# Slug Bug or Punch Buggy or Buggy Punch? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 23, 2009, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855 "2009-10-23T14:11:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Translucent\_Daydream](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/translucent_daydream/32/16170_2.png) [@Translucent\_Daydream](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Translucent_Daydream)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/21 "2009-10-23T20:43:53Z")
Its usually in my car… Slug Bug, biotch! ---
**Author:** ![chacoguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/50afbb/32.png) [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/22 "2009-10-23T21:28:25Z")
This was one of the best parts of owning an old style VW beetle. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/23 "2009-10-23T21:31:01Z")
(Insert color) punch buggy, no punch backs! Ohio, mid-80’s til present ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Onimous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ea5d25/32.png) [@Ann\_Onimous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Onimous)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/24 "2009-10-23T21:39:13Z")
Slug Bug. Learned it in March 1985 from my best friend. She was from Northern Ohio, and they played it all the time up there. We were on choir tour, and she whacked me in the shoulder while yelling, “Slug bug red no slug back!” I looked at her like she was totally insane for a minute, but then played along. We had matching bruises when we got to our next destination. I, of course, did what any good parent would do, and passed it on to my kids. Nobody better hit me this afternoon, though. I got a flu shot today. I may have to call a slug bug moratorium. ---
**Author:** ![redtail23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/3e96dc/32.png) [@redtail23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/redtail23)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/25 "2009-10-23T21:42:55Z")
Slug bug. No colors. No punchbacks. Oklahoma, mid 80s (from the spousal unit, who had played as a kid in the 70s). I don’t really remember specifics, that was a while back and my mind ain’t what it used to be. I do remember once waiting quietly, carefully, and attentively, for the giant VW salvage yard out somewhere back of beyond. Slugfest! Mwahahahaha. ETA: I think you did get a punchback if it wasn’t really a SlugBug, or if it was one that had already been slugged on. ---
**Author:** ![Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e36b37/32.png) [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airman_Doors_USAF)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/26 "2009-10-23T23:47:50Z")
My sister and I play Punch Bug, Punchbacks allowed if they are called immediately, but in our variation we incorporate rare VWs and assign them point values based on rarity. New Bug-1 New Bug Convertible-2 Old Bug-3 Old Bug Convertible-4 Bus (Type 2s and Vanagons, no Eurobus)-5 [Type 3](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volkswagen_Type_3)-6 [Karmann Ghia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volkswagen_Karmann_Ghia)-7 [The “Thing”](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vw_thing)-8 [SP2](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volkswagen_SP2)-9 We have found all of them around here, including the SP2. Mostly, though, it’s old and new Bugs and the Bus, with an occasional Karmann Ghia and Thing. We also play Cruiser Bruiser, with the convertible meriting 2, and Beaverwood (real or fake wood paneling), each meriting one. When all is said and done after a long trip the points are tallied, and the winner gets to pop the loser the difference in score. Sometimes we hit hard, but not usually. In other words, she rarely wins. Ah, the games of our childhood. Too bad we have to get old, but that doesn’t mean we have to stop playing them. ---
**Author:** ![Backwater\_Under\_Duck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ba8739/32.png) [@Backwater\_Under\_Duck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Backwater_Under_Duck)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2009, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/27 "2009-10-24T00:55:44Z")
Southwest (New Mexico) 1950’s and 60’s we had a regional trucking company called ICX. So it was: ICX (I-See-X), No backs! ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2009, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/28 "2009-10-24T01:18:04Z")
Which is it? **Slug Bug** Where did you learn it (Geography & time)? **SoCal – just a few years ago from my friend’s niece and granddaughter.** Any punch/slug-backs? **Only if the declared vehicle turns out not to be a bug, or the hitter calls the wrong color (a matter of great debate sometimes!)** Do you use the variation where you smack someone once for each letter as you spell out the color?\*\* No. \*\* ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2009, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/29 "2009-10-24T01:58:18Z")
OK, I’m going to go against the majority here. I learned how to play in the 70’s in Western Pa. and it was “Punch a bug - no returns.” Everybody in my region knew it as “Punch a bug,” so it must have been some kind of regional oddity. And we didn’t give extra punches for the color of the Beetle. And it was more fun if you were riding in a school bus on a field trip with your class, Scout troop, or whatever. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2009, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/30 "2009-10-24T02:09:42Z")
Northeast, early 80s: Punch Buggy. I never heard Slug Bug before this thread. We didn’t do anything with colors but say it, but did “no punch backs”. ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2009, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/31 "2009-10-24T03:39:35Z")
I learned it as “slug bug” with a simultaneous single punch to the arm. This was in northern WV in the 1970’s. There was no mention of slug/punch backs and a second hit by someone else for the same bug was strictly forbidden. My kids learned it as “green punch buggy no punch back” (substituting the appropriate color of course) with a simultaneous single punch. If you forget the “no punch back” part then the person you punched is allowed to punch you back, again with only a single punch. This is in southern PA (not far from Gettysburg) in the 1990’s. I like “slug bug” better. It’s short and to the point. ---
**Author:** ![FloatyGimpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/floatygimpy/32/7750_2.png) [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2009, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/32 "2009-10-24T03:54:56Z")
I’ve been waiting for some time for a thread like this to come up. As to the OP it was always and still is punch buggy. But I’ve made up a new one for smart cars and a lot of people I know have started doing it now. It’s “smart stab!” then you poke them. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2009, 6:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/33 "2009-10-24T06:36:49Z")
Didn’t play it much, but it was always slug bug. You had to specify no slug-backs. And we always kept score, as we didn’t punch very hard. (It was only me and my sister.) ---
**Author:** ![Uncle\_Brother\_Walker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f08c70/32.png) [@Uncle\_Brother\_Walker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncle_Brother_Walker)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2009, 7:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/34 "2009-10-24T07:53:52Z")
First, growing up in TX, it was “slug bug” (color of car). Then, I met friends who moved from Baltimoron to TX and we changed the name to "Punch Buggy “(color of car”) Later, while I was dating cousin of friend from Baltimoron, we changed the rules of the game to “kiss buggy” (color of car). Yeah, we were disgustingly romantic. We didn’t last. She hates me now. ---
**Author:** ![Sal\_Ammoniac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8dc957/32.png) [@Sal\_Ammoniac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sal_Ammoniac)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2009, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/35 "2009-10-24T16:29:03Z")
I learned it from my kids circa 2008. For them it’s “punch buggy,” and you can call “no punchbacks.” Of course, I don’t actually allow them to hit each other, so now I just hear, “Punch-buggy, I called it.” Seems to me there’s a variation for convertible punch-buggies, but I can’t remember what it is. The kids are also now calling Smart Cars, for what it’s worth. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2009, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/36 "2009-10-24T16:53:22Z")
Learned it in New Mexico in the 80s. We didn’t punch each other as children. I didn’t learn the punching part until high-school. We had to mention the color, but it had nothing to do with how many times you got punched. It was binary. ---
**Author:** ![Chessic\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7c8e57/32.png) [@Chessic\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chessic_Sense)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2009, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/37 "2009-10-24T17:06:09Z")
It’s “[color] punch buggy”, you stupid idiot heads. Because adjectives come before nouns in English, duh. If there were girls in the car in high school, we would play strip padiddle, driver excluded. I always drove. It was awesome. ---
**Author:** ![Chessic\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7c8e57/32.png) [@Chessic\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chessic_Sense)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2009, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/38 "2009-10-24T20:09:15Z")
Oh, sorry. Pittsburgh, mid 90s. ---
**Author:** ![Brynda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e79b87/32.png) [@Brynda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brynda)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2009, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/39 "2009-10-24T22:20:24Z")
Slug bug, sometimes color, never had to worry about slugbacks TN, 70s My husband and I used to give an extra slug for any of the following, and they could be combined: convertible old bug decorated (bumper stickers or fancy plate or painting) Non-US bug (when we were in Canada) for sale sign on the bug etc. I drive a yellow bug and always laugh when I see people slug each other over it. ---
**Author:** ![LunarPlexus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@LunarPlexus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LunarPlexus)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2009, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855/40 "2009-10-24T23:31:58Z")
Kids do slug bug. I think they got it from my wife; I don’t recall doing this as a kid. Both Midwest 1970s. Somehow out of state plates (on anything) got added. There’s a lot of punching in the family. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slug-bug-or-punch-buggy-or-buggy-punch/514855.md?page=3)