zzdcar
Home
/
Reviews
/
Culture
/
Go Ahead And Try To Guess What Car This Bonkers Beach Buggy Is Based On
Go Ahead And Try To Guess What Car This Bonkers Beach Buggy Is Based On-October 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:12:32

Image for article titled Go Ahead And Try To Guess What Car This Bonkers Beach Buggy Is Based On

See that crazy-looking car in that photo up there? The one that looks kind of like an English Tudor-style home, with the exposed, dark timbers? The one being lounged upon by those crazy leisure-suited teens who look like maybe they’re in their mid-’30s? That car is based on a car I’m sure you’ve heard of, and, I’m going to guess, not one you’d expect. I’m going to tell you all about it, but I’m going to make you click to find out, because what is this, a charity?

Okay, thanks for that. So, what you’re . Specifically, a , based on a Volvo 142.

Image for article titled Go Ahead And Try To Guess What Car This Bonkers Beach Buggy Is Based On

This re-working of the dignified, boxy, very adult 142 into this strange, angular, RWD beast puts it very much in the, a now mostly-extinct genre of car where a carmaker would strip down a mass-market model (usually an economy car) to make something sort-of-off-road capable but a hell of a lot of fun. Think Volkswagen Beetle to VW Thing, BMC Mini to Mini Moke, or Citroën 2CV to the Mehari.

Image for article titled Go Ahead And Try To Guess What Car This Bonkers Beach Buggy Is Based On

The Sommer Joker was similar to this, though unusual in that the donor car was much more up-market than these things usually were, and also a little more unusual in that this was a dealer’s project, not a factory one.

In this sense it’s sort of like a Meyers Manx, but not a kit, because you could buy these right from the dealer, fully assembled. The dealer in question was the well-respected but still little-known in America Volvo dealer, the Danish Volvo legend

Image for article titled Go Ahead And Try To Guess What Car This Bonkers Beach Buggy Is Based On

Sommer was an importer of Jaguars and then Volvos, Unlike most dealers, Sommer also experimented with building some of unique Volvo-based specials of his own, like the Joker.

The Joker seems to have been inspired by in the late 1960s, where Sommer would have very likely encountered Meyers Manxes and other VW-based kit cars and dune buggies.

Taking the general concept back with him to Denmark, Sommer looked at the Volvo 142 and saw an unlikely but very viable basis for a beach car.

Image for article titled Go Ahead And Try To Guess What Car This Bonkers Beach Buggy Is Based On

The B20 engine was pretty bulletproof, and made about 90 horsepower with one SU carb—a twin-carb version was also available that would kick that power up to around 115, both very respectable numbers for the era.

Sommer pushed the engine rearward a bit for better weight distribution and handling, and drastically simplified the rear suspension to just use basic leaf springs.

The whole body was, of course, removed, with only the headlight units remaining, and the rest of the body was built with that very visible angle-iron frame, with the gaps filled in with yellow fiberglass panels. The end result was a car that weighed over 400 pounds less than the original 142, so I bet they were relatively peppy feeling.

The proportions, with the low greenhouse and tabletop-flat roof definitely have some ‘60s show rod influences, and while I’m not sure they’d really have been that great off-road, they sure look fun to me.

Image for article titled Go Ahead And Try To Guess What Car This Bonkers Beach Buggy Is Based On

It seems only seven were actually built, but for such a low-volume car the Joker seems to have an outsized presence in Danish car culture. There’s pictures of it being shown in shopping centers when it was first available, and it was also featured prominently in a 1975 movie, Familien Gyldenkål, where it gets to be in a sort of car chase:

I really have no idea what else is going on here, other than that dude gave up a briefcase to escape and jump a lot of fences, and neither the cabbie nor the Joker-driver seem happy to see what I think is a cop?

It seems that in Denmark these were often compared to traditional farmhouses, . I’m still sort of amazed at how well-known these seem to be, based on inferences from Sommer’s obituaries and other articles, and I’m also amazed that these cost almost as much as a full 142, which I’m sure limited the appeal of them to the young, carefree imagined target market.

So, if your dream has always been to drive on a beach in a premium Scandinavian car that looks like Danish farmhouse and is almost as aerodynamic, know that dream is (very remotely) achievable.

(thanks for sending this in, Jo!)

Comments
Welcome to zzdcar comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Culture
Toyota Is Moving A Prewar 700-Ton Press Machine Halfway Around The World
Toyota Is Moving A Prewar 700-Ton Press Machine Halfway Around The World
closed its São Bernardo Plant in November 2023, marking the end of its first overseas production facility. The closure caps off a period of continuous car production in São Paolo, , lasting over 60 years. The plant was home to a Komatsu 700-ton press that predates itself. And now...
Oct 31, 2024
Subaru Had It Right All Along
Subaru Had It Right All Along
When first came to the United States, it sold small funky cars that were decidedly un-American. As the company grew its own identity and became more established in the U.S., it became the first automaker to offer an all-wheel-drive passenger car in 1975. Subaru was also an early-adopter of...
Oct 31, 2024
I Can't Get Enough Of This YouTuber Who Builds Tiny, Fully Functional Scale-Model Cars
I Can't Get Enough Of This YouTuber Who Builds Tiny, Fully Functional Scale-Model Cars
I love tiny, of . I have a that is roughly half the size of a normal cat, and she’s perfect. I own a 2013 , which is like the miniature version of a normal-sized vehicle (at least here in Texas) — but beyond that, I also own a Hot...
Oct 31, 2024
2024 Kia EV9: What Do You Want To Know?
2024 Kia EV9: What Do You Want To Know?
At long last, we are about to get behind the wheel of for the first time. Sure, , and sure, , and sure , but hey — what can you do? Anyway, before we get behind the wheel of this three-row electric beast, we want to know what you...
Oct 31, 2024
Watch ABS Fail When MotorWeek Tests A 1997 Chevy S-10
Watch ABS Fail When MotorWeek Tests A 1997 Chevy S-10
MotorWeek’s is some of the on the internet. The long-running automotive news magazine has a treasure trove of tests after being on the air for over 40 years. Where else can you find detailed instrumented testing of long-forgotten cars like the or a ? MotorWeek’s recent Retro Review upload is...
Oct 31, 2024
I Entered My Lifted Miata In A Real Off-Road Race, Here's What Happened
I Entered My Lifted Miata In A Real Off-Road Race, Here's What Happened
I have two automotive loves: The first is the Miata, the second is off-road racing. For a while I raced air-cooled Volkswagens in the deserts of California and Nevada and I was lucky enough to co-drive in a class 11 stock bug in the Baja 1000 a few years...
Oct 31, 2024
Copyright 2023-2024 - www.zzdcar.com All Rights Reserved