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Posted
Nov 13 2009, 06:39 PM
by
Rod Chong
with 15 comment(s)
With the Mustang, Ford is in possession of a very valuable property: a modern car with soul and character. Think about it: the vast majority of car companies these days make all of their models with uniform styling features. It's even hard to distinguish between different cars of the same class these days. It's for this reason I've developed a bit of a soft spot for this retro macho machine, especially the hotted up versions that companies like Shelby and now RTR are putting out. The...
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Posted
Nov 13 2009, 03:15 PM
by
Mike Garrett
with 26 comment(s)
Yesterday we took a look at a custom '67 Camaro from Japan, and now it's time to look at another SEMA Camaro of slightly different type - the Grunewald Racing drift Camaro. It was only a matter of time before someone took to drifting the big Chevy, and Conrad Grunewald will be doing just that next year in Formula Drift. The car was built by a shop called BR Racing, and by all appearances it looked ready for action at SEMA. This thing is far the from the mock-up that most "new" drift cars start as....
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Posted
Nov 13 2009, 08:46 AM
by
Rod Chong
with 31 comment(s)
Ok this is my last SEMA car spotlight. I think Mike has a few more cars to showcase but this is the last entry for me. For this blogpost, I thought you might be interested to have a closer look at Vaughn Gittin JR's new toy: the Mustang RTR-C. The RTR-C stood out amongst all the various customized 2010 Mustangs on show at SEMA last week. Rather bolt on huge 20 inch wheels and ungainly wings, JR and the crew at ASD took it upon themselves the daunting task to completely reskin a donor Mustang...
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Posted
Nov 12 2009, 05:08 PM
by
Mike Garrett
with 20 comment(s)
After reading John Leigh's blog earlier today about his Top Secret-built Infiniti, I figured I'd follow up with a similar story, yet in reverse. While John was able to have his JDM tuner car displayed at Tokyo Auto Salon, Akira Yamamoto of Kyoto, Japan had his prized '67 Camaro displayed last week at the SEMA Show. There's been tons of Japanese-built vehicles shipped stateside for a variety of reasons, but this is the first American muscle car that I can recall. As we walked around SEMA last week, I immediately recognized this car after seeing at Tokyo Auto Salon and in Custom Car, one of my favorite Japanese magazines....
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Posted
Nov 12 2009, 03:30 PM
by
Rod Chong
with 24 comment(s)
This giant scaled up Hot Rod is the latest creation from the Southern Oregon based Blastolene shop. These are the same crazy minds responsible for Jay Leno's tank car.... It's a connection which immediately makes a lot of sense! Designed by Randy Grubb, the Blastolene design philosophy is based around finding unusual large displacement engines and building up drivable "sculptures" around them. The 12v71 Detroit Diesel with twin 671 superchargers is an industrial application engine...
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Posted
Nov 11 2009, 04:12 PM
by
Rod Chong
with 18 comment(s)
The spirit of the scene that some people are calling "Rat Rodding" is a counter culture against the smoothster style million dollar "cheque book" Rods which are still dominating the big Hot Rod awards. A true Rat Rod normally looks like it's been built with period specific components, which give the impression of being found in the open desert, river beds, swap meets and junkyards. This style of car started out with machines that were inspired by the original jalopy street...
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Posted
Nov 11 2009, 03:12 PM
by
Rod Chong
with 37 comment(s)
Of all the "new" pony cars on the market today I like the look of the Mustang the best. In my books, it's the only one of the three which doesn't look over bloated and fat compared to its original version. SEMA itself was filled with modified 2010 Mustangs, most of which didn't do much for me though. I also didn't pay much attention to most of the big wheeled Pro Touring "Stangs either... But there was one Mustang that caused me to stop in my tracks: the JM Enterprises...
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Posted
Nov 11 2009, 12:00 PM
by
Rod Chong
with 13 comment(s)
What's the difference between a low-rider and a custom? Can any of you answer this question? Is it the choice of wheels? Or air ride used instead of hydraulics? Or it is the type of scene that the car fits into that determines what you call it? Without talking to the owner of this car, I'd say this flat black low riding Caddy is styled to more fit into the custom car world. The flat black theme and the white walls more fit into this scene than anything else. Agree? It's one of my favs...
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Posted
Nov 10 2009, 12:10 PM
by
Mike Garrett
with 21 comment(s)
Last week at the SEMA Show parked amongst all the WRX's in the Subaru booth was this 2010 "VIP" Legacy Sedan. Now you can argue for days about what makes a true VIP car, but the people putting this Legacy together certainly did their research. Even the official info Subaru provided about the car says "VIP style is known for a clean, yet heavily reworked luxury theme with an emphasis on impossibly-low ride height and aggressive wheels."...
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Posted
Nov 10 2009, 06:58 AM
by
Rod Chong
with 18 comment(s)
Man I'm tired... I just feel asleep while sitting here working on these photographs. It appears I'm still recovering from a wild week in Las Vegas last week. Oh well... best to crack on and get this story written up before I fall asleep again! It was a pleasant surprise to see Pagani brought over one of the Zonda R chassis from Italy. This was probably one of the most striking cars at SEMA and was the centerpiece of the Pirelli booth. The Zonda was set up right beside the Falken booth where...
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Posted
Nov 08 2009, 06:54 PM
by
Rod Chong
with 30 comment(s)
Last year at SEMA , I spent a lot of time walking the floor, processing photos and preparing stories for Speedhunters.com. However this year, we had Mike Garrett taking care of these duties, so I was free to focus on securing some exciting new Speedhunters business partnerships and collaborations for 2010. My partner in crime, Rachel Kelly and I were so busy doing back to back meetings, that I didn't get to shoot the whole show. Oh well... I still have some Speedhunters reports coming out this...
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Posted
Nov 07 2009, 02:49 PM
by
Mike Garrett
with 31 comment(s)
Okay, let's continue right on with more coverage from the 2009 SEMA Show. I'll start with this 1984 CRX Mugen Prototype that Honda brought out. A 1980's Honda might not be the first thing you associate with the SEMA Show, but who doesn't like vintage Japanese tuner cars? It was cool to see Honda pulling old cars out of it's collection for the SEMA display....
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Posted
Nov 06 2009, 01:29 PM
by
Mike Garrett
with 31 comment(s)
I'm back home in Los Angeles now, still feeling the pain from three days of traversing the Las Vegas Convention Center, and glad to be done with the crowds and madness of Vegas. Now that I'm settled in at home, it's time to dig in for some more coverage from the show. One trend that's seemed to stand the test of time is pro-touring muscle cars. Even though you can buy brand new retro muscle cars from these days, I guess you can't beat the real thing. The 'Cuda above was one of my favorites. Under the gleaming bodywork is a twin turbo Viper V10....
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Posted
Nov 04 2009, 06:07 PM
by
Mike Garrett
with 56 comment(s)
Alright let's jump right into some photographs and impressions from my second day of walking the halls of the Las Vegas Convention Center at the 2009 SEMA Show.
Up above is something that should excite the traditional "JDM Tuning" fans, a super clean R34 Skyline GT-R found in the Rotora Brakes booth....
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Posted
Nov 03 2009, 07:01 PM
by
Mike Garrett
with 41 comment(s)
Ah yes, the chaos of SEMA.
After a an early flight from LAX I rushed to the Las Vegas Convention Center this morning for the first day of the 2009 SEMA Show. Although my legs are already numb from walking so much, I've only been able to get through a small portion of SEMA's exhibit halls.
Here are some highlights and observations from what I've managed to take in so far -...
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Posted
Nov 02 2009, 12:01 PM
by
Vaughn Gittin Jr
with 25 comment(s)
Like a proud father, I am very happy to introduce a new generation of the Ford Mustang - the Mustang RTR. I have dreamt this vision in my head for years; unfortunately, it has taken so much time for me to find the right people to help take the vision from my head to paper, then to the actual prototype phase that you see here. It sounds a lot easier then it really is - trust me! I fell in love with the Mustang in late 2004 and, as most of you know, we have been inseparable since. The Ford Mustang...
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Posted
Nov 02 2009, 10:24 AM
by
Rod Chong
with 82 comment(s)
"Offset is everything" : This is a mantra which many of you guys have been preaching for some time now... But I want to question if wheel offset is indeed the be-all-end-all of modified cars aesthetics around the world. For me cars with offset wheels are usually great, but it's a rule that doesn't always apply to all cars across multiple styles and genres. So let me put this alternative idea forward: Stance is Everything. How the car sits on its wheels -the stance, is the one element...
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Posted
Nov 02 2009, 03:19 AM
by
Vaughn Gittin Jr
with 24 comment(s)
Here is the sneak peak I promised you all. This is the first-ever public picture of the extremely limited production Mustang RTR-C, the halo of the RTR brand. It is a one-hundred percent dry carbon Mustang for the street, which features in-car adjustable shocks, 550 horsepower, and carbon fiber HRE wheels. Only ten of these cars will be made. The car will first be seen at the SEMA Show this year where it will be on display at the Ford booth all week. I will do a feature on the car here on Speedhunters...
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Posted
Oct 31 2009, 06:30 AM
by
Vaughn Gittin Jr
with 19 comment(s)
The RTR-C was the inspiration to create the Mustang RTR, which is basically a toned-down version that offers similar looks without the carbon or the serious performance gains. The reason I chose Autosport Dynamics (ASD) in Charlotte, NC to build the RTR-C is due to their attention to detail and complete understanding of my vision. I wanted a Mustang that was simply untouchable and was a work of art; all the way from the carbon fiber HRE CF40's, to the way that the weave of the carbon lines up...
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Posted
Oct 30 2009, 04:25 PM
by
Mike Garrett
with 22 comment(s)
It's that time of the year again. Next week the city of Las Vegas will be taken over by gearheads of all types as the SEMA Show rolls into the Convention Center. Although the economy is showing signs of a comeback, this year's show will still be toned down a bit compared to years past, with some companies skipping the event for financial reasons. Nonetheless, it's still SEMA - and there will still be miles of the latest and greatest machinery to check out.
Here are just a few of things to look out for next week-...
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