The CitiCar is an Electric Cheese Wedge From the 70's 

Modern EVs: *Quiet as a mouse* The Citicar: "Reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee"

are we all going to ignore the cat?

Nancy's guy Frank here.... I owned and drove one for 5 years, my wife took our car to work and I had the choice of buying a gas car and all of the expense of operating that, or buying the CitiCar with no gas or oil expense. I chose the Citicar, so I didn't have to walk to work... we lived in a small city at the time and I was only about 2 miles from my job. I ended up charging it ONLY once a week. ALL of my gauges worked like they were supposed to work, and the doors closed easily like they should. Mine had 8 - 6V golf cart batteries, I found that a bungee cord hooked to one metal bar of the rt. window and over my head to the metal bar of the other window effectively killed all of the drafts in the winter time. Also, the frame was of large Pipes (like race cars use) from the front bumper over the drivers head to the back bumper. So when you really looked at it... the driver was in a "basic" Roll bar cage... much safer than at first glance. Still I did not want to be hit in it though, but the roll bar cage did give me a little more confidence. I DID get the car to go up to 47 MPH ONE TIME! It was going down a long hill, and that was my first and only time at that speed. The short wheel base made it rather unstable as it jumped from lane to lane with only a small movement of the steering wheel. Had to hold the wheel perfectly still or you would be crossing the yellow, double line, on the road and running head on into on coming traffic. I actually served me well for the time that I needed it. MUCH cheaper than running a gas car for that short distance each day.

0:47 What I find more impressive is how the car can grow a tail at a moments notice.

Me: Can we get a Tesla Mom: we have a Tesla at home Tesla at home:

Mom can we have Cybertruck? Mom: no, we have Cybertruck at home Cybertruck at home:

“And he’s brought a piece of cheese.” -Jeremy Clarkson

Today, 8 hours ago, my son received his CitiCar. Yes, delivered in an enclosed carrier as the width of the track would not allow it to go up on an outdoor rig. I just got home from there. Good Lord. The cheesiness is unbelievable. We are trying to grasp the concept. Get our heads around it. His makes your look like a perfect specimen. It gives us the flavor of something like a kiddie car at an amusement park, the kind that the kids think they are "driving" but it is in fact pulled by a cable underneath the concrete path. Where do I start. The seats feel like they were designed by someone who said, "Let's make the most uncomfortable seats as possible". No matter how you sit, and how you move around, you cannot even get slightly OK. You are just uncomfortable. On his, this seat bottom can be removed to reveal the battery case underneath. Behind this sheet metal case, there is just an opening to the road. Just open. So you are separated from an opening that goes to the street by just the seat bottom. I guess that is the method to provide ventilation to the batteries. Insane! The old bass terd that sold him the car said that everything works, it just needs the batteries. When I saw it, I noticed the brake pedal was on the floor. "The brakes need some work Dad" my son said. Upon closer inspection, I discovered that the brake pedal was just freely swinging from its mount. The mechanism to connect it to the master cylinder is gone. Upon even closer inspection, I discovered that there is no master cylinder, or anything else! The rubber brake hoses are there for the front, just sitting in their mounts. The line for the rear brakes is just hanging weirdly in the air. "It just needs brakes, the mother****** said". Cracks as described in the A pillar. And the doors. None in the front piece. No battery connector cables. "They just take regular cables!" the guy said, whatever that means. Yeah, regular cables that have battery terminal connections on BOTH ends, plus whatever goes off to the motor. You know, the "regular" cables. The bright side today is I was able to push the car up the driveway. Up a slight incline. By myself. With my son inside. With one arm. Sigh.

It's literally just a street legal golf cart at this point.

Someone designed this and went “yes it’s amazing” And it was actually built Chase your dreams folks , chase your dreams

The cat was guarding the cheese form any possible rats🤣🤣🤣

Learned this from going to the Lane Motor museum, where they have one of these along with several other similar French electric cars from the 70's. Back then you didn't need a driver's license to own/operate one of these. But they were so awful the only people who bought them were the town drunks who had their license suspended due to DUI.

"How did they sell these things?" followed by "I love this thing" Perfection.

Cheese Louise! I half expected Simone Giertz to come popping out halfway through

"Why would anyone buy this?!" "Hehe, this is halarious. I love it!"

@ 6:23 you ask, "Who would buy these things?" Well, my best friend from grade school's dad, that's who. I about fell over when I saw the title of this and watching you go through all the parts and how it drives brought back a BUNCH of memories! He took me for a ride around town in it and I thought it was the coolest thing ever, but even as a late grade schooler I recognized the impracticality of it.

When I was a kid in the 70s, someone in my neighborhood had one of these, so I used to see it driving around all the time. I found it both fascinating and hilarious.

The wedge car will never die! Until it has to go uphill, or it gets cold.

All it needs is a wind up key in the back and this car would be perfect.

While I was stationed in Louisiana, had a co-worker who owned one. Considering the speed limit on base, it was theoretically ideal for commuting in that environment. Never asked the co-worker how it held up in that state's notorious humidity and rainstorms.

How long until the "I bought a CitiCar" video we wonder....

Me:Can i buy a Wheego? Mom: We have a Wheego at home Wheego at home:

I don’t know what was more entertaining, viewing this example of an electric road car to tackle the gas crisis or listening to your chirps and chuckles at the experience of driving it! Thank you!

Great video!! LOLOL!! you are hysterical! ""legally, you could take this on the highway, but it would be certain death." HAHA!! We were one of the 4,000. My dad had a light blue one with the stripe. I started having flashbacks with the windows that slide off, and the smell you were talking about. I was around 7 years old when we got it, and my dad would put me in that tiny space behind the seats, looking out the back window while we were driving like i was an exhibit in a traveling zoo. I grew up in Charlotte, and everywhere we went, people would pull over to watch us drive by, then they would follow us to stop and ask questions about it. The Charlotte Observer did an article about it, and I was in the picture with my Dad. Thanks again, you made my day... ;)

"I'm doing over the speed limit!" imagine being pulled over in a cheese wheel...

So this is where Elon based his Tesla cyber truck design ideas from.

Thanks for this review. Brought back fun memories. When I was about 5 years old my family moved to Sebring & my dad worked for Vanguard. We had a green Citicar. All your comments in your review were spot on. My favorite Citicar memory was when they had a parade lap/race prior to the 12 Hours of Sebring race with about 20 Citicars... I got to ride with my dad for that lap. Our memory is how quite it was. You could hear the fans along the track talking & that back straight took forever going 30’ish mph!! (We came in second 😎)

"It's so loud and I'm barely moving. This is best thing ever"

Everybody gangsta till a giant mouse comes to you

"3.5 horsepower" - okay, that doesn't sound so bad "brushed dc motor" - i want to die

This reminds me of Soviet battery-powered hauler from about the same era, a two-seater with a cargo platform, was used to pull cargo trolleys in mail sorting facilities, and on some factories where for some or other reason traditional vehicles were considered not okay. Made similar noises and was also yellow. But three times longer and ten times heavier (it used 10 if not 20 led-acid batteries).

It seems perfect - electric, sits two, space for small load, low cost (I assume), lots of fun from driving at minimal speeds. These really seem great city vehicle specs to me! And all this was possible in 70s.

i love your hysterical laughing when you’re driving it and it’s going like 20 mph yet it’s so loud

The Citicar is basically a golf cart with windows

Thank you for bringing back memories. I drove one in Erie, PA. Not mine, but owned by a close cycling friend of mine who was starting up a bicycle shop in town during the Bike Boom, and I was his mechanic. John D'Angelo's was a little older than this one (memory is saying 1973, but could be 1974) and was one of the hard-core eco freaks in town. Thus his selling off his 72 Honda Z600 for one of these. I remember his had a propane heater in it, where you'd screw one of the Coleman bottles into the heater, and I only remember three batteries under the seat. And once your mileage ran past the 25 mile mark, you could count on your top speed dropping. By the 35 mile point, you were crawling home.

Given the opportunity, I would buy one of these in a heartbeat. Throw a couple Ebike batteries in parallel and you are off. It is also probably one of the few cars ever built that today is even easier to maintain as you can 3d print your own body pannels.

"No Locks" and who in their right mind would try to steal it?

"Sir, do you know why I pulled you over?" *Suppressing giggles* I have SEVERAL theories!

When the voltameter's on empty, the battery's been stolen.

The cat licking his ass during the intro...best car channel on YT hands down

0:42 man that CitiCar is happy to get out and about, just look at it wag it's tail!

0:43 I like how this car has a tail. Must be trying to attract mice looking like a wedge of cheese.

Boomers: cars in my day were built to last Cars in their day:

The amount of times I have rewatched this cheese wedge centered video is too much

“This is the most fun I’ve had barely moving” The perfect expression of the Citicar

The car doubles as a coffin in the event of a collision.

That looks like a fun toy, should be a modern more reliable version made. I like the idea of using off the shelf batteries to run it.

I remember back in the 1960s and 70's, the magazine popular Mechanic would always showcase a interesting vehicle some person made themselves that was a engineer , college kids from MIT or just some person that was inventive would create some vehicle that had unique power system or design and tout its merits like it got 72MPG or ran on batteries and so on and you could buy the plans to build one yourself from the inventors of the vehicles , That Cheese wedge looks like the kind of vehicle you would see the magazine doing a story on

"This is a step below a golf car somehow"

Bruh, this dude out here driving the McDonald's Play-Place.

I remember looking at those on the showroom floor of the local AMC dealer. They had two sitting on the showroom floor next to a new for that year Pacer, a Bricklin SV1, and a Matador coupe and wagon. A cousin of mine was a saleman there at the time and they were having a big event to show off the Pacer and the Citycar to the public. We were going to take one for a ride but I didn't fit. I could jamb my 6ft3in self into the car but couldn't work the pedals or shut the door. The Bricklin, which they were really pushing to sell as well wasn't any better for interior size. There was also two versions of the citycar, they had one with a rear seat as well. I remember that day because I drove there in my 71 Lincoln and couldn't help but think how scary a crash between a Lincoln and one of those electric cars would be. Then, as I was leaving, a salesman heading out to get lunch, driving one of the electric cars got hit by an old woman driving a 72 Chrysler wagon. The City car broke into pieces, but the driver wasn't hurt, at least he walked away, but the City car was pretty much totaled. The Chrysler had no damage, just some dirt knocked off underneath.

I love the cat showing up, and the hidden cat tail

If you squint hard enough, it kinda looks like a Countach

That goofy grin that you just couldn't wipe off your face may explain why they sold so many of these things. It looks like you were having a blast.

A Norwegian company produced about 1500 of an electric car that looks a lot like this one between 1991 and 2013. It was called the Kewet Buddy Citi-Jet. It even hade the strange spelling of "City". I wonder if they're related or if the norwegians were just inspired by the Citicar.

"Electric Cheese Wedge From the 70's" is such a good description

Cat... "Yeah I'll check it out, but first I need to clean my ass." Hilarious creatures.

This is like the Doug Demuro of cars that WERE quirks, had NO features and were bumper-to-bumper mistakes. Well done, I was thoroughly entertained.

Ngl this thing is unironically awesome and I would love if some niche car company created a refreshed version, some may argue the Renault Twizy exists but it doesn't have the same aesthetic, that cheese wedge shape is to die for

I haven't seen in my whole life a car analyst having this much fun driving .

'no power brakes no power steering', it sounds like it's hardly got a power assisted motor, lol

I'd wager a lot of those 4000 units sold were to residents of communities with golf cart trail networks. As ridiculous as it is as a car, it's a pretty fun golf cart equivalent that could take you on the road when needed.

I've seen this car a few decade ago when I was riding my bike down in Lehigh Acres, Florida. I've never seen such a strange car like it.

That cat cleaning up shall wait a giant bait of cheese has been left now for the mouse

The true question is "If a Citicar rear ends a pinto at full speed, who explodes first?"

Watching this man giggle while driving the equivalent of a little tikes my first Chevrolet on the road is enjoyable. Cheese wedge for the win.

You had me in stitches, when you said may as well have a squrl breathing down your back, and your wright, you are having to much fun!!

There was one in Urbandale, Iowa in about 1976 time frame. Family came to pick up their kid at St.Pius X Elementary school. THey had a Propane camping heater in it during the winter time.

Me: *sees cat* Me: awwww *proceeds to ignore everything else*

Nobody: That one cat in the background: *licks it’s balls*

You had a genuine blast making this and I love it

0:43 "The most interesting thing about this car is that.... it has a cat tail."

"The interior, if you can even call it that" .. LOL *switch to dash shot* Awww .. look at that sweet BROWN

I'm with the owner on not trying to improve the throttle; its gives this car character and besides, to what end are you going to improve this car?

Saw one about 5 or 10 years ago somewhere out East of San Antonio or Austin . It was at a small town used car dealer and truck repair place out a long a Highway somewhere.

I wonder if Sir Clive Sinclair had ever seen one of these before the C5? Very enjoyable. Thank you for making and sharing this.

When you pull up to a charging station in a Tesla and see this car charging

I love how you got slightly manic in this thing.

0:27 The Citicar has a top speed of 35mph. A domestic cat can run at speeds of up to 30mph. So we're basically looking at 2 vehicles in the same performance class. One major difference is a brushed motor produces DC current, whereas a brushed cat produces only static.

The joy the car’s absurdity brings you is infectious. You’re my best find on RU-vid in 2021! Please make more Under Dunn content too.

"Breaks are a little sketchy" That's always what you want to hear

8:06 "I'm going 31, _this is the best thing ever!"_ This man is my hero. Solid rec from Technology Connections!

Crowder College in Neosho, MO had one of these that they converted to compressed air operation. I was told it had a range of 40-50 miles. Professor Art Boyt who still works there would be a great person to ask about the many alternative energy vehicles they have built over the years.

I think using Mosfets and a PWM switching controller the throttle design can be improved. The motor can be changed to brushless motors and the batteries to lithium ions. Anyway, I came to your channel from "Technology Connections" and found your video informative and funny at the same time.

0:43 I didn't know this car had a tail, that's a cool feature

Never thought I would see Cheese Louise in my recomended videos, much less in a channel outside Simone's

I live in FL and I’ve actually seen a few of these. Hearing that they were manufactured in sebring, makes that make sense lol

This seems more fun than most regular car and certainly supercars! I love hearing the author giggling while testing.

It's named CitiCar because they weren't allowed to call it the ShittyCar

My dad bought one of these for $800. It was an interesting ride.

These were around a private campground my family had a place in. Everyone used golf carts to get around except for a few people who had these weird things!

Love the kitty just chillin in the backround

I almost bought one of these off of Craigslist Biggest missed opportunity I’ve ever missed

"Honey, it's pretty chilly out. Can you grab the squirrel?"

I just saw an ad for one of these for sale in Hawkins, TX on Facebook marketplace. For a mere $3000 (plus the cost of batteries,) you could own your own cheddar wedge.

you're having so much fun, this is wonderful.

I remember seeing one of these in an episode of “The John Larroquette show.“ The title character won one of these in a contest. His rent agreement stated that his electricity was paid for with his rent. The landlord had a fit when the electric bill jumped threefold because of John charging his car.

dude I'm going to buy a couple of Tesla logos and tell everyone that this is the newest beta model

0:44 aww how cute the cars tail is twitching for how excited that he's going for a ride today

In 1984 I lived in Woodgate Manor in Gainesville and the security guy at the entrance drove one of these. Wasn't a gated neighborhood he just sat in a booth watching people come and go. About 4 months before we moved I stopped seeing him there anymore. Was cool seeing this video it brought back a few memories. 👍