This is an updated version of an article I previously published here.

The Island Of Sodor is well known for it's trains, and talking vehicles. However, not everyone rode on trains. Some people used automobiles to travel around Sodor. When it was first found in 1810 by the British, there were no automobiles on Sodor until 1930. At that time, the only cars on Sodor were manufactured by Vauxhall. In 1941, Sir Tophamm Hat arrived, and started building the North Western Railway. He had one of the Vauxhalls until 1943, when he ordered a Rolls Royce. Sir Tophamm Hat kept his Rolls-Royce until 1959, when he got a new custom car with parts from Plymouth, and Volvo. Plymouth built the engine, and worked on the interior while Volvo took care of the rest.

In September of 1945, when Thomas arrived at the Island Of Sodor, some people were beginning to get bored of the Vauxhalls. The people of Sodor requested newer vehicles from their country England. Unfortunately, the demand of vehicles throughout England, and Europe was growing rapidly after the war, and the British were not able to send any of their cars to Sodor. So, Sodor decided to turn to America. Instantly, the Americans sent their automobiles to the people of Sodor. Most of them were built before 1942, the same year America stopped manufacturing cars, so they could concentrate on building more war machines for the Allies. It wasn't until 1947 when the Americans were able to send brand new cars. Meanwhile, England was still trying to please their own people with their own cars.

The Island Of Sodor became obsessed with American cars in 1950. By the time Bill and Ben arrived with Boco, the people on Sodor could only think of American cars. Chevrolet, Buick, Dodge, Ford, Pontiac, Mercury, Oldsmobile, and many others. Beautiful designs, high reliability, Sodor wanted their car industry to be all American. It remained that way for quite a long time. In 1956, when Rusty first arrived on the Skarloey Railway, he saw so many American cars, that he didn't know if he was on a British, or American island. I guess you could say, the answer was both.

In 1958, when Stepney was rescued by Rusty, Sodor started to get interested in German sports cars. They still loved the American cars, but they wanted something a little faster. So, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW sent them some of their finest sports cars, and the island's residents were very pleased. Then, by 1963, Sodor recieved more non-American cars, from Alfa Romeo, Aston Martin, Rolls Royce, and Ferrari. There were over 500 people on the Island that wanted luxury cars, and they got what they wanted from the four companies.

The Island Of Sodor got two new things in the year 1964. They got Emily the Stirling single, and their very first Volkswagen, a red beetle. They did not ask for this car, nor did they want it, but Volkswagen sent it to them anyway. At first, not many people wanted a beetle. They stuck with American cars, including the new Mustangs, Lincoln Continentals, Corvettes, and even a few station wagons. Then, more people got interested in the Beetle by the next year, then the bus, and finally, the Karmann Ghia. Volkswagen was now a part of the Sodor car market along with all of the American companies, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Alfa Romeo, Aston Martin, Rolls Royce, and Ferrari.

Between 1965, and 1969, the British were able to get more of their cars into Sodor. This included Triumph, Austin-Healey, MG, and Bentley. Lamborghini, and Porsche also started sending a few of their cars over to the island in 1968, but by 1969, Sodor heard of some of the cars from Japan. Now joining the Sodor car market was Toyota, Datsun, (Later changed to Nissan in 1986) Honda, Mitsubishi, and Mazda. The Island was receiving lots of cars from lots of companies.

In 1976, when Samson first came to Sodor, so did an Audi. Like the Volkswagens, the people of Sodor were not fond of the Audi, and sent it right back to where it came from. For months, Audi didn't send another car back to Sodor.

After seeing Thomas The Babysitter, The Other Side Of The Mountain, and No Help At All, I have seen the new cars that arrived on Sodor in 1977. From Pontiac, the Firebird got lots of attention, but it was Subaru, and Volvo that got a lot of popularity, when they first started sending their cars over to Sodor. Other car companies that started sending their cars to the island included Opel, Maserati, and taking a second chance, Audi. 1977 was also the first year that Sodor experienced French cars from Renault, Peugeot, and Citroen. Unforunately, none of them were successful.

As we all know, The Railway Series first started out in 1945. The Thomas & Friends TV show started out 39 years later, and as a result, each episode takes place 39 years in the past. When 2017 rolls around, we will see what happens on Sodor, in 1978.