16
Jul 18
The 15 Craziest Cars Ever Built
From a car that’s faster than the speed of sound to one that’s shaped like a cat, you have to check out these incredibly weird and cool rides.
PHOTO: A. MICHAEL BROWN/SHUTTERSTOCKHottest wheels in the world
The Swedish-built Koenigsegg Agera RS costs $2.1 million, but you get what you pay for. The supercar was clocked doing 284 mph, making it the fastest street car in the world. It’s great if you have that much money to spend on the car… because it means you’ll have enough for the speeding tickets.
Find out how one city is using optical illusions to prevent traffic accidents.
PHOTO: ERIN CADIGAN/SHUTTERSTOCKWho you gonna call?
Need to get to your next ghost-capturing job quickly? Take a ride in this, a replica of the car from the movie Ghostbusters. The ECTO-1 is a 1959 Cadillac Miller-Meteor ambulance conversion—only 400 were made. That’s even rarer than the Class 5, full-roaming vapor ghost Slimer from the movie.
Check out the most iconic classic cars on television.
PHOTO: GALINABAHLYK/SHUTTERSTOCKSmall wonder
If you forgot where you parked your Peel P50, you’re going to have a lot of trouble finding it. The three-wheeled wonder, which was made in the early 1960s, is the smallest car in the world! From front to back, it’s about 54 inches long. If you don’t have a ruler handy, that’s about half of Shaquille O’Neal.
Here are our favourite reader-submitted pictures of cars—classic to clunker.
PHOTO: MONIKA SAKOWSKA/SHUTTERSTOCKCoolest convertible
The McLaren 650S Spider supercar’s roof can be raised or lowered in just 17 seconds—while you’re travelling as fast as 19 mph. Once the roof is down (or up), the car can go from 0-100 mph in three seconds, with a top speed of 204 mph.
These 13 maintenance tips will keep you on the right track.
PHOTO: ERIN CADIGAN/SHUTTERSTOCKDoes the Dark Knight get parking tickets?
Bad news for bad guys: the Batmobile from the Dark Knight movies is real! And any wannabe Batmen or Batwomen out there can buy it—if they happen to have $1 million to spend. According to a test driver from Top Gear, it has a monster engine, 44-inch tires, custom windows, five cameras, and “the ability to scare fellow road users senseless.”
Check out these eight greatest car chases in film history!
PHOTO: PATRUFLO/SHUTTERSTOCKFaster than the speed of sound
Yes, this is a car: The ThrustSSC is a twin turbofan jet-powered car that went 763.035 mph in October 1997, earning it the World Land Speed Record. The ThrustSSC was the first car to travel at a supersonic speed, meaning it broke the sound barrier at Mach 1.016. Which makes honking useless, since the car will arrive before the beep does.
Here are the 5 silliest misconceptions about cars.
PHOTO: GRZEGORZ CZAPSKI/SHUTTERSTOCKSuper Ferrari
It looks cool and sounds cool, so we’re going to go ahead and say that the Mansory Stallone Ferrari 812 Superfast is very, very cool. It was revealed at the 88th Geneva Motor Show and made it tough for any of the other cars to get noticed. You get all of the power and speed you’d expect from a Ferrari, plus the excellent and luxurious interior.
PHOTO: MOZAKIM/SHUTTERSTOCKKa-chow!
While promoting the release of Cars 3, Pixar Studios sent a full-size Lightning McQueen on a worldwide tour, making stops from Detroit to Malaysia. In case you’re wondering what kind of car Lightning is, the answer is… none. The filmmakers have explained that it has elements of GT40s and Chargers and of the Corvette C6, but McQueen is his own beast.
PHOTO: STEVE LAGRECA/SHUTTERSTOCKAnything but a drag
This Miller Race Cars dragster is so fast, you’re definitely going to want to buy one of the $420 parachutes the company sells to make it stop. In fact, you might want to get two just to be safe.
Don’t miss these 10 new car features you didn’t know you needed.
PHOTO: STEVE LAGRECA/SHUTTERSTOCKBubble bursting with awesome
This 1960 Volkswagen Beetle Bubbletop car was shown at the Detroit Autorama, where folks who are crazy about cars show off their custom and restored work. This looks super fun to drive—unless it’s raining: You’d need about 10 windshield wipers to see out.
Learn about the best Canadian car show you’ve never heard of.
PHOTO: ERIN CADIGAN/SHUTTERSTOCKTime machine
In the Back to the Future movies, Marty McFly travels around the past and future in a time machine his friend Doc Brown built out of a DeLorean DMC-12. And building a time machine out of a DeLorean wasn’t easy. In real life, the car company went bankrupt soon after they started production and it is estimated that there are only about 6,500 of the original models left in the world.
PHOTO: CORKY BUCZYK/SHUTTERSTOCKCat’s meow
Cat food company Meow Mix parked this car on the streets of New York City for publicity. We’re guessing the engine on this cat car really purrs.
PHOTO: LEV RADIN/SHUTTERSTOCKBatman starter kit
For those who can’t get their hands on a Batmobile, the Slingshot Grand Touring LE by Polaris is the next best thing. New York Mets all-star Yoenis Cespedes is one famous fan of the car’s cool design and fun driveability. The Polaris website lists all kinds of cool high-tech features, but the real reason to drive this beast is to make everyone else look like a joker.
These 10 car models are way more likely to get stolen.
PHOTO: ERIC_DUBOST_PHOTOGRAPHER/SHUTTERSTOCKLook out below!
The cars that compete in the Red Bull Soapbox Race may lack speed—they don’t have motors, so only gravity makes ’em go—but they have plenty of style. This one ran the downhill race track in Lausanne, Switzerland. If you’re inspired, grab a box and some wheels and get to work!
PHOTO: STEVE LAGRECA/SHUTTERSTOCKA toy for grownups
You’re never too old to play with Matchbox cars—especially when they are full-size monsters like this. This Matchbox police-themed vehicle is a souped-up 2017 Ford F-350 Super Duty XL, on display at an industry show in Vegas. Did they lock it up at night? Doubtful—a thief would be pretty dumb to steal it!
BY DAN BOVA, RD.COM
