As promised, I’m at the Melbourne Motor Show this week. As soon as I got in I made a beeline for the one car that I had to see at this year’s show: the Bolwell Nagari. Australia’s Bolwell produced only about 800 cars in the 60’s and 70’s, and I was left wondering if the legend was ‘bigger’ than the car. But the redesigned Nagari did not disappoint. Unlike other car makers that have hopped on the retrostyling bandwagon, Bolwell designed the Nagari as a breed apart from its 20th-century predecessors. With its supercar lines, it doesn’t actually bear much resemblance to the original Nagari at all; the old and the new share only a name and a basic body style. The new Nagari has all the updated internals like a fully independent suspension and power-assisted ABS.  And powered by a 3.5 litre, all-alloy V6, with an optional supercharger, it’s a thoroughly upgraded in the power department as well—it really is a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Go below the jump for some more views.

Cloth convertible or retractable hardtop? The design gurus at Opel, perhaps in an effort to appease the indecisive, think you realy should have it all: a fabric-covered retractable hardtop. Hmm, okay then! The new Tigra Illusion micro-convertible aims to evoke the look of the classic cabriolet while sporting all the benefits of a solid-roofed vehicle. Personally I think they could’ve just left it bare, and that a retractable hardtop is always the better option: it’s the only way a convertible can look good with the top up. What’s your preference—ragtop or retractable?

Via CarScoop

Talk about a modern classic. I remember seeing the hard-topped version of Volvo’s first production car, the 1927 V4 codenamed the "Jakob," at the 2007 New York Auto Show as part of the Prancing Moose’s 80th birthday festivities. But the party isn’t over, as Volvo has commissioned this Jakob hot rod (foreground) to be built based on one of those original cars—and they’re set to unveil it later this month at the Volvo Museum in Gteborg. The look is traditional hot rod, but there’s nothing rough-hewn about this roadster: it’s got a carbon fiber chassis, aluminum-spoke wheels, and an ethanol-powered, turbocharged inline-5. Looks like a fun ride, though the engine bay is a little heavy on the plastic shrouding—I thought the whole point of the stripped-down rat-rod aesthetic was mechanical simplicity and ease of workability, but maybe that doesn’t apply to Volvos. Check out more pics after the jump!

Via Motor Authority

…and the latest is this custom Mini Cooper pickup that Pioneer is building for its booth at the Paris Tuning Show. The Mini-ute is lowered, body-kitted, and rolling on 18-inch wheels. It’s sure to be packing a heck of a lot of car audio, along with on-board nav. But you’d better learn how to rip it up on a shortboard, because your 9’0" just wouldn’t look right on that roof. See more pics after the jump.

Via CarScoop

Continue reading "Everybody Wants a Little Ute" »

CarDomain member Freesol has gotten his Solstice GXP into the new Fast and the Furious movie! He attended the casting event a couple of weekends ago, and has been told his car will be used in the opening scenes that set the tone for the film. This 2008 Solstice has had a lot of adventures in its short life—it was also featured at the 2007 SEMA show!

Anyone else getting their car featured in the film? Post a link to your ride page!

Ever wonder what life would be like without music? I’ve wondered it, but I don’t think I’d ever want to experience it. Music is one of the reasons I got into the Mobile Electronics industry. The gadgets and the cool devices that help make the music in my car and life are only secondary, but they make my job and hobby that much more exciting. I know nothing really beats the sound of a finely tuned engine, but nothing compliments it better than a finely tuned car stereo system. And if I couldn’t listen to music, well, then I guess I’d just hop over to SoundDomain and catch up on the news!

• High-end home audio manufacturer Naim has announced it will provide the audio systems for future Bentley vehicles. Produced under the moniker "naim for Bentley", the system will belt out 1100 watts of pure audiophile power to 15 speakers. How much does the Naim system add to the bottom line of a Bentley? Well, as the saying goes – if you have to ask….
• If you’ve got an old school muscle car or classic cruiser in your garage and you’ve considered upgrading the radio and audio system, your options are pretty slim. Fortunately there are companies like RetroSound that offer the latest technology in a radio package designed to look factory in your retro-rod. USB, MP3, CD Changer controls, multi-color LCD… Get all the modern luxuries in a classic package.
• Blast from the past… Back in the good ‘ol days of Car Audio, Alpine and the Lambo Countach were one of the most recognized symbols in the industry (Alpine still is for that matter). I was digging around the net and stumbled on some oldie-but-goodie shots of this classic car stereo icon.
• Our man "Crazy Like a" Brian Fox is at it again… This time he’s creating a work of art to be showcased at Nissan’s booth at the New York International Auto Show this March. His new project is another Nissan Altima Coupe that will sport the new Fox Marketing 6-piece body kit, 19" Work wheels, and a bad-ass Rockford Fosgate stereo system.

There comes a time in every man’s life when he has to make a decision. You should weigh the positives, and negatives carefully because you don’t want to make a hasty decision and figure out it was the wrong one after its too late.** Well, while you’re thinking about your decision, maybe you should catch up on the SoundDomain news:

• We told you about Realm’s ’63 Lincoln Conti not to long ago; the car is just plain hot. Well, apparently MC Hammer thought so too and at CES he tested out his new CD on the Conti’s system and the guys at Realm snagged some video of Hammer getting down to his album. Hammer didn’t hurt ‘em, but you still can’t touch this. Oh yeah… I went there.
• The guys at Thought Out developed some pretty unique iPod and iPhone accessories and the Ped3 for the iPod Touch and iPhone is by far one of the best desktop solutions I’ve seen yet.
• Tim from HzEmall Customs is back and his most recent installment for SoundDomain gives us an in-depth look into the progress on a 1969 Camaro project car. The crew is basically customizing the entire interior, re-doing most of the electronics, suspension, etc. This is going to be one big, bad-ass old school when the wrap it up. Custom seats, VERY custom car stereo install, custom center console, custom trunk, custom suspension, big ‘ol LS2/6 motor and tranny swap, air bags, and chrome 18s up front and big ‘ol 20s in the rear. You don’t want to miss this.
• And don’t forget to check out the last two installments of the Alpine Million Dollar Imprint RLS demo car build videos. In Part 3 the guys get the exterior skeleton built for the custom body panels and the fabrication of the interior panels. In Part 4, with 1 week to go before CES, it’s paint, prep, and finished product. I’m surprised Gary, Steve, and Brent had any skin left on their fingers after all the sanding this project needed!

**The CarDomain editors are not responsible for pointless, mindless, babble contained in these blog posts. And what are you doing reading this anyway?? You should be reading the SoundDomain news!!

The Supra is one of the coolest tuner cars of all time, and Derrick has done a wicked job with this one. Looking at how awesome this puppy is, you really have to wonder why Toyota ever stopped making them! Do you think Hyundai’s Genesis Coupe—might we even see a V8 option?—and the fact that Godzilla is finally coming to the States has Toyota honchos mulling a comeback? Anyway, congrats Derrick, you’ve built one hell of a car!

For the final episode of Monster Garage, Jesse James and his team pulled out all the stops to produce this "ultimate old school wagon." The 1954 Ford runs a Corvette LS1 through a manual 6-speed and sits low enough on its fully air-bagged suspension to "squash a cigarette butt." It’s been chopped, sectioned, and frenched to the point where the original silhouette of the car is almost indiscernible, but somehow it all works. Even the flashy fade paint looks right on this low-slung grocery getter. There’s definitely a reserve price, but the seller is emphasizing that it’s not a flawless car, and that its main value is in its status as a historical artifact of automotive TV. I get the feeling he’s willing to let it go for less than you might think. Check it out!

What?! It’s the last day of the January? Where did the month go?? Oh yeah, I remember… CES 2008 and the relaunch of the new SoundDomain.com! We had quite a busy month and over the next few it’s going to get better and better. But to hold you over until then, you should check out the hot news over at SoundDomain. Here’s what you missed yesterday:

• America, F&#K Yeah! InPhase Audio had these patriotic sub boxes on display at CES. Not quite what I’d rock in my trunk, but I can appreciate the pride!
• The mad scientists over at JML Audio just wrapped up an install on a hopped-up IS300. This bad boy pumps out 540HP to the wheels and is loaded with an audiophile-quality install of the highest caliber.
• Navigon’s 7100 portable navigation device is quite possibly the new king of the streets! It’s sexy and loaded with features to make your life a much better place. Find out how!
• Cadillacs 2009 CTS-V is going to come equipped with an Alpine radio the features a pop-up nav screen, 40GB hard drive, DVD capability, USB 2.0 and more, all wrapped into one of the sexiest dashboards I’ve ever seen.