Where’s my chauffeur, ASIMO?

The aughties are as dead as the ShamWow! guy’s career, and we’re now 4 days deep into a new decade. Doesn’t it feel like something’s missing, though? Where’s all the space-age transportation technology that movies promised us? 2001 has come and gone, but I don’t have a HAL 9000 co-piloting my Mini. And, we’re only 5 years away from the deadline for the Mr. Fusion-powered time-travelling DeLoreans and hover boards from Back to the Future.

WTF, science? You haven’t even delivered on the bubbly Japanese concept cars from 3 years ago. In case you forgot, here’s what we’ve been waiting for:

Now get to work!

Wha-wha-what?

It’s not too uncommon to run across cars in malls. Usually, they’re posh luxury rides being “raffled” off to people willing to fill out one of those little index cards (you’re going to get a call about a timeshare!). But these cars are always parked behind red velvet ropes. Never have I seen a car flipped and trapped on an escalator…until today, that is.

Image courtesy of FAILBlog.

This wooden supercar gives us wood

I once had a car, or should I say, she once had me…

She showed me her cockpit, isn’t it good, Japanese wood?

 

In the land of the rising sun, an intrepid furniture-building concern crafted a radical supercar with an all-wood frame. According to Japan Probe, the hand-crafted car maxes out at 80 kilometers-per-hour. But what it lacks in gusto, it certainly makes up for in originality. This fusion of engineering and cabinetry looks like a cross between the Pikes Peak Edition Escudo from Gran Turismo and an old-school ofuro. And it’ll only set you back around 2.83 million yen (calm down—that’s only around $32,000 American). That’s a small price to pay to feel like you’re driving around inside of a Haruki Murakami style alternate universe where Johnny Walker is making flutes out of cats’ souls.

 Check it out (and if you can translate it for us, we’d say arigatou gozaimasu):

Godzilla + Anime + Transformers = ?

The answer is Decotora, which is Japanese for “Art Trucks”. These highly decorated rigs are elaborately painted, adorned with chrome accessories from wheel to roof and the only thing that can compete with their neon hues is the 1980’s. Why do this? Well, why not… enjoy the photos!

Source: Dark Roasted Blend and Swindle Mag

The Sexiest Ferrari on Two Wheels

There’s no arguing that this bike is a looker, you might even be surprised to find out that it’s not real. That’s right folks, it’s been created using 3D Studio Max by Amir Glinik over in Isreal. Hard to tell, I know, but Automotive designers use graphic tools like this all the time to help test out ideas and visualize the concept before it’s built. This was a 2-year long project for Amir and I must say, it was worth all the effort.

The Ferrari V4 Concept Bike was centered around the idea of taking a Ferrari V12 engine and slicing it down into a 4-cylinder. From there Amir designed the air intake, exhaust, forks, suspension, steering, body panel and user controls, all intricately detailed. To quote from Amir’s site:

“This maybe the most radical idea on this project, it may take a year to be fully developed, but basically it’s a two arms radial mechanism that can be found even on executive scooters. Here the swing arm movements controlled by a radial shock [are] pre loaded by [a] composite material omega spring. The radial hydraulic shock damper [is] controlled by oil pressure from the main hydraulic motor.”

Each part has a purpose, as though if Ferrari wanted to build this bike, the 3D file would be a complete blue print, a road map for its conception. It is simply amazing what Amir has produced. I’ll stop writing now so you can go drool over the gallery. Here’s a link if you want to know more about Amir’s Ferrari superbike.

Source: Motorbiker

Mercedes Celebrates 80 Years of Private Protection with an Armored & Stretched S600 Limousine

For 80 years now, Mercedes-Benz has been protecting the heads of states, public figureheads and the ultra rich with their armored-line of luxury vehicles. To commemorate that achievement, Mercedes has released this S600 limousine featuring B6 and B7 levels of ballistic protection, capable of stopping anything from handguns to rifles to grenades. Add to that run-flat tires, a self-sealing fuel tank and built-in fire suppression and you’ll be practically untouchable. While hitmen are firing at you from afar, you can be having a small party with some friends, sipping on champagne in total comfort.

You’d think that with all that extra armoring, this Merc might be a bit of a slouch. Well, MB has thought of that too. You’ll find nothing less than their top-of-the-line 517HP 5.5-liter twin-turbo V12. No acceleration stats are available yet, but I’m sure this S600 will move quickly when it counts.

Source: AutoBlog

Smart Car Body Kits Have Arrived

Let’s face it: gas prices suck. Lots of people have been buying up hybrids and Smart Cars to reduce their monthly fuel costs, but cars have always been about style and expression, not frugality. Every time I see a Smart Car on the road, I’m reminded of Steve Urkel from Family Matters, which is why I haven’t made the leap to a more environmentally friendly ride.

Well if someone started making body kits like these, I’d reconsider.

*Thanks for sending in the photos Trevor!

If you’re looking for body kits or auto parts, we just talked to the guys at NorCal Cars and they just built out their site to include automotive parts and accessories. NorCal Cars is run by some great people, so check it out at their California Auto Parts page.

Lotus Builds BioFuel Powered Ice Vehicle for Antarctic Expedition

Lotus built this wild propeller-powered machine for the Moon-Regan Trans Antarctic Expedition. It has special ice-penetrating radar that is used to detect crevasses and thin ice. The Concept Ice Vehicle, or CIV, only weighs 300Kg (660lbs.) and uses three ultra wide skis, so the surface pressure is minimal. The CIV was built with as few moving parts as possible to reduce the likelihood of parts seizing up from the cold and ice forming.

The CIV will be used as a scout for the two science support vehicles, which are highly-modified Ford E-Series vans. The 6-wheeled Science Support Vehicles are reportedly “low emission”, using turbo-charged, fuel-injected, 7.3 litre, V8 biodiesel engines and will also be equipped with solar panels to provide extra power.

It’s good to see Lotus flexing its know-how in other areas as I’m sure what they learned from this unique project can give them insight into future builds.

Source: TreeHugger.com

125HP Golf Cart Hits the Dyno

I’ve heard of Muscle Cars, but a Muscle Golf Cart?!? The guys over at Nevarez Racing Products in Nevada swapped out the 3HP golf cart motor for this 125HP motor from a Yamaha R1. Needless to say, they have a new wheelie-machine!

Russian Tanks Built for a Russian Landscape

When the going gets tough, the tough get going, but sometimes you need the right gear to get you out of tight situations. I think this prototype Russian tank that uses a screw-drive propulsion system should do the trick. It was built in Zavod imeni Likhacheva (ZIL) and these things are incredibly versatile. They can maneuver over just about anything…

Source: EnglishRussia.com

Aston Martin DB5, Now Made From 100% Recycled Material

Chris Gilmour is an artist with a flair for cardboard. He has made many things out it, from rocking chairs to bicycles to cars. The thing to remember is that these pieces of art are life size! Check out the photos of his car-related art, the rest can be found over at Chris’s website.

Source: DubDaily

Segway Killer? Meet the Easy Glider

I guess this is one way you could try to get around paying high gas prices. This all electric, 10 MPH people-mover might not have the geeky-allure that the segway had, but the Easy Glider sure does look like a lot more fun! Especially since they are building one that has a bigger motor with off-road tires. Strangely enough, they are also working on an amphibious one for using in pools and lakes. Last I knew, electricity and water didn’t mix well, but I’ll let them figure that one out. I wonder if the Chinese government will adopt the Easy Glider like they did the segway…

Would you buy an Easy Glider for your main source of transportation? It wouldn’t leak oil onto your garage floor mats and you wouldn’t need a car canopy to protect it from the elements as you could just bring it inside. But the lack of storage space might be a problem. Most cars allow you to put on roof racks or bike racks to haul around your extra gear, but that would be impossible with the easy glider. What do you think? Leave your thoughts in the comments.