For 17-year old Farhaan Koya, his passion for vehicles stems from classic cars.

He loves old, classic cars because of its built, strength and design. This is probably why he is the caretaker of his family-owned 1981 model Mercedes Benz.

He believes older cars are stronger than the current ones and this is why he has a passion for older cars.

Mr Koya is perhaps one of the youngest members of the Fiji Classic Car Club and is indeed proud to be associated with the club.

His Mercedes Benz is a 2-litre manual and the first owner had hand-picked it and ordered from Germany.

Mr Koya says the car has its original engine and no modifications have been carried out on the car.

The car was bought by his family a year ago and has taken six months to restore.

What makes the car unique? Mr Koya said it is probably one of the last one of its models left in Fiji with the original engine.

“It is unique as every single part in the car is genuine – it’s in its original state,” he said.

Maintenance of the vehicle has been possible through a lot of sacrifices as well as support from Mercedes suppliers from Australia and New Zealand.

The parts have been readily available for this model Mr Koya said because the cars are still running in Australia, New Zealand and Middle East.

Mr Koya uses the vehicle in the weekends for leisure drives and for Fiji Classic Car Club meets.

The vehicle has had no upgrades except for the installation of Bluetooth for car stereo system.

Mr Koya said they plan to maintain the car’s classic look which is why they do not plan on any upgrades.

The passion for golden oldies must run in the family as now his brother is also working on restoring a classic car.

This is a Datsun 510 which he has been working on.

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