SHAWN CORMIER: I am working on this stuff just for the fun of it and, you know, share
it. I get a kick out of the jaw drop, that’s what makes it worthwhile.
SHAWN CORMIER: I built Tankenstein and restored the Monster Truck.
COMM: This is car enthusiast, Shawn Cormier. He has spent years building, altering and
creating unique and eccentric vehicles.
SHAWN CORMIER: I don’t know if I have a passion for cars. It’s, kind of, a sickness.
I guess I could still say Tankenstein is still the world’s only rat rod tank, right up
till someone says, ‘Hey, no, I have another one.’ Tankenstein is the mixture of old
car parts and just from vehicles put together. It’s kind of like Frankenstein where they
took the different body parts from one person, put it on. Well, this is the same thing. So,
she is a compilation of parts stuck together and made to work.
COMM: This marvellous car creation is a mixture of many different vehicle parts, dating back as far as WWII.
SHAWN CORMIER: So this Tankenstein and this is, basically, a World War II Bren gun carrier
chassis. And what we have here is a 47-Mercury Tow Truck Cab. She has got bullet holes all
over the place; these are 22 bullets here and it’s got a shotgun slug to the door
over there. We have thrown them all together into Tankenstein. When I pull on with Tankenstein
at a car show, people come running over to watch it, get unloaded off the trailer and
they are all, well, there’s a lot of people interested, ‘What is it?’ I mean what
isn’t it? It’s Tankenstein.'
COMM: And it’s not just the vehicle that lends its name to fiction, Shawn also likes to drive in costume.
SHAWN CORMIER: So when you drive Tankenstein, you have to be in character. So that’s why
you got the helmet and Thompson. Good thing it’s not real. I don’t want to be crying.
Right now it’s full of mud.
SHAWN CORMIER: For now Tankenstein is powered by a 305. It’s got roughly about 175 horsepower.
She will do about 45-50 mile an hour top end, that’s the redline. Who needs air conditioning
or windows when you have, like, original glass? This is original glass from 47. Everybody
tells me I should take it out because I will get cut. But, no, I think it adds character
to it. I don’t use any blueprints or drawings. It’s all done by eye, what looks good. If
you stick to plans, like, life plans change all the time so why bother making plans. Just
go with the flow. The total cost to build Tankenstein, I think, it’s right around
2 grand or 2500. I, kind of, lost track. I try to use recycled products, like, old
stuff. But it still costs you money to buy it. I think it is 5 or 6 years now since I
started Tankenstein. When you are living in Canada like I do and it is -30 out and then
you have the wind chills so it's -40 something; you don’t really want to go outside and
work on this stuff. I keep adding things to it, I am changing things a little bit and
the cooling system should be changed soon. It’s never going to be done. I will always
be adding little bit more to it.
COMM: And it’s not just Tankenstein that Shawn has been tinkering with.
SHAWN CORMIER: Now I am the proud owner of the Black Widow Monster Truck. I didn’t build
it. The Black Widow Monster Truck is a collaboration of different parts, like, Tankenstein. It
has a early 80 Chevette 1.6 engine and transmission. It has a shortened upper end of an S-10. The
gas tank is custom built. So shock factor from people when they see it, it’s, ‘Oh,
that’s cool.’ But in reality, there is a reason why they stopped making three-wheelers
because they are dangerous.
SHAWN CORMIER: I think my favourite to build was Tankenstein. I didn’t really build the
Black Widow Monster Truck. I took it and got it, fine- tuned it, so, it would run and added
brakes and stuff. But I think the favourite by far is Tankenstein, this because of the
reaction I get. So that’s my funnest thing to drive right now.
COMM: Shawn’s mechanic hobby has been further documented through his YouTube channel, which
has amassed quite a following, giving Tankenstein a dedicated fan base.
SHAWN CORMIER: I would never really probably sell Tankenstein. I have been offered a lot
of money for it before. But, I mean, there is only one. So, if I sell it, what would
I have after that? A whole bunch of money? What good is that? Like, there is only one
of one thing. There is only one of me, so one of Tankenstein. So if I sell it, what am I going to do then?