Toyota pickups are popular, but they may have them because they tend to show up in those markets more than other stuff. That is, is it a case of "They drive a Toyota because they had to?"
I would imagine that being in a country that offers more choices, you'd want to convert them to a single choice ASAP.
The weirdest place I’ve ever been for that phenomenon is Cambodia. Most people drive mopeds but those that drive cars drive Toyota Camrys. I don’t think I saw a single car in that whole country that wasn’t a Camry.
You've been to Cambodia? I was just watching a bunch of videos about the Hindu temples there. Did you get to see any cool shit while you were there? I'm jealous.
Yeah in Angkor up in Siem Reap. The temples are amazing - if you go try to get there for sunrise. And Phnom Penh is cool too, you can stay in guest houses that are on stilts in the lake. And S21 and the killing fields are worth a visit if you’re into history. S21 was a school and the Khmer Rouge turned into a prison/torture camp. People write graffiti under the stairs there. Remember seeing one scrawl that will always stay with me: “when this was a school nobody died, when this was a prison nobody learned.” Definitely worth a visit.
That’s odd. I guess Toyota managed to get a presence early and just became “the car.”
No I don’t think so, not sure what the cause is exactly but it’s not something market based. Cambodians are poor as dirt, realistically only a few government officials might be able to afford cars in anything bordering a normal market (their king’s net worth is about half a million USD for example). I know in Singapore everyone is effectively forced to get rid of cars once they’re 5 years old and these get shipped to nearby poorer markets. Maybe the singas decided Cambodians like Camrys or something. Didn’t make it Laos but perhaps they all drive Honda Civics or something just for the entertainment of Singaporeans.
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