McMaster grads aim to make their Carpool DeVille the fastest hot tub ever

Two McMaster engineering graduates have built what they believe is the fastest hot tub in the world.

Phil Weicker and Duncan Forster, both now based in Los Angeles, installed a hot tub inside a fully functioning 1969 Cadillac DeVille. Up to 5,000 pounds of water is heated by a circulation system in the trunk.

They named it the Carpool DeVille.

The hot tub-car was 15 years in the making.

In 1996, after a night of drinking, the two then-students dreamt up turning an old Chevy Malibu into "the world's first drivable, fully operational hot tub."

After multiple attempts at realizing their dream, Weicker and Forster are finally ready to take the latest model of their invention to SpeedWeek, an annual racing event at the Bonneville Speedway in the Salt Flats of Utah. If Carpool DeVille participates in the race, it will set a land speed record for fastest hot tub ever.

"Since 1914, enthusiasts of questionable mental states from all over the world have been attempting and setting speed records for just about anything with wheels on the flat expanse of the brilliant white salt," they wrote.

They'll be the first to race a hot tub.

A recent successful Kickstarter campaign helped fund the upcoming trip to Bonneville, including the trucks needed to transport the vehicle there, and all subsequent safety equipment required according to race rules.

"It was very celebratory," Forster told CBC Hamilton after raising more than their $10,000 goal. "It was more fun than New Year."

The men believe their car will be able to accelerate to "freeway speed" by the time it races next month. (First, they need to install a speedometer.)

Because of the success of the online fundraiser, Weicker and Forster will be inviting one or two current McMaster undergraduate engineering students to join them.

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