Roller Skate Car Is Fascinating One-Off, Has a V8 Instead of Toes

When custom cars are concerned, in the U.S. especially, hot rods are a significant part of history and heritage. Hot rods were the first custom cars that made the concept popular in the country, and some specialized in creating them.

There was just a step separating hot-rods from one-offs, and some creations took the idea further by building show cars to underline skill, craftsmanship, and imagination.

With that in mind, about three decades ago, famous hot rod builder Jay Ohrberg built what is referred to as the Roller Skate Car. It is a vehicle that is shaped like a vintage roller skate, which was the only design that accommodated four wheels instead of the inline-wheel style that emerged later.

The inspiration behind this creation was a TV show from the early '90s called Mel's Diner, which had waitresses on roller skates. As you can observe, the fiberglass body of this one-off has Mel's Diner painted on its side.

The vehicle is currently an exhibit of the Volo Museum in Illinois, and Al, its owner, tells the tale of why he bought it. A test drive later, the vehicle was acquired. As it turns out, despite having a Chevy 350 (5.73-liter) V8, the vehicle is not meant for speed. Instead, it tops out at about 20 mph (ca. 32 kph).

Driving it from that height appears to be a bizarre experience, which may not be for those who are afraid of heights or tight spaces. The vehicle has a height of 14 feet (4.26 meters), a length of 13 feet (3.9 meters), and weighs 2,800 pounds (1,270 kg).

That makes for tricky handling if someone were to try to go fast in this, and there is no suspension except for the sidewalls of the four tires that were initially made for drag racing. For the sake of preserving a one-off, nobody has attempted to do so.