From Ferrari to Rolls-Royce and a VW Van, Hong Kong’s vibrant classic car community celebrated in YouTuber’s new book
- Justin Lui, a fan of rare and exotic cars, started YouTube channel InstacarHK, where he reviews and drives Hong Kong classic cars
- Lui is chairman of the Classic Car Club of Hong Kong and has produced a book, Spectacular Cars of Hong Kong, about the top 20 cars featured on his channel
Hong Kong may not be the first place you think of when it comes to classic cars. Second-hand cars are quite affordable, but parking and fuel are expensive and running costs are high, and considering the city’s efficient public transport system, owning a car, let alone a classic one, is a luxury.
However, according to lawyer Justin Lui, Hong Kong is as good a place as anywhere to spot a rare and exotic car, because of the city’s enthusiasts.
“Anything older than 30 years can be considered a classic car and it doesn’t have to be a sports car. It can be a Volkswagen Van. As long as people love it, it will be a talking point,” says Lui, who has been reviewing classic cars on YouTube since 2020.
On November 4, he will launch a book about the top 20 cars he has featured on his channel.
A lawyer by day and a full-time car lover, Lui was inducted into the world of classic cars at a young age by his father, a car enthusiast himself.
“My father would take us on family drives in his [Ferrari] Dino 308 GT4. It was such a cool car and looked like nothing else on the road,” says Lui.
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“Its … dashboard with tons of gauges and flip switches looked like the cockpit of a spaceship, which was just mind-blowing for a five-year-old kid.
“It had four seats so we were able to go on many family drives in it.”
Lui drove while he studied abroad, but he didn’t take part in any organised activities until he returned to Hong Kong.
He says: “My cousin introduced me to the Classic Car Club of Hong Kong over 10 years ago. Everyone is very friendly and genuinely interested in cars.”
During the Covid-19 pandemic Lui started a YouTube channel reviewing classic cars.
“I was having drinks with a few members who were also my friends and realised they were all in the media industry. So I came up with the idea to start a YouTube channel, reviewing the classic cars in Hong Kong,” says Lui.
Lui’s YouTube channel, InstacarHK, has well-produced feature reviews of Hong Kong’s classic cars that typically last around 15 minutes. Lui gives a brief review of the history of the car, goes through the specs, takes some shots of the engine and then, of course, he reviews the car while he drives – Jeremy Clarkson-style.
A year ago, Lui was elected chairman of the Classic Car Club of Hong Kong.
His book, Spectacular Cars of Hong Kong, is like a time capsule of the experience and fun he had making the YouTube videos.
“Hong Kong has had a long history of car culture,” says Lui. “If you go to The Repulse Bay hotel, you can see old photos of the Kadoories with cars, dating back to before World War II.”
Outside Japan, Hong Kong has the biggest classic car scene in Asia, he says. “Hong Kong has some of the most rare and important vintage cars in the world.”
The Gold Coast Motor Festival, for instance, will celebrate its 30th anniversary on November 11 and 12 with a showcase of prized classic and collector cars.
Among the highlights will be the McLaren F1, Mercedes CLK GTR and Porsche 911 GT1, which have all made their mark in car racing history and which will be shown together in Hong Kong for the first time.
According to Lui, Hong Kong has some of the oldest Rolls-Royces in the world, owned by the Kadoorie family and now in the custody of The Peninsula Hong Kong hotel.
One of the cars featured in his book is a 1995 Ferrari F50. At the time of its release, the F50 was already a rare car: only 347 were built and Formula One technology was used in its design.
Hong Kong is home to a few F50s; however, the car that Lui reviewed is one of only a handful in the world that is a bespoke right-hand drive model.
“This car belonged to the Sultan of Brunei, who is a renowned car enthusiast and was able to get a lot of things made bespoke for him,” he says. “When I was young and naive, I used to dream of buying that car and bringing it to Hong Kong.
“That was not my destiny, but I feel very fortunate to come into close contact with, and review, the car.”
Through his book, Lui would like to raise awareness of the vibrant classic car scene in Hong Kong and attract more members to the Classic Car Club of Hong Kong.
“Our world is becoming more digital and cars are moving towards EVs (electric vehicles). They’re not going to make a lot of combustion cars any more. It’s important for a younger generation to be interested in classic cars and continue that interest and be custodians of this history,” he says.
