38-Hour Willie Rally Completed, Powered Entirely By Willie Nelson BioFuel And Lots Of Cheetos

On Wednesday, Nik Bristow and Brian Pierce arrived in LA after successfully completing the course mapped by the Gumball Rally in a record 38 hours, 37 minutes, and 41 seconds. Dubbed “The Willie Run 2008″, Bristow and Pierce’s cross country trek was made in a VW Jetta TDI, powered entirely by Willie Nelson’s BioWillie brand biodiesel. “I know the trip sounds crazy, but it’s more important now than ever,” Bristow explained to Autopia before the trip, “We’re on the cusp of a very important election where oil and energy are universal top concerns, and biodiesel is one of the cleaner, more viable fuel alternatives out there. We need to get the word out.”

Initially, the guys had hoped to make the trip in 36 hours, but fuel miscalculations and their grand arrival during LA rush hour set them behind schedule. “We spent the last hour and a half in stop-and-go traffic,” Bristow told Wired.com, “It was a little anti-climactic after driving across the country.” Other than a brief stop in Phoenix to stock up on more BioWillie, however, Bristow and Pierce completed the trek non-stop as per their original goal, even going so far as to forward all of nature’s calls to a Stadium Pal condom catheter.

Next year, Bristow and Pierce hope to make it in under the 36-hr time limit, and are already preparing for Willie Run ‘09. “We’re gonna run it by Willie,” Bristow said, “We’ve gotta have the patron saint sign off on it, but we’ve had a ton of people say they want to take part.”

[News Source/Photo Cred: Autopia]

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American Icon Hulk Hogan Drives An SRT8, Lays The Hurt Down On The Typical Family Sedan

As old as legends like Sergeant Slaughter and The Nature Boy but still able to squeeze into those barely-there wrestling tights without horrifying fans [seriously, Ric Flair, we love you man, but really, keep the robe on], our hero Hulk Hogan has been in the gossip rags everywhere lately while his tranny wife takes him to the cleaners. So when the Hulk was spotted cruising around in a Hulkamania-yellow Dodge Charger SRT8, we were flat out surprised his estranged wife hadn’t reduced the star to a Geo Prism.

An American legend to the core, celebrity gossip rags have reported that the entire Hogan family has been suited up by Dodge. Hulk’s daughter Brooke reportedly cruises in a Dodge Avenger while his son and amateur career racer, Nick, has logged heavy track time behind the wheel of a Dodge Viper. We really couldn’t care less what his [derogatory term for the female reproductive organ] of an ex-wife drives.

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Chevy Plans To Reveal Production Volt Later This Month, I’m Too Excited To Be A Smartass

Production Simulation Based On Chevy Volt Spy Shot

According to Auto News, GM announced today that they will reveal a production model of the Chevy Volt later this month in celebration of their 100th birthday on September 16th. The Volt preview will be granted to GM employees at headquarters in Detroit, and has been confirmed by a source within GM to be a “true representation of what the production version looks like.” The source added, “[it will be] somewhat different from the concept versions.”

I admit I came down a little hard on Chevy when spy shots of the Volt on the set of Transformers 2 were leaked, but that was just the initial shock talking. Now that I’ve had time to digest reality, I’m once again excited about flaunting some American innovation under Japan’s nose. Now the biggest item on my agenda is begging and pleading for the privilege of eventually taking the Volt for a spin. As a matter of fact, at this point I think it’s safe to say I’d do just about anything to get behind the wheel of a Volt, and I do mean anything [ha ha! Just kidding Mom!] [No I'm not, GM]

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Pimp My Ride: Law Enforcement Edition

In a contest sponsored by the publication “Law & Order”, law enforcement vehicles throughout the nation compete for the “best design” award. This year, a police cruiser from Newport News, Virginia took first place; largely because, said judges; “It’s got bling.”

The cruiser is not a standard issue Virginia patrol car (I can personally attest to this fact inasmuch I, personally, have had the luxury of closely observing quite a few of them in my rear view mirror) but actually a recruiting tool used by the Newport News Police Department – thereby accounting for its “flash”.

The cruiser itself is a 2008 Dodge Magnum (“Man Wagon”) outfitted with the factory standard HEMI V8 engine and 425 horsepower – so even without the exterior accoutrement, it’s still a fairly impressive vehicle.  In addition to its performance under the hood, the Magnum also features a rather spacious interior - the ability to seat 5-7 passengers coming in handy for larger-scale dope busts.

A photograph of the vehicle along with the full article can be viewed here.

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2008 New York Auto Show: The Scion Hako Pops Before Your Eyes

At first glance spectators are forced to make a Love it, or Hate it response when the new Scion Hako concept advances. That is just the response the Toyota designers of the Hako were looking for. Never ones to go with the flow Scion is looking to offer something up that is just as polarizing as the Prius… something that says “I Choose Scion.” Thus giving those who say “No Way In Hell am I driving THAT Scion” a chance to ridicule those who do, but that’s okay.

Fueled by a mix of the original Scion xB and xD design and with a flare for the American roadster heritage the Scion Hako has a commanding presence, particular in orange, for a car of its stature. Measuring in at 145.7 inches in length storage for the Hako should be rather easy to come by. In fact it might fit comfortably on most homes patio.

Filling the interior with plenty of gadgetry is sure to impress the crowd, but if this pint-sized clown car (said with honest affection… i kid, i kid) is truly aimed for production then give me a better hint at what we can truly expect. Without much information in the way of specifications Scion has left us with nothing but an intriguing and polarizing design that we are sure to fill with our own speculation, and maybe that is just what they were after.

To see more of the Scion Hako and to draw your own conclusions about its unique shape follow the link to the next page for a full gallery of photos and the official Scion Press Release. (more…)

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GM’s Vice Chairman Bob Lutz Proclaims ‘Global Warming is a Crock of ****!’

Bob Lutz wants to hear if you can smell-ell-ell-ell-ell… what the Vice Chairman is Cooking!

Can you hear me now? …How about now? Is this better? Can you hear me Now?

Please feel free to leave your own caption in the comments section. This photo is just too amusing to leave alone.

There are few executives out there that are masters of the sound bite. The one’s that are prove to be so because they are speaking their minds and have minds that are filled with their own opinions, own judgements and own thoughts. Like those other masters of the sound bit Bob Lutz is not out to convince you he is right by talking to you. He is not there to hold your hand and lead you to his conclusion. He is there to build cars and meet new challenges. It is just to our curious benefit that he takes time out of his GM schedule to share his hardened, unyielding sound bites.

So follow us through the link and let us check in on some of the latest from Bob Lutz (quotes provided to us via FrontBurner): (more…)

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Pebble Beach “Best of Show” honors goes to the Duesenberg “Mormon Meteor”

This years Best of Show at the 2007 Concour d’Elegance at Pebble Beach is the 1935 Duesenberg SJ that was dubbed the “Mormon Meteor” by its original owner. The car was built with special contours and wind resistant properties to achieve the land speed record. Driving the car for the record speed was Ab Jenkins - a Bonneville Salt Flat racer since 16 years-old and at the time of the record Mayor of Salt Lake City. The “Mormon Racer” is a Historic car that has returned again to glory.

Powering the record setting Duesenberg was a 420 cubic inch Duesenberg J engine. It was a dual overhead camshaft engine with four cylinders per head that cranked out 400 horsepower. In 1935 400 horsepower was a staggering number compared to the 85-hp of a Ford Flathead engine. (more…)

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UK’s allotment of 2007 BMW M3’s are all sold out

The UK was alloted 700 BMW M3’s for the 2007 car year and with much applause they have reached that mark 4 months ahead of schedule. So does this mean that BMW has come up with a winning design with this year M3 or that the economy in the UK has allowed some happy shoppers to splurge?

Judging by the options shopping the M3 buyers were adding it would seem that money was not the object for the M3 shopper. The (far from) average M3 buyer typically added 4700 pounds in options to their new car. Two of the popular options choosen were the 19″ rims and the DAB digital radio.
(more…)

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Mercedes CL63 AMG Packs a Real Punch

A recent test drive of the Mercedes-Benz CL63 AMG by Jay Shoemaker from TheTruthAboutCars.com demonstrated that this luxury speeder comes fully equipped with some legitimate thrust. With a 6.2 liter V8 punching out 518 horses this is a truly muscular Benz that is built to obliterate speed limits on all continents with some class and style. While Jay was critical of some of the features found in the cockpit of this aluminum rocket ship his enthusiasm for its road performance leaves all gripes over those interior incidentals at a dusty, distant starting gate.
Although there are not many of us who are in the market for a $140,000 luxury muscle-coupe like the CL63 AMG it is perfectly acceptable to express our appreciation for what mankind can create. Explore Jays complete review of the all new Mercedes-Benz CL63 AMG at TheTruthAboutCars.com. If this is the type of performance to be expected from all future AMG name bearers there will be very few weeping over Mercedes dropping of the Maclaren partnership.

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Top 10 Selling Sedans in May

A listing of the Top 10 selling sedans in May was released on AOL Autos and to some peoples surprise the #1 car was not the Honda Accord. The number one selling sedan in May was the Toyota Camry. Now considering that Toyota has become the #1 seller world wide that news should not be earth shattering. Also considering the influx of hybrid sedan shoppers in recent months the Camry hybrid would be a good choice for a new sedan. But to me the bigger surprise is the number 2 car on the list: the Chevy Malibu.

The Chevy Malibu seems to be fitting in where the Lumina once stood in the late 1980’s and early 90’s. It is an economical choice with few frills or stand-out features, but for the general population it is a car that gets the job done. Back in 1996 if the Malibu were on the list of best selling sedans there is a good chance some car guys would be High-Fiving one another. To this day the 1996 Chevy Malibu is a hot commodity on the used car market.
In 2008 a new design will be released for the Chevy Malibu. While it will probably still retain much of its general appeal as an economical car choice, the new design should help provide the Malibu with a bit more distinction amongst its sedan peers (or so Chevy hopes).

Check-out the entire list at AOL Autos.

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