Talk:Amphicar

Licensing
Does driving it require a special type of driver's licence? Or a boat's license? -- Toytoy 03:12, July 25, 2005 (UTC)
 * You know, that's a good point. I have no clue. --MasterA113 03:56, 17 August 2007 (UTC)
 * It's simply a boat and a car. Licensing depends upon the local (state) driving license regulations.  In the U.S. those are state rules, which are loosely coordinated with some vehicle types.  As this was apparently sold as a retail automobile, in the U.S. it is probably considered a "street legal" car and in most states would carry a normal (or collector's) automobile registration and license plate, classified as an automobile.  So it probably only requires a normal driver's license.  In the water, the local boat requirements would apply, so in many places to be used as a boat it would also require a powered boat registration (some photos show boat ID numbers near the "bow"); I just photographed one marked such, but we have enough photos already.  Thus the operator would require whatever license is needed for a small boat with an inboard motor, if any license is needed.  So the licensing both varies by location and is so ordinary there probably are no regulatory sources which address this, so it's not worth mentioning in the article.  -- SEWilco (talk) 03:18, 1 August 2008 (UTC)

Youtube "suboataru" or pisserschannel and pisser20001 channel. He has converted a subaru into a "Red Neck" anphicar (eventually using a jet ski engine). The car passed New York state car inspection! I'm sure he'd reply if you asked him a question about the boating side. His certainly has some kind of boating registration number for NY state!

Cost - compared to a Triumph Herald
I remember seeing one of these cars as a young boy - though it was parked on the road. It would be interesting to know how much these Amphicar's cost against the cost of a Triumph Herald. They must have been mighty expensive and the main reason so few were made. Youtube "suboataru" some more of this sort of wonderful madness! — Preceding unsigned comment added by 79.121.186.28 (talk) 07:40, 23 May 2012 (UTC)

11,500 in 1963 DM afair a 1200 beetle was ~3,900 DM, brit Pound @ 8DM

on another note: there really is not much commonality to the Schwimmwagen beyond the basic idea of an imphibious car. aircooled vs watercooled, flat 4 vs inline 4 2 fixed propellers vs 1 fold down to work. ...ZwergAlw (talk) 15:46, 15 February 2018 (UTC)

Simpsons Reference
The car is referenced in the opening segment of the Simpsons episode "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling)", season 5, episode ten --77.131.218.88 (talk) 13:07, 19 July 2009 (UTC)

Tour de France
ITV4's coverage of the third stage of the 2001 Tour de France briefly featured an Amphicar with four people aboard and in the water.

Yeet Yeet Yeet The Car Dude — Preceding unsigned comment added by 163.150.228.195 (talk) 17:55, 23 April 2019 (UTC)

not descendant of Schwimmwagen
I disagree with the statement that the Amphicar is a "descendant" of the Schwimmwagen. A "descendant" indicates a direct connection, as Wikipedia's own article on the word proves. There is no connection I can find between Volkswagen and the Quandt Group. (The source for the descendant claim is a mention in Time Magazine, but that doesn't make it true.) Elsquared (talk) 05:53, 21 July 2021 (UTC)


 * As the Amphicar was designed by Hans Trippel, it may be a descendant of the Trippel SG6 amphibious vehicle originally built by him at Hamburg in the 1930's. That was a three-wheeler, which was taken up by the Wehrmacht during the war and built under his direction at the commandeered Bugatti factory in Alsace. Eventually that factory switched to making the four-wheeled Volkswagen Schwimmwagen. NRPanikker (talk) 19:58, 10 July 2023 (UTC)

Bilge pumps
Someone with access to a maintenance manual should describe the bilge pump system. They had two or maybe even three, automatically operated. The engine compartment and passenger space were sealed from one another, each with its own pump (I don't remember about the luggage space). Oddly enough, they didn't both pump overboard; one pumped into the other, which of course pumped overboard. (I'm not sure, but I suppose the engine compartment pumped into the passenger compartment, so the crew could hand bail if things went south.) And I think there was more to it than just being that simple. BMJ-pdx (talk) 08:32, 14 March 2022 (UTC)


 * The Amphicar came with one bilge pump from the factory. It was controlled by a push/pull switch on the dashboard and had a small blue indicator light contained in the center of the control knob which would illuminate when the pump was activated.  The pump itself was mounted on the bulkhead separating the engine compartment/bilge area from the passenger compartment.  It drew water from the lowest point of the bilge up through hoses, then discharged through a fitting at the rear of the car.  The factory pump was not automatic.  It ran continuously whenever the control knob was pulled.
 * Several owners throughout the years have altered the electrical setup of these pumps. It's common to see float switches added to the circuitry so that the pump comes on only when water is present in the bilge.  In some cases, owners have added additional pumps to satisfy their own needs or notions of safety. 2600:8802:6914:8B00:6C22:290F:9D4:FAC3 (talk) 18:46, 17 January 2023 (UTC)

Worlds Fair
Amphicars were available for rides at the 1964 World's Fair in Queens, NY 2601:41:C402:8350:EF3:7DFA:D1A9:73E2 (talk) 12:25, 28 January 2024 (UTC)