View source for Amphicar

{{short description|Amphibious automobile}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2024}}
{{Infobox automobile
| image = Amphicar p1.jpg
| caption = Amphicar Model 770
| name = Amphicar Model 770
| manufacturer = Quandt Group
| production = 1960–1965<br />3,878 built
| model_years = 1960–1968
| body_style = 2-door cabriolet<br />with boat features
| layout = [[RR layout]]
| engine = 1147&nbsp;cc [[straight-4]] ''(Triumph)''
| transmission = 4-speed<br> all-synchromesh [[Manual transmission|manual]]
| length = {{convert|171|in|mm|0|abbr=on}}
| width = {{convert|62|in|mm|0|abbr=on}}
| height = {{convert|60|in|mm|0|abbr=on}}
| weight = {{convert|2315-2324|lb|kg|0|abbr=on}}
| wheelbase = {{convert|84|in|mm|0|abbr=on}}<ref>{{cite book
    | last = Cardew
    | first = Basil
    | title = Daily Express Review of the 1966 Motor Show
    | year = 1966
    | publisher = Beaverbrook Newspapers Ltd
    | location = London
  }}</ref>
| related = 
| designer = [[Hans Trippel]]
| powerout = {{convert|38|bhp|PS kW}} @ 4,750 rpm <br /> {{convert|88|N.m}} 2,500 rpm
}}

[[File:Amphicar-main-ffm001.jpg|thumb|Boating ([[Main (river)|Main]] in Frankfurt)]]
[[File:Amphicar Cabriolet 1963.jpg|thumb|Motoring]]
[[File:UlsterMuseumCar.jpg|alt=An Amphicar at the Ulster Folk and Transport museum, Northern Ireland.|thumb|A righthand drive Amphicar at the Ulster Folk and Transport museum, Northern Ireland]]
[[File:Amphicar 1964 1172cc twin propellers.JPG|thumb|Propulsion is provided by twin propellers mounted under the rear bumper]]
[[File:Amphicar gearbox.JPG|thumb|Amphicar gearbox]]
[[File:LBJAmphicar.jpg|thumb|President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] driving an Amphicar, 1965]]
[[File:Amphicar-Dealership-Banner.jpg|thumb|alt=Amphicar Dealership Banner|Dealership Banner From the Early 1960s]]
The '''Amphicar Model 770''' is an [[amphibious automobile]] which was launched at the 1961 [[New York Auto Show]].<ref name="petro">{{cite web
  | title = The Amphicar 770 is a Car No One Understands, Everyone Loves 
  | publisher = Petrolicious.com
  | author = 
  | date = January 8, 2014
  | url = http://petrolicious.com/amphicar-770-a-car-no-one-understands-but-everyone-loves}}</ref> It was made in [[West Germany]] and marketed from 1961 to 1968, with production ceasing in 1965.

Designed by [[Hans Trippel]], the amphibious vehicle was manufactured by the [[Harald Quandt#Post-war activities|Quandt Group]] at [[Lübeck]] and at [[Berlin-Borsigwalde]], with a total of 3,878 manufactured in a single generation. The name ''Amphicar'' is a [[portmanteau]] of "amphibious" and "car".

A spiritual descendant of the [[Volkswagen Schwimmwagen]],<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Neil |first=Dan |date=September 4, 2007 |title=The 50 Worst Cars of All Time: 1961 Amphicar |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |url=https://content.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1658545_1658498_1657832,00.html |url-status=dead |access-date=2009-04-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071015024958/http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1658545_1658498_1657832,00.html |archive-date=October 15, 2007}}</ref> and the [[Trippel SG6]], the Amphicar offered only modest performance compared to most contemporary boats or cars, featured navigation lights and flag as mandated by the US Coast Guard – and after operation in water, required greasing at 13 points, one of which required removal of the rear seat.<ref name="petro" />

In 2014, the publication ''Petrolicious'' described the Amphicar as "good for one thing: fun. It's not quick or flashy, but it's iconic, unique and friendly. What more could you ask from a vintage car? The Amphicar might not make any sense and that's precisely why it's so wonderful."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Productions |first=Petrolicious |date=2014-01-07 |title=The Amphicar 770 is a Car No One Understands, Everyone Loves |url=https://petrolicious.com/articles/amphicar-770-a-car-no-one-understands-but-everyone-loves |access-date=2023-02-17 |website=Petrolicious |language=en}}</ref>

==Product description (1966 Amphicar Model 770)==
'''Engine''': [[Triumph Motor Company|Triumph]] four-cylinder engine of 1147 cc, 8:1 compression ratio, rated at 43&nbsp;bhp

'''Chassis/body'''
{| class="wikitable"
|Overall length
|14.250&nbsp;ft (4.343 m)
|-
|Overall width
|5.083&nbsp;ft (1.549 m)
|-
|Height
|5.000&nbsp;ft (1.524 m)
|-
|Turning circle
|36.833&nbsp;ft (9.398 m)
|-
|Wheelbase
|7.000&nbsp;ft (2.134 m)
|-
|Front track
|4.000&nbsp;ft (1.219 m)
|-
|Rear track
|4.083&nbsp;ft (1.245 m)
|-
|Fuel tank capacity
|10.5 imperial gallons (13.125 U.S. gallons; 49.7 litres)
|-
|Empty weight
|2,315&nbsp;lb (1050&nbsp;kg) (includes fuel and oil)
|}
'''Appearance'''

Front undersurface is slightly pointed and sharply cut away below. The wheels are set low, so that the vehicle stands well above ground level when on dry land. Front and rear bumpers are placed low on the body panels (but fairly high in relation to dry ground). The one-piece [[windshield]] is curved. The foldable top causes the body style to be classified as ''[[Convertible (car)|cabriolet]]''. Its water propulsion is provided by twin propellers mounted under the rear bumper.<ref name="Manwaring">A. L. Manwaring, ''The Observer's Book of Automobiles'' (12th ed. 1966), Library of Congress catalog card 62-9807, p. 38</ref> The Amphicar is made of [[Carbon steel|mild steel]].

==Powertrain==

The Amphicar's engine was mounted at the rear of the craft, driving the rear wheels through a 4-speed manual transmission. For use in the water, the same engine drove a pair of reversible propellers at the rear, with a second gear lever engaging forward or reverse drive. Once in the water, the main gear lever would normally be left in neutral. By engaging first gear as well as drive to the propellers when approaching a boat ramp, the Amphicar could drive itself out of the water.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.amphicars.com/acfaq.htm |title=Amphicar 'Start Here' |publisher=Amphicars |date= |access-date=2015-05-04}}</ref>

== Performance ==
The powerplant was the 1147&nbsp;cc (69&nbsp;in<sup>3</sup>) [[Standard SC engine]] from the British [[Triumph Motor Company|Triumph]] [[Triumph Herald|Herald 1200]]. Many engines were tried in prototypes, but the Triumph engine was "state of the art" in 1961 and it had the necessary combination of performance, weight, cool running, and reliability. Updated versions of this engine remained in production in the [[Triumph Spitfire]] until 1980. The Amphicar engine had a power output of 43&nbsp;[[Horsepower#Society of Automotive Engineers/SAE International|hp]] (32&nbsp;kW) at 4750&nbsp;[[Revolutions per minute|rpm]], slightly more than the Triumph Herald due to a shorter exhaust.<ref>{{cite web |date=March 13, 2021 |title=Increase Horsepower: How to Let Exhaust Exit More Easily |url=https://www.doityourself.com/stry/increase-horsepower-how-to-let-exhaust-exit-more-easily |website=DIY Home Improvement Information {{!}} DoItYourself.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210418122818/https://www.doityourself.com/stry/increase-horsepower-how-to-let-exhaust-exit-more-easily |archive-date=April 18, 2021}}</ref> Designated the "Model 770",<ref name="Manwaring" /> the Amphicar could achieve speeds of 7&nbsp;[[knot (unit)|knot]]s in the water and 70&nbsp;mph (110&nbsp;km/h) on land. Later versions of the engine displaced 1296&nbsp;cc and 1493&nbsp;cc and produced up to {{convert|75|bhp|abbr=on}}.[[File:Amphicar 1962.JPG|thumb|1962 Amphicar interior]]
[[File:1967 Yukon River Flotilla Coffee Creek.jpg|thumb|Four Amphicars on the bank of the Yukon River at Coffee Creek. August 1967<ref name="yukon">{{Cite web |last=Wearley |first=Gary |title=ExploreNorth |url=https://explorenorth.com/articles/yukon_flotilla-1967.html |access-date=2023-05-31 |website=explorenorth.com}}</ref>]]
In water as well as on land, the Amphicar is steered with the front wheels, making it less maneuverable than a conventional boat.<ref>{{cite book
  | last = Davis
  | first = Tony
  | title = Extra Lemon !
  | publisher = Bantam
  | location = Sydney
  | page = 147
  | isbn = 1-86325-550-8
  | year = 2005
}}</ref>

== In popular culture ==
{{Infobox event
| title = 1967 Yukon River Flotilla
| image = 1967 Yukon River Flotilla at Forty Mile.jpg
| logo = 
| date = 7–16 August 1967
| duration = Ten Days & 460 miles
| venue = Whitehorse, YT to Dawson, YT
| Location = Yukon Territory Canada
| type = 54 Watercraft Flotilla
| organizers = Yukon Fish and Game Association & Alaska Purchase Centennial Commission
| participants = 153 people, 108 adults, 45 children, and nine dogs in 54 watercraft including four Amphicars
}}
In June, 1965, two Amphicars successfully navigated the [[Yukon River]] in Alaska.<ref>Automobile quarterly, Volume 35, Issue 1</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Stewart |first=Oro |title=The Yukon Adventure! June 15th, 1965 |url=https://www.amphicars.com/test/default.html}}</ref>

In September, 1965, two Amphicars crossed the [[English Channel]]<ref>Dec 10 1965 Autocar magazine</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=CARS AHOY by Capt. Peter Tappenden and Capt. M.B.Bailey |url=https://www.amphicars.com/test/default.html}}</ref>

In August, 1967, four Amphicars participated in the 1967 Yukon River Flotilla a joint [[Alaska]]-[[Yukon]] [[Centennial]] project commemorating the memory of the rugged [[Klondike Gold Rush|Klondike]] gold-seekers who sailed down the [[Yukon River]] in 1898.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wearley |first=Gary |date=May 27, 2023 |title=Yukon Flotilla, 1967 |url=https://explorenorth.com/articles/yukon_flotilla-1967.html |website=ExploreNorth}}</ref>

Lea Edgar wrote in ''BC Shipping News'', October 2018: "One more local story regarding the Amphicar is that of the 1967 Yukon River Flotilla. A 10-day, 460-mile trip from [[Whitehorse]] down river to Dawson City was planned as a joint Alaska-Yukon Centennial project. Fifty-four craft were used, of those, four were Amphicars. The owners of the Amphicars were all Americans from Alaska. On August 16, the flotilla, including the Amphicars, made it to [[Dawson City]] where [[Discovery Day]] celebrations were in full swing."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Edgar |first=Lea |url=https://issuu.com/janemci/docs/bcsn-oct18/18 |title=BC Shipping News |year=2018 |page=19}}</ref><ref name="yukon" /><ref>{{Cite book |last=Firth |first=John |url=http://archive.org/details/rivertimeracingg0000firt |title=River time : racing the ghosts of the Klondike rush |date=2004 |publisher=Edmonton : NeWest Press |others=Internet Archive |isbn=978-1-896300-66-5}}</ref>

US President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] owned an Amphicar. Johnson, a known practical joker, was said to enjoy frightening visitors at his [[Johnson City, Texas|Johnson City]], [[Texas]] [[Lyndon_B._Johnson_National_Historical_Park#LBJ_Ranch|ranch]] by driving them downhill in his Amphicar, directly into his property's lake, all the while shouting that he had malfunctioning brakes.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Smolkin |first1=Rachel |last2=Williams |first2=Brenna |date=2015-10-01 |title=How LBJ scared visitors at his ranch |url=https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2015/10/politics/lbj-ranch-history/ |access-date=2021-04-09 |website=www.cnn.com |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>[http://mentalfloss.com/article/18463/lbj-president-who-marked-his-territory LBJ: The President Who Marked His Territory – Mental Floss<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

Amphicars appear in the films ''[[Rotten to the Core (film)|Rotten to the Core]]'' (1965), ''[[The Sandwich Man (1966 film)|The Sandwich Man]]'' (1966), ''[[The President's Analyst]]'' (1967), ''[[Inspector Clouseau (film)|Inspector Clouseau]]'' (1968), ''[[The Laughing Woman]]'' (1969), ''[[Savannah Smiles]]'' (1982), and ''[[Pontiac Moon]]'' (1994), and in episode five of season four of ''[[List of The Avengers episodes|The Avengers]]'' ("Castle De'ath", 1965). It also appears in the TV movie ''[[All the Way (2016 film)|All the Way]]'' (2016). In [[$pringfield (or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling)|a fifth-season episode]] of ''[[The Simpsons]]'', an antique filmstrip touts Springfield's famous "aqua-car" factory, showing Amphicars rolling off an assembly line and into the water.

==History==

Production started in late 1960. By the end of 1963, complete production was stopped.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Specialty Amphicars - International Amphicar Owners Club (IAOC) |url=https://www.amphicar.com/content.aspx?page_id=22&club_id=719899&module_id=368543 |access-date=2023-02-08 |website=www.amphicar.com}}</ref> From 1963 to 1965 cars were assembled from shells and parts inventory built up in anticipation of sales of 25,000<ref>Kubisch</ref> units, with the last new build units assembled in 1965. Cars were titled in the year they actually sold rather than when they were produced, e.g. an unsold Amphicar assembled in 1963 or 1965 could be titled as 1967 or 1968 if that was when it was first sold. Although the inventory could not be sold in the U.S. in the 1968 model year or later due to new environmental and USDOT emissions and safety equipment standards, they were available in other countries into 1968. The remaining inventory of unused parts was eventually purchased by Hugh Gordon of Santa Fe Springs, California.<ref>"History Of The Amphicar", International Amphicar Owners' Club</ref>

Most Amphicars were sold in the United States. Cars were sold in the United Kingdom from 1964. Total production was 3,878 vehicles,<ref name="petro" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=History of the Amphicar - International Amphicar Owners Club (IAOC) |url=https://www.amphicar.com/content.aspx?page_id=22&club_id=719899&module_id=365743 |access-date=2023-02-08 |website=www.amphicar.com}}</ref> of which only 97 were right-hand drive. Some were used in the [[Berlin]] police department and others were fitted for rescue operations.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Specialty Amphicars - International Amphicar Owners Club (IAOC) |url=https://www.amphicar.com/content.aspx?page_id=22&club_id=719899&module_id=368543 |access-date=2023-02-09 |website=www.amphicar.com}}</ref>

==Amphicar shows and rides==
Amphicar owners regularly convene during the spring, summer, and fall at various locations nationwide for "swim-ins",<ref>{{Cite web |title=Swim-in Calendar – www.amphicar.com |url=https://www.amphicar.com/content.aspx?page_id=4001&club_id=719899&action=cira&vm=MonthGrid |access-date=2018-07-24 |website=amphicar.com |language=en-US}}</ref> the largest of which is held at [[Grand Lake St. Marys|Grand Lake St. Marys State Park, Ohio]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.oldcarsweekly.com/news/international-amphicar-owners-club-50th-anniversary-swim|title=Amphicar Owners Club set 50th Anniversary Swim-in - Old Cars Weekly|date=2018-02-27|work=Old Cars Weekly|access-date=2018-07-24|language=en-US}}</ref>

In 2015, the Boathouse at [[Walt Disney World]]'s [[Disney Springs]] in [[Orlando, Florida]], began offering public Amphicar rides to visitors, charging $125 per ride for groups of up to three. Disney heavily re-engineered and enhanced the eight Amphicars of various original colors<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.mouseplanet.com/11656/The_Story_Behind_the_Disney_Springs_Amphicars|title=The Story Behind the Disney Springs Amphicars|access-date=2018-07-24}}</ref> in its fleet for safety, reliability, and comfort.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hemmings.com/stories/up-close-with-the-amphicars-of-disney-springs/|title=Up close with the Amphicars of Disney Springs|website=hemmings.com|access-date=2018-07-24}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[DUKW]]
* [[Dutton Cars]]
* [[Gibbs Aquada]] (2004)
* [[Gibbs Humdinga]] (2006)
* [[Gibbs Quadski]] (2006)
* [[Schwimmwagen|KdF Schwimmwagen Type 166 (1942)]]
* [[Trippel SG6]]
* [[Swamp buggy]]
* [[WaterCar]]
* [[Rinspeed sQuba]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Amphicar}}
* [http://www.amphicar.com/ Official website of the International Amphicar Owners Club]
* [http://www.amphicar770.com/ 400+ member Amphicar discussion forums] with thousands of archived messages related to the Amphicar
* [http://www.amphicars.com/ Amphicars.com a UK site with a lot of photographs and information on the "Wonderful World of Amphicars"]
* [https://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2005/07/24/national/20050725_AMPHI_SLIDESHOW_index.html Amphicar slideshow]
* [http://www.amphicarventures.com/ AmphicarVentures]; has photos, videos, history, and a list of Amphicar friendly lakes and ramps
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWlteFpFGmw/ Amphicar picnic: light-hearted video] Mid-1960s video of an Amphicar in Jacksonville, Florida, in a short video with a local television personality.
* [http://video.wpt.org/video/2365323276/ Amphicar] Video produced by ''[[Wisconsin Public Television]]''

[[Category:Vehicles introduced in 1961]]
[[Category:Wheeled amphibious vehicles]]
[[Category:Rear-engined vehicles]]
[[Category:Cars of Germany]]