Culture|Garage

 GrandJDM covers the wacky world of Japanese automotive modifications.  And apparently those wacky tastes are also making the move into motorcycles.  My favorite part of the above photo is that they are wearing masks to protect their lungs from pollution… yet are wearing short sleeves and no helmet.  Apparently this trend is called bosozoku, a subculture/gang (lol) of motorcycle riders that modify their bikes illegally, by (gasp!) removing the mufflers.  Watch out Hell’s Angels… here come the boso boys!

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I snapped the above pic in the parking lot of my apartment building today.

Who are these people fooling? I didn’t know a bone stock, late model Tahoe was badass. I mean maybe if the thing was a candy apple red, lifted Blazer running super swampers I could understand. But not a champagne colored kid hauler that might only see offroad action if the owner gets impatient during a traffic jam and has to pull one of those u-turns across the median.

The (Chevy?) truck from the Terminator movies that the guy is driving in the future sequences with the big chain gun mounted on it was badass because it was being driven through a pile of human skulls and being hunted down by a giant flying robot. Now THAT thing was a bad ass toy.

Continue after the jump for a picture of that terminator truck, more rants about stickers, and another funny pic from my parking lot. Read the rest of this entry »

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Because the rest aren’t worth the space they take up on my server.  Here are some (I guess) long awaited photos of the new CTS-V, via GM Inside News.  The interior looks good, but the rest looks pretty beat.  I mean the front end looks like Paul Wall smiling.  That’s a nasty grille.  Rumor has it that the guy we made infamous, for blowing the cats out of his car with his mad tight tuning skills, will be first inline to pick up this car.  Apparently, this time he is going to give it a run with MegaSquirt and NOS.

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Ok, we aren’t going to lie, the video starts out pretty yawn worthy, kind of like the latest iteration of National Treasure.  But as the video progresses it shows the full line of RUF products.  If you aren’t in the know, RUF is Porsche + “even more bad assedness.”  And apparently when you have one of the most incredible cars on the road, you drive it through rock quarries and film it from multiple angles.  The sounds alone are worth staying tuned for.

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Why does Edmunds get to have all the fun? Note to manufacturers: in three weeks time we managed to make the front page of digg and have 60,000 views in a single day. Not bad for a site that is a working thesis project. I digress, this video may have been around for awhile, but we don’t pride ourselves in being the first… just the best designed This car kicks ass and here is a video to prove it. I was lucky enough to hop in one this weekend and start it up and rev it–and wow, it sounded incredible. For more on the GT-R, check out Nissan’s sitelet.

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Thanks to the Spanish auto site Motorpasión which has posted the first press release photos of the Audi TT-S coupe and roadster. This will be a hardcore version of the regular TT, similar to the S-branded Audi lineup.

The TT-S is rumored to get Audi’s 2.0 TFSI four cylinder producing 272 hp. Among the changes is revised bodywork, LED daytime lights (similar to the ones found on the S6 and R8) and your choice of 17- or 18- inch wheels.

More pictures after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »

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This is not new or breaking news, but I feel we need at the very least a summary article to show those in the dark just how good Hyundai is becoming as a company. Let’s start with the Hyundai Genesis coupe, scheduled to go on sale in 2009.

This little baby is typical Hyundai bang for the buck. The difference is, this car may turn the tide for the company. Instead of being hindered by the brand name, people may actually be proud to own a Hyundai after this car is released.

 The concept shown above is how the actual production car should look, aside from the real carbon fiber hood, which I doubt they will try to sneak in there with a base price of under $25,000.

Those scoffing at paying 25k haven’t seen the goods yet. And yes, the goods are good.

Read more after the jump to see what the Genesis is packing for hardware.

Read the rest of this entry »

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The Swiss Porsche tuner, Rinspeed, has released their newest creation based on the Porsche Cayenne 957, its name, “X-treme”. It’s a cheesy name but everything else is simply badass. Overall the complete tuning package gives the Cayenne a sportier appearance and more performance.

The “X-treme” tuning package includes new front skirt and bumper, bigger air intakes, much bigger wheel arches, new side and rear skirts and two rear chrome exhaust tips. Performance is also increased by a new sport exhaust system which now outputs 600 horsepower.

The air suspension improves its appearance and drops the Cayenne 35 mm. Interior is upgraded with sport bucket seating and an available home entertainment system offered by Rinspeed. (how the hell you have “home” entertainment in a vehicle, is beyond me — Chris)

Press Release: Read the rest of this entry »

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