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Aussie Motorist Hits Koala, Koala Survives Only To Find Out It Has The Clap
Ely 'Lucky' Grills, a Brisbane-area koala, came face to face with the grille of a Lexus at 62 MPH, and, aside from getting his head stuck in the grille, was no worse for wear after being removed by rescue workers. A passing motorist noticed the koala dangling limp from the front of the car and flagged down the driver, who had been unaware of Lucky's misfortune. More »
offbeat news
$2 Sticker To Combat Australian VIN Tampering
The Australians are fighting the menace of VIN number tampering with new VIN stickers that cannot be removed or altered without being destroyed, making vehicle reconstruction and title washing significantly more challenging. Although we're not sure what's bigger news here, the fact that a cheap $2 AUS decal can markedly deter car thieves, or that the Aussies call VIN tampering "rebirthing." Join us for a collective shudder, and the full
down on the street bonus edition
DOTS-O-Rama Sunday: Holden Ute
We've been receiving DOTS Bonus Edition photos at a rate faster than we can post them at the current pace, so today we're going to have a special Bonus DOTS-O-Rama Sunday, with a series of vehicles captured in the wild by our readers. Today's theme will be Down On The California Street, and the first machine is this Holden ute that Froggmann found in Anaheim. How many California cities can you name that started out as a German utopian colony, had an all-KKK city government, and then became the happiest place on earth? Just one! Make the jump to see all the photos and read Froggmann's description.More »
racing news
Aussie Ford FG Falcon Supercar Debuts, Kangaroos Unimpressed
Despite claims that the car wouldn't be ready to race this year, Ford Australia's new FG Falcon "FG01" race car is scheduled to make its initial public appearance during the Sandown V8 Supercar Championship in Melbourne. The Falcon XR8-based race car will be making several appearance laps at Sandown, but won't be doing any actual racing. Ford claims the car may see its race debut at the Bathurst 1000 later this year which, if nothing else, is one of the best race names we hear all year. Watch out for the 'roos. Press release after the jump... More »
novelties
Antique Analog Aussie Traffic Signals
No matter how much technological mumbo-jumbo is put into modern traffic signals, nothing will top these analog beauties of yesteryear. Used from the 1940s to the 1970s in Australia, these signals are much more efficient because you can tell how much longer you have to wait before commencing hoonage. Despite being relatively small, hard to see and pretty much useless at night, they're still fantastic for impatient drivers (like damn near all of us). Either bring these back or change the illuminated traffic light into an illuminated countdown number. Now there's a hell of an idea. [Infosthetics via Giz]
classic ad watch
1986 Holden Astra: Know What I Mean?
Back in 1980s Australia, those shopping for a suit of armor or heading to an 80s-flappers-on-coke costume party knew only one car would do: a GM-rebadged Nissan Pulsar! Yes, the Holden Astra (no relation to the later Opel of the same name), which came with a "long hatch floor" and- amazingly enough- a fuel filler door release inside the car. Clever little Astra!
offbeat news
Hypermiling Couple Sets World Record With 90 MPG Drive Around Australian Coast
Remember when we drove a European-spec Honda Civic 2.2 i-CTDi on a 100-mile road trip? We did pretty well, averaging 72 MPG. While we were throughly impressed, it was nothing compared to earning two spots in the Guinness Book Of World Records. Helen and John Taylor, a British couple, earned their two spots of fame in the record book of record books while Down Under in their little Peugeot 308 HDi. The first record was for "longest distance on a single tank," set by traveling 1192 miles on just 60 liters of diesel fuel — just 15.8 gallons. The other record, "highest mileage for a journey," was set by completing 9,062 miles at an average of 90.75 MPG. So how did they do it? What magical modifications were made? More »
top gear australia
Top Gear Australia Hosts Revealed, We Patiently Await Ute Hoonage
After a long whittling process, BBC Worldwide has taken a list of thousands of hopefuls for Top Gear Australia down to the three lucky blokes who now own the title of "happiest hoons in Australia." The three presenters, Charlie Cox, Warren Brown, and Steve Pazzati along with an AUS version of Stiggie will be starring in the first episodes beginning later this year. The Beeb is of course hoping the eclectic trio will maintain the spirit of the original, while adding their own down under spin on things. We fully expect to see multi-way ute shootouts ending in something being catapulted from a land train. All while chomping down on a Vegemite sandwich. Full presser after the break. More »
classic ad watch
Power For Towing Or Just Plain Easy Going: Holden Wagons!
Only Australians would make an early-80s station wagon advertisement that showed family-haulin' wagons getting sideways and backwards in hoonage sessions culminating in crazy jumps. We see the six- and eight-cylinder-equipped Holden Commodore and the (Cavalier-based) Holden Camira being put through some highly entertaining paces. Our only problem with this ad is the lack of wagons doing jumps with trailers attached.
new cars
When Ford of Australia first announced their lineup of F6 FPV lineup we didn't pay too much attention to the various minor differences in the F6 Falcon lineup. Little did we know how far the Ford Performance Vehicle group was going to go in order to meet the needs of anyone with the cash to throw around $60,000+ USD on V8-powered goodness. Each vehicle in this range comes with the new 5.4-Liter Boss V8 good for 422 horsepower and 407 lb-ft of torque mated to a ZF six-speed auto transmission or TR6060 six-speed manual gearbox. The GT is your basic high-performance sedan while the GT P takes it a couple of steps further. The GT E is at the upper extreme, offering similar performance without all the boy racer styling and colors for the hoon with a briefcase. Press release below the jump.
More »
Full Details On Ford Australia's Multi-Flavored FPV Falcon Lineup
When Ford of Australia first announced their lineup of F6 FPV lineup we didn't pay too much attention to the various minor differences in the F6 Falcon lineup. Little did we know how far the Ford Performance Vehicle group was going to go in order to meet the needs of anyone with the cash to throw around $60,000+ USD on V8-powered goodness. Each vehicle in this range comes with the new 5.4-Liter Boss V8 good for 422 horsepower and 407 lb-ft of torque mated to a ZF six-speed auto transmission or TR6060 six-speed manual gearbox. The GT is your basic high-performance sedan while the GT P takes it a couple of steps further. The GT E is at the upper extreme, offering similar performance without all the boy racer styling and colors for the hoon with a briefcase. Press release below the jump.More »
classic ad watch
The Mini Deluxe: She'll Like It Going Up And Down!
"No more sliding windows for Australians considering buying a Mini! Not only that, you can go into multiple spins on wet pavement and recover cleanly- it shows it right there in the ad! We're a little puzzled by the the conversation between the swimsuited man and woman at the beach; we get the "up and down" double entendre, but are we supposed to think that there's some longing for the old sliding Mini windows here?
offbeat news
manhoonhood, but for this Aussie boy, it may be a while before he will fully appreciate the accomplishment of crashing his dad's Ferrari 360 Challenge Stradale, though never being able to see daylight may accelerate that process.
[via AOL] Hat Tip to Andy and Matt!
Aussie Son Crashes Daddy's Ferrari 360CS
It's happened time and time again, and it will continue to happen until the end of days. A jumpy teenager has a crazy idea, perhaps induced by peer-pressure, to sneak the old man's car out for a late night joyride. As Jalops, we've likely all put ourselves in such a situation. In retrospect, we're able to look back at it as a right of passage into[via AOL] Hat Tip to Andy and Matt!
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Nobody Outhustles The 1970 Hillman Hunter Hustler!
The Hillman Hunter was the Chrysler Europe machine that eventually became the Iran Khodro Paykan (and was related to many other British cars of its time). In 1970, Australians could buy themselves a rally-ized version called the Hustler, equipped with a twin-carb 1725cc engine, four-speed box, and one of the most bongo-riffic Sideburn Era ads we've ever seen. Here comes Hustler!
classic ad watch
Wide Plains, Road Trains, A Whole New World Ahead Of Me: Toyota Of Australia
American automakers aren't the only ones who play the bechmaltzed patriotism card in their ads, nor even the only ones who break out the mawkish country music in those ads. Here Toyota is letting Australians see how loving their land is the same as loving their Toyotas. It's not quite Morning In America, but it's striving for the same lump-in-throat effect.
classic ad watch
Groovy Aussie Falcons And Fairlanes Must Go Go GO!
Apparently the wholesome singing-and-dancing advertisements Ford used for the '69 American models were so good that they recycled the same concept for their Australian ads the following year. The Aussie musicians and dancers are at least twice as hip as their American counterparts, but that's not saying much; Geetz Romo would likely judge them to be square with slightly rounded corners. Still, check out those Australian Falcons and Fairlanes, all destined for the Lord Humungus' motor pool!
racing news
Mazda3 MPS To Tackle Targa Tasmania
What happens when you take the already devilish Mazdaspeed3 (better known as the Mazda3 MPS there) and throw it into the challenging Targa Tasmania? Madness. The folks at Mazda Motorsport are bringing their hot hatch to the 2008 race to compete with the hot pink Nissan GT-R. Unlike other rallies, this race features cars that are mostly stock and include all of the electric systems and upholstery that came with the original car. We imagine this makes it a bit more comfortable for Alister McRae and his co-driver.More »
offbeat news
