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In Quentin Tarantino’s "Death Proof", Kurt Russells’s character modifies his car to protect its driver in even the most severe of accidents, thus rendering the machine impervious to death. Bespoke Ventures has done exactly the opposite, modifying their Nissan GT-R in such a way that severe back injury is virtually guaranteed by any front-end collision. Click through to find out why. More »
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Ford has four special editions of its brand-new 2009 F-150 they're bringing out to Vegas for the 2008 SEMA show. First and foremost, the DeWalt Contractor Concept tacks on the expected exterior off-road upgrades but also adds thoughtful touches like a tool charger in the center console, storage under the rear seat and Ford's tool tracking system to make sure your chop saw doesn't walk away. The Ford Hi-Pa Drive F-150 takes hybrids to the next level with in-wheel electric motors, while X-Treme Toyz and Street Scene Equipment will also each be customizing the new F-series to their own unique clients' tastes. We'll show you all of 'em when we're live from SEMA next week; in the meantime, Ford presser below the jump. More »
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Tuning house GGI is preparing a Sportec Porsche they'll drop at SEMA next week in Vegas. Aside from the important bits — namely a Stage 3 turbo setup with 600 HP and 564 ft-lbs of twist — the custom 997 is going to get slathered with Christian Audigier "Ed Hardy" graphics. That's right, it's a Porsche dressed up to look like Brit Brit's cell phone holster! Yay. Granted, with a 211 MPH top speed, the GGI Porsche appears to be far more talented than the ex pop princess, graphics be damned. Hit the jump for another photo. More »
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The diesel performance gurus at Gale Banks Engineering are getting on the teaser bandwagon with this tail-shot of their new 200 MPH diesel dragster. Using a Duramax 6.6-liter mill not unlike Banks' S-10 oilburner — already capable of hitting 180 in the quarter — the company promises output well over 1000 HP and 1000 lb-ft of torque. According to the release, "there'll be 30 feet more of this wild machine on site at SEMA" next week, so keep an eye out for some diesel dragster goodness during our complete coverage of the world's biggest aftermarket show. Full presser, including details on other new Banks Engineering hi-po diesel products, below the jump. More »
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PML and Ford have been palling around for a while now, most recently to develop the Volvo Recharge C30 concept. Now they've gone in on an in-wheel electric drive plug-in hybrid Ford F-150 concept coming to SEMA. The in-wheel motors are a clever brushed pancake design that act as a part of the wheel and not just another add-in part. We've often thought hybrid tech would be best developed in the pickup market, where high torque matters and light weight and great driving dynamics don't. Don't be surprised if we go poking around this truck when we hit the show floor in Vegas. [Pickuptrucks.com] More »
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The new Jeep Wrangler is a damn fine off-road vehicle straight from the factory, but a 202 HP V6 just doesn't quite fit the bill for the folks at American Expedition Vehicles. Remember, this is the same group of guys who built the Hemi-powered SR-392 Roadster and the amazing Brute conversion kit that'll let you turn your Wrangler into an honest-to-goodness Jeep truck. This year at SEMA AEV'll be showing their latest and greatest new toy — the custom shop's dropped a 5.7-liter HEMI V8 into the evergreen off-roader...and then tosses us the keys for an exclusive first drive. That's right, they let us loose in this monster of an off-roader — outfitted with their complete HEMI conversion kit, a Flowmaster exhaust, an Nth Degree three-inch suspension lift, 35-inch BFG Mud Terrain KM2s on a set of their own wheels, 4.88 rear gears, their all-steel heat-extractor hood and a beefy front winch bumper of their own design. The result: A seriously badass Wrangler. More »
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The Galpin Scythe started life as a Ford Mustang, but as you can see, it has since taken another road. The car made a private debut recently and will get a full-on public unveiling at SEMA, but it may cause a singularity in the space-SEMA continuum. See, the Scythe is the inevitable distillation of all SEMA show cars: It's got a 4.6-liter V8 stroked to 5.0 liters and twin-supercharged to over 1000 HP, 16-inch Wilwood brakes, 22 inch wheels up front and 24's at the back, and an insanity-fueled body with reverse scissor doors, taking inspiration from every Hot Wheels car and George Barris original ever made. It's so SEMA it might cause the whole show to fold up on itself — we might not make it out of the car's attention-gravity field. We're scared. Press release below. More »
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RENNTech is known for tweaking Mercedes' best into fire-breathing bundles of badass, and they're preparing something interesting for this year's SEMA show. The RENNTech Mercedes-Benz GLK Rally Racer is said to be inspired by runners in the annual Pikes Peak climb and marks RENNTech's first foray into modding hybrids. We'll just have to see what that means as far as capabilities go when they drop details to match these teaser images. If we were forced to like a compact luxury SUV, the GLK would probably take the nod, so we're actually intrigued by what RENNTech is cooking up. More »
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Yesterday we told you about the first of many modified Hyundai Genesis Coupes to debut at this year's SEMA show. While the image we published was from Rhys Millen by way of Hyundai, graphic artist Jon Sibal is claiming part of it — specifically the front bumper — was yanked from one of his own design renderings of a hopped-up Lexus LF-A without permission. The LF-A design below the jump. More »
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Hyundai announced they've teamed with Rhys Millen Racing to build and introduce a track-going version of the 2010 Hyundai Genesis Coupe for this year's SEMA show. This Rhys Millen Racer is the first of a plethora of custom jobs from some of the best, brightest and ballsiest tuning shops who've received a Genesis coupe to play with before this year's SEMA show. More »
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