Autoblog

Click above for gallery of Strand-Craft's Stingray speedboat

The '63 Corvette Stingray split-window coupe may not have been quite as aerodynamic as GM would have us believe, but it does remain one of the most iconic designs of all time. So iconic, in fact, that one shipyard is considering taking it to the water to see if the shape is seaworthy.

Bo Zolland of Sweden's Strand-Craft shirks the minimalist design of his home country's most prolific furniture chain with the most exquisitely designed and crafted teak-decked retro runabout ever to grace the surface of water, with a little Corvette flair thrown in for good measure. The blueprints call for a carbon-fiber hull and a big block engine with competition prop drives (we see two engines powering the one above). Strand-Craft is taking orders for an untold limited number of Stingray speedboats to be made on special order according to the customer's speficifications, and we have a feeling there might be some Corvette aficionados who'd be eager to bring their passion out of land-lock and out onto the open water.

[Source: Strand-Craft via All Cars, All the Time]

You've got thirty grand and you want a pickup truck, do you A) buy new, or B) hit eBay for a million-mile Silverado. Frank, who had a mild brush with celebrity when the odometer on his truck hit seven-figures recently, would like you to buy his truck. The 1991 Chevy Silverado 1500 is still on its original 350 small-block, though it's chewed up 5 trannies. Frank raves on and on about its remarkable engine and wants it to go to a collector who will appreciate it, but still go out for a ride from time to time. It is an impressive mileage total, but really, who's going to question that a small block V8 is one of the best engines ever? Maintenance has apparently been rather thorough, which is a help keeping any car alive, though we're surprised it hasn't been ravaged by the tinworm. Frank's auction ends in three days and so far hasn't moved beyond its starting bid of $29,999.99. With Employee Pricing back, however, you can get a brand new Chevy Silverado Regular Cab with a short box and zero miles for just $19,899.


[Source: eBay]

Smoking cigars. It conjures images of wood-lined, quilted-leather private clubs and back-room deals brokered with a hand-shake between captains of industry and diplomats. Though tobacco may be taboo in modern society, cigars still have an air of class about them. At least until Lamborghini got involved.

While we're all for automotive-themed products, especially those of the finely-crafted variety, this seems to take things too far. Made by Tonino Lamborghini (think of it as Sant'Agata's Porsche Design), this range of lighters and cigar cutters, in our view, infuses the flashy, fast-paced Lamborghini image into a realm where it doesn't belong. Maybach can get away with slapping their badge on a smoker's set. Even Porsche Design manages to carry it off with a degree of class. But as much as we like Lamborghini's fantastic sportscars, when our first-born child arrives, we'll take a pass on these.

[Source: eLighters via CarScoop]

New spy shots of the refreshed Mazda3 have surfaced, lending credence to the future-Mazda images we've seen oozing out of places like an EU harmonization office, and a Japanese toymaker. It looks like the doors remain largely unchanged, with the nose and tail receiving the bulk of the work. The front end will pick up new headlamps that mimic what big-brother 6 now wears. The black-tape ruse is not effective at disguising a C-Pillar that remains kinked forward, but the taillights are successfully obscured with adhesive applique. It won't be long before we see all the tape pulled off the refreshed 3 as the car show season heats up.

[Source: Car and Driver, Photo: Michael Cervantes/Priddy]

It's an epic poem that could have been written by Byron: you suffered a nasty breakup and met a new girl, you dated for a while, things were looking outstanding, you proposed... and then the bottom dropped out of the medium-duty truck business. We've seen it all before. And now that it's happened, Navistar has backed away from it's non-binding commitment to purchase GM's medium-duty truck operations.

GM and Navistar only had a memorandum of understanding, so there appears to be no harm, no foul in Navistar getting icy feet. The brief announcement of the dissolution presents it as a mutual affair: "Due to significant marketplace and economic changes, GM and Navistar have decided not to renew the memorandum of understanding to purchase GM's medium duty truck business," but we imagine GM standing at the altar, watching its Navistar groom bolt from the church and hop in a taxi.>

GM is still talking to Navistar and looking at other ways to dump find a good home for its medium duty truck business. A shame, because they make some fine vehicles.

[Source: GM]

The Lexus Nuaero concept would look right at home running alongside its movie star sibling that appeared in Minority Report, though that concept vehicle got all the looks. Unfortunately, that's not saying much. Jon Radbrink has penned a futuristic blade of a car that comes out looking for all the world like a Stanley Pocket Surform. The forward thinking doesn't stop with the Hobie-Cat exterior, there's plenty of future-dreaming inside the Nuaero. Pedals have been banished for a steering wheel-based setup that operates sort of like an aircraft yoke. Radbrink thinks that people's hands are better for driving than our feet - something about accuracy. Mhm. John must ride the train a lot; we see plenty of inaccuracies happening out there by people using all four extremeties. While we're all dreaming, the Nuaero is intended to be rendered in lightweight materials, so it would theoretically offer the space of a larger vehicle while only pressing the scales with the equivalent weight of a SMART ForTwo. At least we now have a design for this years Pinewood Derby. Thanks for the tip, Ian!


[Source: Gizmodo]

It's got the preposterously huge wing, and race-burlesque stripe job; could this Viper spotted at the Nurburgring possibly be a Viper ACR? The red and black Viper was nabbed on one of the 'Ring's cameras, and there's also reports of a black Viper with graphite stripes tearing around the German racing venue. While the pictures showed up on the Viperclub forums, nobody's got any lap times, unfortunately. Could the ACR turn laps as fast as the scorching GT-R or ZR1? Who knows, but there's no doubt that it'll be fast. That big, silly wing is acceptable in this instance, as it will actually work to enhance downforce on the drive wheels. It'd be the first thing removed for street duty, were we the owners of a Viper GTS. Alas, we're not Viper ACR owners, though the idea of an astoundingly fast car that can kill you if you don't know what you're doing just seems right in these days of electronic safety nets. Cowboy attitude aside, we hope that this Viper owner managed to not stuff it into any hazards, and that his lap times eventually bubble to the surface. Thanks for the tip, Gustavo.

[Source: forums.viperclub.org]

Trevor Creed has decided that being the capo di designi capo for such programs as the Chrysler 300, PT Cruiser, Dodge Challenger, Viper, and Ram, among others, is a satisfactory way to cap a career in design. Creed has spent the past 23 years at Chrysler, and his departure as Vice President of Design on August 31st opens up the slot for Ralph Gillies to step up. Gillies will start his new role as Design Veep September 1st, and he'll answer to Frank Klegon, Executive VP of Product Development.

Hey Frank, get rid of focus grouping, give Ralph a bit more leash to manage a staff that can design a car that actually looks good. As Design Vice President, Gillies will now oversee the Product Design Office, so one imagines that, given the opportunity, there may be a glimmer of hope for righting the horrid wrongs of the Sebring, as long as some of that 2009 Ram mojo is still around.

Once Gillies and team work sheetmetal magic, Andreas Schnell is the newly appointed Vice President of Electrical/Electronics Engineering Core, the people that come up with the electronics that not only run the vehicle, but entertain and delight, as well. Schnell will also be responsible for "voice of the customer" efforts, and the voice of the customer should be heard loud and clear saying "please build better cars."

[Source: Chrysler]

In the book of Genesis, man was given dominion over all the plants and animals, so we're guessing that dead, liquified ones count, too. Since Rocky Twyman started his Pray At The Pump effort in April, average fuel prices have certainly fallen. Twyman believes that his groups' prayers have effected the change, and that no other factors like shifting consumer behavior, international conflict, or speculators has anything to do with it. Right.

The Pray At The Pump group is not just asking for divine fuel price intervention without also encouraging acts of sacrifice on behalf of man – Twyman's ministry strongly encourages car pooling and better organized trips to maximize conservation on a day to day basis. After all, committing the mortal sin of gluttony while asking for the Lord to make it easier on us all would ring kind of hollow. We suppose even the non-faithful can get behind Twyman's effort in that it's at least as effective as the various fuel-saving trinkum that internet scheisters are imploring us to buy (run your car on water? hydrogen "batteries"?), and it costs nothing, to boot. Combined with a regimen of proven fuel-saving behaviors, extra prayers certainly can't hurt in keeping the flow of car-sustaining manna trickling along at an affordable price.

[Source: BBC, AutoblogGreen, Photo: daylife.com]

Yet another example of a Homeowner's Association run amok... A Texas homeowner in Frisco (just north of Dallas) has been told by the Stonebriar HOA that his new Ford F-150 isn't allowed to be parked in his driveway. The Association, established to protect Jim Greenwood's interests (that's the theory at least), will allow his neighbor's Cadillac Escalades, Honda Ridgelines, and even a HUMMER or two, but his new pickup violates a rule that prohibits pickups in the driveway. When Mr. Greenwood inquired as to why a Lincoln Mark LT could park in the neighborhood, but his practically identical F-150 couldn't, the response from the HOA was, "'It's our belief that Lincoln markets to a different class of people." Doh! As of now, Mr. Greenwood's options are to get another vehicle, or move. If it were us, we'd replace the F-150 with a yellow Caterpillar 972H Wheel Loader. Yeah, that would get them to quickly change their mind... Thanks for the tip, Neil!

[Source: Dallas News]