Pengor Penguin

The Penguin was a small four-wheeled, two-seat amphibious all-terrain vehicle built in Ontario, Canada. The first was made in Toronto in 1962. Pengor Ltd. began production in a leased plant in Ottawa in 1963, moved to Carleton Place in April 1964 and went bankrupt that November. Remaining machines and parts were auctioned in May 1965, by which time about 800 had been built.

Design

The Penguin is about 1.91 m long, 1.22 m wide and 0.76 m high and weighs roughly 190 kg empty. It can carry about 270 kg on land and 135 kg in the water. Its fibreglass body, at least partly made by Polyfibre Ltd of Renfrew, Ontario, came either all yellow or with a white top and a red, green or blue lower half.

A fan-cooled 197 cc Villiers two-stroke with a four-speed gearbox and a combined starter-generator drives the rear wheels, which also propel it in the water. There is no reverse gear; instead the engine is restarted to run backwards, giving four reverse speeds. There is no suspension and no differential, so the turning circle on land is large, although afloat it turns very tightly. It is steered with a swinging yoke with a thumb throttle in its centre. Top speed is quoted at 40-64 km/h (25-40 mph) depending on model, and about 6 km/h in water.

Variants

Three models are known. The early 'A' had turf-type rear tyres with cast-aluminium paddles; the 'B' used Terra-Tread tyres without paddles; the 'D' had a thicker, heavier body and lower gearing. Accessories included a windscreen, cargo rack, cushions, cockpit cover, skis and an amphibious trailer.

History

The Canadian military tested Penguins in 1964. In October that year a blue and white Penguin with trailer was presented to Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip at Prime Minister Pearson's residence in Ottawa during their royal visit.

After Pengor's collapse, Wheeler Mobile Ltd of Keswick, Ontario built the similar Beaver, which was slightly larger, shared many Penguin parts and was offered with 197 cc or 173 cc Villiers engines; it was still listed in 1970.