SoCal’s Historic Muffler Men

The Porsche Muffler Man is certainly eyecatching in his driving suit that was handmade in France. While most muffler man statues in America don't have too much else going on around them, this one welcomes you to a world of adult fun. You may never get to own a Porsche but here you can test drive the latest models for a fraction of the cost. If you don't have the several hundred bucks required for a test ...

Before this was a La Salsa, it was a burger joint with a fiberglass giant atop tempting passersby with a ginormous burger in his outstreched arms. Today, the mascot has given up burgers in favor of tacos by donning a sombrero, and by transforming the bottom of his burger bun into a terracotta tray.

Of all the fiberglass giant incarnations, Chicken Boy is our favorite. This human-fowl hybrid once topped a fried chicken eatery and, in '84, was on schedule for demolition after the business went under. Lucky for us, Amy Inouye rescued her favorite L.A. landmark and C.B. is now proudly displayed above a design studio/art gallery.

A fiberglass giant whose sole job is to beckon you in for a tuneup.

Cortes Auto Glass' fiberglass giant dons a checkerboard shirt that screams auto racing and a beard that screams lumberjack. We love him precisely for this reason.

Most fiberglass giants are employed as roadside attraction-getters, but this retired gas station Paul Bunyan takes it easy outside an über-eccentric residence (our favorite sort) in Mentone. The home also sports a giant rooster and lady liberty's head on its roof.

Update: This guy is now gone. The Tony's Transmissions fiberglass giant is out to win prospective customers by skillfully balancing a roadster on a steel girder.

It is a little known fact that before the Internet made it easy to access consumer reviews, people used to rely on the likeability of huge fiberglass statues to help them decide where to buy their next muffler. Visit that simpler time here at Joor Muffler, where you’re invited to admire the rakish David Niven mustache of their mascot.

This Indian fiberglass giant once stood in the center of a roundabout--hence, his moniker "Indian on the Circle." He now proudly greets patrons of Ethel's Old Corral Cafe in Bakersfield.

Big Josh is Joshua Tree's very own Muffler Man. He made the move from Mecca, CA and has been standing here since 2018. The Station owners like to change Big Josh's accessories occasionally. During the first half of 2020 he been sporting a mask and blue nitrile gloves in order to do his part in fighting Covid-19.