We can all agree that drinking and driving should never mix. Drinking and driving is dangerous and reckless, and, if we’re not mincing words, downright stupid. But that’s not to say that your passengers can’t have a good, alcohol-imbued time.
At least, that’s the proposition from one recent (failed) Kickstarter campaign, currently in the running for the unofficial title of the most ridiculous and ridiculously awesome car accessory of the year. The product is called The Car Bar and, just in case the name is not self-explanatory, it’s a portable bar for your car. Because, we learn almost right away in the introduction video also available below, no roadtrip is fun without some drinks.
Why drink like a peasant from a bottle, or risk spilling your beverage of choice on yourself as you try to pour it into a cup? Civilized people (who are, nonetheless, not opposed to the idea of getting trashed in the backseat during a roadtrip) drink from a dispenser... and the world could have had it with The Car Bar. We were just not paying attention.
On a more serious note, The Car Bar went live on the crowdfunding site in October 2022 and could have shipped internationally to backers in June 2023 if all things had gone to plan. On the first day of December, the campaign ended without the necessary support for production to go through, because only 10 people were convinced by the pitch.
Photo: Kickstarter / The Car Bar
So, what exactly is The Car Bar? It’s a complete package that straps to the back of the driver or right passenger’s chair (or both, if the backseat passengers are feeling particularly thirsty) and offers on-demand drinks much like one of those soda dispensers we see everywhere. The highest selling points of this accessory were that it would have made spillage of drinks on the road a thing of the past and that it was suitable for all ages and all destinations.
Though dubbed a bar, it consisted of two holders that fit two bottles and buttons that allowed you to pour either one or a combination of both. So, not technically a bar, but in the limited confines of a car, you can’t really afford to be too picky.
The Car Bar was designed by Sanjeev Lal, whose resume includes working as an engineer for Dyson, as an advisor for the UK government, and as a design engineering manager for the defense sector. He also runs a London-based company that retails designer luxury cigar cases and “modern gentleman accessories.”
Lal designed and tested 78 prototypes before getting to the final version of The Car Bar, which was ready to go into series production at the time the campaign went live. The patent-pending accessory weighs 1.4 kg (3 pounds) on its own. It measures 32 cm (12.6 inches) in length, 36 cm (14 inches) in height, and 11 cm (4.3 inches) in depth, so it won’t take too much space when set up. Setting up is as easy as serving drinks from it: you just clip it onto the headrest and adjust accordingly, add the bottles and secure the straps, and make sure the bungs are inserted into them.
Photo: Kickstarter / The Car Bar
The Car Bar comes with night LED backlight, illuminated LED push button, a foldable cup holder, and an integrated bottle opener, for those peasants who would still rather drink from a bottle. It’s powered by a 9V battery, or can be hooked up to the 12V car power supply, and has a flow rate of 0.7 liters (0.18 gallons) per minute. We’re not exactly sure how relevant is that last spec, since a minute is about all the time you need to drain one of the bottles; the description doesn’t mention the size of the bottles you can strap, but all photos show containers no larger than 0.75 liters (0.19 gallons).
And this brings us to the part about how this was a ridiculous idea from the start. We can laugh all we want about the idea of setting up a bar for your backseat passengers because they won’t drink from a bottle and laugh twice as hard as the thought of setting up a drinks’ stand for kids, when we know for a fact they’ll be crying for a pee-break within minutes.
It’s not even the thought of risking driving a car packed with raucous drunks or crying kids that makes The Car Bar a ridiculous idea, but rather the explanation that it exists to avoid spillage. There’s only so much drinking three people can do from two bottles, regardless of age and beverage of choice, and you’re back to square one – i.e. back to having to pour drinks while the car is in motion.
Either way, this is was it: The Car Bar. Should it have gone into production, it would have sold for £149, so about $180 at the current exchange rate. You can buy a lot of bottles to drink from with this kind of money, but only in those territories in which carrying an open container inside the cabin is not illegal.
Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends. Full profile
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