Rules of "Punchbuggy"

K

krinkov58

Active Member
Wondering if anybody else here knows the official rules for the driving game "Punchbuggy". My daughter and I have argued several key point regarding this game. Here are the rules as I remember them:

1. The person spotting the Punchbuggy yells "Punchbuggy" and strikes the nearest occupant of the vehicle (or preferred sibling) before the Punchbuggy is out of view, allowing the recipient of the assault time to aquire visual confirmation of the Punchbuggy sighting. Calling "Punchbuggy" without visual confirmation by at least one other passenger will be regarded as a False Punchbuggy and dealt with by 2 quick punches to the offender.
2. The operator of the vehicle is immune from all strikes, but may opt to deliver them to passengers in the event the operator sights a Punchbuggy first.
3. "Punchbuggy" may only be called inside a vehicle with closed doors, but not necessarily in operation at the time.
4. Only old school VW Beetles, Type 181's, and Karmann Ghia's qualify as Punchbuggies. "New Beetles" are not Punchbuggies, nor are old Porches, SAABs, BMWs, etc. that vaguely resemble old VW's at a distance. Calling "Punchbuggy" for any of these vehicles will result in the False Punchbuggy penalty.
5. You cannot call Punchbuggy for a VW you own or is registered to your residence.

Anybody remember any variations of these rules?
 
This is the first time I have ever heard of this game. I grew up in NJ about 15 miles from NYC, then moved to St. Louis, and finally San Francisco. All of these places had other driving games involving makes of cars, license plates, colors, etc, but never this one. Could it be a regional thing? What part of the country do you live in?

Ray
 
I haven't heard of it either, but I am sure it could catch on in any family who has two or more kids riding in the back seat:)
 
What? Really, you guys never heard of this?
I grew up in Massachusetts but have lived in other parts of the East Coast and this was THE game you played riding in the car or on the school bus. It was also called "Slug Bug". Maybe it was a regional thing...or maybe a 70's-80's thing?

I just asked my 11 year old daughter where she learned the game and she said from kids at school around when she was 7, like 2nd grade. We owned two Punchbuggies (a '72 Beetle and a '73 Type 181) when she was really young but she doesn't remember them.
 
That's one of the reasons why I like this board so much. It's quite an educational expereience! :thumbsup:

Ray
 
We have been playing it for about a year. It is optional to include new Beetles. We do. After the same Beetle has been seen a couple of times (i.e. for sale at a dealership, or owned by a neighbor), it can be declared "off limits". The driver isn't immune from being hit - just keep it soft enough so it doesn't affect driving. Instead of yelling "punchbuggy", we just yell the color ("Blue One"). Visual confirmation doesn't *have to* be verified. Of course this one depends on the trust between family members. However a false punchbuggy hit (i.e. it's actually a Fiat or Prius or whatever), deserves a "penalty" - two hits from the person who was wrongly hit. -Bob C.
 
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