<![CDATA[Jalopnik: Decotora]]> http://cache.gawker.com/assets/base/img/thumbs140x140/jalopnik.com.png <![CDATA[Jalopnik: Decotora]]> http://jalopnik.com/tag/decotora http://jalopnik.com/tag/decotora <![CDATA[ Since You've Been Extra Good This Week: Pakistani Dekotora ]]> You know a meme has reached its defining moment when it transcends itself. Like a jukebox hero with stars in his eyes, these Pakistani Dekotora have reached for the mic of fate and while displaying mastery of the material, achieved their own awesome spin. These trucks are a result of nearly the same phenomenon which spawned the Japanese Dekotora: single guys, driving trucks, with nothing else to spend their money on.


Using all manner of detritus from paint to reflectors, sheets of steel, rugs, and forsaken bedazzlers, the trucks are fully decked out for all to see. There are even truck competitions, sponsored by fuel companies, in which owners can win free fuel. Because of the truck market in Pakistan, the vehicle of choice is usually an old Bedford or GMC, outfitted with a high cargo hold to maximize capacity. It also provides a supersized canvas to get crazy on. There's a pretty good write-up about the customs and traditions surrounding the style here, and as you can see, we dug our teeth into this one and went a little nutty with the gallery. We just can't get enough of that Hindu-Kush goodness.

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Fri, 15 Feb 2008 14:30:00 EST Ben Wojdyla http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=356807&view=rss&microfeed=true
<![CDATA[ Awesome Dekotora Photography Now in Book Form ]]> Photographer Masaru Tatsuki has done the world a great service and captured the majesty that is Dekotora in a book for all to own. In an interview with PingMag, Masura recalls how he spent nearly ten years living amongst the Dekotora truckers, getting ensconced in their culture, understanding their passions. It was after gaining this understanding that he could dedicate the culture, not just the trucks, to film. The result is a tribute to the art called Decotora. Transliteration differences aside, we're leering in the direction of Amazon US since they don't seem to be stocking this at the moment.

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Sat, 02 Feb 2008 11:00:00 EST Ben Wojdyla http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=351797&view=rss&microfeed=true