By Karan Singh

StreetFire.net

Like many of you, we love the good ol’ days of automotive advertising. Here’s a blast from the late ’80s featuring the Nissan 240SX. Check out the early drifting!

1989 Nissan 240SX TV Commercial

By Katherine Helmetag

Atomicalex

German TV at its finest! I caught a few minutes of the game show “The Car Maniac” the other day. The contestants have to answer questions about general automotive topics, and are trying to win prizes that include a trip to the US for a NASCAR race. Wait, what? Anyway, in typical German fashion, the show is hosted by a hot blonde chic who may or may not have any idea what she is talking about. Specifically, TDI, which does not stand for “turbocharged Diesel injection.” VW fans know that it means turbo direct injection. She also had trouble with “muscle car” – when the choices are Camaro, Corvette, Charger, or SuperBird, Camaro is not the right answer, ok… Significance of the pic below? 313 is the area code for Detroit.

By John Coyle

Deputy Editor

This teaser for the new season of Bullrun was uploaded to StreetFire on Christmas Eve, but since I had the day off, I just saw it this morning. I have to admit I’m a little curious to see how far the Lambo team will make it, because as much as I love those Raging Bulls, it’s not like they’re know for reliability. So given that the contestants are looking at putting more than 4000 miles on the clock, I’m guessing an engine fire or clutch problem with take those guys out before the finale. And while I’m sure it’s just clever editing, this clip makes it look like one of the drivers gets into it with Goldberg, which would be rad. I mean, I know wrestling is fake and everything, but I’ve met him at SEMA, and he’s not someone you’d want to tangle with.

I’ve always thought my little GTI was somewhat of a green-er car. Even with all the upgrades and power enhancements, I still pull out between 28-31mpgs, which isn’t too bad by today’s standards. However, I never considered the spin SAAB is using in their most recent TV commercial to market turbocharged engines: recycling your exhaust. That’s right, I’m greener than most cars because I recycle my exhaust and turn the spent gasses into more power for my little four-banger.

Of course, we’ll ignore the fact that since I enjoy boost, I probably burn more fuel when the turbo starts to spool, since the best way to get lots of boost is to romp on the long pedal. Oh well. It’s a good commercial and a fun marketing spin.

Our pals in the UK really have a knack for really over-the-top road-safety ads, complete with grisly mayhem and (always) young love cut short—longtime readers might remember this pro-seatbelt TV spot I posted a long time ago. The anti-speeding PSA below is apparently part of a series called "The Faster the Speed, The Bigger The Mess" that started airing in Ireland last year. Somehow, I can’t imagine such a thing turning up on TV in the US. Sure, we had our blood-on-the-highway bout of drivers’ ed films back during the Cold War, but we seem to have developed a real taboo around the spectacle of the accident scene. Maybe it was the Vietnam War that triggered a tightening up of the rules, or maybe we’re just not comfortable reenacting the kinds of scenes that regularly give post traumatic stress disorder to big burly state troopers. Whatever it is, I think it’s fair to say that driving-related PSA’s here in the US are positively tame compared to what gets shown in other countries. How about you, ever seen one that really pushes the envelope?

(Video warning: screaming, light gore, traumatic amputation—not safe for all workplaces).

At around this time every NASCAR season, I go through a bit of withdrawal when the weekly Sprint Cup race broadcast switches over from Fox to some other network. It’s not that I really have any great love for Fox, but I do enjoy their NASCAR setup, and the announcers are the best. I love the cutaway car demos they do, I love that they actually give some airtime to the pit reporters. I love DW’s affable Southern charm and explosive mannerisms, and I even get a kick out of Jeff Hammond’s slightly unsettling bionic gaze. The easy rapport and conversational chemistry of this former driver/crew chief duo is unbeatable. What I’m not a fan of is TNT’s generic broadcast bots, who look like they’d be more at home narrating stock market activity on msnbc or something. Even with the addition to their team of sleepy and semi-retired driver Kyle Petty, who’s had a lot of experience watching racing from the back of the pack, they manage to miss all the important stuff during the race and carry on with the most completely insipid and generic banter. More…

Continue reading "TNT's Inset Ads: Even More Annoying Than Regular TV Commercials?" »

I can’t credibly make fun of Unique Whips as I’ve never really been able to sit through an entire episode—I couldn’t even wait long enough to see how Tony Stewart’s hearse turned out—but from what I hear, it’s a pretty godawful show, and both Rob and Sean think the guy who hosts it is kind of a tool. That being said, I can’t help feeling sorry for this Unique Whips Escalade, which can’t get a bid on eBay to save its kitted-up life. The seller’s verbiage clearly indicates that they’re completely fed up with this ride: "This listing is the last listing for this vehicle on Ebay." Or else what? They send it to the crusher? Given the poor sales prospects for similar gas-guzzlers, such a fate may not be far off. The ad continues, "Owner must sell this vehicle immediately and that is reflected in what was already a bargain price. It is being reluctantly sold at an insanely low price, almost what a stock one goes for." They might as well be saying "Look—just buy this ridiculous goddamn thing already. Our commission is dwindling away with each time we have to re-list it, okay?" The "Buy It Now" price is set at a darn near humiliating $44,500. But with less than a day left on the auction, it seems unlikely that anyone will buy it now. Or ever.

Nobody from CarDomain turned on Knight Rider thinking it was going to be the greatest show ever filmed—which is fortunate. Sean was bothered by the fact that the baddies get a perfect look at Michael and Sarah when they’re driving in front of the casino, but don’t seem to notice, and I found the wooden quality of the acting kind of distracting. The ending also felt rushed, like the director was bored and just wanted to finish up shooting, and the Hoff’s cameo was pretty painful. But overall, it was kind of fun to watch. What did you think? And do you think Knight Rider will come back as a series?

This is easily the best Knight Rider commercial yet. The part where the truck t-bones KITT and he doesn’t even flinch? Two words: bad and ass. So I’m actually kind of stoked to see the movie on Sunday. Sure, it’s not going to be the greatest thing ever committed to film, but I’m figuring that after a couple of beers, it’ll be a blast to watch. Honestly? I just hope the Hoff makes a cameo, and that there’s some mention—like, any, mention—of KITT’s evil twin, KARR. Otherwise, I don’t really care what happens. What do you want to see? And do you think NBC will actually make Knight Rider into a weekly series?

When Rob Dyrdek wanted to get into the Guinness Book for skateboarding, he didn’t mess around. Currently, he holds 21 world records, including longest manual, longest 50/50 grind and most consecutive ollies. If you don’t know anything about skating, basically, that means he’s a total bad-ass. As you’d expect, Dyrdek wants to rock a bad-ass ride and the supercharged ’69 Camaro All Speed Performance built for him totally fits the bill. Head over to their forums for complete documentation of this amazing build. Has it been on Rob & Big yet?

See more of Rob Dyrdek’s Cars here.