DETROIT, 2:48 PM, TUE MAY 13 | 39 POSTS IN THE LAST 24 HOURS | tips@jalopnik.com | SUBMIT A TIP | RSS
Most Popular Stories
Today's most popular headlines are
Today's most discussed stories are

First Official Death Race Screen Shot Features an Intense-Looking Jason Statham (39 comments), Chevy Celebrates 50 Years of the Impala (Minus 10 years) (37) and Beautiful Hand-Built Air-Cooled V12 Makes 68 HP Per Liter (32).

5:01 PM on Mon Dec 31 2007

acura-color-trim-1_48.jpg Detroit Auto Show

Detroit Auto Show: Acura Puts Design in the Hands of the Consumer at 2008 Auto Shows

Maybe it says something about Acura's designers, but starting in two weeks at the Detroit Auto Show, Acura will be allowing Joe Six-Pack the opportunity to put their own personal touch on a 2008 model. More »

Feature

3:45 PM on Mon Dec 31 2007
By Travis Hudson
1,491 views, 16 comments

CK3300.gif Offbeat News

Bicycle Riding and GPS Receivers May Not Be the World's Best Idea

Some people just don't get it and I kind of can sympathize with them. A man was stopped on a bicycle in Amityville, New York by law enforcement officials with a number of items on his person and looking suspicious. Found on the man was a GPS receiver and that's where things started to go downhill. More »

3:30 PM on Mon Dec 31 2007
By Travis Hudson
2,435 views, 12 comments

frankenstein.jpg Blogging The Auto Bloggers

Scott Burgess of the Detroit News Wants to Have it All

Scott Burgess, the most cuddly of auto critics over at the Detroit News has come up with an interesting, one-man-focus-group pseudo-review of the best parts of cars this year. Deftly sidestepping the realities of engineering, Burgess asks for somebody, anybody to put parts of some of the most dissimilar cars around into a Frankenstein's monster of platform prostitution. Take the brain from Ford's Sync System and put it into an Audi R8 body, bring in a heart from GM (what?!) and eyes from Mercedes... okay that's where our body parts/car parts metaphor runs out, but it's still madness, madness we say! Mwah ha ha ha ha! We're totally loving the diabolicalness of it all.[detnews.com]

2:30 PM on Mon Dec 31 2007
By bwojdyla
377 views, 17 comments

Latest by Armand4: @SMOKEYDOG001: What do you mean, "wait for wooden frames to make a comeback?" Why wait? [www.morgan-motor.co.uk] more »

50thanniversaryimpalatop.jpg New Cars

Chevy Celebrates 50 Years of the Impala (Minus 10 years)

The first Impala appeared as a special edition 1958 Bel Air. In 1959, after the popularity of the original Impala, Chevy introduced it as a stand alone model with a 335 horsepower 5.7L V8. To celebrate 50 years as a range topper, Chevy is introducing a new 50th Anniversary Impala with a 211 horsepower 3.5L V6. Progress! This fully loaded Impala comes with the FE3 Sport Suspension, ABS, 18 inch alloy wheels and enough 50th Anniversary badges to fill an HHR. Full press release and a history of the impala below the jump:


More »

2:00 PM on Mon Dec 31 2007
By Matt Hardigree
2,910 views, 72 comments

Latest by cdub1982: let me say one sentence to sum up every ones opinion about this car.THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY SHOULD BE A BAD ASS V-8 SS IMPALA.COME ON CHEVY IMPRESS US. more »

2012rx9concept.jpg Gossip

Could This Be The 2012 Mazda RX-9?

The illustrator's over at Winding Road have been having fun with a possible future RX-9 based on previous concepts such as the Mazda Nagare. Their guesstimation picks up some of the Nagare aft of the A-pillar, with a modernization of lines from the current generation RX-8 and last generation RX-7 in the rear. As for under the hood, guesses range from a modified Renesis to something as out-of-character as a V8. But before you rotorheads get up in arms, remember this is all just educated dart throwing. [WindingRoad]

1:30 PM on Mon Dec 31 2007
By Matt Hardigree
4,919 views, 31 comments

Latest by crevans: How about we make a 2 stroke and burn MORE oil? 11,000 oil burning RPM would be a wonderous sound. Brrrrrring-a-dingdingdingding baby. more »

serfinish1.jpg Question of the Day

Your Favorite LeMon?

My head is still spinning from this weekend's hoontastic voyage. And by spinning I mean that after two straight days of TOTAL COVERAGE I drove straight back to Los Angeles and am now somehow awake before 8:00 am. Anyhow, if you weren't near a computer this weekend, here's what you missed. If you were, you now have that much more info to process. And no, sadly, you cannot count the Caddy Wagon as a LeMons car. You have to pick one of the $500 crap boxes. Me? My personal favorite was the Nissan Sentra SE-R. Not so much for the machine itself, but for the mad men behind it. Totally inspiring to be around. Only next time I hope they decorate their car with a few rattle cans. Hate to see this thing get cursed. But, that's me. What's abouts yous?

1:00 PM on Mon Dec 31 2007
By Jonny Lieberman
1,106 views, 38 comments

Latest by 02chuck: Being an old 02 fan, I have to go with the 2002. Slow but FUN to drive!!!!!!!! more »

NYE%20Ball%20Times%20Square.jpg Announcements

Happy New Year From Jalopnik

As we get ready to pass from one year to the next, those of us here who slave away chained to their keyboards happily provide you the great car-related content you see here each and every day will be taking a half-day today. But fear not, we'll still have some content coming to you throughout the rest of the day — just not as much as the torrent of stories you normally expect. We're also spending the day working on an uber-post you'll see go live here tomorrow cataloging some of the best of what we've seen here this year. It'll be our only post for tomorrow — so we hope you like it — and make it one of the highest trafficked and most commented on posts of next year. Oh, and — thanks for making this whole thing possible. It's been a fun year and we're all looking forward to more of the same for next year. Bring on the bubbly!

12:30 PM on Mon Dec 31 2007
291 views, 27 comments

Latest by Charles_Barrett: @POLAR: I am honored to be included, but if I paid a quarter for admission, I'm gonna get my money's worth. If I'm stuck in the lavatory for several days, I'll make it worth my while... I know how to work more »

First Drive

2008 Fiat 500

A tour of Germany wouldn't be complete without test-driving some of Europe's forbidden fruits, now would it? In our case we just couldn't pass on the opportunity to sample Fiat's new retro mobile, the reborn Cinquecento. The Bamberg Fiat dealer was more than willing to let us grab the keys for a trip around the block given that we'd provide a little free publicity. So if you're ever in Germany and hankering for a Fiat, maybe think of Matthias Steinfurth at AutoHaus Wittig GmbH & Co. Let it never be said that we don't whore ourselves out to get behind a fancy steering wheel — we're just not cheap.


More »

Feature

12:00 PM on Mon Dec 31 2007
By bwojdyla
3,826 views, 24 comments

Latest by ZWECK: Just looking at the shifter makes me think it would be a fun drive. more »

Novelties

Beautiful Hand-Built Air-Cooled V12 Makes 68 HP Per Liter


68 horsepower per liter! Air-cooled? You betcha. This hand-built V12 engine, the fruit of hobbyist Ralf Drendel's labor, clocks in at a mere 87 cc's of displacement and cranks out a whopping mere 6 horsepower. That's three times the pistons of the worlds smallest 4 cylinder and probably three times the headaches. The little terror was designed with RC planes in mind, but it's so thirsty its creator is having second thoughts. You wouldn't believe how hard it is to find pictures of the beast, but the video, as you can see above, is utterly glorious. Hit the jump for a picture of the mighty mini wonder. More »

11:45 AM on Mon Dec 31 2007
By bwojdyla
50,076 views, 48 comments

Latest by LaGrosse: I'm thinking 1/5 Scale Jaguar, myself!! more »

v8snowblowertop.jpg Novelties

The V8-Powered Snowblower Owns Frosty's Ass

What do you do when you have a 454 c.i. chevy big block V8 and a massive amount of winter precipitation? While there are those among us that would rather toss it in a LeCar, Kai Grundt decided a six-year journey to create the world's greatest V8-powered snowblower was the way to go. Remember: engine displacement = snow displacement. There's no price on this monster, though the company claims that it'll build one. Either way, it's fun to look at. Full details below the jump:

More »

11:30 AM on Mon Dec 31 2007
By Matt Hardigree
5,869 views, 37 comments

Latest by thomas124: Reminds me of the movie 'Moving' with Richard Pryor...the big block lawn mower. more »

from the mailbag

Jalopnik Reader Requests Armored Maybach for Azerbaijani President?

We get some strange requests here at Jalopnik. Sometimes those requests are admittedly from some very strange people. But the e-mail we got last night was by far the most strange request we've seen in quite some time. It's from a man named Rustam Mamedov. If it's the same Rustam Mamedov we found in a quick Google search, then we're under the impression the President of Azerbaijan is looking for an armored Maybach 62 S — but only in black. Full e-mail after the jump.

More »

11:00 AM on Mon Dec 31 2007
By Ray Wert
3,170 views, 31 comments

Latest by Corvette_Thunder: Borat "Eh, how much eh does this car cost?" GM Guy "50,000 dollars...how much do you actually have to spend?" Borat "Eh, about eh 600 american dollars yes?" more »

Detroit-Car-Fire.jpg Detroit Auto Show

Detroit Auto Show Just Two Weeks Away, Cobo Hall Getting All Gussied-Up With New Walkway

The mother-of-all-auto-shows, the Detroit Auto Show, is just a couple of weeks away so it's now time to start the deluge of pre-Auto Show stories from the local Detroit press on how Cobo Hall's getting ready for the limelight. First to the plate is Bryce Hoffman of the Detroit News and his enthralling piece on Detroit's aging Convention Center's attempt at prettying itself up for the media and scores of public attendees. Bryce tries really hard, but it's hard for us to get hard up on a piece describing... More »

Feature

10:15 AM on Mon Dec 31 2007
By Ray Wert
1,679 views, 19 comments

Latest by Cameron Thirteen: @FreeMan: Maybe, but I wouldn't want a drink from it, though. more »

Thunderhill Lemons

The Top 50 Lemons of 24 Hours of LeMons

The types of cars that really dominated at the Thunderhill 24 Hours of LeMons weren't quite the same as the ones we saw owning at the October race at Altamont. With the track's long straights and the new hardass, black-flag-o-riffic policy about aggressive driving (not to mention the outlawing of nerf bars), straight-line power and sturdy engine internals were far more important than the sticky grip and ability to take repeated impacts that proved so crucial at Altamont. We saw Detroit iron making a far more respectable showing, while the Bavarian Bullies no longer ruled the race. Make the jump to see how things sorted out by the time the Flag That Is Checkered made the scene...

More »

Feature

10:00 AM on Mon Dec 31 2007
By Murilee Martin
5,571 views, 28 comments

Latest by Murilee Martin: @LTDScott: The Supra-versus-Celica thing confused me with Team TURD- it has a 6-banger engine, so I assumed Supra. In fact, it's a Celica GT with an engine swap. more »

Mercedes%20CLS%2063%2001.jpg New Cars

Mercedes CLS AMG 63 Images Leak on to Internet

Although we'd already heard the new Mercedes CLS AMG wouldn't be getting a power boost beyond 514 HP under the hood, now we're not only hearing what it'll officially look like, we're seeing it. Here's the first shots of the new four-door "coupe" from Daimler — helpfully making the rounds on the internet well before the official reveal date of sometime in the indeterminately near future. Noted differences between the old n' busted model and the new hotness pictured above and below the jump are the bigger 19" wheels, new front grille, rear LED lighting and an odd little carbon fiber mini-spoiler. One more pic below the jump. More »

9:30 AM on Mon Dec 31 2007
By Ray Wert
2,443 views, 12 comments

Latest by txturbo930: sex on wheels more »

Tokyo%20Traffic%20Control%20Center.jpg Novelties

Inside the Tokyo Traffic Center

Our brother site unnaturally obsessed with shiny new toys has a cool gallery up of the Tokyo Traffic center. Apparently it's a place where a team of dedicated compulsive-obsessive bureaucrats work round-the-clock to make sure the city's ginormous infrastructure of roads and twisting mess of highways don't grind to a complete halt. This team uses a very high-tech system of huge multi-unit TV screens, LCD panels and one analog clock to help to make sure the mess o' roads don't become a mess o' traffic. See how we'd like our living room entertainment center to look via the link below. (Hat tip to Richard Blakeley!) [Gizmodo]

9:15 AM on Mon Dec 31 2007
By Ray Wert
858 views, 18 comments

Latest by ccc40821: Getting rid of the analog clock might improve things a bit - start driving on the right side of the road might improve things more. more »

83_USPS_LH.jpg Down On The Street

1983 Jeep DJ-5

In keeping with our newly-enacted DOTS Truck Monday tradition, we're going with this interesting little Jeep for the last day of 2007. This former mail carrier lives on the same block as the 1966 Lancia Fulvia, and it serves as very practical (except for drive-thru lanes, thanks to right-hand drive) daily driver.
More »

9:00 AM on Mon Dec 31 2007
By Murilee Martin
2,274 views, 34 comments

Dakar%20Rally%20Dunes.jpg Racing News

Dakar Rally to Proceed Through Mauritania Despite Al Qaeda Threat

It looks like organizers of the famed Dakar Rally will still race through the African state of Mauritania from January 11th-19th despite security fears prompted by recent attacks linked to Al-Qaeda. This decision's thanks to Mauritania's announcement it plans to mobilize 2,000 extra soldiers and 2,000 extra plainclothes police to monitor the rally as it passes through the African country. All of the focus on security comes after three soldiers were killed during an armed ambush in the northeast of the country. More »

8:30 AM on Mon Dec 31 2007
By Ray Wert
855 views, 27 comments

Latest by abecker1313: this year gordon should take a military issue humvee instead of a racebuilt one. more »