In what must have been some sort of twisted marketing ploy, the great American automaker Ford had an Ultimate Green Ford Focus RS sitting at the beginning of their display at the 2009 SEMA Show in Las Vegas. Honestly, as you turned the corner expecting to see more Mustangs than you can shake a stick at, there it was, a 300 HP turbocharged lime green Focus wearing a set of wide arches, 19 inch multi spoke rally inspired RS wheels, vents in the fenders and hood as well as a wide mouth front bumper.
At first the neon paint acted like a magnet drawing in your eyes. As anyone who has ever been behind the wheel at speed can tell you, you end up going where your eyes are looking, and we weren’t alone. We literally had to shove through the crowds and hold back attendees just to get a clean shot of Ford of Europe’s greatest creation. Hopefully Ford’s marketing team were hiding behind the curtain somewhere like the wizard of Oz just so that they can understand just how much of a demand there is for this machine right here in the U.S. however we might just settle for an RS Fiesta.
Its six minutes long, but we guarantee that it’s worth the watch.
And no, this is not an ad for the Nissan GT-R. What it is, is a independent short film by Dylan Osborn titled ‘Inheritance’.
The whole plot revolves around four siblings whose wealthy father recently died. As part of his will, he orders his children to race around the estate, on to the backroads, and back home to the finish line. The price? His entire riches, complete with ‘the keys to the kingdom’.
As you can expect, the kids came with some pretty nice rides of their own, except the ‘rebel daughter’ Emily, which, brought with her a Datsun 240Z. Having pretty much thrown in the towel, Emily gets a nice surprise from the family butler, who hands her the key to a Nissan GT-R.
We’re not going to spoil the ending so as not to ruin the whole thing. Better watch it.
Florida Intenational Univerity’s Wolfsonian art museum kicked off their Very Wolfsonian Weekend Celebrating Car Culture with Cocktails Among the Motor Cars at the Creative Workshop in Dania Beach Florida. After stepping inside what looked like an old wooden barn, it was hard not to feel like a kid in a candy store, although what we were smelling was patina instead of sweets. Now being the gear heads that we are, any time spent inside of a shop is a special occasion but when there is a catering staff toting hors d’oeuvres and all the cars are lined up and polished to perfection (for the most part) you know that you are in for a real treat. The Creative Workshop is a high end antique car restoration and one off coach building specialists that are eager to combine the vintage lines of classic designs with the practicality and performance of today’s technology. The venue was filled with classic automobiles in all steps of restoration, showing off the Creative Workshops ability to breath new life into old cars with perfection.
It is hard to imagine that this place is a working shop when not hosting classic car themed cocktail parties; the setting was just too perfect. Hiding behind the rows of automotive icons you could spot the mills and band saws that made all this possible. It might have just been a happy coincidence, but somehow a few leafs found their way onto the bare metal floor pan of what will soon become a bio diesel burning Mercedes Benz cabriolet powered by a VW sourced V10. There was a cherry red Ferrari Daytona that had a little mishap and required some minor metal work on each of the front fenders. One particular favorite was a period correct rat rod that was made from nothing but metal, aside from the flat rear rubbers. In the display room were a pair of pristine Jaguar E Types, but it was outside that we would find out what made this wooden structure so famous, a hand formed Ferrari Testarossa inspired roadster powered by a BMW V12 called the Sport Speciale. We would like to thank the Creative Workshop for opening its door and having us over for some sliders and sultry rides, tonight’s Very Wolfsonian Weekend activities include a chat with the man who redesigned BMW, Chris Bangle.
The Devon Motorworks GTX is the latest and greatest American made super car. So far we have seen the car debut at Pebble Beach and even set a lap record at Laguna Seca, however we still haven’t seen the new super car from racing driver Justin Bell. The Devon GTX is a pure driving machine; with an inherent beauty that comes from a simplistic and functional design. The GTX’s body features bold wheel arches that house some seriously wide rubber and steel while Devon’s first interior is filled with retro touches like the cueball looking shift knob that looks like it came right out of a classic muscle car. We think that Mr. Bell and his team of automotive craftsmen at Devon Motorworks are taking a step in the right direction with the GTX and will definitely be giving more exotic super cars from around the world a run for their money.
Just in case the wait for Gran Turismo 5 has left you chomping your nails in anticipation, it’s always a good idea to remember just what you’re waiting for. These new screenshots of the game come in 18 megapixels, which, if you don’t know, is as crisp as it can get.
The realism is uncanny, even for our pretty lofty standards, and seeing these photos does beg the question: how much longer do we have to wait?
Seeing these photos has made the wait that much more excruciating.
Power can come in many shapes and sizes, ranging from naturally aspirated American big block V8 to high revving boosted sport compact four cylinder engines. Although it can be a bit more of a challenge to squeeze every last bit of potential out of limited displacement power plants, that didn’t stop this team of Mini Cooper tuners who brought their creation to the 2009 SEMA Show. If you were ever wondering what a 750 HP Mini looks like, well here it is; and all it takes is an upgraded turbocharger, larger diameter piping, custom manifolds and as much go juice as possible being squirted into each of the four combustion chambers. So what do you do with a 750 HP Mini Cooper wearing a set of drag slicks, aside from anything you want, 10 second quarter mile passes sound about right.
The one comment that every automotive enthusiast made when they would pass one of these modified 2010 Chevrolet Camaros at the 2009 SEMA Show is what kind of a bonehead move it was for GM to bring an end to Pontiac. The Firebird has always been a fan favorite for performance enthusiasts with its attractive styling, powerful engines and affordable price. Well have no fear because the screaming chicken is back, after all what is the automotive aftermarket for.
The American tuner Lingenfelter has prepared a 655 HP Trans-Am using one of American Specialty Cars conversion kits and a set of honeycomb wheels. Offering something for everyone, Smokey and the Bandit fans will appreciate the black and gold 2010 Pontiac adorned with a kit from Kevin Morgan that would even make Burt Reynolds shed a tear. Even though GM has officially ended our hopes for a new Firebird, enthusiasts can still build their own if they really want to.
The Mopar display at the 2009 SEMA Show was huge, however the one car that stuck out like a sore thumb was Chrysler’s 1/4 mile conquering Dodge Challenger 1320. The drag racing Challenger is essentially a street legal version of the special order lightweight Drag Pak Challenger that has already been stripped of over 1,000 pounds and is sold specifically to very serious drag racers. Powering the 1320 is a 426 cubic inch all aluminum Hemi V8 crate motor that starts off making a total of 556 HP and 540 lb-ft of torque and gets its own unique exhaust note thanks to a set of Mopar long tube headers and free flowing pipes.
On the inside, everything in front of your eyes will be familiar for Challenger fans, however a few of the other interior pieces, like the bucket seats and shifter, have been sourced from the much more exotic Dodge Viper. On the outside, Mopar keeps the Challenger 1320 simple with a basic yellow paint scheme complete with blacked out hood, tail section, a set of steelies from their police car program and only a few basic decals. However we have to say that the christmas tree incorporated into the "1" is pretty sweet.
Everyone’s favorite automotive television show Top Gear is coming back with its 14th season this coming November 15th at 21:00 GMT on BBC channel Two. The new series will bring back the ringleader Jeremy Clarkson, the looker Richard Hammond and Capitain Slow James May as they drive a trio of drop top super cars that are as special as they are. We have seen the crew preparing for the season 14 premier where they will be driving an Aston DBS Volante, a Ferrari California and a Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder on the Romanian road Transfagarasan.
The Vodafone McLaren Mercedes MP4-24 Formula One car wears a set of very special wheels from the Japanese rim manufacturer Enkei. By the very nature of the sport, components must be extremely lightweight and resilient in order to give the teams every competitive edge possible while standing up to spinning at 200 MPH and hitting FIA curbs at triple digit speeds. The wonderful thing about the SEMA show in Las Vegas is that you have a chance to get up close and personal with these types of items, as well as the wide assortment of their everyday offerings. As the Enkei representatives turned their backs, we took the opportunity to lift the wheel from its stand, and because of its size and shape considered playing a game of football with it. The wheel was so surprisingly light, and being significantly wider than it is tall makes for a rare sight to see. To get this kind of contact with a piece of a Formula One race car you would have to risk being shot in the paddock by a mechanic, however in SEMA up close and friendly atmosphere, anything goes.
Picture Gallery
Post a comment
RSS -
Webmaster free news |