Autoblog

Rhys Millen Racing's Hyundai Genesis Coupe enjoyed some time in the spotlight at SEMA, but it's hard to see the potential of the new coupe sitting stationary on the show stand. So RMR brought out the Genesis Coupe to take up space in their pit during the Red Bull Drifting World Championship and the crew at Streetfire.net captured some video of the Genesis running around, posing or pics. In the clip, the pilot of the coupe never put his boot down, but it still sounded mean with a deep gurgle and the Turbonetics turbocharger whirring at low rpms. In person, the build also came across as very well constructed with a lot of attention to detail. Regardless of the advertised build time, it was carefully pieced together by a knowledgeable bunch.

Be sure and check out the galleries below for the whole collection of RMR Genesis Coupe images and hit the jump to check out the video.

The 2008 SEMA Show ended last week, but for some inexplicable reason, Toyota forget to mention this little diddy that was supposedly tucked away in a corner of the Las Vegas Convention Center. It is exactly what it's name implies: a Scion xB that's been transformed into a taco truck of all things. Normally SEMA project cars are tuned for superfluous high performance and look like rejects from the Paul Walker Sport Compact Hall of Fame, but the xB Taco Truck can at least do something, i.e. serve that staple of the Mexican diet to legions of hungry lunch goers. From what we can tell, the vehicle uses the xB's platform, keeps the front end and dash and ditches the rest to make room for a stainless steel mobile kitchen. The truck was reportedly built from scratch by Louie Contreras with hand-painted graphics applied by Kenton Parker. Good job guys, it's... um... interesting, and probably the most fuel-efficient taco truck ever made. While it may be good on fuel, the Scion xB Taco Truck will likely be responsible for an entirely different kind of gas if it ever gets pressed into service.


[Source: Toyota, Carscoop]

In the hustle and bustle of SEMA last week we missed the announcement that Shelby Automobiles will be sponsoring the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Las Vegas Motorspeedway in March. The race will actually be lengthened to 427 miles and will be called the 'Shelby 427'. We think it would be more historically appropriate for Shelby to sponsor a road racing event, but the company's proximity to the race track and the better marketing reach make NASCAR a logical choice.

In conjunction with the sponsorship, Shelby will be offering a 427 package for the GT500. Hoping for a 427ci engine conversion? So were we, but prepare to be disappointed. The 427 package will be a simple badge job and will include "Mr. Shelby's personal autograph as well as many other event-related add-ons." Those who purchase the package will also receive race tickets and the possibility to serve as the race's honorary starter. Full details on the race and the 427 upgrade package are in the press release after the jump.

[Source: Shelby]

We left last week's SEMA Show in Las Vegas with a much deeper respect for the Dodge Challenger. We're so used to seeing Mustangs dominate the automotive aftermarket trade show and expected the new Chevy Camaro, which was actually the Official Car of SEMA this year, to make a big splash. But it was the Challenger that was on hand in droves, be it from independent shops and tuners who got their hands on one to play with or Dodge itself, which showed up at SEMA with three Challenger concepts, the most impressive of which was arguably the Challenger SRT10 Concept (the other two were the Challenger Targa and Blacktop). Imbued with the Viper's 8.4L V10 producing 600 horsepower, as well as functional upgrades like a ram air scoop, carbon fiber front splitter, Bilstein shocks and bigger wheels and brakes, the Challenger SRT10 arrived in Vegas ready to do business. Unfortunately, the business at hand was looking pretty in Dodge's display. Thankfully we found this video online of the Challenger SRT10 doing what we want it to: convert solid rubber into a gaseous state. Follow the jump for a video of the Challenger SRT10 not only doing burnouts, but hustling around corners and blasting down straights like it was meant to do.



[Source: Road2Road.com]

Click above for high-res gallery of the Ford concept pickups from SEMA

We managed to track down most of the Ford concept pickups on our last day at SEMA. Hidden across the street, right in the front of the outdoor lot, just under the huge "Built Ford Tough" sign, there they were. We saw the Performance West Striker R F-150 and it's bigger brother Striker F-350, as well as the Street Scene Equipment Lariat that sort of reminded us of a certain bike-branded Ford truck. The F-150 Striker was reminiscent us of the Saleen S331 we sampled last year, and the F-350 was much the same only, uh, more so. We even came across an older Performance West version of the Striker sitting on the main sidewalk in front of the central hall.


Photos copyright ©2008 Frank Filipponio/Weblogs, Inc.

Click above for high-res gallery of the Ecto-1

With Halloween behind us and most of the spooks and spectres returned to their natural realm, the Ghostbusters gang had some time to kill and headed over to the Las Vegas Convention Center to check out the excitement of SEMA. Fortunately for them they were given a prime parking spot right outside the hall. (We had to park half mile away or catch a cab.) The Ecto-1 attracted a lot of attention throughout the week, possibly because of the Ray Parker, Jr. soundtrack blaring from its stereo. It was a fan favorite for sure, and one of ours as well.


Photos copyright ©2008 Frank Filipponio/Weblogs, Inc.

Click above for high-res gallery of the ThunderFlite Thunderbird

Suzie and Dean Arnold dreamt of building a show car that would evoke the spirit of the dream cars that manufacturers used to build in the '50s and '60s. They decided to use a 1961 Thunderbird as the base vehicle and got long-time collaborator Don Johnson to finalize the design. Then Dean got to work building it. The result is the car you see here. To most of the people passing it at SEMA this week, they probably thought it was a vintage dream car rather than a modern custom. It certainly looked like it had just been dusted off and shined up after sitting mothballed for the past 40 years. Every detail seems period correct, and we particularly liked the Batmobile-esque double-bubble roof. Click over to ThunderFlite.com for more background info, and check out our gallery for more high-res pics.


Photos copyright ©2008 Frank Filipponio/Weblogs, Inc.

Click above for high-res gallery of the Hennessey Ford GTs

Hennessey is perhaps more closely associated with Dodge Vipers to most people, but they also do work on Ford's late, great supercar, the Ford GT, too. What Hennessey does with the GT is sort of up to you. One option they can do is a swap, wherein the factory supercharger is removed and a pair of turbos are fitted. With additional modifications, that car can reach more than 235 mph. If it strikes you as a sacrilegious thing to do to a rare factory-supercharged car, you can keep your blower and simply add the twin turbos as well. They call that one the Ford GT1000 for the metric tonne of horsepower it produces. It can squirt from 0-60 in 2.6 seconds and cover the quarter in 10.6 on its way past 240 mph. The company had one of each on hand at SEMA this year in front of the duPont Registry trailer. Decisions, decisions. We'll take one of each.


Photos copyright ©2008 Frank Filipponio/Weblogs, Inc.

If you were this close to purchasing an SLR but recent events concerning a guy named Lehman severely reduced your amount of disposable cash, then allow us to introduce you to the SL Carbonite. For the price of a 2003-2008 Mercedes SL, plus $47,400 for Carbonite's hood, fenders, front and rear fascias, lowered suspension and Mandrus 20-inch wheels, you can have an SL(R) for a song that's a lot less pricey than the Mercedes-McLaren. Carbonite has also said it will only build 20 of these cars per year, which means your money could get you even more exclusivity than the real thing. Of course, what your money can't do is erase the fact that you don't actually have the real thing -- but that hasn't stopped so many others... Check out the high-res gallery of doppelganger shots below.

Click above for high-res gallery of the Black Deere smart from SEMA

Tom Mutchler at Consumer Reports says his first drive in a SMART reminded him of his John Deere x300 lawn tractor. Slow and noisy, but they both fit in his garage. Apparently, Black Deere LLC had the same impression of the little car and showed up at SEMA with one in John Deere's green and yellow livery. Other than being painted to match farm machinery, the SMART ForTwo Passion Cabriolet sports four air horns and an air-compressor powered truck horn. You might not see this thing coming at you, but by God you'll hear it. Unfortunately, we can't find out much about the car's customizer, Black Deere. SEMA's information lists an inactive URL and Google turns up only the story from SEMA.


Photos copyright ©2008 Frank Filipponio/Weblogs, Inc.

[Source: Consumer Reports]