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:
Read the restGas 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.
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:
Read the restIn 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.”
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.
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.
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.
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.
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
You might think it's an optical illusion but really it's a glitch in the matrix. The insurance adjuster is gonna have a helluva time with this one.
Here are new images of Apple's self-driving car technology (Project Titan) mounted on a Lexus RX350. That gear on the top is a rack of six LIDAR sensors that use lasers to collect spatial data about the vehicle's surroundings.
Going to need more than 140 characters to go over 🍎's Project Titan. I call it "The Thing" pic.twitter.com/sLDJd7iYSa
— MacCallister Higgins (@macjshiggins) October 17, 2017
I saw one of these a few weeks ago pull up to an Apple shuttle stop-sit there for a few then drove off. pic.twitter.com/gUudZY1TIA
— idiggapple (@idiggapple) October 18, 2017
Searching for my next ride, I chanced across this ad on craigslist for a 1965 Chevy Van. It wasn't too hot, but then I saw the interior, which appears to be the skinned hide of a luckdragon.
Very solid old school patina Chevy Van for sale ... Three on the tree converted to automatic transmission so you can relax and cruise .... Rides down the highway very smooth.. Brand new brakes all around ... Very solid body ... Extra windshield ... Original seats in great shape .. Interior finished with shag , Bluetooth cd/radio with 6 speakers including subwoofer ... Memory foam bed and a built in cooler. Leave it in its patina or paint it whatever color you want ... Won't last long .. Spent most of its life in Texas ( got out before Harvey)
If you buy it, you are hereby forbidden from changing the interior. Read the rest
Go back to the future with this amazing DeLorean sales pitch from 1981 used to convince car dealers to sell this fine automobile. (Thanks, UPSO!)
In 1967, John Lennon tooled around London in a Rolls-Royce Phantom V personalized with a psychedelic paint job. After years traveling around to various US museums, the car recently returned to London for a new Rolls Royce exhibit at Bonhams. Rolling Stone's Jordan Runtagh tells the story of the trippy whip:
Read the restExactly how Lennon decided on the lurid Romany floral/zodiac hybrid is subject to some debate. Anthony recalls Ringo Starr planting the seed of the idea during a drive in early 1967. "We were passing the fairground one day and they were admiring the fairground decorations and gypsy caravans. Ringo said why not have the Rolls painted the same way. John thought it was a great idea." However, others say the idea was suggested by Marijke Koger of the Dutch design collective the Fool – who would also paint Lennon's piano that summer – after Lennon commissioned a refurbished 1874 gypsy caravan as a present for his young son, Julian. Either way, the chance to indulge his eccentric taste, while simultaneously delivering a massive "V-sign" to the staid British high society, proved too tempting to resist.
Doubtful that Rolls-Royce themselves would ever submit to such a drastic makeover of one of their prized vehicles, Lennon paid a visit to private coach makers J.P. Fallon Ltd. in Chertsey on April 8th, 1967, to discuss the design. After spraying the body of the car yellow, local artist Steve Weaver was tasked with painting the red, orange, green and blue art nouveau swirls, floral side panels and Lennon's astrological symbol, Libra, on the roof.
More than $1 million in marijuana was found hidden inside brand new Ford Fusions at dealerships in Ohio and Pennsylvania. The automobiles were manufactured at plants in Mexico and somewhere along the way, the spare tire wheel wells were packed with pot. Talk about a dealer incentive!
"We're aware of the situation and are taking it very seriously," a Ford Motor Company spokesman said Saturday. "We are working with the FBI and Customs on an extensive investigation. We have confirmed that this is not happening at our plant or at our internal shipping yards."
(CNN)
A Ferrari driver in southeast England ignored warnings not to leave cars overnight on the ninth floor of the Brighton Marina parking garage. The fellow returned on Sunday morning to find his fancy ride in the middle of a bustling flea market.
(HuffPo)
Here's a very clever eject button that fits into most automobile cigarette lighter sockets. Unfortunately, the product listing clearly states that it's "designed for show only." It is a functional cigarette lighter though so I guess they mean it won't actually trigger your ejector seat.
"Kei Project Red Eject Ejection Seat Push Button Car Power Plug Cigerette Lighter 12-volt Accessory Fits Most Vehicles" (Amazon via Dangerous Minds)
