‘Car Kings’ Uncovers George Barris’ Most Bizarre Hot Rod!
‘King of Customs’ famously designed the Batmobile and Munster Koach, but you ain’t seen nothin’ yet! On tonight’s episode of Car Kings, meet the ‘Bathtub Buggy’ — complete with a toilet driver’s seat.
On tonight’s episode of Discovery’s Car Kings, the Galpin team is restoring the Bathtub Hot Rod for the Yokohama Hot Rod Show in Japan. Discovered by team leader Beau Boeckmann in the George Barris “garage sale” after the legendary customizer passed, the crazy car was built as a real-life version of the bizarre Revell model and promoted by “King of Customs” Barris.
Some Background on this Badass Car
The “Bathtub Buggy” uses a toilet as a driver’s seat, twin side-by-side bathtubs for “passenger compartments,” and plumbing fixtures for controls. Power comes from a supercharged Hemi and it rides on a hot rod-style chassis. Truly one of the strangest vehicles ever made.
This episode of Car Kings marks a pivot point for the show, where Boeckmann, who is also a producer of the show, has pivoted the program away from the “traditional” car builds that you’d see on other shows and pushed for the remainder of the season to research and restore some of the weirdest and most historically interesting hot rods and customs from history. We like the sound of that.
After this episode, the theme continues with episodes devoted to the Lil Red Wrecker, “The Wishbone,” the highly unusual “Brubaker Box,” and other automotive oddities, all perfectly in line with Boeckmann’s personal taste and penchant for hand-built show rods that are part car, part canvas, and pure 1960s pop art.
In the meantime, check out these exclusive shots from tonight’s episode!
Photos: Discovery/Car Kings