The Abandoned Cars of Maui

By: Paul S Cilwa	Occurred: 7/15/2020	Page Views: 812
Hashtags: #Coronavirus #Maui
One can't help but notice the sad beauty of cars abandoned in paradise.
Estimated reading time: 2 minute(s) (272 words)

Today was this week's supply run to the other side of the island; and along the way, I finally photographed an abandoned car that's been tricky to get to.

I began to notice the abandoned cars my first visit to Maui, years ago. Since I moved here, I've been collecting some of the more picturesque wrecks mouldering in paradise.

Why are there so many abandoned cars here? There seem to be several contributing factors. For one, there's a fee of over $300 to turn in a non-working vehicle to the scrap yard, and people who've driven a clunker to the ground typically don't have that kind of money to spare. So, of course, it's illegal to abandon a car, with a fine even higher than the scrapyard fee. So people just file off the VIN and other identifying numbers, and often, just to finish the job, torch it.

Another source, less so now but before the shutdown a common factor, was old junk cars purchased by visiting surfers who intend to stay a few months and don't wat to rent a car for that period. When they leave, they often just abandon the vehicle rather than take the time to sell it to someone else.

Regardless of where they come from, I find the abandoned cars to be rather pretty, in a haunting way. I wonder where the car came from, who owned it. Did children once ride in it? Dogs? Were the owners sad when they had to take the car out for a last ride?