Pass Down Your Enthusiasm with an Antique Pedal Car

Those of us who grew up in the eighties and nineties had Power Wheels, little battery-powered electric runabouts with plastic bodies resembling C4 ‘Vettes, Jeeps, VW Beetles, and even Lamborghini Countaches—sadly, though, that one only came in Barbie-livery pink.

Our parents, though, got the really cool stuff, as not only were their first cars modeled after a wider variety of adult-sized machines, they were built a heck of a lot better too, with steel bodies, multicolored paint jobs, and actual rubber tires. Sure, they might have lacked their own motivating force, but a microwave platter motor running on six volts was never the source of much excitement, anyway—even to a four year-old. Much better to get hopped up on sugar and pedal yourself to breakneck single digit speeds, anyway.

Today, these old ride-in toys are super-collectible, with many being reproduced as well. Original examples, even when heavily patined, can be worth hundreds if not thousands of dollars, particularly for rarer models. Browsing eBay and Craigslist, however, one occasionally stumbles across a good bargain.

Whether you have kids or not, it’s hard to resist the appeal of a quarter scale ’64 Mustang convertible or open wheeled midget racer—if you do have young children, they’ll grow up with fond memories of grade school hoonage, and if not you can be reminded of those joyful, innocent times by a great piece of garage décor.

Click the following links to find the pedal cars shown below on eBay: Chrysler, Biplane, Atkins Fire Chief, Jolly Roger Boat, Fire Dept. Truck, Murray Champion, Castelli Scooter, Tow Wrecker, Russian Moskovitch.