Truong Van Dao and his three-year-old son enjoy taking the wooden vehicle, which also has a 2.8m-long replica gun, for weekend drives
1/6
Normally, an image of a tank barrelling down the road evokes awe and fear. However, this wooden tank, built by Vietnam’s Truong Van Dao is a symbol of love. AFP
2/6
Truong Van Dao has converted a 16-seat minibus into the wooden tank. The vehicle based on a French EBR105 model and complete with a 2.8-metre-long replica gun cost $11,000 to convert. AFP
3/6
Dao says it took him and two colleagues three months to turn the unused van into the tank. He retained the main engine and the minibus floor, but rearranged inside to make space for the gears. AFP
4/6
Truong Van Dao, who is a carpenter, said that the ornate wooden covering wasn’t a problem for him. For Dao, ensuring all eight wheels moved simultaneously was a bigger issue. Today, the top speed is a sedate 25 kilometres (16 miles) per hour — any faster and the cable connecting the wheels will disconnect and they’ll be stuck. AFP
5/6
Truong Van Dao and his son ride in a wooden tank made from the conversion of an old minibus in a residential area in Bac Ninh province. AFP
6/6
The vehicles have been firmly associated with the historical moment when communist tanks crashed the entrance of Saigon’s Independence Palace in 1975. However, today tanks are more associated with children’s toys, as they play with plastic versions every weekend in Hanoi. «If all tanks in this world were the same as my tank, there would be no harm, just fun,» Dao was quoted as saying. AFP
