What is that ahead of me? One person, four soft, fat tires, a super short wheelbase, single seat right between the front wheels, no noticeable suspension travel (he really slowed down for a couple of speed bumps), and the top of what is obviously a VW aircooled engine in the middle of it, ahead of the rear axle. Hmmm….
I didn’t have time for a wild goose buggy chase, so this is as good as a shot as my son could peel off as he turned left. My best guess is that it was built as a beach buggy, likely in the sixties. But not according to the typical formula. Its wheelbase is madly short, with very little room between the front and back wheels. And the engine is clearly a VW, but if it’s driving the rear wheel, you’d assume that it had to be have turned around, with the transaxle in back. Hmmm.
And although one can see the positive camber in the back, the way he slowed way down for the speed bumps, and bobbed stiffly over them suggests that the suspension is either waaay too stiff for this light weight affair, or it isn’t even functioning anymore. Given where the driver is sitting in the middle between the wheels, it suggest that the VW suspension is almost certainly absent in the front. With those soft tires, that all would be fine in the sand. But it’s also street legal. Anybody got any better ideas?
The carb/air cleaner is sitting behind the cooling tin, so I doubt the engine/transaxle has been reversed… actually, if you look closely, it almost looks like the swing axle torsion bar tubes are at the *back*, with the swing plates facing forward…
Regardless how it’s cobbled together (I’d love to see it up close!), I bet it’s a hoot to drive. Wheelies all day long!
Dune buggies that can be driven off a ten foot high bank are more my style that requires good suspension rather than none.
Do you think it would float with those big tires and the engine/driver ‘tub’?
Kind of reminds me of a http://www.maxatvs.com/ type of vehicle.
Might explain the huge fenders, too—less water spray into the tub.
Pure speculation!
Whatever it is, it definitely looks home-made and not in a good way.
Almost looks like it uses components from a skid-steer loader, but that would be crazy.
Wouldn’t it?
I have to agree with the amphibious idea. If it has an early bus trans with the reduction boxes rotated 90° towards the rear that might account for the wheel placement, but I don’t get how it would function with the spring plates coming from the back. But you did say there was little to no suspension. Reminds me of those little skid steer 4-wheelers in the movie ‘Silent Running’ only they were never in production.
Those units may not have been produced; but Allis-Chalmers made a six-wheel skid-steer ATV called the Terra-Tiger. And AMF, to compete, had an articulated eight-wheel ATV; the Sure-Trek. Also skid-steer.
Both would float and relied on the lugs on the floatation tires to propel forward.
Hard to tell but –1957 Ford Tail lights?
And are the backup lights on while it’s moving forward? (Nah, those are rear-facing daytime running lights!)
That’s me. The front suspension is 56 bug, reversed tranny and reversed intake, has working suspension but the shocks are way to stiff. 1500 VW motor, 57 ford tail lights and no the rear taillight center is not on it the reverse light cone is being bright in the sun, it was home made in 1969.