Unusual Cars And Roadside Attractions

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This is “Ven a la Luz” (“Come Into the Light”), a monumental sculpture by South African artist Daniel Popper. M

It was originally created in 2018 for the Art With Me festival in Tulum, Quintana Roo, Mexico.

The sculpture depicts a giant woman gently pulling open her chest to reveal a passageway symbolizing a connection between humanity and nature.

Visitors can walk through the opening, which is typically filled with living plants and greenery, reinforcing themes of renewal, transformation, and our relationship with the natural world.

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La Voiture sur le Caddie (“The Car on the Shopping Cart”) is a surreal sculpture by French artist Benedetto Bufalino.

It features a red Alfa Romeo MiTo balanced vertically on a giant shopping cart, creating the illusion that the cart is holding the car.

Installed at shopping centers and public exhibitions in France, the piece humorously comments on consumerism and has become a popular photo attraction.

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Giant Cigarette Butt – Canary Wharf, London, England

This oversized public art sculpture resembles a discarded cigarette butt crushed into the pavement.

Created to raise awareness about cigarette litter and its environmental impact, the striking installation has become a popular photo spot in London’s Canary Wharf district.

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This whimsical shoe-shaped custom car, known as the ZR 2000R, is a one-of-a-kind concept vehicle built by a European custom-car builder.

Styled to resemble a giant athletic shoe, it features an open cockpit, sculpted bodywork, and a futuristic interior.

Although photos of the car have circulated online for years, its exact current location remains unknown, and it is believed to have been photographed in a workshop rather than displayed at a permanent museum or roadside attraction.

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This is the Giant Kiwifruit at Kiwi360 in Te Puke, Bay of Plenty, New Zealand.

Standing about 33 feet (10 meters) tall, this giant kiwifruit-shaped building was constructed as the centerpiece of Kiwi360, a popular visitor attraction celebrating New Zealand’s world-famous kiwifruit industry.

Visitors could learn about how kiwifruit are grown, sample local products, and explore nearby orchards.

Located in Te Puke, often called the “Kiwifruit Capital of the World,” the giant kiwifruit has become one of New Zealand’s most recognizable roadside attractions and a favorite photo stop for travelers exploring the Bay of Plenty region.

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This is the World’s Largest Boot, located inside the Red Wing Shoe Store & Museum in Red Wing, Minnesota.

The giant Red Wing 877 work boot stands about 20 feet (6.1 m) tall, weighs around 2,300 pounds (over 1,000 kg), and is a whimsical size 638½D. Recognized by Guinness World Records as the world’s largest boot, it’s one of Minnesota’s best-known roadside attractions and a popular photo stop.

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This is the Bospoldervos (“Forest Fox”), a giant public sculpture by Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman, located along Schiedamseweg near Marconiplein in Rotterdam, Netherlands.

Installed in 2020, the fox stands about 10 meters (33 feet) tall and 16 meters (52 feet) long.

The pink plastic shopping bag in its mouth is part of the artwork, symbolizing the playful relationship between wildlife and city life while referencing the nearby street market.

It has become one of Rotterdam’s most recognizable public artworks.

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This is a custom Shrek-themed promotional ute from Australia, built on a classic 1970s Holden utility vehicle.

Created by local businesses as a rolling advertisement, it features a giant fiberglass Shrek head, bright green paint, custom wheels, and sponsor logos, including Sun City Earthmovers and Smokin’ Hot Butts.

The vehicle regularly appears at agricultural shows, community festivals, charity fundraisers, and car shows, where its playful design makes it a popular roadside attraction and photo opportunity.

It is fully roadworthy and serves as both a promotional vehicle and a unique example of Australian automotive creativity.

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This is the Giant Teapot Building in Meitan County, Guizhou Province, China. It is one of the world’s largest teapot-shaped buildings and is a famous example of novelty architecture.

* It was built to celebrate Meitan’s long history of tea production, as the county is one of China’s best-known tea-growing regions.

* The teapot stands about 74 meters (243 feet) tall.

* Next to it is a giant teacup building, connected by a walkway.

* The building has become a popular roadside attraction and tourist destination, especially for visitors interested in Chinese tea culture.

It’s one of the largest teapot-shaped structures ever built and is often featured in collections of unusual buildings from around the world.

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The weekend is upon us!

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Japanese Pig Bike, a one-of-a-kind custom scooter built in Japan.

It has become well known online because of its remarkably realistic design and craftsmanship:

* The builder spent several years creating the fully functional scooter.

* The front and rear turn signals are cleverly hidden inside the pig’s hooves, allowing it to meet road-use requirements while preserving the illusion of a real pig.

* The Pig Bike is fully street legal in Japan, where it can be ridden on public roads with the appropriate moped license and registration.

Despite its popularity, the identity of the builder has never been widely published.

The scooter has been shared across countless websites, blogs, and social media posts, but no authoritative source identifies the creator by name.

So while the vehicle itself is well known, the designer remains effectively anonymous.

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This is a giant bowling pin, a classic roadside attraction that stands outside Woodland Bowl in Woodland Bowl.

The oversized pin is mounted at an angle to look like it has just been struck by a bowling ball and is about to fall over.

It has become a popular photo stop for fans of quirky roadside attractions.

Indianapolis is known for having several giant bowling pins outside its bowling centers, but the tilted one at Woodland Bowl is among the most recognizable.

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This is the "Hippomobile," a custom car built on a 1971 Ford Mustang frame. It’s got a wagging tail, hidden headlights, and can even hit 100 mph!

It’s also packed with fun details, like an 8-track player that blasts "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas."

You can see this one-of-a-kind beast on display at the Buffalo Transportation / Pierce-Arrow Museum in Buffalo, New York. Definitely the coolest, fastest hippo you’ll ever see!

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The building is a striking example of novelty architecture, designed to resemble an enormous display of tropical fruits.

A giant pineapple forms the main structure, surrounded by oversized bananas, a watermelon slice, grapes, and other fruit.

It serves as a restaurant and is one of the park’s most recognizable landmarks.

Located within the 36-acre NTR Gardens near Hussain Sagar Lake, the attraction is a favorite photo stop.

The park also features landscaped gardens, amusement rides, a toy train, fountains, and walking paths, making it a popular destination for families and tourists alike.

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This unique custom vehicle combines the rear of a classic Porsche 911 with a motorcycle-style front end, creating a three-wheeled hybrid that is both street-legal in some jurisdictions and a showpiece.

The open center section exposes much of the chassis and mechanical components, highlighting the craftsmanship involved in the extensive modification.

Rather than a factory Porsche, it is a one-off custom build designed to showcase creativity and engineering, making it a favorite at custom car shows and automotive events.

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The flamboyant entrance was added during a major renovation in 2002 and was designed to reflect entertainer and pianist Liberace’s over-the-top style.

The building features giant piano keys, mirrored glass, flowing sheet music, an oversized piano sculpture on the roof, and a huge neon version of Liberace’s signature.

The museum displayed Liberace’s elaborate costumes, jeweled pianos, luxury cars, jewelry, and other memorabilia.

It closed permanently in 2010, but the distinctive building remains one of Las Vegas’ memorable examples of novelty architecture.

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Nemo Car – This whimsical art car is a heavily modified 1940 Nash transformed to resemble Nemo, the clownfish from Pixar’s Finding Nemo.

Covered in bright orange-and-white stripes with oversized eyes, fins, and a smiling face, it has become a popular roadside attraction.

The car is displayed at Hot Sam’s Antiques in Lakeville, Minnesota, where it delights visitors and serves as a favorite photo opportunity among the site’s eclectic collection of vintage vehicles and folk art.