Kim Tae-gyu
Vehicles are believed to give a glimpse into the characteristics of their owners and if the belief holds some truth, people would be able to better understand the reclusive North Korean leaders.
First-generation dictator Kim Il-sung loved a Russian model, while his son, the late Kim Jong-il was crazy about Mercedes-Benz and incumbent North Korean leader Kim Jong-un seems to like Audis.
Kim Il-sung’s beloved car was the ZIS manufactured by Russia’s ZIL, which produced armored vehicles, trucks, buses, hand-built limousines and high-end luxury sedans.
Heading the Stalinist country amid the peak of the Cold War era, the North Korean founder loved the bullet-proof monster with a length of 5.87 meters and a height of up to 2 meters.
``For Kim Il-sung, the establishment of his regime through a close collaboration with other communist states might be the No. 1 mission. The ZIS model is a perfect fit for a head of state with such a task,’’ professor Kim Pil-soo at Daelim University said.
The vehicle is on display in South Korea by Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) as it was captured by South Korean soldiers north of Pyongyang in 1950 in the midst of the Korean War.
His successors were big fans of German cars.
As the mood of detente sprang in the 1970s and 1980s, Kim Jong-il opted for models by Mercedes-Benz and the taste lasted throughout his life.
He reportedly owned scores of vehicles by the German firm whose value are estimated to total $20 million. Last year, he purportedly snapped up about 160 Mercedes-Benz cars to give them to his underlings.
Kim Jong-il’s love affair with Mercedes-Benz was also well known to South Korean politicians, as when late former President Roh Moo-hyun visited Pyongyang in 2007, he took a Mercedes-Benz instead of his favorite BMW.
Third-generation autocrat Kim Jong-un appears to be devoted to Audi.
According to global automotive brands operating here, North Korea imported an Audi R8 and S8 in early 2010, soon after Kim Jong-un appeared on the radar screens of Seoul and Washington.
Observers point out that it is a sophisticated guess to think that Kim Jong-un would have something to do with the rare imports.
Their rationale is the Audi R8 was shipped to the North in 2010 for the first time ever. Who else could own a luxury sports car there other than someone like the 20-something royal family member of Kim Jong-un?
``Mercedes-Benz is basically about tradition, favored by successful middle-aged leaders thanks to its well-established premium image and graceful design without big twists,’’ professor Kim said.
``With out-of-the-box designs and dynamism, BMW represents the mirror image of Mercedes-Benz while Audi is located somewhere between the two as a mixture of convention and change. Kim Jong-un’s affection with Audi tells us something. In the future, his son might love BMW.’’