By John Coyle

Deputy Editor

The CarDomain and StreetFire crews head to SEMA to party in Vegas, eat free food, and camp out at the multitude of open bars. Of course, in between those activities, we try to make some time to write blogs, take pictures, and shoot video. But unlike the armies of shiftless journalists wandering the floor, there are plenty of  people who actually have to work the show, and most of them are there hawking new products. To salute these brave individuals, we’ve gone ahead and posted tons of videos detailing all the trick new hardware. Head over to StreetFire and check them out.

By John Coyle

Deputy Editor

Last year, I saw the first clip of Dainiese’s air-bag equipped motorcycle jacket in action, and I thought it looked pretty dope. Sure, it probably costs a lot to repack, but that’s probably not what you’re going to be thinking about when you’re sliding along the pavement. And while it looks great for protecting riders from broken bones and such, ThermaHelm’s helmet takes things one step further. In the event you crack your noggin during a fall, this helmet activates an internal dry-ice system to help stem any brain swelling. And even though I think the best the dude in this illustration can hope for is instant death, I think this concept is pretty cool, no pun intended. How about you?

By Weston Henderson

Weston Henderson

Last weekend Ryan and I headed down to a Fife-based garage outfitting and car care company called Griot’s Garage, to take a tour of their warehouse and the owner’s personal man-cave. Griot’s Garage has been around since 1990 and has been working on bringing forward the most innovative and time-saving tools and devices for your personal garage or shop. Richard Griot, the owner,  described the company as “the culmination of 20 years of my love for cars.”  And he simply wants to help others share in that love.

Continue reading "A Quick Tour of Richard Griot’s Personal Garage" »

I’m definitely a fan of products that come in packaging resembling automotive fluid containers—hell, I’ve been waiting for years for them to market a green Gatorade that comes in a coolant jug. But until that glorious day, this motor-oil-themed shampoo will have to do. Check it out at Uncrate.

Since I thought Restoration Hardware was just a place to buy overpriced doorknobs and designer hammers, I was surprised to see this wicked Shelby slot car set on its website. It comes with a pair of cool little Daytona Coupes, but the thing I was really stoked about was its 63 feet—63 feet!—of track. A comparably priced Carrera set comes with a measly 25 feet, so while I’m wondering what the quality is like, given the difference in footage, I think I’d be willing to take a chance on the Shelby set. Can anybody spot me $250?

If there’s one thing that’s lacking in conventional RC cars, it’s their inability to defy gravity. Why shouldn’t your cars be able to run up walls and across ceilings? Air Hogs must’ve been thinking the same thing, because they’ve developed an RC that uses a tiny fan to generate sufficient vacuum to let the light-bodied vehicle stick to unlikely surfaces. They’re available on Amazon for 40-bucks-and-change, though anyone who’d plunk down this kind of coin for something that should come free in a cereal box (remember those baking-soda-powered submarines?) should probably have their head examined. I mean, the final outcome of such purchase is pretty obvious: it only sort of works, and the first time it falls off the ceiling, it breaks. And that’s the end of your new toy. Via Jalopnik.

I’ve been living in my renters’ paradse for some time now and thought that it was time to ditch the hand-me-downs and the yard-sale treasures and find some decor that says "I love cars" but that still has some class to it. While it’s cool to have a race tire and a piece of glass as your coffee table, it’s not exactly sophisticated.

I deperately need a new bed and while searching I stumbled on the perfect one. Over at Jake’s Chop Shop I found one made from a 1959 Mercury nose with a flame headboard—that’s got me written all over it! With the bedroom looking sharp, next up was to see what I could find for the living room, and it didn’t take me long to find these awesome little end tables made from classic steering wheels and hubcaps. They’re definitely a little classier than tire furniture and they have an almost martini-glass look to them. And what better to go between those tables than the ’59 Cadillac tail-fin couch from the Route 66 Store—sharp-looking and sharp to the touch. All that’s left is to find friends who can lift a 600lb couch. Any takers ?

Most of the time, if flames are shooting out of a piece of Lamborghini hardware, that’s a bad thing. But these little babies are designed to start fires! I still think my first piece of Lamborghini swag will be a ball cap—I didn’t manage to snag one on Lamborghini Monday—but if I had $160 to spend on a cigarette lighter, I’d totally pick up the yellow one. Check out some of the other styles of lighter and some trick cigar cutters after the jump.

via CarScoop

Continue reading "These Lambos are Supposed to Start Fires" »

For most of my life, I didn’t wear a watch. I figured there were enough clocks in this world to keep me somewhat on time. About a year ago, I started wearing a watch regularly and now I can’t go without one. Never mind telling me the time, I usually need a reminder as to what day it is.

It’s no secret that there’s some close ties between watch companies and motorsports. Just look at Rolex, TAG Heuer, Tissot and even Seiko. So, do any of you wear a Heuer Monaco because Steve McQueen wore one, or favor Oris thanks to their F1 ties? Or is it all silly boy stuff? I usually wear an automatic Swiss Army but am looking for a TAG Heuer Carrera.

John had all kinds of plans to get Rob a mean gag gift for his Big 4-0, but when I got a tip on this awesome Dodge Challenger shirt we agreed it was the perfect present for the boss’s birthday. Since Hawaiian shirts tend to be the preserve of cliched frat boys and middle-aged tourists, and since Rob is really neither of these, it was really the pattern that sold us. Have you ever seen a Hawaiian shirt this cool? Being a Mopar-themed product, it sticks with cool badass colors rather than the retina-searing tropical-fruit-salad that makes up the palette of the typical Hawaiian shirt. We love it, Rob loves it, and he came to work today wearing it. I think it’s probably fair to say he’s never gotten more compliments at the office on any other article of clothing he owns. Happy birthday, boss!

Get your own Challenger shirt here, and thanks to Robert Tate for hooking us up!