Gotta get me one of these...

In the September, 1956 issue of Mechanix Illustrated, directions for a lightweight, wooden speedster powered by a motorcycle engine caught the eye of some deranged boat builder on the west coast. Here's the result: a modified version of the Speedball Special. Best news? It's for sale. The car was originally built in 1959 and is equipped with an impossibly rare 1952 Ariel Square Four motorcycle engine, a smooth-running four-cylinder 1000 cc engine able to push out about 42 HP. That might not seem like much, but when driving the sequential four-speed and with a weight of only a mere 750 lbs this little wooden car has got to be a rocket.
The car seems fairly true to the original, with an independent suspension from a Citroen (three lug wheels!), single wheel drive, a Renault steering box, and various pieces of brightwork from a Cadillac. Cool barely even describes the car and it's hard to believe anybody would want to sell it.The listing is up on eBay and at the time of posting it's current price is sitting at $22,456 with a measly buy-it-now price of only $29,000. That's dangerously close to sounding like a reasonable price for some magnificent workmanship on a very unique and hairy-knuckled roadster.
[eBay Listing, St. Louis Car Musem and Mechanix Illustrated