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Bumper jumping

Posted: Thu Jan 21, 2016 10:16 pm
by Mystic Silver
This is strictly anecdotal. Bumper jumping (in my youth) had two meanings. One was sneaking up behind a stopped car on a snowy road, crouching down and grabbing the bumper with your fingers in order to get a tow along the road (sliding on your feet). Any vehicle with a good grapple bumper would do.

The second meaning is pretty much exclusive to the Beetle, (or Bug). One needs two people at a minimum and it was the preferred method for getting up a snowy or icy hill when the traction was not quite enough. The passenger would get out, hop onto the back bumper and bounce up and down adding weight and therefore traction to the back wheels allowing the Beetle to lurch up the hill.

Anyone else done this?

;)

Re: Bumper jumping

Posted: Sat Jan 23, 2016 5:11 pm
by LudwigVan
We used to get the free tow in Buffalo NY in the 60s