Modern cars are built for people. They’re designed with the driver and passengers at heart. Sculpted for safety and comfort, cars cater to people. Automakers, it seems, are less concerned with the soul of a car and more interested in smartphone integration and ease of use.
What if someone built a car for the car’s sake? What if a car were laid out not with the driver in mind but the essence of a car at its focal point? What might that look like?
It would look like the Reboot Buggy that you see above.
Designed and built by Joey Ruiter, the Reboot Buggy was constructed to capture the essence of motoring. “It sounds strange, but I wanted the vehicle to determine its design,” Ruiter explained in a prepared statement, “Even if it means ignoring the driver’s needs.”
When Ruiter designed the Reboot, he went back to the basics of horse and buggy tech and initially designed the car without a driver. He bolted up a fire-spitting 470-horsepower small block V8, which is mounted mid-chassis.
The shout-y V8 is mated to a three-speed automatic that sends power to the rear wheels. The simple drivetrain was chosen not only for its power but also for its ease of repair. “Folks in just about any town should be able to fix it,” Ruiter added.
The engine placement was determined by the chassis design and not by where the driver might sit. Even the wheelbase was, as Ruiter explains in the video below, “for the car’s sake.”
It’s rather refreshing to see something built to exist rather than to serve a purpose. I’ve long worried that cars have lost their souls and have become simply keenly designed appliances. It’s heartening to see someone try to challenge that trend.
Reboot Buggy from Baas Creative on Vimeo.
