Koopa Clown Car

The Koopa Clown Car (sometimes called the Koopa Clown Copter or Koopa Copter) is Bowser's favored mode of transportation. Despite being called a car, it is a helicopter-like vehicle with a large clown face on the front, which has the ability to change its expression. A petite version of the Koopa Clown Car named the Junior Clown Car is often piloted by Bowser Jr.

Super Mario World
The first appearance of the Koopa Clown Car was in Super Mario World; in the Valley of Bowser, Bowser can be seen flying around his castle in it. After making his way through Bowser's Castle and onto the rooftop of it, Mario proceeded to battle Bowser, who rode around in the Koopa Clown Car. Attacking Mario by dropping Big Steelies and Mechakoopas on him, Bowser could only be injured by having a jumped-on Mechakoopa thrown at him when he stuck his head out of the Koopa Clown Car. After being hit by Mechakoopas several times, Bowser will try to use the Koopa Clown Car, whose face grows more sinister and manic, to crush Mario. Bowser will also begin dropping fireballs from the Koopa Clown Car. Princess Toadstool will also toss Mario a Super Mushroom. After being hit several more times by flung Mechakoopas, Bowser and the Koopa Clown Car will finally be beaten. Bowser can be seen over his castle in it. After being beaten, he relinquishes Princess Peach from it and retreats. The Koopa Clown Car here is able to blink and show other facial expressions with its eyes.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii
In New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Bowser Jr. gets his own version of the Koopa Clown Car (later named the Junior Clown Car). It's encountered in and, but in , Bowser Jr. kicks it out of the boss room in favor of the original Koopa Clown Copter. He attacks Mario and friends with fireballs and spiked bombs, which can be used to defeat him with a well-timed Ground Pound.

New Super Mario Bros. 2
The Clown Car re-appears in the 3DS game New Super Mario Bros. 2. The Koopalings can be seen riding in it together. In the corridors of the final castle in World 6 (and World Star), the Koopalings are seen "flashing" with the Koopa Clown Car's eyes. Mario can evade said "flash" by passing between the castle's pillars. If the flash touches Mario, he will be turned into stone. After Mario defeats Bowser for the first time, the Koopalings use their magic to enlarge Bowser, but in doing so they and the Clown Car get knocked into the lava. The Koopa Clown Car was used one final time in the ending, where the Koopalings attempted to carry Bowser with it. However, because Bowser's size exceeded its capacity, the Koopalings and Bowser were scattered throughout the trees and floor. The Koopa Clown Car was also revealed to have an autopilot function, as demonstrated when the Koopa Clown Car delivered a caged Princess Peach to Bowser's castle shortly after Ludwig von Koopa's defeat at the hands of Mario in the game.

Super Mario 3D World
In Super Mario 3D World, the Koopa Clown Car can be seen on a Ferris wheel in World Bowser.

"Send in the Clown"
The Koopa Clown Car appeared in the Super Mario World cartoon episode "Send in the Clown." In "Send in the Clown," King Koopa uses the Koopa Clown Car to announce to the cave people inhabitants of Dome City that they could go to the "Koopaling Bros. Circus" free of charge. Near the end of the episode, after Mario has destroyed King Koopa's fake circus, an enraged King Koopa, having taken Princess Toadstool hostage, begins to attack Mario in the Koopa Clown Car in a manner similar to the final boss battle from the game the series was based on. Attacking Mario by dropping a Big Steely and Mechakoopa on him, King Koopa and his Koopa Clown Car were defeated when Mario hurled a Mechakoopa at it, damaging its controls and causing it to fly off upside-down.

"Rock TV"
In "Rock TV", a later episode of Super Mario World, a flower pot resembling the Koopa Clown Car can be seen in King Koopa's throne room.

Super Mario Adventures
In the Super Mario Adventures comic, Bowser appears riding in his Koopa Clown Car after Mario and Luigi defeat all the monsters he sent to rampage through Princess Toadstool's Castle. After proceeding to tell Princess Toadstool his plans of marrying her and turning dozens of bystanders to stone, Bowser flees the scene in the Koopa Clown Car, with Princess Toadstool and several dozen Toads after him.

Much later in the comic, after Bowser's wedding to Princess Toadstool is crashed by Mario, Luigi, Yoshi and several hundred Yoshis, Bowser tries to flee in the Koopa Clown Car. Using a rope, Mario manages to lasso the Koopa Clown Car and cause it to crash into Bowser's giant wedding cake, apparently destroying it.

Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
Bowser briefly uses the Koopa Clown Car in the Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars. In this game, Bowser uses the Koopa Clown Car to abduct Princess Toadstool from Mario's yard. Bowser then uses the Koopa Clown Car to transport himself and Princess Toadstool to Bowser's Keep.

The Koopa Clown Car is seen again during the ending of the game, with a Shy Guy riding inside while Bowser and his troops are repairing the damage done to the castle by the Smithy Gang. The Koopa Clown Car makes a final appearance during the credits, emerging from a float made in the likeness of Bowser's Keep when Croco and his flunkies are attempting to loot it. Bowser, from within the Koopa Clown Car, gives chase to Croco until Booster hijacks the Koopa Clown Car from him.

Paper Mario
At the start of Paper Mario, Bowser uses a gigantic, stone version of the Koopa Clown Car to raise Princess Peach's Castle into the atmosphere. This version of the Koopa Clown Car also had several spiked balls hanging off it; it also makes a cameo appearance in Mario Kart: Super Circuit, where it can be seen in the background of the Rainbow Road track.

Also in the beginning of Paper Mario, Bowser uses the regular Koopa Clown Car to invade Star Haven and burst through a window in Princess Peach's Castle. Bowser also uses the Koopa Clown Car to temporarily escape after being beaten in Princess Peach's Castle.

Also of note, the platform used by Bowser to power himself up during his final battle against Mario resembles a long, flat version of the Koopa Clown Car, while several smaller versions of the Koopa Clown Car can be found in the hangar of Bowser's Castle.

Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
After learning from Kammy Koopa that the X-Nauts have kidnapped Princess Peach, Bowser sets off after the Princess in his Koopa Clown Car.

Later on in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, Bowser, after failing to get a ride on the Cheep-Cheep Blimp, uses his Koopa Clown Car to get to Glitzville. Unfortunately, the Koopa Clown Car breaks-down in mid-flight and crashes into the ocean, where Bowser apparently left it.

Super Smash Bros. series
A trophy of the Koopa Clown Car can be obtained in the game Super Smash Bros. Melee. In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, in the Subspace Emissary, Bowser uses this car twice. The first time it is used, Bowser uses it to escape from Mario, Pit, Yoshi, Link, and Kirby while taking the princess (Peach or Zelda). It is later used to escape from Falco, Diddy Kong, and Fox. After that, it is not seen again. When Bowser uses it, it makes a strange beeping noise resembling the noise that plays when Link gets his health restored in The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker.

Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour
In the introduction cinema of Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour, Bowser uses the Koopa Clown Car, which is equipped with two Bullet Bill Blasters, to chase down Wario and Waluigi, who have ticked-him off severely. Hole 11 of Bowser Badlands takes place on a giant Clown Car.

Mario Golf: World Tour
The Koopa Clown Car appears as the green for Hole 7 in Bowser's Castle in Mario Golf: World Tour, noticeably larger than any other Koopa Clown Car seen before.

Mario Party series
The Koopa Clown Car has appeared in several installments of the Mario Party series, most notably in Mario Party 5, Mario Party 6, Mario Party 7, and Mario Party 8. In Mario Party 8, it is depicted as having thicker lips and a green extension attached to its propeller; in addition to summoning cannons, it also has the ability to open its mouth, revealing a laser gun. However, these weapons are not all revealed in the beginning of the battle. The battle starts out with just laser gun blasts, and for approximately every four times Bowser is hit with blasts from the Star Rod, he becomes angrier and summons additional weapons, eventually progressing to a full-scale assault, with laser gun blasts and Bullet Bill cannons being fired simultaneously. In Mario Party 9, Bowser appears in the Koopa Clown Car at the end of a stage. Bowser and Bowser Jr. also ride their vehicles together in the ending.

Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga
After gaining the cure for Mario's Bean Fever, Luigi returns to Little Fungitown, only to encounter Bowletta, who has captured Princess Peach and is rapidly escaping with her in the Koopa Clown Car.

Later in Joke's End, Bowletta uses the Koopa Clown Car to capture Luigi, whom Bowletta believed to be Princess Peach, as Luigi was disguised as the Princess.

Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time
At the end of Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time, Baby Bowser can be seen returning to his castle with Kamek in the Koopa Clown Car. He also uses it after swiping the two Cobalt Star shards after the Mario Bros. and babies destroy Swiggler and he and Kamek get away. Incidentally, the Koopa Clown Car Baby Bowser uses is exactly the same as the one Bowser uses later in life, which may be the reason it has a clown face.

Mario & Luigi: Dream Team
Machines similar to the Koopa Clown Car make an appearance in Neo Bowser Castle as Dreampoints, and the actual machine appears in the ending, where he and his minions use it to escape Pi'illo Island, only for it to start losing altitude due to Private Goomp and Sergeant Guy shaking it in an attempt to catch the raining coins.

Mario Kart series
In Mario Kart DS, Bowser's 3rd choice kart is the Hurricane, a kart that resembles his Clown Car. In Mario Kart 7, an unlockable kart part called the Koopa Clown is modelled after the Koopa Clown Car. The kart part features a handling boost, but it hinders acceleration and off-road during the process. Actual Koopa Clown Cars appear in the retro battle stage, Big Donut, and in the tracks Wuhu Loop and Neo Bowser City, blowing wind for drivers flying above with gliders.

Trivia

 * Various vehicles have been seen in the Mario series that resemble the Koopa Clown Car.
 * In the Japanese comic Super Mario-Kun, the Koopa Clown Car was named differently at the start of the series. It was named Pierocopter, from "pierot (clown) and "helicopter".
 * Mario Kart 7 is the only game where the Junior Clown Car is portrayed with an actual car mode.