When is a minivan not a minivan? When it accidentally becomes a sedan by welding two front halves together back to back. That’s how Zach Sutton created “Bak2Bak,” reports the Detroit Free Pressa unique vehicle that is so wrong, it’s right. “There’s no reason to do this,” Sutton told the Detroit Free Press. “The only reason for this is to be silly and fun.”
Sutton and a few friends built this two-faced travesty in just three days at i3Detroit, a community maker space in nearby Ferndale. The boxy design of these old Chrysler minivans lends itself well to this project, with no awkward curves to blend into each other. The two donor vehicles were a 1993 Dodge Caravan and a 1991 Plymouth Grand Voyager, each purchased for just $1,500. (Such low prices for these minivans have also been our experience.) Each end retains its original color and brand identity, making the subtle styling tweaks to distinguish the Dodge from the Plymouth clearer and more entertaining.
The Dodge half still powers the car with its original 3.3-liter V6, which has covered almost 200,000 miles. The Plymouth half brings the rear forward, with a gas tank and a trunk where the engine used to be. The headlights are now red taillights. Sutton says police have not harassed him and have only been positive about his creation. The rear half’s steering is normally locked so it can drive straight down the road, but after releasing it with a switch labeled “Pull for a Good Time,” a rear-facing passenger can share steering duties with the driver, enabling a Hummer EV-style crabwalk mode and the tightest turning circle a Chrysler minivan has ever seen.
Dual nationality
The CBC points out another interesting aspect of this creation: it is dual nationality. While the Plymouth Voyager was built in Fenton, Missouri, the Dodge Caravan was made in Windsor, Ontario, just across the border from Detroit. Sutton may not have had international diplomacy in mind when he chose the donor vans, but it’s something he supports. He works as a production engineer for Detroit Diesel, along with many colleagues who commute from Windsor.
“It’s a model for what we would like to be, in a strange way,” Sutton said after driving to Windsor to speak with CBC News.
“Working well together as brother and sister countries.”
That’s the way things used to be, and that’s still the way it would be if the American government didn’t play stupid games and win stupid prizes in international relations. As Sutton said USA today“There’s a lot of bad stupidity in the world right now, and I think the world needs more good stupidity.”
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