- Associated Press - Friday, June 1, 2018

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Last year, Kansas City custom car builder Joe Pace sold his homemade replica of the “Dumb and Dumber” Shaggin’ Wagon to a Minnesota car collector for $20,000.

“I miss it already,” Pace said after the sale.

Now he’s made a second carpet-covered Mutt Cutts van just like the one from the 1994 movie starring Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels. And he’s upped the price.

It can be yours for $30,000 - no IOUs.

The 2003 Ford Econoline van features shag carpet on the exterior, a floppy red tongue hanging from the hood and an “I’ve Got Worms” sign on the bumper. The interior boasts faux fur-covered captain’s chairs, a 40-inch TV with a DVD player, a mysterious briefcase and a fake parakeet with a “Hello my name is Petey” keychain attached to its cage.

All the work was done by Pace, who is well known locally for his movie cars. He made a glow-in-the-dark Ecto-1 from “Ghostbusters” and, back in the ’80s, he built a replica of the DeLorean time machine from “Back to the Future.”

On Memorial Day, Pace listed his Shaggin’ Wagon van on Facebook. By Tuesday afternoon, it had been shared more than 25,000 times with more than 9,000 comments.

Pace told The Kansas City Star that he’d barely slept because his phone had been “burning up” nonstop with calls and notifications. Most of the calls were pranks - at least one person asked if he could trade the van for a Honda mini bike, straight up.

“I tried to stay positive, but after eight hours, I was goin’ at ’em,” he said.

On Facebook, some posters appeared genuinely interested.

“What brand of carpet is that anyway?” wrote James Welling. “Is it stain resistant?”

Others balked at the van’s price tag.

“LOL that price is so unrealistic,” posted Andrew Wirka. “5K maybe.”

Evan Steeves wanted to know if the van had a “shake button” for when it’s rainy. Alex Kato joked that he’d rather buy the van than pay for his wedding.

Lots of people who saw the post tagged their friends to see if they wanted to split the cost, or responded with a GIF of Lloyd Christmas, the “pumpkin pie hair cutted freak” Jim Carrey plays in the movie, saying “I like it a lot.”

Pace said he’s selling the van after its original buyer, a Nebraska man who owns dog spas, backed out of a deal.

“I’ve thrown all my money into this dog van,” Pace said.

He added that if he sells the replica, he’s going to use the profits to fund his latest project.

“I’ve already started on a Cheech and Chong ’Up in Smoke’ van,” he said, referencing the 1978 stoner classic. “This is their 40th anniversary.”

If that doesn’t work out, he could always start a worm store.

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Information from: The Kansas City Star, http://www.kcstar.com

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