New breed of car enthusiasts loves cars so much, they live in them

83-year-old Oscar Almaguer sits in his 1967 Volkswagen Beetle in Apodaca

The cramped back seat of the 1967 Beetle is his bed, the even more cramped trunk (under the hood) is his closet. A divorce 10 years ago left Oscar Almaguer penniless, ever since, he lives in his Bug. It’s a growing trend, as it turns out.Oscar Almaguer sits in his VW Beetle 1967 in Apodaca

Life and living of the 83-year-old has been documented by Reuters photographer Daniel Becerril. “In these times of economic hardship it’s not that uncommon for people to live in their cars after falling on hard times,” writes Becerill. True that.

The growing ranks of car dwellers have attracted the attention of Businessweek, which posits that “59.2% of homeless are living in cars or van.” Vehicular living has its own handbook, it has a website, it has a detailed, lovingly written and illustrated wikiHow. The howto recommends Walmart parking lots as the up and coming neighborhood for the down and out, it has many tips on how to combat foul odors, and it recommends to move around slowly at home “to avoid rocking the car.”

Rocking cars, or fogged-up windows can attract the law, and invite more than just hassle. “Police generally do not regard homeless people well and there has been many unfortunate cases of shootings of homeless people (even unarmed ones) by police,” the wikiHow says.

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