Motor Car Modification: Offbeat News

Showing posts with label Offbeat News. Show all posts

Friday, October 8, 2010

How Not to Customize Redux: 1996 Ford Taurus “Space Ship”

Do you want a car that, "look deferent and feel deferent [sic]"? If so, this Australian tuner - whose skill at vehicle modification is in line with his comprehension of the English language - has the car for you...

The third generation Ford Taurus was not a very pretty car to begin with. Its ovoid shape, which extended to the taillights, rear window and even the dashboard was not especially attractive and made the car look like it was slowly melting.

This enterprising owner has attempted to fix that by adding an ill-fitting body kit, hood and roof scoops and a generous amount of black and gold paint (which makes the car look like a tin of Lyle's Golden Syrup). The result is...well, you can see for yourself.

Underneath that hideous façade the Taurus appears pretty stock with a 3.0 L V6, automatic transmission and 164,321 km (102,104 miles) on the clock. It looks like it even has the stock wheels and tires.

For the enterprising buyer in Blacktown, NSW, this...thing could be yours for a little over AU$1,500 - or at least that's the highest bid currently on eBay.

By Tristan Hankins

Link: eBay 1 & 2 , Via: Jalopnik

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Mitsubishi Outlander Sport Online Test Drive is GTA IV with Only One Car and No Crime

Clearly taking its inspiration from those throwaway iPhone / iPod games loved so much by Volkswagen and its subsidiaries, the North American arm of Mitsubishi Motors will let a select few test drive the new Outlander Sport compact [called ASX in Europe] remotely through "Mitsubishi Live Drive".

In a world first, customers will be able to take the compact crossover around a closed circuit course, controlling the actually vehicle through an "interactive remote control" from the comfort of their own internet-connected PCs. I wonder what a "non-interactive remote control" would be...

When developing the Live Drive experience, Mitsubishi consulted robotics expert, Dr. James Brighton who was instrumental in constructing the online test drive program

The 5-seat CUV was rigged with multiple video cameras, servo motors that move the pedals and steering wheel and electronic receivers that pick up on the driver's control inputs.

Mitsubishi boasts that, "participants will enjoy the feeling of literally being in the driver's seat." You know, without G-force or inertia or any other feeling you might get from actually driving a car.

Those who use the Live Drive program will also have the opportunity to collect "feature pods"; you know, like the coins Mario picks up. Only these ones tell you about the features on the 2011 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport. Riveting!

Oh well, it sounds more interesting than listening to a dealer drone on and on about this and that at the dealership for hours on end, though I'd still rather take a shot at controlling one of the vehicles in the DARPA Urban Challenge though.

If you are 18 years old, live in the United States and have a valid driver's license you can sign up on the car's microsite from the 15th of October. The Live Drive days will be held between the 1st and 10th of November, coinciding with campaigns in other media including television and print.

By Tristan Hankins

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Thursday, October 7, 2010

VW Offers Chattanooga Police Jetta SportWagen TDIs to Keep Residents / Speedsters Safe

Now we've officially seen it all; a body-kitted German station-wagon running on a [relatively] small displacement four-cylinder diesel engine as a Sheriff's Department patrol car. And all thanks to VW's decision to donate two custom-made Jetta SportWagen TDI vehicles to the law enforcement departments of the City of Chattanooga and Hamilton County.

The donation was made as part of Volkswagen's ongoing efforts to reach out to the community of Chattanooga, where the German automaker is building a $1 billion plant that will produce among other cars, the New Midsize Sedan (NMS) starting from next year.

Volkswagen said its engineers and designers overhauled the white Jetta SportWagen to incorporate special features including custom-built enclosures and mounts that hold all the communications and emergency lighting gear in place.

The car gets a body kit with front and rear aprons, and side skirts as well as 18-inch alloy wheels wrapped in 225/40 18" Goodyear Eagle GT All Season tires.

Under the hood, the Jetta SportWagen features VW's 2.0-liter TDI clean diesel four-cylinder engine with 236 ft.-lbs. of torque, that returns up to 42 miles per gallon on the highway.

Official Statements:
"Volkswagen is thrilled to be able to provide technologically advanced Jetta SportWagen vehicles to both the City of Chattanooga and Hamilton County police departments to help keep the area safe while driving in a reliable, versatile and stylish vehicle," said Frank Fischer, Chairman and CEO of Volkwagen's Chattanooga
"This generous gift is much appreciated and will be a welcomed addition to our expanding Chattanooga Police Department," said Chattanooga Mayor Ron Littlefield. "We applaud Volkswagen for their continued investment in our community."
"Since Volkswagen announced their billion dollar investment in Hamilton County they have demonstrated numerous times their willingness to be a good corporate neighbor," said Hamilton County Mayor Claude Ramsey. "Today's gift of two law enforcement vehicles is further proof of Volkswagen's commitment to Hamilton County and we thank them for their generosity."

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Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Desert Drifting a Sonata: Knowing When to Stop is a Sign of Wisdom...

What happens when you live in / near the desert and have a bunch of money to waste? Cars get destroyed, that's what. Here's a small clip of somebody taking their Hyundai Sonata out for a little slideways action and utterly shredding the rear passenger side. I'd venture to say it's totaled, considering the rear wheels aren't meant to be pushed up into the wheel well like that.

Also, how fast do you have to be going to launch the spare tire out of the trunk? If anyone knows what event this was or what specifically was going on (other than putting that poor white Sonata into a mound of dirt), give us a shout.

By Phil Alex

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Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Transformers 3 Filming Moves to Washington D.C., Check out the Street Locations and Dates

The third installment of Michael Bay's Transformers franchise will move production to Washington, D.C. next week. DCist reports that the film will be shooting between October 11th and 15th on the Mall, apparently to satiate Bay's fantasy of blowing up historical monuments (no idea if that's legit).

If anyone's out and about and can find their way around that part of town next week - check the schedule below for the best times - get yourself out of the office and onto the streets. And if you happen to snag any cool pics and vids, well, you all know where to send them -hint; our email address is located just under the Carscoop logo. Extra points if you dress up like a Transformer.

By Phil Alex

Source: DCist

[Opening photo from Chicago filming - see here]

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A Tale of Two Hyundais Fighting Over a Third Hyundai...

Bear with us, as this could get very confusing. The Wall Street Journal is reporting the Hyundai that manufactures cars [aka the Hyundai Motor Group] and the Hyundai that builds ships and makes elevators [aka the Hyundai Group] are competing for a US$3 billion stake in the Hyundai that constructs buildings [aka the Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co.]

We warned you this could get confusing...

So here's the short version: Hyundai Motor Co and Hyundai Engineering & Construction used to be part of the Hyundai Group, South Korea's largest conglomerate. In the wake of the 1997/98 Asian financial crisis, the two companies split from the conglomerate and went their separate ways.

Hyundai Motor Co spun-off to become part of the Hyundai Motor Group and in 2001 Hyundai Engineering fell under creditor control after a multitrillion won bailout and a 2.9 trillion won ($2.54 billion) debt-for-equity swap. Now these creditors, which include the Korean Exchange Bank, are selling up their share 34.88% share in Hyundai Engineering.

Still with us? Good.

So the only links between these three companies now are familial: Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Mong-koo is the second son of Hyundai Engineering founder Chung Ju-yung, and Hyundai Group Chairwoman Hyun Jeong-eun is Chung Ju-Yung's daughter-in-law (that's her pictured on the right).

Hyundai Engineering also owns a 8.3% stake in Hyundai Merchant Marine, which is part of the Hyundai Group. This stake makes it an especially juicy proposition for both the Hyundai Group and Hyundai Motor Group.

Insiders have said that so far Hyundai Group and Hyundai Motor Group are the only ones to send in letters of interest. Analysts believe that Hyundai Motor Group has the best chance of winning the stake, as subsidiary Hyundai Motor Co alone has available capital to the tune of 7.28 trillion won (US$6.5 billion). This is over six times what the Hyundai Group has, forcing it to make a joint bid with German engineering firm M+W Group.

Formal bids for Hyundai Engineering are due by the 12th of November, with a preferred bidder set to be chosen in December.

By Tristan Hankins

Source: WSJ

What were they Thinking? Mercury’s ‘Wrist-Twist’ from the 1960s

Styling trends come and go, but if there's one thing that has remained relatively unchanged in the past 105 years of personal motoring: the steering wheel.

Although plastics have replaced iron and wood and airbags (1970s) and radio controls (1990s) have been added, the basic design remains the same: a circular ring with spokes connected to a central hub.

Some cars had horns in a ring circling the hub (Mercedes-Benz 300SL), others had oblong steering wheels (Austin Allegro) and a few had only one spoke (Citroen DS). At the end of the day though, they all had some sort of steering wheel... except this car.

At Mercury, engineer Bob Rumm produced this one-off 1965 Mercury Park Lane convertible with so-called "wrist-twist" steering controls. The standard steering wheel has been replaced by two 5-inch, wrist-operated dials, that the promo claims frees up knee room, improves visibility and makes parking easier. Now take a moment to consider why Mr. Rumm is an "ex-"missile engineer at the height of the Cold War.

The promo also cheerfully informs us that the wrist-twist can be used by, "a driver who promises to be about as non-technical as they come," by which they mean a woman. Carscoop is reliably informed they can vote now [...].

I suppose we should be thankful that a lot of these concepts, including the wrist-twist, never left Ford's Dearborn proving grounds.

It's the sort of thing that could only have been made in the 1960s, the decade that gave us the laser, manned spaceflight and Astroturf. Like everything else, cars were becoming more futuristic, and by futuristic we mean daft. And by daft we mean Modern Mechanix of the 1930s daft.

It's also the sort of thing the Ford Motor Company was coming up at the time. Just for fun, type 'Ford Nucleon' into Google, and see what other disastrous innovations motorists of the 1960s were spared.

By Tristan Hankins

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2011 Chevrolet Camaro SS Convertible gets Special Edition for Neiman Marcus' Christmas Book

After the auction of the first publicly available production model of the 2011 Camaro Convertible that sold for $205,000, and the release of a single official press image last week, Chevrolet continues to drum up interest for its new topless Camaro with the announcement of a new special edition version that will be showcased in the annual Neiman Marcus "Christmas Book".

The General plans to build only 100 examples of the Camaro Convertible Neiman Marcus Edition, each priced $75,000, with first deliveries set to take place in the spring of 2011.

All Neiman Marcus Editions are based on the Camaro Convertible SS model and come equipped with a 6.2-liter V8 engine that delivers 426HP and 420 lb-ft of torque when paired to a six-speed manual gearbox, and 400HP and 410 lb-ft, when combined to a 6-speed automatic.

The cars are finished in an exclusive Deep Bordeaux exterior color, accented by subtle, "ghosted" rally stripes. The body paint is complimented by a color-matched fabric top, windshield frame finished in matte silver, and a set of 21-inch, polished aluminum wheels with red detailing, wrapped in Pirelli P-Zero tires both, all of which are exclusive to the Neiman Marcus edition.

The interior of the special edition model receives exclusive leather interior appointments, including amber-colored leather seating surfaces offset by black leather side panels and red stitching.

Red accents are also found on the center console, steering wheel and shift knob, while the Deep Bordeaux color from the exterior appears on the dash and door panels.

Other features worth mentioning including the standard Brembo disc brakes, LED halo-ring headlamps, Bluetooth connectivity, rear parking assist, and a 245-watt, Boston Acoustics sound system.

"Neiman Marcus provides a great platform to showcase the new Camaro Convertible," said Tom Peters, Chevrolet Design director. "And, it enabled us to create a special edition car that combines the powerful design and performance of the new Camaro with an element of exclusivity, craftsmanship and customized luxury."

For those of you interested in buying us a Christmas gift, reservations will be accepted from October 19, 2010. To place a reservation, all you have to do is call 1.877.662.6276.

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New South Park Episode Takes on NASCAR - With Teaser Video

Being avid fans of South Park here at Carscoop, we couldn't pass up the chance to show you a preview video of tomorrow's [October, 6] mid-season premiere episode of the animated series titled "Poor and Stupid" that takes a humorous stab at the world of NASCAR.

In the teaser after the jump you can watch bad-boy Eric Cartman getting ready to take on the pros at NASCAR with the help of Leopold "Butters" Stotch as his crew chief. "Don't worry, Butters," says Cartman, "I've learned everything I can about being poor and stupid. I'm ready for NASCAR." Ouch...

Via: Jalopnik , Source: South Park

Monday, October 4, 2010

Pick your Parisian Poison: What were your Favorite Concept and Production Debuts at this year's Paris Show?

With the 2010 Paris Motor Show officially finished from the car fan's perspective, it's time to see what debuts people thought were the real winners and losers. From VW's less-than-lackluster Passat to the revelation of the entire new Lotus lineup, there were some very conversation-inspiring appearances this year.

Many manufacturers showed they could compete in Paris with attractive concepts, while others, who pride themselves on style, brought a dollop of bland with beige peppered on top. Segments were re-entered, recreated, and started, all in Paris.

So, car people, the question to ponder is this: what was your favorite concept and what was your favorite production car? Feel free to express which ones you were disappointed in, too.

By Phil Alex

2010 Mondial de L'Automobile Premieres