The BMW Isetta has always been a hilarious oddball of a car, one the people love to look at and admire for its quirky weirdness. But few car enthusiasts have actually sought out an Isetta to mod it or tune it in any way. I guess only having three wheels, one door, and less power than most modern lawnmowers isn’t a hugely exciting proposition. But what if it had more? What if it had four wheels and a much bigger engine? Well this one, that’s currently for sale on Facebook Marketplace (found on Jalopnik), has just that.
Originally, the Isetta had a 247cc four-stroke, single-cylinder engine with just 12 horsepower. You can fit that engine in your pocket. However, this specific BMW Isetta now has a Volkswagen Beetle flat-four in the rear, which is so much bigger than the original engine, it needs to stick out from the body. Additionally, the rear suspension required to fit is so much wider, the rear wheel track sticks out so far, almost the entirety of the wheels are outside the body.
Because this Isetta having about three-to-five times the power of the original (depending on which Beetle engine is has), massive rear wheels, and a rear-biased 90/10 weight distribution, it’s essentially a death trap, as the seller states. Apparently, if you aren’t absurdly careful with the throttle, it will just constantly do instant wheelies, which isn’t particularly surprising, given the owner literally picks up the front end of the car with one hand in one of the listing photos. So if you buy this car, make sure your life insurance is in order.
You also really, really need to want to risk your life because the seller wants $14,500 for this bright green coffin on wheels. Admittedly, that’s probably around what it would cost to find an old beater Isetta and mod it to make such a thing but, does anyone really want to do that?
[Source: Jalopnik]
