What do you get when you put together a passion for cars and a love for barbeque? Well, a Carbeque, of course. A vehicle that’s perhaps the only one of its kind, the Carbeque looks just as cool as it sounds. Owned by Australian Radio personality Merrick Watts, the car itself is based around a 1973 Ford Langau, powered by a 351 V8 with extractors, and styled similar to the ones used in Mel Gibson’s ‘Mad Max’ movies. The only difference here is that the trunk comes with a fully functional grill. According to Watts, the Carbeque is the answer to the question that’s been plaguing people since the first tailgating party. “How many times are you driving somewhere, and there’s nowhere you can have a barbeque,” he says. But with the Carbeque, “you just pull over, and you start cooking.”
Watts was recently signed on as the face of Meat & Livestock Australia’s promotional campaign. As a part of the promotional activities, the Carbeque was unveiled in Parrmatta Mall on the 26th of November, last year. Just before he powered up the car for the first time at the unveiling, he said, “It’s balls-out amazing! I took our entire marketing budget. It’s not just a car, I introduced the world’s first CARBEQUE!” While describing the car, Watts said, “Half car, half barbeque! It’s integrated, it’s part of its genetic make-up, it’s been spliced with a barbeque. You open up the boot, and out comes a cantilevered barbeque, the greatest barbeque you’ve ever seen. Not some ratty little hot plate thing, a full blown barbeque.” Well, it has to be, considering that Watts spent a whopping $156,000 (the money meant for marketing his show, Merrick and the Highway Patrol), on the car. According to the show’s producer Elle Conwell, “We can cook 9 (10.5 ounce) T-Bone steaks at one time. The Carbeque can pump out around 35 pounds of steak within the hour, or around 200 sausages. The roasting hood means that this Carbeque is ideal for cooking multiple dogs at anytime – depends on your taste. Maybe three Chihuahuas or one larger German Shepherd!”
Photo: Southern Cross Austereo
The Carbeque is being described as every Aussie bloke’s fantasy. There were many impressed at the unveiling itself, including V8 Supercar drivers Lee Holdsworth and Garth Tander. V8 Supercars commentator Neil Crompton said, “It combines all of life’s pleasures; four wheels and a barbeque. It doesn’t get any better.” For Holdsworth, it was the paintjob. “I love the paint job,” he said. “It looks like it’s been burnt by the barbeque.” Even auto experts like James May from the BBC series ‘Top Gear’ was excited about the car. “When I first read the message, and saw it’s a car with a BBQ, I thought we’ve done that, but then I looked at the pictures, and I thought, hang on, this is an actual integrated BBQ. It strikes me that in the modern world you have to make your accessories and devices multi-tasking, you should be cooking whilst driving to an event, otherwise you might as well just drive to a restaurant.” He does point out that we might need to “develop square sausages that don’t roll about” for the Carbeque.
Photo: Southern Cross Austereo
The twin burner barbeque swings out 90 degrees from the boot. The bootlid itself is modified and disguised to look like a rear wing. It also allows for a lot of space below, to store steaks and beers when the barbeque swings into position. The car comes with a twin exhaust system, automatic transmission and the suspension was upgraded all round, with an internal roll bar, tow bar, and rear-view camera. On the outside, you can see other additions like triple bonnet scoops, rear window louvre, front spoiler, modified grille, chunky bodyside scoops, custom wheels and Cooper Cobra tyres. The interiors include SAAS front bucket seats, LED lighting, a SAAS steering wheel and a $4,000 stereo upgrade. Throughout the Australian summer, the Carbeque will be used for Austereo and Meat & Livestock Australia’s promotions. Well, the one thing that hasn’t been done with the Carbeque is to cook while driving. And no one’s likely to try that anytime soon.
Photo via Radio Info
Photo via Weird Universe
Source: Just Auto
