Model Ts were hot-rodded and customized from the 1920s on, but the T-bucket was specifically created and named by Norm Grabowski in the 1950s. This car was named Lightning Bug, better known as the Kookie Kar, after being redesigned by Grabowski and appearing in the TV show 77 Sunset Strip, driven by character Gerald "Kookie" Kookson. The exposure it gained led to numerous copies being built.
A genuine T-bucket has the two-seater body of a Model T roadster (with or without the turtle deck or small pickup box), this "bucket"-shaped body shell giving the cars their name. A Model T-style radiator is usually fitted, and even these can sometimes be barely up to the task of cooling the large engines fitted. Windshields, when fitted, are vertical glass like the original Model T.
Today, T-buckets remain common. They generally feature an enormous engine for the size and weight of the car, generally a V8, along with tough drivetrains to handle the power and large rear tires to apply that power to the road. The front wheels are often much narrower than the rear wheels, and are often motorcycle wheels.
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