Ferrari P4/5 by Pininfarina
A Ferrari P4 Matchbox car used to be on the front of this site way back in the day. Ferrari and design shop Pininfarina have unleashed the updated version of the P4 called the P4/5 and it is drop dead gorgeous. The car is basically a prettied up Enzo with some nice Pininfarina accoutremonts.
James Glickenhaus was the force behind this car. He basically wanted to pimp out his Enzo
James Glickenhaus, Hollywood Somebody, is so rich, he didn’t just buy one of the first Ferrari Enzos. He had Ferrari build a whole new car for him based off of it. His main reason for tweaking the million dollar car was that he thought it was fugly compared to the Italian classics in his garage.
Details at http://gizmodo.com/
Pics at http://www.supercars.net/
Japanese Land Walker Robot Thing
Its a cross between Robotech, that thing in Robocop and a Bobcat with some influence from Empire Stikes Back land walkers. At first it is very cool with a heavy intimidation factor. But then it starts moving and you start looking at your watch. If they can make it run smoother and faster this would be one scary machine. Very cool.
link via http://jalopnik.com/
Watching Beirut Die
Anthony Bourdain the daredevil travelling chef fond himself in the middle of the Lebanon Isreali conflict. He and his crew were filming for a new episode in Bourdain’s far off culinary travel show when Isreal bombed the airport and left him stuck in Beirut. Great writeup at Salon.com
Beirutis like to tell you (true or not) that they partied right through the civil war. That it wasn’t “cool” to seek shelter during an airstrike. That we “shouldn’t worry. All the nightclubs have their own generators.” That night, we continued to shoot (and drink heavily) at the opening party for the newly relocated Sky Bar, a rooftop nightclub with a view of the Mediterranean. Moneyed Beirutis — all of them, it seemed, young, sexy and ridiculously beautiful — drank vodka and Red Bull, and swayed (if not exactly danced) while Israeli jets flew menacingly low overhead. Were it not for the warplanes, it could have been Los Angeles or South Beach, Fla.
Colbert Vs Good Morning America and Today
Hilarious segment from the Colbert Report where Steve rips into Good Morning America and Today for their reactions to the Wexler interview. In the days of sound bites Wexler took a big chance playing along with Colbert in saying that cocaine is a fun thing to do. But the guy has a sense of humor, and he played along. Meanwhile shows such as GMA, Today and Fox News can’t help but swoop in on the choice quotes taken totally out of context. There is a lesson in here somewhere. Don’t get your news from a show that also features chimps playing Texas holdem. Get your news from a site named for brave chimps who went into space!
Citroen Tranformers Commercials
Citroen has been using Tranforming cars as part of their advertising campaign for a while.
Here are a series of commercials where the French made cars transform.
Skating Tranformer.
Old Citroen.
Dancing Tranformer.
Transformer Bumblebee is a Camaro, not a VW
AutoBlog reports that the good natured Autobot Bumblebee will Transform into a Camaro and not a VW bug. Bumblebee presumably had his name because he was painted yellow and a VW bug, but Chevy must have paid major cash to get the prime product placement in next summer’s biggest movie.
Another break with traditoon is that a Decepticon will transform into a Ford Mustang named Brawl and be involved in some sort of fight with Bumblebee. Traditionally Decepticons are Jets or anything that flies, while Autobots are cars and trucks. This iss from the first few generations, later Transformers did not keep to this rule so closely.
Autoblog also has a pic of the partially transformed animatronic Bumblebee.
Partially Transformed Bumblebee
Disappearing License Plates
The Bullrun is a cross country race similar to the Cannonball Run, or the Gumball 300, or Gumball Rally. Here is a video of a Lamborghini Gallardo setup with the very necessary disappearing license plates. When the cops stop you, just tell them that the higher speeds are actually safer for everyone.
Barabus TKR 0 to 60 in 1.67 seconds!?
The newest supercar is the Barabus TKR, which has a claimed accelaration of 0 to 60 in 1.67. Whether that is possible is interesting, but the car would be faster than the Bugatti Veyron.
The car will be made in Italy using a British power plant. Their theory is to use the best in class of each item.
The car is to be made in Italy and the power plant is built in the United Kingdom. While the TKR is a true Italian supercar, the vehicle itself reflects a “best-in-practice” philosophy, where Barabus has incorporated superior components from around the globe in order to manufacture the best vehicle possible. The TKR utilizes ceramic brakes as well as numerous high technology pieces from companies located in Italy.
http://www.barabus.info/ Very sparsely populated site. Information is slowly coming out about this car.
http://www.leftlanenews.com/ - original news about the Barabus TKR.
Speed Saves
Looking at the numbers it seems as though the increase in the speed limit actually saves lives. From 1995 to 2005 American roads were actually safer even though we have many more distractions like cell phones. The increased speed limit seems to be making roads safer. I would have to agree since no one actually ever paid attention to the 55 speed limit of old.
When I moved to New Jersey in the late 90s the speed limit was 55, but the actual speed of the drivers was somewhere around 90. The roads were a bit scary to drive on at first because everyone was going so much faster than the speed limit. I was used to going 75 to 85, but 90 was an eye opener. Around 98/99 New Jersey raised the speed limit to 65, but the NJ Troopers enforced it much more than they did when it was 55. The result was that traffic moved slightly slower. Instead of 90, folks would drive at between 75-85.
New Jersey vs New York Driving
Driving in New Jersey vs. driving in upstate New York is radically different. In Upstate New York folsk ar emore laid back and don’t mind cruising in the fast lane in a slow speed. It is very frustrating when you are caught behind a driver that is drivng too slow for the fast lane. It impeeds traffic flow and in downright frustrating. In New Jersey I never experienced a fast lane hog phenomenon especially as you get close to New York City. Drivers seem to be more experienced and going fast does not seem to be such a problem. The fast lane is meant for passing.
In Upstate New York a driver’s personal space (space they need around the car) is much bigger than in New Jersey. The other day when I switched lanes, I was surprised to see the guy in the car behind me flip me the finger. My switch gave him plenty of room, but I guess he must have felt as if I cut him off. That same maneuver in New Jersey would not make anyone blink. In fact it is expected.
The differences between UNY and NJ are mostly due to population density. The roads are wide, free and there is not a great deal of traffic in Upstate New York. Meanwhile, in New Jersey the population is dense, the roads are a little smaller, but there are lots of folks on the road. You get used to the higher volumes of traffic and drive accordingly.
Ted Stevens Internet Remix
A nice remix helps you learn about the Internet. Don’t make the mistake that most people make when they think of the Internets. It is not a TRUCK! It’s a series of TUBES! Now get that straight. It’s not something you can just dump stuff on. Someone sent me an Internet yesterday, I didn’t get it until today!
