We’d be lying if we said we had ever considered what would happen if you installed manhole covers on a car in place of normal wheels and tires. However, not everyone thinks like us and Vlad from the Garage 54 ENG YouTube channel, decided to see if manhole covers work as suitable replacements to wheels.

For the experiment, Vlad got his hands on a Lada Samara and got to work.

As manhole covers don’t feature holes that allow them to slide onto the wheel hub, Vlad and his team took a drum brake from the Lada and placed it in the center of one of the covers. With some measuring, they were able to ensure the drum was centered before holes were drilled out in the manhole covers. They were then slid over the wheel studs and the car was ready for action.

As you’d imagine, the new, well, “wheels” are heavy, weighing about 55 lbs (25 kg) each. provide absolutely no damping at all and make the ride of the Lada almost unbearable.

Then comes the issue of traction. As the manhole covers are made from steel, they have practially no grip and this becomes particularly evident when Vlad hits the brakes and the car simply slides along the pavement before eventually coming to a stop.

To conclude his ‘test’, Vlad heads onto a patch of dirt and performs a number of front-wheel drive donuts with the manhole covers. For as useless as they are on pavement, they do at least allow him to have some fun on low-traction surfaces like dirt.

As fun as that may seem, we suggest you do NOT try it at home. We know we wouldn’t…