and taxi's).

I saw that Zonda out by Stanley a while back, was taking up most of the road!

Have you been to the Automall in Wanchai? It's incredible, huge underground car park of exotica

I've been here two years, and thinking about getting something small and fun (When I move back to the UK I will be buying a new car the second I step off that plane!). Had my eye out for an s2000 but not many about seemingly, people here dont like manuals.

Codswallop

5,250 posts

193 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
quotequote all
Great photos fella biggrin

When I visited HK, I was surprised at the amount of fun, twisty looking roads. More often than not, the tarmac was of terrible quality, but the twists and elevation changes were amazing.

TobyLaRohne

5,713 posts

205 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
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Is there anywhere to actually go and enjoy the engines in these things in HK?

Is HK like Singapore where the import tax is mental?

welshjohn

1,215 posts

180 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
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Excellent pictures thank you for sharing.But were are the classic minis thought they were crazy for them out there ?

Montaver

20 posts

191 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
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TobyLaRohne said:
Is there anywhere to actually go and enjoy the engines in these things in HK?

Is HK like Singapore where the import tax is mental?
If I'm not mistaken It's 100% on new vehicles, so everything is basically double the price. There are reasonable deals to be found in the second hand market though.

BRMMA

1,845 posts

171 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
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Some awesome cars there an it's interesting to see how your photography skills progressed. Thanks for sharing smile

northwest monkey

6,370 posts

188 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
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It's surprising the amount of older European stuff there is - not the obvious car like the Ferrari 250, but the more common cars like the Alfa 75, E36, Sierra Cosworth, Capri etc.

A lot of the cars look like they have temporary trade style plates on (eg the white F40 up at the top) - what are they for?

Montaver

20 posts

191 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
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northwest monkey said:
It's surprising the amount of older European stuff there is - not the obvious car like the Ferrari 250, but the more common cars like the Alfa 75, E36, Sierra Cosworth, Capri etc.

A lot of the cars look like they have temporary trade style plates on (eg the white F40 up at the top) - what are they for?
Those are Chinese number plates, need them to drive across the border. You see a fair number of cars with both.

Opposite my house there is a garage that specialises in Lotus stuff, mostly kitted out for racing. No tracks in HK so all of them would have china plates or get trailered.

dry664

304 posts

138 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
quotequote all
Great pics, thanks for sharing.

I find it strange that after looking at all those the car that sticks in my head is the Alfa GTV 1750!

I think the white Esprit is carrying the same plate as the car that was blown up at the start of For Your Eyes Only!

Bear Phils

891 posts

135 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
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Fuuuugghh affrffff nhaahaah

Ahem, sorry took me a second to pick my jaw back up off the floor.

Incredible cars there thumbup

jamesson

2,977 posts

220 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
quotequote all
Epic first post, and thank you for sharing. Some brilliant photos there.