By John Coyle

Deputy Editor

There were so many places to go with this absurd photo, and lots of them involve space, airplanes or making fun of imports. And obviously, there were plenty of funny submissions along those lines. But I had to go with the one that made me almost spit tea all over my computer—and it doesn’t even mention the hideous wing. This week’s winner is DJs-zj360, who came up with; “I bet no one will notice that I bought a Mini Cooper now!” Bravo man, way to think outside the box! Tune in tomorrow for the next installment of our perilously mounted Caption Contest!

By John Coyle

Deputy Editor

I’m not sure how old it is, but this bit from a UK comedy show had me laughing my ass off. Apparently, Clarkson Island has more Jeremy Clarksons per square mile than anywhere else in the world, and there’s even a farm dedicated to breeding them. According to the head farmer, they have to be sheared frequently to keep their bushy hair from getting filled with the crap that comes out of their mouths. Ha! Now, I love Jeremy Clarkson, and if the man himself has half the sense of humor he’s demonstrated on Top Gear,  he’s got to think this is funny. Oh, and if you want to make your dialog sound like Clarkson’s, just remember to pause… in the middle.

By Fireball Tim

Movie Car Design Master

Unveiled at Comic Con, this beast is workin.’ In the words of Seth Rogen, “this car had to be something to able to drive on the street.” Maybe those guns are a giveaway, but probably not. More shots at my blog.

By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

Yep, that’s right. Researches at Ohio University are working on technology to extract hydrogen from urine, a process that only requires only a quarter of the energy needed to extract it from water. The hydrogen could then be used to power fuel cell cars. So maybe this guy was onto something. Via Autocar

By Brian Lohnes

BangShift.com

On a recent trip back to Texas, the parental units pointed out this well done 1966 Corvette 4×4 conversion. More often called a trar (truck/car), this particular homogenization is still more 1966 Corvette than not. While trars are usually made by placing some unsuspecting car on top of a Chevy Blazer or Ford Bronco chassis, this Corvette is so such beast. Starting with a real 1966 Chevrolet Corvette, the running gear, which includes 1-ton axles, was mounted to the stock Corvette chassis.This is southern engineering at its finest. Continue reading at BangShift.com

By Speedhunters

Car Culture At Large

After reading Mike’s post about the Team Orange cars and their converted EVO’s and Impreza’s, I started thinking about a well known Z33 which was converted the other way around, from rwd to awd: this JUN-built Hyper Lemon 350Z R. The rumor is, it was built for someone who lives in Hong Kong and wanted to use it as a Time Attack car, but nothing has been seen of this Z33 since it was finished and delivered. So I’m not sure what happened to it in the end, but I hope to see it again tearing up the Tsukuba circuit. Continue reading at Speedhunters

By Jeroen Willemsen

By Dan Strohl

Hemmings

Occasionally we’re sent new products to review here at Hemmings. Most of those new product reviews go in the pages of one of our magazines, but we’ll occasionally pop a review up here as we get backlogged with more and more products to review. Drip Trap, “the friendly oil absorbent,” is a flat brick of compressed corn leaves and stalks that claims to never spill or leak or track oil when walked on. And it’s recycling what would normally be a waste byproduct from farming the corn. Continue reading at Hemmings

By Sam Barer

Sound Classics

It’s been over two months since I last reported on the “Infamous Craigslist 1976 Ferrari Dino 308 GT4” Project and an embarrassing six months since I purchased the car and made the grossly optimistic statement that I’d have the horse prancing down local streets in three or four weeks.

As you might remember from my last installment, I failed miserably in my eleventh hour effort to finish up its major service (timing belts, carb rebuilds, fuel lines, etc…) by setting the ignition timing and adjusting the carbs so I could bring the car up to Issaquah, WA for the All-Italian show. Hopes were thoroughly dashed when all timing manipulation in the world still didn’t cure the horrible misfiring that has plagued the car since its last owner had the engine rebuilt. This time there was an additional problem: more oil spilling to the ground from the general top-of-the-heads region than an early 1980’s Commodores and Kool & The Gang double bill.

Continue reading after the jump!

Continue reading "Am I Having A Good Time Yet Fixing The Infamous Craigslist Ferrari Dino 308 GT4's Timing Issues?" »

By Rich Truesdell

Automotive Traveler

Art Center is well known for the transportation designers it has graduated over the years but also for the transportation design show it hosts. With a theme of “By Air, Land & Sea” we were treated to a great cross section of interesting and though-provoking vehicles.

After taking a year’s hiatus, the campus of the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena again hosted a small but eclectic transportation show, the 2009 Art Center Car Classic. More than simply a car show, this year’s event showcased some unusual vehicles including amphibious cars, cars powered by aircraft engines, and cutting-edge flying devices. The unique and intimate setting in the hills overlooking Pasadena might be small, but the organizers made every square inch count, presenting a broad spectrum of vehicles that combined state-of-the-art engineering, breathtaking design, as well as providing a bench marks from the past that might show future designers ways to design small city cars.

The Art Center Car Classic is more than a car show as this year, as in years past, noted speakers were part of the program. Burt Rutan–best known for the design of the record-breaking Voyager, which was the first plane to fly around the world without stopping or refueling, and the sub-orbital space plane SpaceShipOne, the first privately funded spacecraft to enter the realm of space twice within a two week period–was the featured speaker. And local car guy extraordinaire and former “Tonight” show host Jay Leno made an appearance in his turbine-powered Eco Jet concept done in conjunction with General Motors. Read More at Automotive Traveler.

By Antonio Alvendia

Antonio Alvendia

The Nissan Cube is one of the newest Japanese imports to American shores, and what better place for such a spicy import to come ashore than caliente Miami? Not too long ago, we got to spend a little time with this habanero chili pepper-colored specimen (very nice) and we’re digging the flavor.

Marketed by Nissan as the “Cube Mobile Device,” this new product offering from Nissan competes directly against the highly popular Scion xB and the newly introduced Kia Soul. Continue reading and view more photos of the Cube in Miami at MotorMavens.com