In the 1970s, Soviet Hungary's "Zastava" cars, a popular domestic brand, were known for their simplicity—and their "special charm." One funny story involves a local man who tried to impress his date by taking her for a ride in his brand-new Zastava. As they drove through the streets of Budapest, the car suddenly broke down—right in front of a **mechanic’s shop**. The man, trying to save face, walked up to the shop and casually asked for "a small tune-up" while the car was still parked. The mechanic winked and said, "Your car's already tuned—it's just the 'Zastava' way!"
But long before that, hungarian engineer János Csonka built his first automobiles for the Hungarian Postal Service in 1904. Unfortunately the original car production from the imperial past was lost and after WWII as Hungary was part of the Soviet Bloc, most of the cars were imported from USSR, East Germany and Czechoslovakia. However even though it apparently lacked the western diversity, some occasional Mercedes could be spotted on the streets of Budapest from time to time. And of course the Formula 1 and other car shows were and are very popular in Hungary, with the first Grand Prix taking place in (!!!) 1936... This, neverthelss, didn't stop banning cars in the 60s from the most narrow streets of the capital. Now we're all good and can drive almost anywhere in the downtwon... or are we?