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The 15 Craziest Cars Ever Built

From a car that's faster than the speed of sound to one that's shaped like a cat, you have to check out these incredibly weird and cool rides.

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Detroit, Michigan / USA - January 24, 2018: A Koenigsegg Agera RS Supercar featured at the 2018 North American International Auto Show.
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Hottest wheels in the world

The Swedish-built Koenigsegg Agera RS costs $2.1 million, but you get what you pay for. The supercar was clocked doing 284 mph, making it the fastest street car in the world. It’s great if you have that much money to spend on the car… because it means you’ll have enough for the speeding tickets. These are 10 secrets that cops say will get you out of a speeding ticket.

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APRIL 26, 2015 - Woodbridge, NJ: A replica of the Ghostbusters Cadillac on display at the Cars of the Hollywood Screen car show.
Erin Cadigan/Shutterstock

Who you gonna call?

Need to get to your next ghost-capturing job quickly? Take a ride in this, a replica of the car from the movie Ghostbusters. The ECTO-1 is a 1959 Cadillac Miller-Meteor ambulance conversion—only 400 were made. That’s even rarer than the Class 5, full-roaming vapor ghost Slimer from the movie.

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Lviv, Ukraine - October 5: Limited edition series. The smallest car in the world Peel P50, on October 5, 2016 in Lviv, Ukraine.
GalinaBahlyk/Shutterstock

Small wonder

If you forgot where you parked your Peel P50, you’re going to have a lot of trouble finding it. The three-wheeled wonder, which was made in the early 1960s, is the smallest car in the world! From front to back, it’s about 54 inches long. If you don’t have a ruler handy, that’s about half of Shaquille O’Neal.

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MARANELLO ITALY JUNE 25, 2017 - McLaren 650S Spider supercar.
Monika Sakowska/Shutterstock

Coolest convertible

The McLaren 650S Spider supercar’s roof can be raised or lowered in just 17 seconds—while you’re traveling as fast as 19 mph. Once the roof is down (or up), the car can go from 0-100 mph in three seconds, with a top speed of 204 mph. Check out these maintenance tips that help improve the life of your car.

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APRIL 26, 2015 - Woodbridge, NJ: A replica of the Batmobile Tumbler from The Dark Knight is shown at the Cars of the Hollywood Screen car show.
Erin Cadigan/Shutterstock

Does the Dark Knight get parking tickets?

Bad news for bad guys: the Batmobile from the Dark Knight movies is real! And any wannabe Batmen or Batwomen out there can buy it—if they happen to have $1 million to spend. According to a test driver from Top Gear, it has a monster engine, 44-inch tires, custom windows, five cameras, and “the ability to scare fellow road users senseless.”

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Coventry, England 4 November 2016: Thrust SSC Supersonic Car, Worlds fastest car & Land speed record holder at Transport Museum.
patruflo/Shutterstock

Faster than the speed of sound

Yes, this is a car: The ThrustSSC is a twin turbofan jet-powered car that went 763.035 mph in October 1997, earning it the World Land Speed Record. The ThrustSSC was the first car to travel at a supersonic speed, meaning it broke the sound barrier at Mach 1.016. Which makes honking useless, since the car will arrive before the beep does.

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Geneva, Switzerland, March 06, 2018: metallic red Mansory the Stallone Ferrari 812 Superfast at 88th Geneva International Motor Show GIMS
Grzegorz Czapski/Shutterstock

Super Ferrari

It looks cool and sounds cool, so we’re going to go ahead and say that the Mansory Stallone Ferrari 812 Superfast is very, very cool. It was revealed at the 88th Geneva Motor Show and made it tough for any of the other cars to get noticed. You get all of the power and speed you’d expect from a Ferrari, plus the excellent and luxurious interior.

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PETALING JAYA, MALAYSIA - AUGUST 23,2017 : The exhibition and sale of merchandise from the animated film "Cars 3" by Pixar Animation Studio is now taking place at the Sunway Pyramid shopping mall.
mozakim/Shutterstock

Ka-chow!

While promoting the release of Cars 3, Pixar Studios sent a full-size Lightning McQueen on a worldwide tour, making stops from Detroit to Malaysia. In case you’re wondering what kind of car Lightning is, the answer is… none. The filmmakers have explained that it has elements of GT40s and Chargers and of the Corvette C6, but McQueen is his own beast.

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DETROIT, MI/USA - March 2, 2018: 2018 Miller Race Cars drag racecar on display at the Detroit Autorama.
Steve Lagreca/Shutterstock

Anything but a drag

This Miller Race Cars dragster is so fast, you’re definitely going to want to buy one of the $420 parachutes the company sells to make it stop. In fact, you might want to get two just to be safe. Get a look at the world’s most hilarious road signs.

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DETROIT, MI/USA - March 2, 2018: A 1960 Volkswagen Beetle Bubbletop car interpretation, on display at the Detroit Autorama, a showcase of custom and restored cars.
Steve Lagreca/Shutterstock

Bubble bursting with awesome

This 1960 Volkswagen Beetle Bubbletop car was shown at the Detroit Autorama, where folks who are crazy about cars show off their custom and restored work. This looks super fun to drive—unless it’s raining: You’d need about 10 windshield wipers to see out. Check out these awesome photos of vintage cars that’ll make you want one.

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APRIL 26, 2015 - Woodbridge, NJ: A replica of the Back to the Future DeLorean is shown at the Cars of the Hollywood Screen car show.
Erin Cadigan/Shutterstock

Time machine

In the Back to the Future movies, Marty McFly travels around the past and future in a time machine his friend Doc Brown built out of a DeLorean DMC-12. And building a time machine out of a DeLorean wasn’t easy. In real life, the car company went bankrupt soon after they started production and it is estimated that there are only about 6,500 of the original models left in the world.

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Car shaped like a cat on the streets of New York
Corky Buczyk/Shutterstock

Cat’s meow

Cat food company Meow Mix parked this car on the streets of New York City for publicity. We’re guessing the engine on this cat car really purrs.

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New York, NY - March 28, 2018: Slingshot Grand Touring LE by Polaris on display at 2018 New York International Auto Show at Jacob Javits Center
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Batman starter kit

For those who can’t get their hands on a Batmobile, the Slingshot Grand Touring LE by Polaris is the next best thing. New York Mets all-star Yoenis Cespedes is one famous fan of the car’s cool design and fun driveability. The Polaris website lists all kinds of cool high-tech features, but the real reason to drive this beast is to make everyone else look like a joker. Check out the secrets car thieves won’t tell you.

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Lausanne, SWITZERLAND - SEPTEMBER 09, 2017 : Running soapboxes in the streets of Lausanne at RED Bull Soap Boxes 2017
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Look out below!

The cars that compete in the Red Bull Soapbox Race may lack speed—they don’t have motors, so only gravity makes ’em go—but they have plenty of style. This one ran the downhill race track in Lausanne, Switzerland. If you’re inspired, grab a box and some wheels and get to work—the next race is on September 8 in Cincinnati.

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LAS VEGAS, NV/USA - NOVEMBER 4, 2016: A Customized Matchbox Police themed truck; a 2017 Ford F-350 Super Duty XL at Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) show. Builder: Skyjacker Suspensions
Steve Lagreca/Shutterstock

A toy for grownups

You’re never too old to play with Matchbox cars—especially when they are full-size monsters like this. This Matchbox police-themed vehicle is a souped-up 2017 Ford F-350 Super Duty XL, on display at an industry show in Vegas. Did they lock it up at night? Doubtful—a thief would be pretty dumb to steal it! Next, check out the coolest concept cars that sadly never existed.

Joe McKinley
Joe McKinley is a regular contributor to Reader's Digest, covering cars, careers, tech and more.