Lebanese Man Transforms 1963 Volvo into Rolls Royce from the 1980s

Following is a TV report about a Lebanese man who transformed a 1963 Volvo into a 1980s Rolls Royce. The report aired on Al-Manar TV on August 27, 2012.

News anchor: Jamal Hashoush, a talented engineer from the city of Nabatieh managed to transform a 1963 Volvo into a Rolls Royce from the 1980s.

Reporter: This is not a car dealership or a company selling automobiles. Instead, it is a car reproduced by a gifted man from Nabatieh. It took him a year and a half to transform a 1963 Volvo into a Rolls Royce from the 1980s.

Jamal Hashoush studied electrical engineering and embarked upon his car-transforming journey almost a quarter of a century ago.

Jamal Hashoush: When I first laid my eyes on it, it was nothing but a pile of scrap metal. I gave it a new body, which I made entirely on my own. There were no fenders, no engine cover, no pistons. I fixed all the dents. I left only the chassis so that it would have a legal number. 25 years ago – or rather, 10 years ago – I made a Mercedes car.

Reporter: Doing all the manual work by himself was very difficult, but this did not discourage Jamal from persevering until he reached his goal.

Jamal Hashoush: I would go to Beirut just to get a screw or a small part. All the things I needed were nowhere to be found. I had to get all the raw materials and do all the work myself. I did by myself work done by 4,000-5,000 technicians, workers, and engineers in Europe.

Man: He dismantled and assembled it about 500 times.

Reporter: Jamal's dreams do not stop at transforming and rebuilding cars. They also include the invention of a car with unique characteristics.

Jamal Hashoush: For over two years, I have been working on a car – a car with a jet engine, like an airplane, and an aluminum body. It will have little wings, and will look like an airplane on land. It will reach 800-1,000 kilometers per hour. I don't know if the Lebanese state will allow me to have a factory, or to register a patent for this.

Reporter: Jamal adds yet another car to his list of achievements, but his ambitions do not stop there. His only hope is that the relevant Lebanese ministries will embrace talented individuals so that they will not be forced to emigrate.

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