By Rob

Editor-in-Chief

Jen, John and I just went through all the avatars in this thread and we liked Jake's ninja the best. So Jake wins the CarDomain t-shirt!

By Jen

Editor

The Ypsilanti Nightmare Cruise, a cheeky spin-off of the nearby Woodward Dream Cruise, makes a point of celebrating otherwise unpresentable rustbuckets and beaters. This year, Ellen Dickinson's rusty but trusty '76 Chevy pickup won the $500 first prize at the second-annual event, supplanting last year's champ, a fragile '32 Hudson. We're still waiting for more pics of this event to hit the internet; the spectacle of all those hideous rusting hulks must've shattered more than a few camera lenses, we're guessing.

By Jason

Marketing Lackey

Ok, can somebody explain this? I went to a movie a couple nights ago and snapped the pic in the parking lot with my phone:

• China has no issue with stealing the design for the smart and selling it as it's own: Autoblog Green 
• The LA Times has a photo retrospective of 30 years of Honda Civic. How quickly we forget that the '82 Civic got 40mpg highway (not that you'd want to take an 86hp car on the highway often, but you could): LA Times
• I don't know about you, but I like the idea of BMW, Lexus, and Mercedes competing to build the best 8-speed transmission. Come on Mazda, join the battle: Leftlane News
• Toyota is planning on selling 10.4 million vehicles in 2009. That would break a 30 year old record held by The General: Freep

By Rob

Editor-in-Chief

Seems like there's been a rash of drunk parents getting their kids to drive for them. An intoxicated man in Alaska got his 11 year old son to drive him home. Cops pulled them over when the kid drove the wrong way on a one-way street. Then there's the woman in Indiana who got her 5 year old son to drive when she was on a vodka/Percocet combo. It doesn't sound like they made it that far--when questioned, the kid (pictured below) admitted his legs were too short to reach the pedals. Still, he really enjoyed his time behind the wheel and said, "I want to be a race car driver when I grow up."

By Rob

Editor-in-Chief

When I was younger and stupider I took a rented Grand Am off-roading outside of Yosemite and smashed in the oil pan. I somehow managed to return it without any questions. I love what Mopar Action did with a rented Neon--their 1998 story gives a nice step by step on how to install and remove NOS from a rental car without leaving a trace.

So what's the worst thing you've done to a rental car? Post your story in the comments below. Funniest legit-sounding tale gets a $100 Royal Purple gift certificate.

By Jen

Editor

I'm not too familiar with the world of Australian gearheads, but from what I've seen, they're freakin' hardcore. One thing for sure is that they take burnout competitions really seriously. You don't even want to know how seriously: over at Modified Car Forums, an Aussie muscle car discussion board, there's an angry fracas on burnout competition judging that's going well into its fourth page.  But even more astonishing are the pics and videos: their tires aren't the only things these guys shred. Check out this epic burnout by Xpiggy at the Southcoast Nationals, which ended only after he popped his engine and was engulfed in a giant fireball. Geez guys, ever consider taking it easy?

By Rob

Editor-in-Chief

After a three year absence, the Z returned in 2003 to great acclaim. Richard's page is closing in on half a million hits. Tad is stationed in Germany and cruises his Z on the Autobahn. Nothing has been left untouched on Gina's Z (below). Traland's car is very wide and very orange. Rob's car was the top rated 350Z when I wrote this post. Ryan has been steadily improving his 04 Track Edition. This Z was Fine Tuned. Tolga-Onur's car won SOTW last year. This roadster got Lambo doors. And Juan's car underwent an AWD conversion.

So that's it for this week's WOTW. What should we do next? And who wants to write the next one?

Think you got what it takes to write a Whip of the Week? Then post in the CarDomain Garage, and we'll be in touch.

By John

Community Editor

Just the other day, Dave asked me to add the Jaguar XK140 to our list of models, and of course, I was happy to do it. He's already started on his ride page, and from looking at the few pics posted, he's got his work cut out for him. Apparently, the engine grenaded, and he used that as an excuse to strip everything down to the bare metal. I can't wait to see how this baby turns out—keep us posted Dave!

By Jason

Marketing Lackey

If I see one more ad for Good Luck Chuck, I'm going to puke. They've made surfing the internet so unpleasant that I actually did some work today. There, I said it—I'm not a Dane Cook fan:

• Would you buy a Malibu based on price? Chevy is hoping so. The 2008 Malibu will come in at under $20,000: Freep
• Nissan Mixim is crazy looking, but it's an AWD electric car with two motors. Let's see what happens when they take this bad boy from concept to production: Car and Driver
• Whirlpool is looking out for guys. They've rolled out a line of garage appliances for storing your beer soda: DetNews
• Those crazy White House pranksters covered Karl Rove's Jag in plastic wrap while he was in Texas. Who else do I know who drives a Jag? Autoblog
  

By Jen

Editor

There's no two ways about it: vans are cool. That's why you've gotta check out Vanners, one of the hottest fledgling groups on CarDomain. The group is still gathering steam, and so far boasts 8 members and an international membership—check out this air-bagged '89 Chevy of Netherlands member Jos. Their forum discussion is also just getting started, and the forum setup is very navigable and utilitarian: discussion is guided toward seeking out those elusive retailers who actually offer aftermarket for these vehicles, and group owner sasktrini offers easy instructions for things like successfully posting pics in forums (which everyone should read). The Vanners group is off to a strong start and is sure to become a valuable resource for owners of these cool rides. 

By John

Community Editor

Even before the iPhone was officially acknowledged, people were losing their minds about how cool it was—allegedly—going to be. And while the finished product did turn out wicked, the fact that is comes set up to work only on AT&T's service is pretty lame. Of course, it was only a matter of time until someone unlocked it. That someone turned out to be George Hotz, a 17 year old kid from Jersey, who promptly traded his unlocked version to CertiCell for three more iPhones and a 350Z. At this point, it's unclear how—or even if—the company can monetize the hack, given Ma Bell's formidable legal department. But we're still wondering: did the kid get a fair deal? What do you think?

Opinion Polls & Market Research

By David

AKA Highspeedhijinks

The newest addition to the Mini lineup is reinstated Clubman. Easily recognized by its much longer chassis, the Clubman is the most versatile of Minis. Five-door access and 9.1cubic feet of cargo area means it just might be possible to fit 4 people in a Mini. Fold the rear seats down and you get 32.6 cubic feet of cargo space, so now you can take a dog and cooler too.  As with space, the Clubman isn't short on power. The Clubman S 1.6 puts out 175hp thanks to a twin-scroll turbocharger and direct injection. The base Clubman is downgraded to a naturally aspirated 1.6, still putting out a respectable 120 hp. For the green and thrifty, there will also be a Clubman D with a diesel motor. The Clubman will start selling in Europe November of this year with a US launch to follow shortly thereafter.  I bet that CarDomain members like David and Nicolai will be thrilled to hear the news.

Think you got what it takes to be a guest blogger? Then post in the CarDomain Garage, and we'll be in touch. And hey, remember, the opinions expressed above are not necessarily those of the CarDomain staff.

By Rob

Editor-in-Chief

I was pretty happy to see the Germans go away, but now I'm getting a bit sketched by these Cerberus folks. Yesterday it was reported that Chrysler may sell or close the Mopar division. Apparently this came up during talks with the UAW, so it could all be a bluff, but who knows? Mopar has too much value as a brand to be shut down entirely, but it makes sense that a private equity investment firm named after a three-headed hound from Hell would consider carving up the once mighty Chrysler corporation in the interest of creating short term profits for their investors. Time will tell. The guys over at ClassicCar.com don't mince words.

By Jen

Editor

The long-lost Orbitron, a one-off custom show car built by hot rod pioneer Ed Roth, was finally found last week—being used as a dumpster outside a porn shop in Mexico. The Orbitron, immortalized in Tom Wolfe's 1963 essay on hot-rod culture, sported the signature Roth bubble-top, along with asymetrical bodywork and triclops colored headlights. The whereabouts of this unique Rothmobile had been unknown for many years following its purported disowning by the late Big Daddy himself, allegedly disgusted by its lukewarm reception on the show circuit. Thankfully, an unknown buyer has snatched poor orphan Orbitron from the jaws of obscurity and an undeservedly degrading end, and plans to restore the car to pristine condition.  Check out this thread on the H.A.M.B.

By Rob

Editor-in-Chief

The Z was totally redesigned for 1990 and returned to its sports car roots. Jessica's Z (below) has been featured in Modified and DownShift Magzine. Ken's car looks amazing in silver with Volk wheels and Kevin's car looks great in black with Ruff Racing wheels. Jerry's car won SOTW back in 2004. This body style definitely lends itself to two-tone paint. Of course the guys at TRIAL have a nice Z. Nick's Z looks tough with a widebody kit. I saw the SPL car at the GRM UTC Challenge. Russel has a sweet vert. And Jamie's car looks great in tangerine orange.

Think you got what it takes to write a Whip of the Week? Then post in the CarDomain Garage, and we'll be in touch.