that's definitely a first laruei, apparently that's the new <3eat of America
Miami Herald Headline reads: "Sail to the USA in a Chevrolet"
"The original attempt at reaching the United States was done with a converted 1951 Chevy pickup truck on July 16, 2003. The truck's drive shaft was attached directly to a propeller and the craft could reportedly reach a leisurely 7 knots (8 mph). 55-gallon oil drums were used for flotation. The dozen or so Cubans in the truck were caught just south of Key West after being sighted by a U.S. Customs aircraft."
Three of the guys that got caught in the pick up truck tried again!
"Their new, more sophisticated vessel, with a passenger complement of eleven, was crafted from a 1959 Buick: the interior was welded to be watertight, the prow of a boat was attached to the front of the car, and, amazingly, the car was fully functional and still had its tires. Their audacious plan was to reach landfall in Florida, discard the boat parts, and drive to a relative's home in Lake Worth, FL."
A Third attempt from one of the original 'Truckonauts'
"made another attempt at U.S. landfall on June 8, 2005. His craft, a converted 1949 Mercury station wagon, appears to follow the design of the second-attempt 1959 Buick car boat. It carried 13 people and was stopped at the usual area just off Key West. The Mercury was apparently originally a taxi. Driver! To Florida, and hurry!"