Justin Bieber is one lucky cat. Not only is his face tacked on the walls of just about every teenage girl’s room in this country - which we don’t particularly care for - but he’s also parlayed his millions into a growing stable of exotic supercars.
One of these exotics, a tricked-out Cadillac CTS-V Coupe that he affectionately calls his "Batmobile," was customized by noted American tuning company West Coast Customs and will be featured in the finale of its show, Inside West Coast Customs on November 6, 2011. The building process behind this Caddy will be prominently featured on the show, but if you can’t wait for it to be aired, you can find out a preview of it right here.
What initially started as a red CTS-V Coupe was eventually turned into a matte black piece of stealthy American bad-assery. Since it’s owned by the Biebs himself, it was important to have the car have its own ’JB’ badges. The car also gets suicide doors that add even more personality to Bieber’s American sports car. As far as the interior of the Caddy "Batmobile" is concerned, West Coast Customs did the honors and dressed up the car in black leather and suede with matching purple stitching, JB logos decked in Swarovski crystals, and an extensive sound system that fits into Bieber’s vibrant and larger-than-life personality.
Ryan Friedlinghaus, CEO of West Coast Customs, couldn’t have been more thrilled with how the build turned out. "It’s not every day the world’s most influential and powerful teen sensation comes into my shop," he said.
"Together, we created something that Justin didn’t have — the sickest CTS-V on Earth, that even exceeded Justin’s expectations."
Check out the season finale of Inside West Coast Customs at 8 pm on Sunday November 6, 2011 on Velocity.
Jon Olsson has the kind of problems that we can only dream of having. The professional skier and supercar aficionado is having trouble choosing what kind of car he’s going to use for his winter travels this season. Apparently, he ordered a Lamborghini Aventador for this purpose, except that the supercar has yet to be delivered to him.
So instead of twiddling his thumbs while waiting by the window, Olsson went out to buy a"temporary" alternative: a Lamborghini Gallardo LP540 decked in a sick camouflage finish with a ski box on top. Apparently, having one such Lamborghini Murcielago SV in his garage, as well as a Nissan R35 GT-R, wasn’t enough for him.
Olsson worked together with German tuner, DMC, to create his perfect temporary Lambo. They reconfigured the front end with an extra GT3 lip, then went on to add a new rear-deck lid, new LED lights, a new bumper, and a new rear diffuser. Apparently, Olsson also asked DMC to create an SV wing like the one from his original LP670.
And just in case you’ve forgotten about the Gallardo’s credentials, it’s worth pointing out that it still packs a 5.2-liter V10 engine that produces 560 horsepower. It’s not a Murcielago SV or an Aventador, but it’s still ’good enough’ for Olsson to use on his winter travels.
Because he is Jon Olsson and he’s got more money in his socks than we have in our bank accounts, he can ill afford to splurge on one Lamborghini while waiting for another one to be delivered to him.
Hit the jump to watch the Skibox test for Jon Olsson’s temporary play thing.
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Richard Hammond and James May - two names not really needing any further introduction - are two of the three stars of Top Gear and together they are presenting a trailer video for the "Top Gear at the Movies" - a DVD that was inspired by the famous Top Gear show. This new DVD shows off "the most memorable automotive moments in cinema history."
"Cars are the bedrock of the most memorable moments in cinema history, so be prepared for a thrilling selection of races, stunts and awesome feats as Richard Hammond and James May celebrate cars on the big screen through a blend of action, amazing driving and exotic metal."
The new "Top Gear at the Movies" will be available for DVD, Blu-ray, and iTunes starting November 14, 2011. For anyone not able to catch Top Gear UK episodes the first time around, this DVD will be a great way to watch all of the highlights in one sitting!
Almost a year ago at the 2010 LA Auto Show, world-renowned designer Bijan Pakzad struck a partnership with British luxury brand Rolls-Royce to design a limited number of rare Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupes that would be appropriately called the ‘Bijan Edition.’
Unfortunately, the designer was not able to see his work come to life after his unexpected death last April due to a heart attack. Despite his passing on, the Rolls-Royce project continued on and recently, the first of these special edition models was unveiled in front of Bijan’s luxury boutique in Beverly Hills, California.
The luxury Phantom Drophead Coupe, in so many words, has Bijan’s imprint all over it. From the unmistakable bright yellow color of the luxury sedan all the way to the touches of white diamonds embedded in the wood veneer dashboard and the set of crystal glasses tucked in a picnic set in the trunk, the Rolls-Royce Phantom Bijan Edition speaks to the taste and lifestyle of the late, great designer.
While its easy to get mesmerized by the car, it’s also worth noting that this particular Phantom also carries a 6.75-liter V12 engine that produces in excess of 450 horsepower. According to Bijan executives, the plan for the ultra rare Phantom Bijan Edition is to have at least a dozen of them built with each set to be priced from anywhere between $850,000 all the way up to $1.6 million.
Knowing the man and his impeccable taste in cars, there’s a good chance that Bijan Pakzad, wherever he is, is looking down on this car with that million-dollar smile on his face.
Photos courtesy of Dirk A. Photography
October 5, 2011 was a very sad day for the American computer industry: Steve Jobs - the creator of the first commercially successful lines of personal computers, the Apple II series - passed away after losing his battle with a rare pancreatic cancer. As one of the few, true innovators of our time, Jobs took his knowledge and creativity and built up a company that is now worth about $1 trillion.
Steve Jobs did many great things for the technological world, so as homage to a great man, we thought it would be interesting to talk a little about one of his first projects. You see, the first Macintosh computer Jobs designed was actually influenced by his Porsche 928.
Andy Hertzfeld, a member of the original Apple development team, recalls the discussion in March 1981 during a late night at the office. "It’s got to be different, different from everything else." said Jobs to James Ferris, Apple’s director of Creative Services. “For some reason, they were talking about cars,” Hertzfeld recalls.
"We need it to have a classic look, that won’t go out of style, like the Volkswagen Beetle", I heard Steve tell James.
"No, that’s not right.", James replied. "The lines should be voluptuous, like a Ferrari.”
"Not a Ferrari, that’s not right either", Steve responded, apparently excited by the car comparison. "It should be more like a Porsche!" referring to his Porsche 928.
“I thought it was kind of pompous to compare computers with sports cars, even metaphorically. But I was impressed with Steve’s passion for elegance in the industrial design and his powers of discrimination continually amazed me as the design took shape.” Hertzfeld said.
The design for the first Mac was released in February 1982. Jobs had worked tirelessly, attempting to produce the best Porsche-like design for the computer.
The world has lost a true inspiration. Steve Jobs will be missed.
Who’s the rich guy that always gets the girl, has the best toys, and drives some of the coolest supercars, all while saving the world from evil? If we would’ve asked this question last year then many would say Tony Stark/Ironman, but the spotlight has been refocused on the caped crusader, Bruce Wayne/Batman. In Dark Knight, Batman sped around Gotham City in a Lamborghini Murcielago, but in the followup film, The Dark Knight Rises, Bruce has moved up in the world, driving around in the new Lamborghini Aventador. These images of the Aventador’s breakthrough in film were taken outside of an office building where VW Vortex forum member, VadGTI, was working.
Whether the Aventador will come with the usual array of toys found on the Batmobile, is still unknown; the Lamborghini supercar may just be a trophy in Bruce Wayne’s garage. If it does make its debut as Batman’s latest ride, expect plenty of exterior modifications, but the same throaty 6.5-liter V12 engine pushing out 700 HP 8,250 rpm and 509 lb-ft at 5,500 rpm. Catwoman’s motorcycle will have to do better than the Aventador’s top speed of 217 mph.
Let’s just hope that it doesn’t suffer the same fate as that of the Murcielago LP640 - it crashed heavily in one scene - in the Dark Knight.
For those of you who follow the Formula 1 racing series, the name Jenson Button should absolutely ring a bell. Button is a British Formula One driver currently signed to McLaren and as any other Formula 1 driver, his garage houses some of the most impressive vehicles on the market, including vehicles like the Nissan GT-R, Bugatti Veyron, and a variety of Ferrari models.
Another model he has enjoyed taking out and about is his Ford GT supercar. Until now. Button has just announced that the GT will be available for sale for anyone interested. It only has 3,500 miles on the odometer and is priced at £130,000 or about $203,000 at the current exchange rates.
When talking about his car, Button said: "It’s exciting to have such a rare and great vehicle in stock – this one is certainly in a league of its own. It’s a really good investment with the current value increasing by ten per cent each year, and since it was owned by Jensen Button, it’s perfect!"
We can’t blame him for getting rid of his Ford GT; his new ride will be a new McLaren MP4-12C.
Unless you have been living under a rock for the past few months, everyone knows that Charlie Sheen has been falling into a downward spiral filled with drugs, prostitutes, and questionable cases of "winning." Fed up and insulted, CBS officials cast off the tainted star and replaced him by actor and comedian, Ashton Kutcher. Not a bad replacement if you can get it, but in watching Kutcher’s first episode, we noticed another star that was not so heavily marketed. Kutcher’s ride in the series is the hybrid Fisker Karma.
The sleek extended-range electric sedan made its debut in the show when Walden Schmidt (played by Kutcher) drove up to the house. CBS undoubtedly provided the character with an up and coming hybrid car to play up Kutcher’s good boy character and leave behind the bad boy essence of Sheen.
When discussing the choice to allow CBS to use the vehicle, Fisker spokesman, Roger Ormisher, said: "We are delighted to be have been pro-actively chosen as Ashton’s car on Two and a Half Men – it will give Fisker amazing visibility not only in the US but internationally too. The on-going partnership with Two and a Half Men is one that is both exciting and motivational for everybody here at Fisker Automotive."
Nobody cares if Nicole Scherziner’s last name is hard to spell or pronounce; the former lead singer of the Pussycat Dolls is still one of the most beautiful people on the planet.
She’s so hot, in fact, that when she poses with a Lamborghini Diablo, it takes us a moment before we can leave her gaze to notice the iconic Lamborghini supercar.
In addition to once being the headline of the Pussycat Dolls, Scherzinger has also made a name for herself as the winner of the tenth season of Dancing With The Stars. Oh and she’s also the hot girlfriend of no less than McLaren F1 driver and former Driver’s Champion, Lewis Hamilton.
There’s no question that the Hawaiian-born Filipino-American has the whole package to make millions drool. But for us that love our cars, seeing this goddess of a woman flirting on a Lamborghini Diablo is the stuff that fantasies are made of.
Meow, indeed!
Check out more photos in the gallery below!
Since the very first Batmobile was introduced in May 1930, there have been replicas made by fans and tuning houses everywhere. But never has one been made with an actual turbine engine that the Batmobile of the late 80s had in the film. Putsch Racing has done just that...minus the guns, rockets, gadgets and gizmos.
Putsch Racing is better known for restoring and tuning cars and bikes, but this one-off project is quite possibly Casey Putsch’s most unbelievable yet. Not to mention that the car sounds like a fighter jet. A really mean fighter jet.
Powered by a turbine engine taken from a decommissioned military helicopter, the Putsch designed Batmobile is a marvel in ingenuity. There’s even an iPad in there doing who knows what. Maybe they took a page out of Hyundai’s book and used it as an owner’s manual. We’d hope not though, something cooler seems more fitting.
What’s even better than Putsch designing and creating this fire-breathing beast? It’s for sale. But you’ll have to contact Putsch directly for a price, which is probably fairly high.
Hit the jump for some more information and an accompanying video of the Batmobile by Putsch Racing.
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