You Can Buy the Ripsaw Tank From 'The Fate of the Furious'

Photo: Mecum

The Howe & Howe Ripsaw is likely best known for its appearance in The Fate of the Furious, the eighth installment of the Fast and Furious movie franchise. The tank is part of a unique vehicle fleet used by the heroes to lure and destroy a hijacked Russian nuclear submarine in the Arctic. While theater-goers might have assumed it was a prop built for the movie, it’s actually a fully-functional vehicle. Now, the Ripsaw used in the 2017 action film is going up for auction next month.

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Silodrome reports that the Howe & Howe Ripsaw will be auctioned by Mecum in Indianapolis in mid-May. The tracked vehicle used in the F&F movie was Howe & Howe’s original prototype, with VIN 000000001, and was last purchased from a museum that worked with Universal Pictures.

The Ripsaw was conceived in 2000 by twin brothers Geoff and Michael Howe in Maine, and quickly gained the interest of the U.S. Army. The branch encouraged the Ripsaw’s development into an unmanned ground combat platform.

Photo: Mecum

Manned variants of the Ripsaw attracted Hollywood’s attention for several reasons. The tracked vehicle has a distinctive silhouette similar to modern military tanks, with large cabin windows adding a futuristic twist. The Ripsaw is incredibly maneuverable, reaching speeds over 60 mph with power coming from a 6.6-liter LBZ Duramax turbodiesel V8 engine making 360 horsepower. Paramount Pictures’ live-action movies G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra and G.I. Joe: Retaliation were the first Hollywood productions to use the Ripsaw in 2009 and 2013, respectively.

Photo: Mecum

The prototype eventually found its way to Universal Studios for The Fate of the Furious in 2017. The prototype’s original paint scheme was restored after it was acquired by a museum, but not much else was done to preserve the Ripsaw while it was on display. After the cost of purchase, the winning bidder will likely have to put more work into the Ripsaw to get it back in movie-star shape.