I will say, based on purely anecdotal experience, the story could be plausible (although maybe not a personal order from Stalin). My wife was born in the USSR

I will say, based on purely anecdotal experience, the story could be plausible (although maybe not a personal order from Stalin). My wife was born in the USSR just before its collapse and grew up in a post-Soviet country. Her family was pretty poor, and they didn't get their first car until the late 90s. My wife was a young girl then, so only has vague memories of needing to hitchhike to grandma's, but that means her parents went almost 40 years without a car. And their story is not unique. Pretty crazy.