Turkey’s Anadol car becomes ‘antique’

ISTANBUL - Anatolia News Agency

This file photo from the 1960s shows an Anadol model (L) in Istanbul. The Anadol is now considered an antique and some models are fetching up to 25,000 liras.

The Anadol, Turkey’s first domestically produced automobile series, has become an antique and can now fetch as much as 25,000 Turkish Liras depending on the model.

The Anadol was established by Turkish industrialist Vehbi Koç and was manufactured from 1966 to 1984.

It is now available in limited numbers, despite being in high demand. Anadol models now sell for as much as 25,000 liras on commercial shopping websites.

‘White angel’

One Anadol owner in the Aegean province of Balıkesir refers to his car as “the model’s last example of the white angel” and is selling it for 20,000 liras, complete with an MP3 player, automatic lock and liquefied petroleum (LPG) tank. Another owner in Istanbul is selling his 1973 model Anadol for 22,000 liras.

Electrical engineer İlker Arman, who lives in Ankara and owns a 1968 A1 model Anadol is asking 25,000 liras for his and said that as soon as an automobile reaches the age of 50, it becomes an antique.

28 models left

“There are only 28 models of my Anadol left and we don’t know how many of those are still functional. There are no records,” said Arman to Anatolia news agency.

“The Anadol is Turkey’s past,” he said, explaining that people in traffic will often honk their horns and wave at him in traffic.

Arman also gets requests from movies and television shows to use his Anadol.

“I get offers, but I never give them my car. If it was a normal car, sure, but it is nearly impossible to find parts for this car. I basically rebuilt my car from scratch over two years. For six months I was at the work bench,” he said.