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Although the idea of attaching O.J. Simpson to any product today might sound insane, back in 1970 it was an obvious choice. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5876237&view=rss&microfeed=true The Canadian Subaru customer who bought a Forester wagon only to find it had been used as a dohyo for some televised sumo sexytime has been granted an all-new vehicle. More »
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Yeah, we've run this before, and yeah, it's a few years old. But still: an island full of Top-Gear Jezzas? It doesn't stop being funny. Sitting at your desk and watching the clock? You might as well be watching this. More »
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Imagine you're a NASCAR exec who has just learned that the 24 Hours Of LeMons is the fastest-growing race series in the world… then you turn on the television and you get this! More »
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What kind of car would a couple of no-nonsense plainclothes Los Angeles cops drive in 1967? Forget those big lumbering full-size sedans! Joe Friday and Bill Gannon insisted on a snappy-looking '67 Fairlane. More »
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We've shown our favorite Vintage Chevrolet commercials, but what about GM's other car divisions? And we don't just mean Cadillac, Buick, Pontiac, and Oldsmobile; Vauxhall, Holden, and Opel did some great ads as well! More »
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Car-shopping mid-80s Brits who wanted to show the world that they weren't going to let The Man grind them down- just like Number Six showed The Man!- could head right down to their local Renault dealership after watching this ad, because the Renault 21 (sold here in the States as the much-less-than-successful Renault Medallion) gets away! More »
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Malcolm Bricklin probably seethed at the description of the Canadian-made Bricklin SV-1 as "America's latest sports car," but the audience for this mid-70s episode of Let's Make A Deal had nothing but oohs and aahs for Monty's announcement of the Cleveland-powered Safety Vehicle One. Thanks to LTDScott for the tip! More »
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The video from these Turkish television reporters shows firsthand what it's like to ride along in a Land Rover Discovery while being shot at. They're not sure exactly who it was attacking them in Georgia (country, not state), but we're thinking these guys are just happy to all get out alive. One of them was even shot in the head (!) but evidently it wasn't life-threatening. Does this count as hoonage? Video after the jump. [CNN] More »
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While we know firsthand that you can fit more than two people in a Smart ForTwo, there really isn't enough room in the back to sit comfortably... or hide discreetly. Smart acknowledges this, and sees it as a good thing. After absorbing the scare tactics featured in this banned commercial, we sort of agree. More »
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Remember when Renault announced that they'd made a deal with 20th Century Fox to use characters from The Simpsons to shill the Kangoo minivan? Well, here's the result, which has been floating around the Internet for a while but hasn't landed here yet. It's about as entertaining as a French minivan could be; we're especially impressed with Homer's Donut Belt and the "money" he uses to buy a new Kangoo. What's next, Jodie Foster selling Civics? More »
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People will do some pretty stupid things for a TV, or so we're learning today. First, it was the idiot burglar with the alligator in his Buick Regal and now we have the story of a trio of not-so-bright Tennesseans who really wanted to get a television home. But there were three of them and a television, and not all of them could fit in the passenger area of their Toyota Corolla. Their solution? Put the kid in the trunk and the television in the backseat. They'd have gotten away with it, too, but someone called the cops after seeing the kid, who apparently consented, get into the trunk. More »
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Barrett-Jackson will be auctioning off eight vehicles from The Sopranos March 26 through March 30 in West Palm Beach, Fla. These are the same cars that Tony and his gang of mobsters regularly did their dirty deeds. The highlighted car is Tony Soprano's 2003 Cadillac Escalade that was driven in the final three seasons of the series. It has only 11,000 miles and the driver-side seat is likely well-broken in. Check out the rest of the cars after the jump. More »
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With all this talk of the new Knight Rider television movie, I think we've all forgotten that before K.I.T.T. there was another grand talking car on television. It was part Model T, Maxwell, Hudson and Chevrolet and powered by a 283 cubic inch Chevy V8. It also contains the soul of Jerry Van Dyke's deceased mother. More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=334076&view=rss&microfeed=true With all this frenzy surrounding the new Knight Rider series, some folks forget about the 1997 spinoff series: Team Knight Rider! This show didn't have just one sentient vehicle- oh, no, apparently an entire assembly line was cranking out self-aware Fords. Yes, Fords! And since the show was so good, it was promptly dubbed for export to eager audiences across Germany. Who knows, perhaps a fleet of such cars could start reproducing themselves, leading to a Gray Goo crisis, in which all of the planet's matter would be converted into talking Expeditions. More »
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NBC has announced that former All My Children star Justin Bruening will play the son of Michael Knight, the protagonist (well, other than KITT), in the NBC Knight Rider made-for-tv movie, which could well be the pilot of a new television show. As we all remember, the original KITT was a pretty awesome Trans-Am. The new KITT hasn't been announced, but we're sure many automakers are licking their chops to get in on that action. Before we all get up in arms about the soap star playing our childhood hero, we'd remind you that David Hasselhoff starred in The Young and the Restless before getting his break as Michael Knight. [E! Online] More »
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Rumor has it the Top Gear crew will be burning up some of their homemade biodiesel brew at the upcoming Britcar 24-hour race at Silverstone, September 7th through 9th. Race entry records have Clarkson, the Hamster, James and the Stig entered in a diesel BMW 330 Dti Sport with a number 78 on it. Hilarity will no doubt ensue. More »
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It looks like the world's highest production cost car show, Top Gear, is coming to America. BBC America that is. That's right — Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May won't just be stopping by to hoon around a bit like they did last time, instead it looks as though they'll be coming stateside to a local cable operator near you — at least according to the BBC America site. They're showing off air times starting on August 20th with "Episode 1." No idea what season that means they'll be showing although the Top Gear BBC America page does show the guests for this season include "Ewan McGregor, Ray Winstone, and Sir Michael Gambon as well as celebrity chefs Gordon Ramsay and Jamie Oliver."
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According to the seller, this 2007 Cadillac XLR is the very last car ever given away by Bob Barker on The Price Is Right, on the episode that aired on June 15th. Let's say you already have some other historically significant cars- say, the 1910 Gräf & Stift in which Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated- and you need to add this incredibly important vehicle to your stable. In that case, you have no choice but to get busy bidding on this 90-mile XLR... which has a starting bid price of 65 Gs (and a reserve that you'll just have to guess). Oh yeah, the car they had on the show itself was black, so you'd need to whip out the paperwork from CBS to prove to skeptics that Bob really did (sorta) give this very car away. [eBay] More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=282351&view=rss&microfeed=true Thomas Magnum takes on a pair of armed yahoos in a Goat and winds up ending the chase in a most unfortunate manner. Neither the Fezza nor the Poncho are injured, but fans of Mk. 1 Golf/Rabbits may want to avert their eyes. More »
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Jezza, Der Kapitan der Nicht Schnell Ist and Doctor Teeth are once again in trouble with environmentalists for racing to the North Pole. Clarkson and May drove cold-weather outfitted Toyota Hiluxes, while Hammond hitched himself up to a team of sled dogs. Greenpeace, however, was far from pleased at the competition, once again spewing vitriol at Clarkson and blaming the BBC for destroying the environment. Interestingly, the notoriously outspoken lead presenter has yet to issue a comment, but we imagine he'll have a lot to say on the occasion of the show's airing. As a side note, Spinelli talks about the trek here. [Daily Express, UK] More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=279055&view=rss&microfeed=true Team Knight Rider debuted back when we were in college, and watching this clip reminds us why we never bothered to stick with it beyond one episode. On the other hand, the above segemnt does feature a water-powered Bricklin (a Bricklin!) — creatively-named Hydro 2000 — that like a seagull, can be handily disabled with the addition of fizzy stomach-calming tablets. – Davey G. Johnson More »
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Last night, we suffered a bout of insomnia, and as such found ourselves caught up in the Beeb's excellent Johnny Got His Gun-meets-The Sweeney mashup, Life On Mars. DCI Gene Hunt's Cortina fits the character like a glove and got us thinking — what other television and/or film vehicle driven by a law enforcement official fits the character to a T? Marion Cobretti's '50 Merc? David Starsky's Gran Torino? Steve McGarrett's Park Lane? Go forth and pontificate, dear readers! – Davey G. Johnson More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=272935&view=rss&microfeed=true Riding around in a talking Trans-Am that fires lasers is all fine and good until you start swearing like a drunken sailor while the cameras are rolling. Take it from the Hoff. What you say now could in fact come back to haunt you later. Is that thing on? – Mike Bumbeck More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=270257&view=rss&microfeed=true The A-Team take down a chop shop and a crooked used car salesman with extreme prejudice, all in the name of helping out their pal ex-con pal Davey. Face takes one to the, well, er, face, Hannibal turns himself out as a limo-shoppin' rock 'n' roll mogul, B.A. is his usual William Butler Yeatsian self, and Murdock? Well, Murdock's just howlin' mad. And yes, of course the plan comes together. It is a Stephen J. Cannell production, after all. More post-jump. – Davey G. Johnson More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=269899&view=rss&microfeed=true The three 'teers arm their muskets and take aim at the music industry in this charity episode of Top Gear only it's about music, not cars. Sort of like a video issue of Gearhead, only with middle-aged British chaps instead of middle-aged punkers. [Thanks to the legendary ThnderBlt for the tip.] More »
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While we won't go into the reasons why we were up wee hours of the early nineties adjusting a tinfoil antenna on a black and white TV watching The Last Chase, we will say this cinematic gem made a lasting impression. Even over a decade later no one believes us when we start rambling on about a movie starring Lee Majors, Burgess Meredith, a Porsche, and an F-86 Sabre jet. Lee Majors plays Franklin Hart, a former racecar driver forced to work for the new government in which driving is a crime. Hart bugs out, fires up his old Porsche, and makes a run for it to the one place that people still drive - California. The shadowy Boston-based government then sends out Burgess Meredith in a jet to catch the rouge racer. There were also lasers and exploding cactus. No, really - it's an actual movie. – Mike Bumbeck More »
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A precarious mix of unemployment, Mazda Miatas, and photoshop could produce many things. A man named Moe took these three conditions and created a borderline disturbing but also funny collection of homemade chops. He's got everything from an Army issue Miata to a Zoom Zoom Zamboni. Extensive televison viewing seems to have also played a role. Tom Selleck and Wonder Woman are in there, but sadly there is no Columbo Miata. – Mike Bumbeck More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=264894&view=rss&microfeed=true One could say that the Jalopnik Fantasy Garage is a slightly-more-democratic, in-depth version of Top Gear's venerable Cool Wall. But now the TG folks have blown that wide-open with their digital rendition of one of the show's most beloved features. Now you, too can widdle away the hours chewing the scenery like a rabid Hamster. Procrastination through joy! – Davey G. Johnson More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=264627&view=rss&microfeed=true Given that both Knight Rider and Airwolf seem to be cut from the same 1980s cloth it's almost surprising that there was a never a TV movie made of this epic meeting of the super-machines. Nevertheless, an enterprising fan took it upon himself to creatively edit one himself. And we have to say, other than the Hoff's changing shirt colors and a distinct lack of Tim Conway and Carl Ballantine, the helicopter/Trans Am shoot out is actually kind of a hoot. – Davey G. Johnson More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=264542&view=rss&microfeed=true As previously stated, we're suckers for law-enforcement drama in the City by the Bay. We're not exactly suckers for Knight Rider, which in our mind just isn't as rad as Airwolf and is nowhere near as awesome as The A-Team. That said, we do enjoy a bit of KITTsch (d'oh) now and then, so here's a car chase through Sucka Free featuring a self-driving Thunderbird and a supposedly-turbine-powered Trans Am that sound suspiciously like it's got a 305 in it. – Davey G. Johnson More »
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We caught about half of the Indy 500 over donuts and bagels down at Cole Coonce's place until rain stopped the action. Or so we thought. Mr. Coonce phoned up later to say part two of the race had begun with Tony Kanaan in the lead. The rest of the race was viewed on our trusty Panasonic portable while painting an G54B engine block out the garage. After a few spills that resulted in Kanaan losing his grip, it was Dario Franchitti who took the checkered flag in Indy 500 Part Two: Ashley Judd edition. – Mike Bumbeck More »
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Even a show as great as Top Gear is heir to the thousand natural shocks of success. The need to stay fresh, while keeping true to charter is a minefield for a regular, old blog; imagine how treacherous it is for an iconic TV show. This week, headmaster Jeremy Clarkson sounds off on the past season of Top Gear, derided on many message boards for abandoning good ol' hoonage on English country lanes in favor of stunt programming and gimmickry. But Clarkson says such are the realities of being the most-watched show on the BBC. To wit: More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=252627&view=rss&microfeed=true 'Round Jalopnik parts, we now and then mention television series like Starsky and Hutch, The Dukes of Hazzard and Knight Rider. Shows in which automobiles and car chases were as part and parcel of the episodes as the actors. Taxi, while nominally centered around a group of people operating Checker Marathons, had practically nothing to do with cars, other than Latka's perennial greasiness and the fact that his wife's name was a homonym for a brand of French automobile that was eventually subsumed by Chrysler. It was also one of the best-written sitcoms ever. They're filming an episode of WIthout a Trace around the corner today. And although we have no beef with Anthony LaPaglia, we doubt his show will ever be as fondly remembered. – Davey G. Johnson More »
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Fans of black Ford sedans, unisex hair styles, scenic Pacific vistas, and cheesy dialog, will be ecstatic to hear that the entire 1968 first season of television's finest Hawaiian cop drama is at long last available on DVD. While this news was first reported months ago, getting the discs onto the shelves was evidently about as an impossible task as McGarrett telling Danno to check every tire dealership on the island, or everyone that's eaten breakfast at the Honolulu International House of Pancakes since 1966. For those who feel like getting plastered, we have included a link to the rules for the Hawaii Five-O drinking game. Watch for flying hubcaps during chase scenes. – Mike Bumbeck More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=243019&view=rss&microfeed=true Admittedly, this would be better if the vocal track was scrubbed so one didn't feel so much like one was performing along with Lee Majors instead of invoking one's inner Colt, but we'll take what we can get. What's more, it features the oft-neglected third verse about Burt Reynolds. Oh, also of note, the intro is actually not from the American series, but rather from its German incarnation as Ein Colt f r Alle F lle. Geil! – Davey G. Johnson More »
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I was chatting with a Brazilian coworker earlier, and he mentioned a favorite TV show from his childhood that was sort of a Brazilian forerunner to CHiPs: O Vigilante Rodovi rio. The plot centers around a heroic highway patrolman and his German shepherd, Lobo, fighting crime... but that's not important. The important thing is that the cops in this show all drove Simca Chambords! Yes! It turns out the former star of O Vigilante Rodovi rio still has his Chambord from the show and he brings it to Brazilian car events. Scroll down about halfway in the linked page for some good Cop Chambord shots. – Murilee Martin More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=240149&view=rss&microfeed=true We've been on a huge Venture Bros. kick lately. Anyone who thinks the miracles of 1960s science were way more awesome than boring old nanotech and grew up on classic Hanna-Barbera cartoons will undoubtedly agree. Plus, you know, the guy who played Puddy as the greatest badass who ever lived, Brock Samson. – Davey G. Johnson More »
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Inside Line, new home of the Loverman, has the story of the first General Lee — the example that leaps Rosco's cruiser at the close of the Dukes of Hazzard's opening credits. Hastily assembled by a crew at Warners' the O.G. Lee was in sad shape when Travis Bell located the car in the yard of a Georgia transmission shop. After exchanging hands a number of times, Marvin Murphy commissioned Bell, co-founder of the North American General Lee Fan Club, to spearhead the restoration effort with the words, "Travis, if someone spray-painted the Mona Lisa, someone would have to restore it. You're that man." And really, how can one argue with that? – Davey G. Johnson More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=235956&view=rss&microfeed=true Yeah, the TR7 sucked so hard that owners had a tough time opening their garage doors (due to the mighty pressure differential created by the car's overwhelming "suck field"). But still, when I was a young lad, dreaming of future wheels, I thought the wedge-shaped Triumph was cool as hell. The TR7 had a typical lifespan of about 18 months, from that first undiagnosable cascading electrical malfunction to the final grenaded transmission, but there was a period in the mid-70s when you saw them sputtering all over California's streets (tellingly, the TR7's main competition at the time was the Fiat X-1/9). Who knows, this 1976 ad may have been the reason for the car's popularity, with its beaded-hippie driver and his various wedge-shaped garages (apparently Triumph was shooting for the all-important Grateful Dead Road Crew demographic). Enjoy. – Murilee Martin More »
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