That's it!
In 1969, Tansy combined one of his ideas with those of a Tipton neighbor, Glen Yeary, and built “The Coke Machine,” a far-out creation, which brought national attention and money.
“I knew Glen had a chassis and an engine built, and I talked to him about getting together and making a Coke machine body to put on the chassis.”
“The Coca-Cola people made us no promises, but we went ahead with our plan. When the car was finished, I took it to Atlanta, Ga., and they liked the idea, and the car went on tour.”
Not long after that, Model Products Corporation (MPC), a division of General Foods, bought the rights to the design so they could make a model kit of the car. We still get royalties from the sale of the kit.”
“The car has been on tour now for nearly three years, and that’s a lot of mileage for a couple of old Coke machines,” Tansy grinned.
Since the “Coke Machine,” Tansy has built two other show cars, the “Dune Buggy Zinger,” and the “Dodge Supervan,” for which MPC also had bought modeling rights, and pays Tansy royalties.
~ Indianapolis Star, September 17, 1972
