How many times have you been forced to endure an ice cold car on winter mornings? Sometimes, no matter how long you let the engine run to get things heated up, you still find yourself wishing you had somewhere to plug in an electric blanket or three. Well, look no farther, because some incredible Russian car fiends-cum-YouTubers are here to show us how to make our lives on the road a whole lot cozier.
In a two-part video series, YouTubers Garage 54 transform an old UAZ bus into a steam room on wheels, because why the hell not? It’s the Roadkill-meets-Russian-ingenuity collaboration I didn’t know I was waiting for.
They remove most of the exterior panels of the bus so they can extend the body—after all, they’re going to have to fit people and also generators and other equipment to actually make it steamy.
After reinforcing the chassis with some sturdy sidebars, they essentially build a tiny little cabin on top of the UAZ. It’s the most absurd looking thing you’ll ever see. You know those prefab homes that you sometimes see being driven down the highway? It’s like that, except without a tow vehicle. It is the tow vehicle.
The second video is all about the details—mainly, y’know, putting a roof on the thing and then outfitting it with the actual stuff that’s going to make this a steam room and not just a tiny, portable cabin (which would also be cool, if I’m being honest).
And then we get to the good stuff: watching this machine take to the test track to see if it can actually, y’know, do anything.
It’s so good. I’ve been cackling at the sight of this bulky, un-aerodynamic, ill-equipped-for-carrying-this-large-of-a-body UAZ pushing through the snow with its tiny little wheels, always on the brink of pitching over onto its side. It’s kind of like watching a puppy with really big feet try to figure out how to move without tripping over everything.
This thing isn’t super functional—it could use some power steering to help maneuver all that weight and some mirrors to actually see. Does functionality matter? Hell no. It is a sauna on wheels. It can do whatever it wants.
Would I drive this thing? Hell no. That is because I would be firmly seated in the steamy room in the back, enjoying the toasty comfort of a warm summer day while the rest of the world froze around me.