We all know that Jay Leno loves his cars. After all, he probably has enough cars – modern and vintage – to make his own showroom. But despite owning a fleet of some of the most expensive and prestigious vehicles in the world, we still don’t know as to how much of a car fanatic Jay Leno is. That’s until we found out that our favorite ex-late night talk show host has his own 3D scanner, which he uses to scan and print rare and irreplaceable car parts from his vintage classics. Now, that’s something you’ve never heard before.
Leno’s revolutionary gadget is a NextEngine 3D Scanner, which can scan a fully-functioning auto part in 20 minutes at 160,000 dots per inch resolution. After doing so, he takes his scanned image and prints it into a plastic 3D model using his Dimension 3D Printer. While the resulting part isn’t the final piece of the exercise – he takes the plastic, which can be scanned and printed in three hours, and uses it to make a mold that will eventually produce the metal, which he uses on the car.
We know a lot of car aficionados the world over that would go to great lengths to restore their precious vehicles, but we’ve never seen anyone that has an device that can actually make a 3D image of a vintage car part. But that’s why Jay Leno is who he is.
Can’t afford a afford a Porsche GT3 RS? or just sick of telling people the color of your Porsche GT3 RS and wish there was something that could represent it it? Do you walk a lot?
For the person who has everything but taste, now there is a company called Purchaze that has mimicked the color scheme from the high performance 911. If you do purchase a pair of these Nike Air Max shoes, you will at least be in good company. The maintenance team from one of Porsche’s racing crews will also be sporting these kicks.
Sports car seats are soooooo comfortable on long trips that they must work well in cubicle too, right? (can you detect the sarcasm?)
For those who want to add a little zoom to the boardroom, RaceChairs utilizes restored car seats from different car makers such as Ferrari, Maserati, Lamborghini, Porsche and Corvette. The donor cars these seats come from aren’t exactly cheap, so neither are the office versions. For instance, contingent on the condition of the original seat, a Ferrari 360 office chair can fetch around $6,000 and a Lamborghini Murcielago LP640 chair up to $11,000.
Since these seat are reconditioned, some may have come from famous first owners. Part of the allure of owning one is that your butt may be taking up the same space as Paris Hilton’s or Michael Shumaker’s once occupied.
Wright is the enemy of speed. So these wheels featuring an outer portion made of carbon fiber and a magnesium wheel face my be the next big thing. HRE/Dymag introduced these at SEMA last week as the first production carbon fiber wheels.
These should come in 19 inch and 20 inch sizes with pricing expected to be between $2,500 and $4,000 per wheel (or around $10,000 to $16,000 for a set of four wheels). They will be available for sale early next year, and each should weigh about 21 pounds.
A real man doesn’t need a steady reminder of his manliness. Consider for example, Gear Head Shampoo ($6), combining all kinds of manly ingredients in its manly recipe, such as Aloe Vera gel, oils of lemon, orange and basil scents, and Jojoba oil, all mixed into an all man motor oilesque container. If you are not a man, this recipe is apparently not for you.
Navigon, the leading innovator in the navigation market, released today its latest products: the 5100 max and 2090S, two new GPS systems to help you arrive faster where you’re heading. Both of these systems are delivered with a FreshMaps package , which means that you will be able to make eight updates over a two year period. The 5100 max features a 4.3-inch widescreen, has real-time Traffic updates for life, Reality View Pro, a system that displays 3D views, Bluetooth Hands-free, advanced text-to-speech guidance than announces the directions and street names and DirectHelpSM system which provides directions to nearby emergency service providers including hospitals, pharmacies and road-side help. The smaller 2090S comes with the same features but includes a 3.5-inch display. The cost is between $199.99 and $299.99 for the systems.
Usually at SEMA Show we see plenty of customized cars but this year we will see also the Nextar Q4-MD, a new GPS fitted with MSN Direct support, and a 4.3-inch touchscreen display. For those who don’t know, the MSN Direct is an online service that delivers important data to your device such as traffic conditions, fuel prices or weather data.
The new device will feature also a 2d or 3d map viewing, an SD Card slot for additional memory, will be capable to play Mp3s, will have USB connectivity and a receargable Li-Ion battery. For those interested the device will be available from 2009 and priced at $329.99.
Press release after the jump.
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Since most of us don’t have a muppet to take care of our speeding tickets, this little gadget may be useful for defeating speeding cameras. This RF license plate cover features motorized panels which can cover your license plates. Now with the push of a key fob button you can drive as fast as you want. So far we’ve only seen it for international style long plates, but for those who are interested it can be found here.
P.S. When the cops catch you, and they will, you didn’t get the idea from us.
Not since Calvin relieving himself on your least favorite car brand has been so easy for a driver to show his/her feelings. "The Hand" remote controller window sign is a funny and useful gadget that signs how you feel towards the other drivers. For $40, this electroluminescent gesturing hand will allow to focus your attention completely on the road.
Just make sure you always have some expression always on. To correctly fit all the different gestures, the blank hand has six fingers.
Say good-bye to in-car conversation. 2009 will be the first year when more than half of the vehicles manufactured in America will be offered with support for iPod. So now on your trip to the local store, you will likely packing enough music for days. In 2008, 39 percent of new cars offered iPod support, but that number will jump to 58 percent next year.
According to Phil Magney, vice president of automotive research for iSuppli, the future sales of the vehicles will be seriously influenced by in-vehicle technologies. For example, due to the fact that Bluetooth technology is integrated in every phone, more than 82% of the 2009 vehicles will have it as an option or as a standard.
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