By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

Yesterday I selected some of my favorite blog posts from this year. Today I’m going to focus on the big stories of 2008. So here goes…

1. Big Three Meltdown. This whole Detroit situation has been pretty ugly. Katherine was trying to keep a cool head, but it wasn’t easy. The bailout happened, but will it make a difference?

2. Tuners in Trouble. First Nopi got cancelled, then GReddy went bankrupt. SEMA was pretty quiet for the tuner crowd as well. Will 2009 be any better?

3. Nissan GT-R. The GT-R was hot this year. First there was the dealer price gouging. Then the whole Porsche rivalry was big news. And then came the stories of the electronic nannies and voided warranties.

4. Dodge Challenger. The Challenger helped bring back the pony car wars, and it was probably the hottest car at SEMA this year. We got a R/T for a week and loved it. Will it be able to stand up to the Camaro next year?

5. Fast and Furious IV. Jen did some great coverage of the upcoming Fast and Furious movie, and you guys couldn’t get enough of it. Some CarDomain members even got their cars into the film!

6. Gas Prices. First prices went up. Way up. Then they went down. Way down. What the hell is going on here, anyway?

7. Electric Cars. Tesla sure had its ups and downs this year. But we drove a validation prototype and came away impressed. Then of course there’s the Chevy Volt. But is it gonna happen? And don’t forget the electric 911 and Duster!

8. Nick Hogan is an Idiot. Not much else to say here. He’s loose again…

9. Death of Legends. Phil Hill and Paul Newman both passed away this year. And they will be missed.

10. Ken Block is Still Insane. The guy jumped his Subaru 170 feet at the end of 2007. So this year he upped the ante by doing a bunch of crazy stunts with his pal Travis Pastrana. And then last month he released this wild drift video. What does he have planned for 2009???

So let me know what you think of my list. Did I miss any big stories for 2008?

By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

No really, it is. I guess someone thinks drunk sloths, women and ELO can sell cars. There is an actual Alfa in this ad.

By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

The new Ford Fusion Hybrid is getting a lot of great press. Its EPA certified 41 mpg rating will make it the second second-most fuel-efficient vehicle (after the Toyota Prius) and the most fuel-efficient midsize sedan on the market. But will it sell when it hits dealer lots next spring?

Let’s face it, part of the reason the Prius has been so successful is that it looks like the automotive equivalent of a Birkenstock. The Honda Civic Hybrid is just as good (maybe better) but hasn’t sold nearly as well. Why? Cause there is almost nothing to distinguish it from the regular Civic.

And part of the reason the Volt has been getting so much attention is that it looks so darn futuristic (well, the concept did, anyway—the production car looks pretty ho hum, and I would say some of the excitement has diminished as a result).

So I’m a little worried about the Ford Fusion Hybrid. It’s not hideously ugly, and it’s not terribly futuristic. It just looks kind of… normal. Oh, and gas is cheap again, which can’t help much, either.

What do you think?

By Ron Honig

WaytooFurious

Besides being a car nut one of my other hobbies is wood working. I would never think of combining the two. However that didn’t stop the builder of this Ariel custom listed on eBay. Built back in the 50s, it is powered by an Ariel motorcycle engine and uses a Citroen suspension. It reminds me of a Clubman and it looks like it really would be a lot of fun. The only thing that I would add is some comfortable seats. So what do you think, would it be good to drive in wood? More pics after the jump!

Continue reading "One of a Kind Wood Ariel Custom on eBay" »

By Speedhunters

Car Culture At Large

Over the past days we’ve made a number of posts looking back at the year in various racing series around the world, and I want to continue on that theme with this post. Since Japanese tuning culture is a big part of Speedhunters, I figured I’d put together a post looking back at some of the tuning trends and breakthroughs seen in Japan over the past year. Like most other countries, 2008 has been a tough year for Japan economically, but there was still a lot to talk about in the world of car JDM car tuning.

First up, 2008 saw the debut of new versions of the Evo and Impreza, and of course the return of the GT-R. Within days of these cars hitting dealers, parts were already being developed, and the big tuners were finding ways to improve on the already capable cars. The GT-R in particular was interesting to watch, given Nissan’s official “no-tuning” stance on the car. Continue reading at Speedhunters

By Mike Garrett

By Katherine Helmetag

Atomicalex

I “found” these shots in a friend’s photobucket account. Plenty more after the jump…

Continue reading "More Shelby GT500 Shots" »

By Ben Schaffer

The Real JDM

I really love this car that Mike Garrett shot a while back. I’ve had these pics on my computer for a while and I thought they should be re-introduced to the blog world.

I’ve always really admired the Pulsar GTiR. It was always a special car, a bit of a secret and an underdog. With the stock car’s goofy looks, really funny looking cheese grater hood duct, and overall unassuming stance it is always a surprise to remember one of the most potent versions of the SR20DET engine was found stock in these WRC inspired cars.

I got hooked on the Pulsar GTiR back in the late 90s when I had picked up a used P10 Primera (G20 Infiniti) with 150,000 miles and a 5spd manual. The GTiR spec SR20DET would have been the ultimate motor swap to drop into my car back then and I always lusted after it. The SR20DET in the Pulsar is actually a bit more advanced and rugged than the SR20DET found in the same generation Silvias. Its all pretty incredible really to imagine them building such a great car and making it so ugly that nobody pays attention to it.

Anyway…back to the point…Mike on his blog photographed what I feel is the absolute best GTiR I’ve ever seen. I’m really loving this car. It is dare I say perfect. Whoever built this car is a master and has my respect in a huge way.

Continue reading "RNN14 Nissan Pulsar GTi-R" »

By David Freiburger

David Freiburger

Man, I’m just a total sucker for stuff like this. I went nuts when I found this real, nearly unmolested example of an Anglia Gasser fresh from the Feb. ’66 issue of Hot Rod magazine, but then totally lost my mind when I saw that it was powered by a Jimmy six. When I spotted this on Saturday it had one bid at $5,000, reserve not met. My guess is that bidding will get into the high teens, but that the auction will end before its actually sold. It’s probably worth $25,000, but we’ll see if it gets there.

By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

Michael hasn’t had the time or energy to work on this ambitious project for over a year now. But he just finished building a new 3,300 square foot shop and he’s planning to move the truck in there and get back to work on it. Check out his 1965 Chevy C/K ride page for all the details, and don’t miss his Lamborghini Countach replica, either.

By Jim Brennan

UDMan

As many of you may (or may not) know, my position as a district representative for an import truck distributor allows time to take in events that I normally would not attend otherwise. This is one such event, and it happened during the second weekend of October. The one thing I remember most was how cold the air was, as this was the first weekend that the thermometer dipped below the freezing mark this year. Anyway, I have several dealers in Massachusetts that display finished versions of UD Trucks set up for towing and recovery, and this is the reason why I was there.

The Massachusetts Statewide Towing Association wanted to put together a show that brought out most of the tow operators within Western Massachusetts, along with vintage tow trucks, and demonstrations.  Below are some of the vintage trucks that were in attendance, including a 1955 Chevy, several Fords, and a fully functioning Model T.

Contine reading after the jump.

Continue reading "Vintage Tow Trucks from OkTOWberfest" »