Puzzler Answer 9626, Vehicle

Ray: This came from Morris T. Ericson from Sacramento, California. A special vehicle was first produced in 1949. It was powered then by a Jeep engine but now uses a Volkswagen engine. It has a base price of $50,000. It has never raced but can often be found in a closed course, so to speak. A famous sports celebrity was the first sales representative for this vehicle. What is the vehicle, and who is the famous sports celebrity that we know so well?

Tom: I know the answer to part A, and the answer to part A is the Zamboni machine.

Ray: That's right. That's exactly right.

Tom: And I've got to take a wild guess at number two that it's got to be Sonja Henie, but she was dead in 1949.

Ray: No, she was not dead at that time.

Tom: You mean she was the perpetrator of this?

Ray: No, she didn't invent it. It was invented by...Frank Zamboni.

Tom: I remember. I used to buy sandwiches from him.

Ray: Yeah, give me two large Zambonis and hold the hot pepper.

Tom: The Zamboni, of course, is the big thing that cleans off the ice on a skating rink. Right?

Ray: Exactly right. You know, it's good at removing the blood from the ice, too.

Tom: And teeth...

[ Car Talk Puzzler ]