Why is it forbidden to drive a car bumper on a road ?

I don't think these cars look very fragile. In fact, they are actually designed for impact, so they should be very safe and not very fragile. If you have a lot of monster trucks in your area, though, then it could definitely be a problem as the monster trucks could drive right over the top of these cars without even seeing them.

@thesids: It is true that there is a sort of monopoly of car manufacturers, and they can block sometimes pioneers like this one. Have you really never seen bumper cars ? I am 53, and I remember to have always seen them with quite the same design in funfairs. As there is a little danger, children under 12 are not allowed to drive them. I was enjoying them when I was a kid. Here what they look in their "natural" environment : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEpAtERcS0U

Sorry for my English. On a street, maybe can I call this a "car bumper"? I don't see anything wrong on this vehicle : it has even two outside mirrors ! Maybe it lacks a horn ? I think it is a perfect means of transportation on a road, even for drunk drivers. Policemen were dubious : I am not sure they knew a particular law against bumper cars on streets.

LOL! I think that "car bumpers" is also valid as it perfectly describes what they were designed to do! Maybe it was not the choice of vehicle that was suspect but rather the choice of color. I mean really, he is wearing a perfectly lovely purple jacket and then chooses a car that is pink - what was he thinking?

A purple jacket ? I think it is dark blue ! But you are right : he should not have chosen a pink bumper car with these clothes. Maybe he is suspected to have stolen it.

Like purple said I suppose it has been modified to run on batteries. It has certainly not a great autonomy, but it would be a good vehicle for shopping in a city, with less parking problems than a normal car.

Hiya tops, Right have watched the two Videos before. I had to watch them while I was cleaning up yet again but I did watch them. Police Searches are very frequent here we are quite near to San Juan de Luz and Hendaya so we can expect to be searched but you never know when. I don´t actually know how these other old cars get on the Road you know as we have a Technical Control as well which is every year for some Cars. A lot of them need the exhaust pipes changing for sure. Enjoyed the Videos thank you very much Tops have a great Week and Weekend.xxx Thanks very much sunny Week-end to you too.xxx

You are in the Basque country ? It is a very nice place, but a bit agitated in Spain... Like a Basque friend said to me "We are not like others". I enjoy their cooking and I had a Basque cake last week.

Hello lovinanglesinstead, If you have not watched the first video link I gave, do it : I think it is a fake police video, but it is really funny. It shows a drunk lawn mower driver on a countryside road. Police officers rarely search in cars in France -- last time they asked me to open my trunk was 20 years ago, and I am controlled 2 or 3 times every year --, it is more a customs officer habit and they can stop a car for hours. Happily they are not very active in my far from borders area. Since a technical control is mandatory for old cars here, we don't see anymore car wrecks going on the roads. I don't know if it is due to this control, but strongly modified cars are very rare now, although car tuning is popular among young drivers. I see you have changed your avatar to celebrate spring. I wish you a sunny week-end.

It would be indeed the perfect eco-car. Plates were not necessary in France for small motor engines a few years ago, and those build before the law imposing that every vehicle with a motor needs a plate -- it is better for fines -- can still go without a plate. Alright, I give you the answer : a model of vehicle can go on public roads in France only if it has been authorized and controlled by a special service, and bumper cars are not in the list. Anybody can build or modify a vehicle, pay for the control and get an authorization -- buggies were popular in the 80's --, but there are rules to follow, in particular for the minimum height of wheels, not saying that a bumper car has no tires adapted for a road.