Cuba's thaw with U.S. raises interest in classic-car cache

Wednesday's news of the restoration of diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba after 53 years of post-revolution standoff caught the attention of one group in particular: Classic-car buffs.

Since the Castro-led government essentially banned vehicle imports from outside the Soviet bloc until 2013, and poverty gripped most of the island, many of the roughly 60,000 1950s-era vehicles in Cuba have been driven and kept in use ever since. With parts hard to come by, a burgeoning home-garage industry has bloomed, dedicated to fabricating parts and keeping ancient Plymouths, Chevys and Fords on the roads — becoming one of Cuba's most well-known tourist attractions.