Jalopnik: fm

FM Transmitter Looks Like A Shift Knob To Entertain, Confuse, Baffle

Travis Hudson — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 13:00:00 EDT

In an attempt to help your FM transmitter "blend into your car's dashboard," Green House has produced and released a pretty simple FM transmitter that looks like a shift-knob. It plugs into the standard 12V DC power outlet and includes an audio jack for plugging in an MP3 player and a USB port for charging supported devices. The real hilarious hijinks come when you accidentally try to aggressively shift with this device and tear the hell out of your dash. That, or you put it in a vehicle with a "three on the tree" and confuse the hell out of the driver. We can already imagine the LOLs. [CG]

F&M Vulca V12 To Be Produced In Extremely Limited Quantities

Wes Siler — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 13:30:00 EDT

Italian coachbuilder Faralli & Mazzanti has revealed designs for its upcoming Vulca V12 grand tourer. Just ten will be hand built with power ranging from 445 to 600bhp depending on customer specification.

The Vulca's 2+2 body is made from hand beaten aluminum, which should help kept weight low and performance high. Engine specification is left up to the customer, who have the ability to choose from 6.0, 7.1 and 7.5 liter V12s, resulting in prices that range from €280,000 to €340,000. [F&M Auto via Car Body Design]

The Fixed Mast Antenna Going The Way Of The Dodo Bird, Scripted Television

Matt Hardigree — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 15:30:00 EST

More and more we've been seeing less and less of the classic fixed mast/pole/stick antennae that once served as evidence of our country's love of the radio. Now that we're migrating towards satellite radio, MP3s and DVDs, the metal mast antenna is being replaced by the smaller in-glass models or sleeker roof-mounted versions. Personally, we're sad to see them go. The newer versions may be better looking and less likely to get damaged in a car wash, but for local radio the reception provided by the long, proud mast is hard to top.

According to Ford, the company will probably migrate all cars and crossovers to either roof-mounted or in-glass setups like in the new Ford Taurus, which promise similar results without the annoying realization that the motor powering your automatic antenna just busted. [LA times]