Autoblog

As long as people have been willing to pay insane amounts of money for classic cars, there have been entrepreneurs and hobbyists creating reproductions of those cars. Unfortunately, the desire to reproduce a classic and the skill to do so in a faithful manner often do not go hand in hand. Such is the case with some of the machines on display along Woodward Ave. today. In some cases like the pseudo GT40 pictured above they copies end up looking more like something out of the movie Cars than the real thing. Any time you make a replica of a classic, the one thing it should never have is badges implying it is any other than a copy.

Click above to view video after the jump

Alex Roy, currently locked in an M5 with our own Damon Lavric, recently got a video tour of a rather nifty Audi R8 owned by someone who insists he remain nameless. Codenamed Blackbird, the coupe is stuffed with enough gadgets to be a testbed for NASA's shuttle replacement, but don't for a second think the interior resembles a jungle of wires, screens and antennae: all the electronic gear is seamlessly integrated in a most impressive way. A sample of the wares in the blacked out supercar with the gunmetal gray blade include four GPS units, two radar detectors, police scanner, CB radio, kill switch for all rear lights, high-speed broadband Internet with Wi-Fi running on a tablet PC, power ports, takedown lights, a remote-controlled exhaust bypass valve, and -- get this -- a liquid-cooled infrasonic wave pulse generator. Apparently, you don't want to stand by that last item if you wish to have children. Follow the jump for the whole story in moving pictures. Thanks for the tip, Mike!

[Source: YouTube]

Talon Performance is where "Innovation meets the street." That combination apparently yields results like the Talon Street Quad, a body-kitted 4-wheeler based on the Kawasaki KFX700. We think it looks like the innovation and the street got in a big argument, attacked a manatee with bats, and then threw paint on it. Then put it on wheels. Nice, rims, though...

Part quad, part Cars movie extra, part dada, the Talon Street Quad is supposedly street legal. We don't know where these streets are (in America), because quads have been shown the hand by all 50 states when it comes to road duty. Yet according to Talon, "you can even take it on your next road trip."

It'll also save you money at the pump, which is lately the god of all things. So if you want it, but you're not sure about that two-tone paint job, do not fear: you can get it in a single tone for "shear and simple beauty." Or you could just buy the Quadrazuma. And check out the gallery of pics below.


[Source: Jalopnik]

Click above for more shots of the Tomy GT-R Transformer

Dozens of new vehicles are expected to appear in the forthcoming Transformers sequel, and we're excited by the possibility of seeing motorcycle transformers mix it up with an Audi R8 and a mystery Corvette. But after seeing these pics, it's obvious what the movie is really missing: a Nissan GT-R. Seriously, take a good look at the GT-R that we recently drove -- it's just begging for some sort of crazy robot-transforming goodness. At least toymaker Takara-Tomy sees in Godzilla what seems so obvious to us, as the Japanese company has worked up a new series of Transformer toys for a new series called "Alternity." Included in the series is the Nissan GT-R, of course.

Considering the off-screen battle that the Team Corvette has waged with the new hotness from Nissan, isn't the movie just begging for an epic, to-the-death fight scene?


[Source: Carscoop]

The Lotus Evora, which you can't drive on real streets yet, has already been driven in GT5. Attendees at the British Motor Show got a chance to put Lotus' latest over the kerbs, thanks to a tie-in between the folks at Hethel and those at game developer Polyphony. If you didn't attend the show, fear not: you can be pretty sure there'll be a version of it in an upcoming batch of downloadable content for GT5 Prologue.


[Source: Autocar]

British kids are at least as into cars as American kids, and probably liked the Pixar movie just as much. But Route 66 is far away from old Blimey, as is the Cars-dedicated theme park which Disney is making at its California Adventure location. British parents will soon be able to pacify their octane-snorting Olivers when the British International Motor Show opens its doors in London, where a full Cars attraction will make its UK debut.

The highlight of the attraction will be a display of life-size Cars cast members, based on actual automobiles. Lightning McQueen will be there (based on a '78 Trans Am), along with Sally Carrera ('02 911) and Mack the Truck ('85 Mack Super-Liner), but British lads might relate best to Mater the buck-toothed tow-truck (based on a Chevy dually pick-up). Kids can also try out the special gaming pods and get their faces painted – though we doubt Ramone (voiced by Cheech) will be there to turn out the his custom schemes.

[Source: BIMS]

While many carmakers have worked seemless iPod integration into their vehicles – a surprising make-it-or-break-it factor for many buyers – Mercedes-Benz has announced that it will offer iPhone integration in its automobiles.

The feature will include a docking cradle in the center armrest between the driver and front passenger seats, with the device's phone and audio functions navigable via controls on the steering wheel. The kit will be offered starting in August, can be retrofitted to previous model-year vehicles and will be offered on new vehicles as an option. Although US pricing has yet to be announced, the feature costs the equivalent of $389 in Europe.

[Source: KickingTires]

If you're a child of the 80's, you may very well have gone ballistic when news of Mio's Knight Rider GPS hit cyberspace. The sat-nav unit is not only styled like the original Knight Industries Two Thousand, but even has blinking red lights along the flanks (just like KITT's voice modulator) and features voice directions recorded by the man himself, William Daniels. (What do you mean, who is William Daniels?! He was the original voice of KITT!) You can have it call you Michael and feel like The Hoff himself, or select from a long list of pre-recorded name to have KITT speak to you when that gets old.

The boys over at Knight Rider Online got a hold of a preview unit and did a short video review, which you can check out after the jump. Thanks for the tip, joe!

[Source: Knight Rider Online]

Last month China's Sichuan province was devastated by a massive earthquake that killed as many as 70,000 people. If you've wanted to donate to help the survivors but were waiting for just the right opportunity, this could be it.

Our friends over at China Car Times are holding several auctions with the proceeds going to the British Red Cross. Three of the auctions require a little travel for us Americans, but just might be worth a special trip. One is a private tour of the London Taxi factory with a chance to drive one of the iconic cars and some special merchandise from the factory. The second is for the chance to be one of the first people to tour MG's Longbridge factory in Birmingham, England, since taken over by Shanghai Automotive. Not only that, but the top bidder will get to drive the new MG TF LE500. The third auction is your chance to try out the latest vehicles from Lotus right there on its test track in Hethel Norwich, England.

Can't leave the country? Line up behind a couple of Autoblog staffers to bid on the 1:18 scale models of the Lifan 520. These are usually only given to VIP visitors to the Lifan factory and are produced in exacting detail. They're gonna look good in my collection.

The final auction should appeal to anyone with an international business hoping to break into the Chinese market. China Car Times will give to the winning bidder one month of advertising on its Web site, which is a great opportunity to see what your business could do over there.

[Source: China Car Times]

A company called Fat Shark offers one of the coolest R/C cars we've ever seen. How so? Its system has a camera mounted in the car's driver's seat. It transmits its signal wirelessly to VR-style goggles that give the operator a first-person view of the terrain ahead of the car itself. That alone would be neat, but the camera has pan and tilt functionality that the driver controls by simply moving his or her head to "look" in each direction. The video pasted after the jump gives you a taste of what what you'd see if the glasses were strapped to your noggin. Granted, you'll look like a dork with the antenna-festooned goggles on, but at least you'll be having fun. Fat Shark also sells the camera and components separately, so you can use them on model airplanes, too. Thanks for the tip, David!

[Source: Fat Shark]