Strange Cars

Italian cars are best known for their beautiful styling and, sadly, being unreliable. However, with regards to both statements, this isn’t always the case, and despite some of the oldest European car brands being Italian, they have had their bad moments. YouTube channel, Number27 is giving us five examples of Italian cars that could make any Italian curse his/her roots.

When it comes to Japanese cars, modifications are as common as ketchup on a hot dog. Pretty much anything that you can do to a car has been done, so standing out may be a challenge. That said, a guy named Jim Bjork has decided to think outside the box and has modified a very American C4 Corvette in a very JDM way. What came of it is one of the most unique-looking vehicles, you have ever seen.

When talking about 1970s American cars, you probably think of performance-choked V-8 engines that were a shadow of their former selves, from the Muscle car era. You probably don’t think of coach-built Cadillacs with an Italian connection, but the 1970 Cadillac NART Zagato is exactly that and this is what we know about it.

Man’s imagination knows no bounds and when it comes to cars, we often see some truly epic creations. Luckily, the internet makes it possible for us to see these creations, and this interesting mix of Porsche Maserati and Nissan is the latest we have stumbled upon.

Toyota 1JZ vs 2JZ - Which Engine is Better?Games, set up in the dystopian future give room for some incredible designs. More often than not, they serve as inspiration to digital designers to create some truly epic stuff, based on existing models. This is exactly the case with this rendering of a Toyota A70 Supra, done by Dom Höst, also known as altered_intent, and vaguely resembles its former self.

Have you ever seen a Tesla Model S powered by a jet engine? Well, this particular Model S P85 has not one, but three of them sitting at the back, and not only does it look outrageous, but as you can already imagine, it sounds phenomenal. The brilliant, as well as an insane idea, comes from Warped Perception, who decided to put this idea to the test, for his YouTube channel.

Hoonigan returns with another “Hoonigan vs the world” episode, where Lia Block – Ken Block’s, 14-year-old daughter races some pretty epic cars, in the Hoonicorn Mustang. This time, she’s racing a 2018 Wolf GB08 TSC-LT. One relies on power while the other on lightness. One thing both cars have in common is that both cars have conquered Pikes Peak.

You won’t really know what to make of this strange Mk4 Toyota Supra, that’s packing a Cummins diesel tank engine under the hood. Overkill? Well, let’s take a closer look and see what you make of it after you check out the mods on this rig.

Performance versions of the Ford Mustang have always been sought-after, by collectors. We have models like the original Shelby GT350 R, Shelby GT500, or BOSS 302, but for many, the top of the cherry, the big daddy, is considered to be the BOSS 429. But for all its performance credentials, the BOSS 429 had weight-distribution issues, which is why, in 1969, Ford decided to experiment with a mid-engine version of the BOSS 429, dubbed the LID Mustang.

Regardless of the generation, the Chevrolet Corvette is often the go-to platform for epic conversions. Whether you want to recreate a classic design, like the Zagato IsoRivolta GTZ, on top of a modern chassis or create something entirely new, like the Ares Design S1, it seems the Corvette is able to take it. With this in mind, Dean “Dino” Arnold has been doing Corvette conversions for decades and has created some truly epic stuff. Moreover, he’s far from done, as he is working on three, high-performance builds, based on the C7 Corvette.

Until a couple of decades ago, two-door SUVs were extremely popular. Time, as they say, is not kind to anyone, but that doesn’t stop certain tuning studios from bringing them back to life, in the form of bold conversions. That’s exactly what Flat Out Autos has done with a 2018 Chevrolet Z71 Tahoe, which was shown at the 2021 SEMA Show.

Ken Block recently made the transition, from Ford to Audi. His relationship with the German premium brand took him to Audi Tradition, in Ingolstadt, Germany. The facility, which comprises of some unassuming, at first glance, buildings, houses the most legendary cars from Audi’s rich motorsport history. The cool part is that all of them get driven every now and then and Ken Block had a go in the rarest and ultimate Audi rally car – the Sport Quattro RS 002.

If you love 1960s sitcoms (we are not judging), you may have come across “The Munsters,” which is a story about a family of benign monsters, in a way, similar to “The Addams Family.” In the episode dubbed “Hot Rod Herman,” there was a car named the “Drag-U-La.” As it turns out, the car is very much real and in working condition. Moreover, it’s for sale and here’s what you need to know about it.

We don’t know about you, but whenever the words ‘bulletproof’ and ‘car’ are joined together, our minds immediately flash nameplates such as the Range Rover, BMW X5, 7 Series, Mercedes-Benz S-Class, you get the point.

Heck, the business of adding ballistic protection to a given car is so lucrative that there are companies that manage to take the vehicle to the extreme – think of Rezvani and their Wrangler-based Tank.

On that note, we never thought Porsche would go this route. However, it did, for a one-time project that involved a 996-gen 911 Carrera.

The 2021 Gordon Murray Automotive T.50 is a supercar designed and built by Gordon Murray, the mastermind behind the iconic McLaren F1. A lightweight, aerodynamic car powered by a naturally aspirated V-12 engine, the T.50 was designed as a spiritual successor to the F1, with a focus on the driving experience rather than extreme performance. The T.50 shares many similarities to the old McLaren F1, but every aspect has been improved through the use of new-generation materials and modern technology. Let’s find out more about the T.50, described as "the most driver-centric supercar ever built" in the review below.

There’s no shortage of alien-looking SUVs and supercars/sports car looking for eccentric owners. The Rezvani Tank is one of the first contraptions that come to mind, but so does the 1,200-horsepower Zenvo TSR S and its active rear wing or the Apollo IE.

But there comes a time when a crazy manufacturer you thought you never heard of concocts a devilish vehicle that brings more questions than answers. Ramsmobile is one such carmaker. In fact, Ramsmobile describes itself as “a manufacturer of luxury off-road vehicles,” but it also produces Hybrid-X doors made of fiberglass, carbon fiber, and stainless steel. The company is rooted in Belarus but makes its SUVs in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

We, however, stumbled upon them thanks to the RM-X2 bulletproof SUV. Well, it’s not exactly an SUV, but bear with us while we clear the air for you.

The question of where to take Lincoln’s styling was top-of-mind for Ford during the mid-1950s, and the net it cast was to both the internal styling teams and one special dream car creator of Italy. Turbulent times for all the Blue Oval brands followed the market flop of their Edsel series, and Chevrolet was lighting up newsprint and auto shows with their swanky Motorama events and the original Corvette-concept of 1953.

The desire for miraculous styling direction and stunning concept cars led to all the non-GM American car brands to pair off with Italian styling houses. During this flurry of deals, Ghia signed up with Chrysler, Bertone for Packard and Carrozerria Touring with Hudson. Lincoln went with a less-renowned name of Felice Paolo to dress a rolling chassis with bespoke coupe bodywork ahead of the Turin motor show. The orange lacquer paint was barely dry on the 1955 Lincoln Indianapolis Exclusive Study by Carrozzeria Boano Torino when it was rolled onto the rotating platform of the Turin auto show.

This stunning concept car hit the auction block quite often in recent years. It changed hands in 2006, it failed to sell in 2013, and it found a new owner in 2015. Come 2019, and the Lincoln Indianapolis is set to go under the hammer at RM Sotheby’s Monterey auction on August 15 to 17.

Car customization can make your dreams come true - even if that dream is turning your mid-80’s domestic into a Porsche supercar. Case in point is this, uh, unique Pontiac Fiero, which someone transformed into a hilarious parrot of the Porsche Carrera GT.

The best part is that it’s listed on Ebay UK, so if you really want it, and have an extra $16,881 to spare, it could be yours. Don’t worry, we won’t judge you.

How about stripping a Chevrolet Corvette down, strapping in a 7.0-liter LS, and going after some world records for manual Corvettes? Sounds like an insane project to you? It sure didn’t sound too daunting to Cleetus McFarland, the creator of "Leroy The Savage."

"Leroy The Savage" is, at its core, a Chevrolet Corvette C5 that was stripped of its bodywork and was able to run the quarter mile in 11 seconds with no other modifications. Then came an LSA supercharger and other mods that brought the time down to 9 seconds. McFarland then smelled blood and reckoned his creation could go after some records on the dragstrip and one thing led to another.

Hyundai is not yet sure it wants to make a full production version of the Santa Fe Cabriolet (and it probably won’t), but if it did, it’d be the world’s first seven-seater convertible... that’s also an SUV.

Fans of the Halo action video game series will instantly know what this vehicle is, but for those who don’t, here’s the short version: it’s called the M12 Force Application Vehicle, affectionately known as the Warthog, and it was a vehicle exclusively relegated to the virtual world, until a fan decided to make one in real life.

Jay Leno is no stranger to custom, one-off builds. His garage full of such creation that were designed and built with little practicality – all parked next to meticulously restored historical vehicles and factory-fresh examples of timeless classics. None of them are more grandiose or nonsensical than this 1939 Plymouth pickup truck.

It’s powered by a 757 cubic-inch, seven-cylinder radial engine lifted from a 195 Cessna seaplane from the late 1940s. Both the truck and the plane sat in Gary Corns’ salvage yard in Colorado for nearly 30 years before he dreamt up this unseal concoction.

He decided to marry the radial engine with the pickup and cover every square inch with a period aeronautical theme. The result has this Plymouth pickup looking like a WWII-era bomber. Corns and his volunteer team of friends put the project together over several months working after hours on Wednesdays. Bare metal skin with rivets make the truck look like an aluminum aircraft, compete with roof-mounted windows, hand-painted warning signs, and red and green signal lights.

The Jacobs radial engine sends roughly 300 horsepower to the rear wheels via a heavy duty V-drive from a boat. A massive belt from a supercharger connects the V-drive to the engine’s output shaft where the missing propeller would attach.

Sadly, cooling is a major issue with the engine. Restricted airflow and a small reservoir of engine oil keeps its run time under 15 minutes before it begins overheating. Still, that’s plenty of time to enjoy this outrageous radial-powered pickup. There’s no doubt this project makes a small-block Chevy engine swap seem like child’s play.

Be sure to turn up the volume and enter full-screen mode. You’ll want the full experience with this 26-minute video.

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