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Dune buggy
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== Design == Dune [[Buggy (automobile)|buggies]] are typically created by modifying an existing road vehicle,<ref>{{cite web|title=Dune Buggy History |url= http://www.dunebuggyarchives.com/DuneBuggyHistory |website=www.dunebuggyarchives.com |access-date=13 April 2018}}</ref> while [[sandrail]]s are built from the ground up as a custom vehicle. === Beetle-based buggies === For dune buggies built on the chassis of a [[rear-engined]] existing vehicle, the [[Volkswagen Beetle]] has been most commonly used as the basis for the buggy, though conversions were made from other rear-engined cars (such as the [[Chevrolet Corvair|Corvair]] and [[Renault Dauphine]]).<ref name="www.bbc.com">{{cite web|title=Meyers Manx, the Beetle-based cure for summertime blues |url= http://www.bbc.com/autos/story/20140508-dune-buggy-deity |website=www.bbc.com|access-date=13 April 2018 |last1= Carney |first1= Dan }}</ref> The model is nicknamed Bug, lending partial inspiration to the term "buggy." The Beetle [[platform chassis]] was used because the rear engine layout improves traction,<ref name="www.topgear.com">{{cite web|title=This man invented the dune buggy |url= https://www.topgear.com/car-news/modified/man-invented-dune-buggy |website=www.topgear.com|access-date=13 April 2018}}</ref> the [[Volkswagen air cooled engine|air-cooled engine]]<ref>{{cite web|title=How Bruce Meyers Turned the VW Beetle Into the World's Most Famous Dune Buggy |url= https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/classic-cars/videos/a32568/for-meyers-manx-fans-its-better-to-be-lost-in-a-buggy-than-found-in-a-jeep/ |website=www.roadandtrack.com |date= 8 February 2017 |access-date=13 April 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Air-Cooled VW Racers to Compete in the Texas Desert Racing Association Twin 150s Desert Race |url= https://dunebuggywarehouse.com/https/air-cooled-vw-racers-to-compete-in-the-texas-desert-racing-association-twin-150s-desert-race.html |website=www.dunebuggywarehouse.com |date= 27 April 2017 |access-date=13 April 2018}}</ref> avoids the complexities and failure points associated with a [[water-cooled engine]], the Beetle's front [[torsion bar suspension]] was not only considered cheap and robust,<ref>{{cite web |title=Dune Buggy |url=http://www.buildyourownracecar.com/racecartype-dunebuggy/ |website=www.buildyourownracecar.com |access-date=13 April 2018}}</ref> but it was also extremely easy to alter and adjust its ride-height. Furthermore, spare parts β and donor vehicles themselves β were cheap and readily available.<ref>{{cite web |title=The History of VW Sand Rail Vehicles |url= http://www.insideyourrv.com/offroading-products/sand-rails/vw-sand-rail.shtml |website=www.insideyourrv.com |access-date=14 April 2018}}</ref> While early dune buggy conversions were left with no body, or featured custom bodies of sheet metal (such as the EMPI Sportsters and similar buggies), glass-reinforced plastic ([[fiberglass]]) bodies, developed in the 1960s, have become the standard image of the modern buggy, and come in many shapes and sizes. The original fiberglass dune buggy was the 1964 "[[Meyers Manx]]" built by Bruce Meyers.<ref name="www.bbc.com"/> Bruce Meyers designed his fiberglass bodies as a "[[kit car]]", using the Volkswagen Beetle chassis.<ref name="www.topgear.com"/> Many other companies worldwide have been inspired by the Manx, making similar bodies and kits.<ref name="www.topgear.com"/> These types of dune buggies are known as "clones".<ref name="www.bbc.com"/> === Sandrail === {{Multiple image | align = right | direction = vertical | image1 = Sandrail.jpg | caption1 = A custom buggy | image2 = Erez Raider.JPG | caption2 = Racing buggy with a V8 engine and fiberglass body }} {{main|sandrail}} A sandrail is a lightweight vehicle similar to a dune buggy, but designed specifically for operation on open sand. Sandrails are usually built as a [[spaceframe]] by welding steel tubes together.<ref>{{cite web|title=How they are built sandrails |url= http://www.marksdreamshack.com/how-they-are-built-sandrails |website=www.marksdreamshack.com |access-date=14 April 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Twister Sand Cars |url= http://thebuggyshop.50megs.com/sandcars/ |website=www.thebuggyshop.50megs.com |access-date=14 April 2018}}</ref> The name sandrail is due to the frame "rails" present. The advantage of this method is that the fabricator can change fundamental parts of the vehicle (usually the suspension and addition of a built-in roll cage). Sandrails, as per dune buggies, often have the engine located behind the driver. Sizes can vary from a small-engine one-seat size to four-seat vehicles with eight or more cylinders.<ref>{{cite web|title=Buying a Sandrail 101 |url= http://www.acmecarco.com/berrien-buggy/sand-rails/buggy-101 |website=www.acmecarco.com |access-date=14 April 2018}}</ref> A similar, more recent generation of off-road vehicle, often similar in appearance to a sandrail, but designed for a different use, is the "[[off road go-kart]]". The difference may be little more than fitting all-terrain tires instead of sand tires and the much smaller size of the engine.
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