"She says the turn signal won't stay engaged when making a right turn."

thumbnail image: detail of photo by Lukas 3z (CC BY-SA 4.0) Read the rest

Jalopnik's Jason Torchinsky bought his first new car on Alibaba. He paid $930 for the electric Changli NEMECA, batteries not included. The batteries, likely lead-acid, were an additional $350. Then came all the fees to bring the car from China to the USA and get it through customs. The final total for the car is closer to $3,300 which is still less expensive than the comparison vehicle: a golf cart. From Jalopnik:

What’s frustrating and amazing about all of this is just how difficult it is to find any accurate information about the total cost of shipping something like this from China to America. There’s more information out there for “real” cars, which, legally, the Changli is not, at least in America.

Even though for many elderly rural Chinese people this car—and many other ones very much like it—are absolutely used like real, usable cars, the truth is it’s far closer to a golf cart. It’s only got a 1.1 hp (possibly 1.6? I’ll try to dyno it when it arrives) motor and is much smaller and lighter than even the smallest and lightest of cars you can imagine.

It’s about 800 pounds, about half the weight of my Nissan Pao, which is about half the weight of almost everything else out there. It’s small.

In fact, on official documentation, it’s described, bafflingly, [as a four-wheel electric tricycle.]

Yes, a four-wheel electric tricycle. You know, like a biped with a third leg, or a five-legged quadrupedal dog.

"This Is How Much Buying The Cheapest New Car In The World Really Costs" (Jalopnik) Read the rest

For sale over at Bring a Trailer is a lovely 1964 AmphiCar 770.

I first saw one of these as a kid and I was fascinated by the idea of being able to drive into a lake or the ocean. As an adult, I am horrified by the amount of preservation a vehicle like this must take.

Kudos on the current owner for keeping it so functional and not apparently rotted out!

The 770 model designation refers to the vehicle’s purported ability to travel at speeds of 7 knots in the water and 70 mph on land. Finished in Beach Sand White, this example retains factory trim including a marine-style horn, lights, and side bumpers. Twin nylon propellers can be seen below the bumper, and the exhaust exits high on the back panel above the water line.

When entering the water, the transmission is shifted into neutral and a lever is engaged to activate the propellers. The front wheels then become rudders. 13″ steel wheels wear Amphicar covers and Goodyear Vector whitewall tires. The white convertible top has a tear on the driver’s side as shown in the photo gallery below.

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A good friend of mine is restoring a Scout now. He compares it to my Vanagon and I do not understand why.

Looks like this one wants to be driven!

Bring a trailer:

Features unique to Selective Edition included an SSII-style grille, gold side stripes, and matching wheels. This example received a repaint in its factory shade of dark brown with gold stripes under previous ownership. Numerous exterior images in the gallery below show the current condition of the finish.

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I prefer this to the real thing. The cartoon fun is infectious and, well, nobody dies.

More thrills at 3Dbotmaker, home to 1:64 Diecast Sports Action Racing!

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On Tuesday, a driver in South Los Angeles turned onto the light rail tracks at the absolute worst possible moment. According to police, the individual amazingly suffered only "scrapes and bruises." From ABC7:

From the video, it appears a gate was down blocking traffic that would be approaching in the right lane, but there was no gate blocking the left side. With normal two-way traffic, that side would be driving into oncoming vehicles in any case.

It was not immediately apparent if there were any flashing lights or bells working at that crossing.

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The annual Geneva International Motor Show is a huge deal in the auto world where all the carmakers show off their new vehicles to the world. Due to Covid-19 concerns, the Swiss government banned gatherings of more than 1,000 people, leading to the last-minute cancellation of the Motor Show. Auto photographer GF Williams showed up anyway and the above is what he saw. Read the rest

Back in September, a Hyundai Glovis cargo ship capsized off the coast of Georgia. The 665-foot ship, called the Golden Ray, tipped over in St. Simons Sound, Georgia but fortunately every crew member was rescued. The ship was holding around 4,000 US-made automobiles that are now quite waterlogged. The Georgia Department of Natural Resources and other organizations are orchestrating environmental protection measures and disassembling the vessel to remove it in pieces via barge. This week, the St. Simons Sound Incident Response Unified Company will begin constructing an "environmental protection barrier" that includes "large floating containment barrier to help contain surface pollutants, as well as large netting to contain subsurface debris."

The Unified Command used LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) technology to create 3D images of inaccessible areas inside the vessel.

Follow the situation here: St. Simons Sound Response

image: Georgia Department of Natural Resources (photo release) Read the rest

In Halifax, West Yorkshire, England, a gentleman's car exploded after he reportedly sprayed "excessive" amount of air freshener and then lit a cigarette. From the BBC News:

Gas from the spray ignited, blew out the windscreen and windows and buckled the doors but the man escaped with only minor injuries.

Police said the incident in Halifax on Saturday "could've been worse" and warned people to follow safety advice.

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In Citrus County, Florida, a dizzy driver veered off the road, crossed the berm, and then launched into the air, flying over more than a dozen cars at a dealership. The vehicle eventually smashed into two other cars in the parking lot, but fortunately no bystanders were hit. According to Bay News 9, authorities report that the driver was sent to the hospital but is expected to be fine. From Bay News 9:

In the video the flying car barely misses an employee on the ground. Crystal Ford Lincoln Sales Manager Bruce Azevedo was just feet away from the crashing Camry when it finally made a crash landing.

“You could feel it. You could feel the, I don’t know, in your chest the compression when it hit,” he said. “And then as we spun around to see it, I saw it take out the Navigator. Which if the Navigator wasn’t there it probably would’ve went into the showroom.”

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You can own this DIY hovercraft Delorean for $45,000 "or best offer." After all, where you're going, you don't need roads. The seller is donating 10% of the sale to The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinsons Research. Video of the vehicle below. From eBay:

What you get:

1. Hand-built Hovercraft sculpted to look exactly like a Delorean. This is a functional work of art, it is not a Delorean bolted onto a hovercraft. There's only one in the world!

2. Custom flatbed tilting trailer built specifically for this hovercraft

3. Miscellaneous spare parts and supplies including spare engine parts, fans and propellers, nuts and bolts.

4. Free phone consultations with me for any technical questions you might have...

The Hovercraft is based on the blueprints for the Universal Hovercraft UH-13PT. The basic shape of the hull, skirt, and fan ducts come from those blueprints, but pretty much everything else is customized. The Delorean body is made out of styrofoam wrapped in fiberglass and painted with metallic paint. The 36” thrust fan is powered by a 23hp Briggs & Stratton Vanguard riding lawnmower-style engine. The 24” lift fan is powered by a B&S 875 Professional series push mower engine. The hull of the craft hovers about 6-8 inches over the surface, and can hover over anything relatively flat: land, water, ice, snow, sand, asphalt, etc. The top speed with the current thrust configuration is 31 mph on the water in good conditions.

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During the 2018 Brazilian Grand Prix, Sebastian Vettel's crew manages a sub-2 second pitstop. (via Next Draft) Read the rest

Robert Falck from Vancouver built a 1989 Cadillac Brougham limousine onto a Bombardier Skidozer snowcat. You can own this fine vehicle for $6,000. According to the Craigslist ad, it was "last used 2 years ago." From Jalopnik:

Falck said he built this contraption for a movie, which featured a rich guy who owned a ski resort. When filming was done, the Vancouverite decided to buy the Caddy back. Now it’s up for sale on Craigslist for a price that, he says, doesn’t reflect what he’s put into the vehicle.

Falck says the thing will move, but it’s not likely to climb a mountain or blaze its own trail; the vehicle is best left on groomed trails, and it’s not likely to exceed 15 mph.

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At first I was disappointed that the Mystery Machine and Knight 2000 weren't invited but then I realized they were probably on a separate TV star car field trip.

All of these iconic autos and many more are available for rental from Movie Cars Central in France.

(via r/pics) Read the rest

The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) posted this video of a batshit driver near Canal Winchester, Ohio. Amazingly, there were no collisions. "Don't be that driver," says ODOT.

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Runaway Match, aka Marriage by Motor, a 1903 silent film directed by Alfred Collins, features the first car chase in a movie. For a directory of movie car chases, zoom on over to VARACES: the Car Chase Community.

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Let's harken back to a time when golf pants fit uncomfortably snug and white guys peer pressured each other to keep up appearances by driving the "right car," which in this sales training video is some model (any model) of the 1989 Chevy Celebrity. "It looks like a successful businessman's car," exclaims the plaid-panted boss man.

If you can sit through the nauseating good ol' boy banter and drum riffs, you'll be "rewarded" when you can finally feast your eyes on the premium stereo radio with cassette deck that comes with the Preferred Equipment Group #3 in the Eurosport model. And don't even get me started on that sweet, sweet heavy duty battery.

"Eddie," I fear it's too late but you should try to get your 1976 Fury back and steer clear of these bozos. Read the rest