Heavily themed, custom noses / coachwork?

With the announcement and subsequent renderings of the custom trains on Dragster, I got to thinking...(scary concept, I know).

What other coasters out there have a heavily themed front car like that?

Obviously you have the '57 Chevys of Xcelerator and RRC at Disney. You have the Bat / Vampire trains that were molded in that honkin' cool bat's head shape, the taxi cabs of Manhattan Express, and I know that Hulk's nose is pretty custom.

What others are out there???

Later,
EV
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"I swear -- by my life and my love of it -- that I will never live for the sake of another man, nor ask another man to live for mine"
Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged, 1957

Well, I know I'll get some grief for mentioning it, but the WISDOM rides Orient Express/Dragon Wagon/Tiger Terror/Go Gator (you knew I'd throw THAT one in, lol) all have cool fronts, well-themed....

bill, who's STILL disappointed that KW's Thunderbolt didn't have the lights on the fronts when we visited...

http://www.coasterbuzz.com/forums/thread.asp?ForumID=11&TopicID=27290 :)

Although they don't run trains, lots of mice have cars with themed fronts, from some that look like actual mice to ore cars, soapbox racers, rats....

Moosh

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Back when Carowinds was a well-themed park, Thunder Road had better looking 50's car noses than Xcelerator. Plus the Goldrusher still has the great arrow trains, as does other arrow mine trains, mack blauer enzians and an intamin mine train. The Vekoma/Disney mine train engine is a waste of an extra seat though and is awful bulky looking.

There is a vekoma suspended with neat airplane cars at bobbejaanland. Arrow's site says they made the cars.

I personally think these cars add a lot of personality to the rides. Any nospiece, not just a themed one. Schwarzkopf always did great work with his cars and produced some great nospieces, especially loopingracer 1 (revolution) and 2 (the more common one). Intamin also has come up with some nice nosepieces, Xcelerator, Dragster, their looping nose like California Screamin and their hypernose.

Pictures of thunder roads original cars are here

http://members.aol.com/k9660r/earlywinds2.html

a site that breaks my heart when you look at the lack of organized theming and structure of that park today.

*** This post was edited by super7 on 1/10/2003. ***

Another at Knott's is Jaguar. Very cool Mayan themed trains.

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California Screamin- it's good!

I don't agree with vekoma mine trains front cars looking awfully bulky and a waste of space. They make the best themed mine trains I have seen so far.

http://www.rcdb.com/installationgallery956.htm?Picture=10

http://www.rcdb.com/installationgallery978.htm?Picture=6

Wow olov, the one at Phantasialand actually has RIDERS in the front car....FUN stuff...I wanna ring the bell!

and super7, Thunder Road with THOSE trains would be even better than it already is....cool pics!

Heavily themed noses? Michale Jackson! Couldn't resist. Anyone with a Zipper and other rides in their back yard and doesn't invite me is worthy of being made fun of :)

what i don't like about the vekoma train is it blocks the view of the riders. Their mine trains have excellent theming, but the train limits the vision of that.

Hmmm but if you sit in the back you wont have so much of a problem with the front car blocking the view. But if you sit in the front I guess it can be annoying when you're not able to see forward. I have never got the chance to sit in the front on Big Thunder Mountain at Disney Land Resort (Paris) so i don't really know about that.

Roller Skaters have cars themed to roller skates, and Howler and HW has a train with a dog's face on the front and hind legs and a tail on the back.

--Ryan

I always thought Maggies trains are very cool, not like any other train out there.

The Vekoma Roller Skaters have some pretty good themed trains as well including the train on Woodstock Express.

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Coming in 2003-The Spawn Of Magnum!
Ode to the offseason:
Offseason Offseason what shall I do? Who cares the sun is still shining the sky is still blue! GET A LIFE!

Matterhorn and Space Mountain, I cant believe no one has mentioned Incredible Hulk, and for some reason I've always been partial to the Zero-car on front of some B&M's. I think it looks cool!

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RACE FOR THE SKY!!
TOP THRILL DRAGSTER

Well i cant believe no one has mentioned Dueling Dragons, those are the coolest looking trains i have ever seen

http://www.rcdb.com/installationgallery959.htm?Picture=4

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quit complaining about stupid things like spelling and abreviations. It's not worth it.

Does the nosepiece on MarineLand's Dragon Mountain count?

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

DD is near home, so I have to let other people mention it for me...;)

How about those Tree Top Racers from Adventure City...(since they were mentioned in another thread recently)...

Definitely Dueling Dragons. Even the restraints on the front seats are red to look like tongues!

*** This post was edited by lilspike333 on 1/10/2003. ***

'Gator says:

"How about those Tree Top Racers from Adventure City"

See my post at 2:25:28 pm. While not mentioning them by name I had those cars in mind when I said "soapbox derbys."

Moosh

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