The biggest car news and reviews, no BS

Our free daily newsletter sends the stories that really matter directly to you, every weekday.

Amphibious cars have never really taken off, and amphibious trucks are mostly limited to the military, but amphibious ATVs were once the core of the market. Before the seminal Honda ACT90 and later four-wheelers, six wheels and the ability to float were quite normal. So seeing this Ate 6×6 on Facebook Marketplace is kind of like seeing a dinosaur.

Offered with a $3,000 asking price by an Oklahoma seller, this ATV isn’t just cool because it has more than the typical number of wheels and can drive through water. The seller claims it also has a four-stroke Honda engine, which means it should be very reliable as well. This may not have been a factory option—Attex seemed to use a mix of engines from U.S. and Canadian manufacturers—but it definitely sounds like an improvement.

Whether it’s in a car, motorcycle, or ATV, a Honda engine is a good bet when it comes to reliability. This one sounds like it has plenty of power too. The seller claims “you can spin a 180 on a trail in no time” and that they use the Attex to move trailers and boats. Like most other six-wheeled ATVs, you steer by braking the wheels on one side like a tank, which also makes it easier to maneuver in tight spaces. Side-by-side seating was also a big advantage when Attex was in business, but modern UTVs offer that with even more space nowadays.

According to current ATV manufacturer Mudd-Ox, which has dedicated part of its website to defunct ATV makers, Attex was founded in 1967 by David McCahill, heir to the Maytag washing machine fortune. McCahill wanted to start a business selling the Amphicat ATV but couldn’t get inventory, so he designed his own ATV with friend Roger Flannery.

That first Attex was allegedly something of a knockoff of the Amphicat, but the company gradually became more ambitious, competing in the NORRA Baja 500 and designing a range of two-stroke and four-stroke models, as well as an electric model called the Electrica that was available by-order only. It also built a prototype dually called the Spirit, and supplied an 8×8 to the U.S. military to train tank drivers.

The double whammy of Honda’s arrival on the ATV scene and the 1973 oil crisis affected nearly all U.S. ATV manufacturers—including Attex. Two years later the company also lost access to the Borg-Warner T-20 transmission that it and many other 6×6 makers had been using when the rights were purchased by rival firms Recreatives and Hustler Corporation. The company was sold multiple times, allegedly selling a few vehicles into the early 1990s before disappearing like so many other of its contemporaries.

The biggest car news and reviews, no BS

Our free daily newsletter sends the stories that really matter directly to you, every weekday.

Modern ATVs and UTVs are incredibly capable, but there’s a decades-old design that can keep up with them—and then some. Recently listed for sale on Facebook Marketplace, this 1970 Coot has four-wheel drive and four-wheel steering, and it’s amphibious. A seller in New Jersey wants $3,800 for it.

Coot Inc. was one of host of small manufacturers building amphibious ATVs in the 1960s and 1970s. It was founded in 1964 by Carl Enos Jr., an 18-year-old mechanic, according to a page on the company put together by current ATV manufacturer Mudd-Ox. The neat thing about the Coot is its articulated hull, which is split in the middle, allowing the two halves to pivot laterally. This helps keep the wheels in contact with the ground when driving over uneven terrain.

This 1970 model has a 0.5-liter Tecumseh four-cylinder engine and high and low range for its four-wheel drive system. Conventional single-axle steering was available, but with four-wheel steering, this ATV is basically a miniature version of the U.S. military’s LARC transport. Coot itself advertised it as a replacement for everything from snowmobiles to garden tractors, and backed that up with an owner’s manual full of off-roading tips accompanied by cartoon illustrations.

According to a 1973 price sheet posted on the same history page, a base model with four-wheel drive and two-wheel steering cost $2,065 at the time. Four-wheel steering was a $110 option, and you could get a trailer for $460.

The original Coot company started out in San Francisco, but later moved to Cedar Park, Texas, before dissolving in 1985. In 2006, Columbus Industries of Fairview, Illinois, introduced a modernized take on the Coot called the Coot 2, but it wasn’t as successful as the original. Production ended after the 2008 model year, perhaps in part because fully-loaded versions cost about $20,000. You got get a nicely-equipped compact car for similar money at the time.

At its Facebook Marketplace price, this vintage model might be a good deal. It’s simpler and much more capable than an Amphicar or one-off amphibious conversions that tend to appear from time to time. This is one old Coot that sounds fun to have around.

Got a tip about something cool for sale? Send us a line at tips@thedrive.com