62-year old man makes car that runs on whisky

(PhysOrg.com) -- Mickey Nilsson, a 62 year old resident of Bardstown Kentucky, has found a way to turn his junk, into a car that runs on Kentucky Bourbon Whiskey. Nilsson, a long time tinkerer, got his inspiration from a character in the film Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. The character in question, one Caractacus Potts was best known for re-purposing junk to create new and more useful machines, which is exactly what Mr. Nilsson has done.

The idea of doing something with an old still came to him last October, after he had some unusual visitors. The cast of a TV show, American Pickers, Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz, came to try and purchase some of his items for the show. While they did manager to grab an older oil can from Mr. Nilsson, after making a disparaging crack about the use of his still, they were gently encouraged to leave his property, with the help of a fire arm. After a hasty retreat by the crew, Mr. Nilsson began to think about what he could do with that old still.

After that, he spent six months in his workshop turning his pile of junk, still included, into a pretty snazzy looking car. According it is creator it will run on almost any bourbon created. Apparently, the engine prefers Maker’s Mark, though some people may find the cost, and the taste, of Maker’s Mark to be a deterrent from putting it into the car.

This car has even attracted attention from the White House. President Obama released a statement saying, “the type of ingenuity that makes this country great. With brilliant minds such as Mr. Nilsson at work, we will soon purge our dependence on the middle east for oil”. A commercial version of this car may even come out in the near future. On Wednesday, Nilsson cut a deal with Nissan. who hope to release the vehicle to the public by 2014.

© 2010 PhysOrg.com