Amazing Automobile Art From Burning Man 2012
In late August, more than 50,000 like-minded people gathers for a week in the Black Rock Desert in northern Nevada for the annual Burning Man festival. Cars are not allowed as transport in this temporary small city, yet art cars called Mutant Vehicles are encouraged and even funded by a Burning Man foundation.
These cars carry people and put on shows at less than 15 mph, and like the festival itself, they’re about radical self-expression.
Here are the 10 wildest art cars.
Elite.
10. Anglerfish
Owner Joel Brown of the Looking Glass House Restaurant in Eureka, Calif., credits the "mad genius" of metal artist Mark Whitman for much of the design and operation of the vehicle.9. Madame Astrolabe
The hull of the boat shape incorporates large speakers, which Cartier says attracts riders. Boat throttles control the engine and the automatic transmission of the Madame, which has carried as many as 48 people on its deck. The Madame has appeared at four Burning Man festivals, and Cartier plans to return.8. Neverwas Haul
The first floor of the mansion is the "engine room"; it's made of a steel frame to support the upper levels. Upstairs is a lounge deck that will hold about 10 people, O'Hare says. Above that is an observation deck. A 70-gallon propane tank fuels the machine, which tours the Burning Man playa daily during the event, covering about 30 miles a day. For the 2012 festival, the Neverwas Haul is getting a new three-cylinder Kubota engine.7. C.S. Tere: The Lost Machine
Eight specially designed nozzles located in the large mast spray propane to create the sheets of flame. Tibbets, who began designing the machine in 2004 and building it in 2008, recruited more than 100 people to help construct it. At The Lost Machine's debut in 2010, the hydraulic drive system acted up, so the whole thing had to be towed around the festival. But, Tibbets says, the fire displays made the effort worthwhile.6. The Nautilus
Californians Christopher and Amber Marie Bently conceived the idea; Five Ton Crane, creators of art sculptures in the San Francisco Bay area, built it. The Nautilus is 25 feet long and 12 feet tall and made of laser-welded steel with decorative rivets lining the hull.The engine and steering controls are on the "bridge" of the machine. The Nautilus features surround sound, a library, a map room, and a full bar.5. Wonder Wagon
The GEM's batteries are charged by a combination of solar cells and a Honda 3000-watt generator, which also powers a 110-volt lighting system. There is also a propane-powered flame system that shoots balls of fire, and the horses have crowns of fire that light up the night. Bates says that the idea came from a promotional toy stagecoach from Wells Fargo Bank, and the Wonder Wagon has appeared at the Burning Man festival every year since 2008.4. Walter the Bus
Strawn and company designed and built the bus with a steel frame and panels, keeping the giant fire-truck tires that were the basis of the proportions of the bus.3. Berserker
2. Rustang Sally and Franken Wagen
1. The Golden Mean
Metal artist Jon Sarriugarte built a 12-foot snail on top of a 1966 VW Beetle floor pan. The galvanized scrap metal is cut into "scales" and welded together.Because the vehicle is intended to carry up to 19 people, Sarriugarte replaced the stock VW suspension with airbags and a compressor that can vary the load-carrying capacity. The engine is hot-rodded and has a large snorkel system to keep sand out during Black Rock Desert sandstorms. The steering linkage and brake systems are a custom design, he says, but the rearview mirror and a split rear window are homages to the original Beetle. Small balls of flames shoot from the vehicle's antennae, and the vehicle is licensed for street use. The Golden Mean won't be at this year's Burning Man, though, since Sarriugarte and his wife, Kyrsten Mate, are bringing two new 50-foot-tall wheeled serpent vehicles instead.
