This week’s ebay Motors Showdown really hit a chord with people. Even with our ongoing commenting issues (now even I can’t comment, and yes, we are working on it) we got a HUGE response on this one. At first it looked like the IROC was gonna walk away with it, but then the Fox body rallied, and in the end this one is just too close to call!

Looks like the 1988 Camaro IROC Z-28 got bid up to $4,550 with the reserve still not met before time ran out. The 1989 Mustang GT auction still has three days to go, with the bid currently at $2,550. But any way you look at it, both of these cars offer a big bang for the buck. And we’ll definitely run more Mustang vs. Camaro shoot outs in the future, cause they are a of of fun!

Here’s a great one for you. The GM public relations machine was hoping for young buyers for the new 2010 Camaros, but one guy just single-handedly brought up the average. He’s 101 years old! Virgil Coffman in Decatur, Illinois, was not going to let age stop him from motoring in a new Trans4mers edition V8-powered Camaro.

Ok guys, time for a 3rd gen vs. Fox body showdown! This 1989 Mustang GT looks to have been nicely redone and it’s a 5 speed to boot. The 1988 Camaro IROC Z-28 is unrestored and has some fading paint, but this is slightly rarer car, too, with the L98 5.7 liter TPI (which was only available with the automatic). And of course both come in a killer black/grey color combo. So, which would you choose?

Ah, motorsports–it’s so much more than racing these days. The motorsports contingent is always huge at SEMA, and it’s one of those categories that can literally go from A to Z: there are so many variations on automotive competition that there’s no way you can expect to capture a representative cross-section. That’s okay–it just allows us to focus on what we find cool, with shameless subjectivity. In the interests of inclusiveness, we’ve tried to hit as many of the hottest motorsports series as our five entries will allow. NASCAR is represented by the new Nationwide Series Mustang, running Ford’s all-new Roush Yates FR9. Then there’s the 2010 Camaro’s debut entry in Formula Drift, which will definitely be on our radar in the coming season. Chris Rado’s insane Time Attack Scion carries the torch for that genre. SCCA is represented, albeit in vintage form, by Bob Boileau’s multiple-championship-winning Civic. And the Traxxas short-course race truck rounds out the motorsports fleet for off-road racing. Um, yeah, we totally skipped NHRA. And a bunch of other stuff. Oh well, time to hit the polls!

If you made it to this year’s SEMA show, then you know there was no shortage of 2010 Chevy Camaros on display. From mild to wild, tuners have embraced the reborn muscle car with great passion. One Camaro in particular caught my attention with its design, performance and build quality. It was no surprise to find out this was the latest creation from Lingenfelter Performance Engineering. Check out the full specs of this 750hp LS7 powered monster. While there, be sure to check out Adam Carolla’s CarCast video with Ken Lingenfelter.

So it’s time to kick of our Best of SEMA voting, and I thought I’d start with muscle. There were a ton of cool muscle cars at SEMA this year (half of them were Camaros), so it was difficult to narrow it down to just five cars. But here goes. For your consideration, the Mustang RTR-C, the Tjin Edition Camaro, the Super Cuda, the Ring Brothers Fairlane and the Tom Nelson Camaro. Vote for your favorite, and be sure to come back over the next two weeks to vote on vehicles in each of ten categories. We’ll announce the winners shorly after Thanksgiving.

Why, Vertical Doors Inc., of course. The company had a lambo-doored Camaro and Charger in their booth at SEMA this year. As Nelson would say, Ha-ha!

Continue reading "Who Still Thinks Vertical Doors Are Cool?" »

Well, NASCAR’s Nationwide Series might not be getting a Camaro, but Formula Drift sure is! Check out Grunewald Racing’s new drift Camaro, which will be competing in the 2010 season. It’s running a GM LS-A crate motor with internal mods by Hennessey Performance. Carbon fiber front clip, decklid, and spoilers are by Seibon, and the carbon fiber driveshaft is by PST. Aeromotive handles the fuel delivery, AEM the engine management system. It’s also running Eibach MultiPro R-2 coilovers and front and rear sways. Rubber (you guessed it) by Hankook, and the beast will be piloted next year by Conrad Grunewald. Do you think it’ll have anything for the now-veteran drift Mustangs?

Continue reading "The 2010 FormulaD Camaro" »

There’s been a slew of 2010 Camaro pace cars in the last year at high-profile motorsports events like Indy and the Daytona 500. The Sprint Cup series ran the ultra-hot Cyber Grey Camaro in a number of the races this season, and it’s become a welcome part of race-day scenery. However, I haven’t seen a pace car at the as hot as this retro-styled SS, made over by KAO Auto Styling as an update of the 1969 Camaro SS that served as the Indy 500 pace car that year. While this one obviously isn’t a convertible, the tribute was pitch-perfect: I love the louvered rear window and the nostalgic fender badging. The graphics indicate it’s going to be the official pace car for next year’s 500 on May 31, but the “For Sale” sticker suggests it’s probably just a concept.

Continue reading "Nostalgic Camaro SS To Pace 2010 Indy 500?" »

Did you know the General brought back the Camaro for 2010? There’s no way I’d have known,except for the fact that you can’t walk six inches at SEMA without bumping into one. I’m kidding, obviously, and I don’t mean to sound like I’m begrudging my favorite domestic automaker all the fanfare surrounding the return of its legendary muscle car. I think the boys and girls at GM did a great job with the Camaro, and the silver one in the pic below is so hot it makes me want to use expletives. To be honest, I’m a little pissed that we aren’t going to see a NASCAR version, but the Hancoock/Seibon car that’s going to run in Formula D—which is posted after the jump—is wicked, and the ZR1 was a close second for the car I wanted to shoplift from SEMA. Oh, and from the looks of the booth, you’d never know Lutz’s overlords were trying to pawn Hummer off on the Chinese. Tons of pics after the jump.

Continue reading "All Up In Their Booth: the General at SEMA" »

And that’s a wrap for me, folks. Back to LA in the morning, but this was one helluva show. Looks like the hit was the CHEVY CAMARO with about 60 cars appearing. But there were many others that were awesome and heavily involved timewise.

Some final parting shots from North Hall. Not many cars or girls, but some great products for you to check out. Best of Show here.

Big shoutout to the boys and girls of SEMA. They put on another spectacular event. Hot Rods by Rom, Cool Customizable Caliper Covers by MGP, a great new solvent by BIO SOLV and I hung with Todd and db from Motoringfile and White Roof Radio …and of course, the hardcore doods of MOBSTEEL. Check ‘em out…

Continue reading "Fireball SEMA Day 3! The Finale!" »

…Yeah, they’ve also got a Challenger widebody kit that extends the front fenders 3″  on either side, and parts that’ll dress up your plain-jane C6 Corvette as either a Z06 or a ZR1. And can you name any other booth at SEMA that has a new Camaro, Mustang, Challenger, and Corvette? Talk about covering all your bases. More pics below the jump!

Continue reading "Classic Design Concepts Claims First 2010 Mustang Shaker Hoodscoop" »

Whew, are my dogs a smokin!’ Pretty sure I’ve walked about 200 miles today, and fended off 200,000 elbows. (Been using my Starbucks cups as defense. Work pretty dang good.) Although the cars were cool, the celebrities showed up in full force! My buddy, MAD MIKE from “Pimp My Ride,” Superstar DAN WOODS from “Chop, Cut, Rebuild,” SuperModel Extraordinaire GENEVIEVE CHAPPELL and TunerSmokin’Hottie CORISSA FURR were struttin’ their gorgeousness.

BEST NEW PRODUCT? LifeTime Oil Filter! They guys really have an awesome product. Never want to buy another filter? Then this is the one for you. Awesome Billet construction and test proven. It gets the Fireball Award!

Rat Rods, my Official Fireball Charger, a bitchin’ Hot Rod from PRO COMP CUSTOMS, super cool bikes, a cool STONEHENGE SERIES Jeep, awesome unique wheels from KURV… and me? I got to hang with my buddy Alan on Car&Driver Radio.

What’s in store for DAY 3? I’m puttin’ on my battle gear and getting ready for North Hall Antics. We’re filming and an episode for “World of Cars” will be up in a week or so. Make sure you subscribe! Rest assured, insanity will ensue manana…

Continue reading "Fireball SEMA Day 2! Celebrites!" »

I just met up with Topo over at the DUB booth. We checked out his silver Camaro, and then we walked over to the TIS booth to talk about the yellow Camaro he built for JW Motorsports, which is on the cover of the latest DUB Magazine. See all the pics and a video of Topo talking about the build after the jump!

Continue reading "Conversation with Topo" »

Of the gaudy 2010 Camaros on the show floor at SEMA–and there’s more than a few–this is one whose appearance I don’t mind so much. I like the smoothed-over look of it, and the minimal exterior flash. However, I’m still on the fence about the matchy-matchy wheels, which I’m guessing were kind of the entire point of the build (it was in the Savini Wheels booth, after all). I dunno, do these work for a new Camaro? Check out the video below the jump.

Continue reading "Savini Camaro" »