Street Legal Bumper Cars
by: John Shapiro, editor

First there was the law mower powered wagons and crazy cooler carts, which have all been banned by the NSRA and GoodGuys at their events, insurance reasons, no doubt.  But now there's Bumper Cars and their street legal.

CAPTION:  At speed!  Check out the car in the background to give you some idea of the size (not the driver!).  Looks like lots of fun!

Street legal?  Yeah buddy, these little beasties are street legal, and are cruisin' the streets of California right now.

CAPTION: This photo taken at an intersection probably by some unsuspecting sole who thought they had died and gone to amusement park heaven!   Note the electric bars coming out the top of the car.  Also note the different rear end suspension components.

No it's not a Hemi, should be the bumper sticker on these bumper cars, actually they utilize Kawasaki or Honda motorcycle engines for power, but the real deal is the retired vintage bumper car bodies - transformed into the most awesome form of mini-car we've ever seen.

There's seven of these little monsters floating around California , and they're all the creation of one man, Tom Wright, a gyro-gear loose builder on the outskirts of San Diego who figured the leftovers of the Long Beach Pike amusement park needed a more dignified end than the trash heap.

They were originally powered by Harley engines but rattled like heck and Tom replace them with Honda or Kawasaki 750's... and a couple have been 'measured' [not run at] theoretically as capable of 160 MPH which is terrifyingly fast in machines with such a short wheelbase.  Doesn't mean we would totally rock one should the opportunity present itself.  I can just see somebody turning one into a ProStreet, ground pounding Bumper car complete with massive rear hides and a blower scoop.... Okay, maybe not ground pounding but you get the point.

CAPTION:  Fully licensed and sitting nicely at a Cruisin' this one is sports a collector plate that says, "IBBUMPIN".

Isn't the Cleveland and Pittsburgh area swollen with old amusement parks?  There's gotta be somebody out there with a bunch of these old bumper cars rusting in a garage somewhere.... so have at it guys - here's the idea.... and let's get these things cruisin' somewhere along the Northcoast by 2010!!

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