Chrysler is making leaps and bounds with their company and are claiming to be the first automotive manufacturer to provide digital owners manuals to customers. Chrysler is somewhat known for oddball moves (look at PT Cruiser, need I say more?), did the company even consider the times when a vehicle is broken down and the owners manual is needed to find a specific part? Or how about when you have a high end audio system and you blow a fuse? You are dead in the water. While the transition into the digital era may help "save 930 tons of paper, or equivilant of 20,000 trees on an annual basis", there are times (like selling someone a freaking car) when an owners manual is needed. Press release inside for anyone who cares.
I would normally say someone like this has no life, but being a former Lego fan myself in my younger years, I have to say this is pretty cool. This guy built a 32 valve DOHC V8 engine entirely out of Legos including moving pistons, crankshaft, and more. Geek factor? Definite 10. Cool? Yes.
First off, WalMart sucks. I can't stand the store, everything is disorganized, and is constantly filled with old people that can hardly move. Second, McDonalds. Their fast food is alright, grew up on it as a kid with happy meals and such, it's cheap and gets the job done, but the golden arch can never compete with In-N-Out.< /rant off>. The two mega corporations indirectly teamed up to provide drive thru's to customers thanks to a drunk driver in Texas.
The Star Telegram reports that a drunk man drove his car into the WalMart after "erratically in the parking lot, including doing donuts, before crashing through the store’s glass doors". The man then jumped into the bed of a pickup truck outside the store where the pickup truck driver struck 3 or 4 cars in the parking lot trying to get rid of the crazy ass drunkard.
I bet you this guy was on a little more than a bottle of Jack.
Today's Friday Beerblog should really be labeled the "dumbass edition". Here is a photo of a stretched Ford Excursion limo that got stuck on a hill in San Fransisco late last week. The best part about it, all of the passengers are outside trying to push the truck back uphill. Do they really think it's possible?
I was on my way home from Las Vegas a couple weekends ago when I came across this splendor of a safety hazard. You know you need to buy a pickup truck when you own as many bikes as this guy in the photo. In fact, you could get lucky and buy a new Chevrolet Silverado with GM's new 72 hour sale offering 0 percent financing for 72 months. If that doesn't suit your fancy, well continue looking like a douche bag and creating a hazard for everyone else on the road. Full size image inside.
Who would have known that a Toyota FJ40 would look great as a tractor? Especially a John Deere! Complete with bucket seats, 4 point harnesses, tractor tires, solid front and rear axles, custom front bumper, winch, and more, this John Deere Toyota FJ40 is one overkill of a tractor for the fields. Thoughts anyone?
For the past two new years eve events, professional drifting champion Rhys Millen's has attempted and failed miserably to perform a back flip in a pre-runner race truck. One reader over at Jalopnik came across some hick out in the country side who performed a back flip in his own monster truck creation. Check out the video below.
One of our members, Offroad250, came across some idiot that mounted his fifth wheel hitch receiver to the tailgate of his old Chevrolet Blazer. Not only is this combination ridiculously unsafe, it's just a douche thing to do. Moron.
Since the birth of Grave Digger in 1982, Monster Trucks have been very popular across the country. Known for their high powered engines, over sized off-road tires, and a love for crushing and destroying anything in its path, not everything always goes smoothly for these gentle giants. The following video is a compilation of monster truck crashes over the years.
Unfortunately there's no audio with the video due to copyright issues, so fire up iTunes (check out MOTORZ TV!!) or favorite music program and blast some metal.
Due to their portability, the camera can be placed anywhere. An enthusiast on YouTube mounted one on his Traxxas VXL Slash radio controlled car and jumped it off a ramp in the middle of his street, pulling a back flip in the process. The first time I saw this video I thought of Rhys Millen's multiple failed attempts of performing a back flip.
The dude in this YouTube video managed to get his Jeep stuck in mud so badly that while pulling the truck out, his entire front suspension gets twisted and ripped apart from underneath the Jeep. His buddy then yells out "Damn Dude, Holy Fuck" in reaction to the carnage. Talk about having a bad day.
How many custom license plates do you see each day that are completely stupid? Today, this beerblog is dedicated to lame vanity plates that our fellow citizens pay premium registration fees for every year. Check them out inside.
This is a really odd story. A man in Gainesville, Florida was announced missing earlier this month on February 11th. On February 12, his 2001 BMW 330i was ticked for being parked illegally on the side of the road. Over the course of a week and a half, the car was ticketed 6 more times but was never towed. It wasn't until this past Monday, February 23, when the body of the missing man was found in the back seat of his own car! A spokesperson for the City of Gainesville said the man went unnoticed due to his dark tinted windows. An autopsy was performed but the actual cause of death is still unknown.
While posting up other stories this morning, a particular product popped up in our "Truck Swag" portion of the site that caught my eye and I instantly thought "What the hell is that?".
That product is called the Stinger Hitch Helper, a 55 pound hitch system that fits any 2 inch receiver and helps level your pickup truck. Made with a coil spring that provides a smooth ride and easy height adjustment, the single hitch is rated for 910 pounds capacity at 65 miles per hour. There's also a dually hitch available, rated at 1,800 pounds at 65 miles per hour.
Now here's the catch... the single wheel unit is available for a raping $599 dollars and the dually unit at $1,129. For that price you can get a whole different spring leaf pack and increase your load rating safely.
For more information about the Stinger Hitch Helper head on over to Truck Hownd.
One crazy Halo video game enthusiast named Peter Jackson of Wellington, New Zealand, decided to build his very own Warthog ATV complete with a gun turret. Built in only six weeks time, the Warthog features several pickup truck parts which include a diesel Nissan Patrol engine, transmission and transfer case, fully independent suspension, bead lock wheels, Super Swamper tires, and solid axles. The body was the most crucial part of the whole build, painted just right with battle damage and military markings found in the video game. Pictures inside.
For all you Halo freaks out there, the next installment of the Halo series called "Halo Wars" hits store shelves March 5th. You can pre-order the game now from Best Buy or download the demo version on Xbox LIVE.
A group of guys from West Auckland decided to take an old Chevrolet "Crown" Flatbed Truck with a 396 engine, stack a Holden UTE pickup on the bed, and throw a Ducati motorcycle in the bed of the Holden, while each performed a burnout to create possibly the world's first triple burnout.
Being called the "Shanghai Lady" on YouTube, the Chinese woman in the video below had her Chevrolet Capitva SUV picked up by a tow truck driver for parking in an incorrect spot, which pisses her off. While not looking, she jumps into her SUV and proceeds to drive down the street pulling the puny tow truck behind her while still tethered up to it.
In the photo below found on Jalopnik, a Chevrolet Tahoe SUV was hauling ass through a red light intersection (on the way to Black Friday deals?) and managed to collide with a Mini Cooper head on, smashing the passengers side of the Tahoe. The vehicle that won in this battle, sadly, was the Mini Cooper. The Tahoe flipped on its side where the driver was unhurt and respectfully was given a ticket. It's a good thing they didn't just purchase a new 60 inch DLP HD TV from Best Buy or something. That would be the suck.
CNET have posted a new innovation in the tire industry for the military, one that can take the explosion of an IED (Improvised Explosive Device), withhold a few rounds of fire from a rifle, as well as support the weight of a Humvee. Standing at 37 inches tall, these new honeycomb style tires are developed out of a series of hexagon figures to help distribute weight around the tire.
An addition to these products is a pair of machine guns (they're fake...that's what she said) mounted to the hood of a Hummer H2. Pimped out and chromed to match the rest of the SUV, this lame ugly H2 is full of aftermarket parts you just don't add to a truck. Look for yourself.
I think I may have found Flavor Flav's hidden whip, a Hummer H3 SUV rolling on a set of Wagon wheels. Yes, Wagon wheels, as in the wooden ones that the pioneers used to travel the Oregon Trail back in the day. Either way, this thing is real freakin' ugly. If wagon wheels are what attract hot women like those in the photo, than all of our members here on Truckblog will die extremely happy lives. Even Mort, if that's possible.
Washington is a beautiful state but it's also full of a lot of weird and sickening people (like Mort), that would create distasteful products like the following: BrakeNutz. As if the TruckNutz concept wasn't bad enough, some dude had to go out and make a lighted version of the man jewels. There are even 50 different types according to their website including "camo truck nuts and chrome plated truck nuts, glowing truck nuts, pink truck nuts, flourescent orange truck ntus, truck nut keychains, and my personal favorite: lighted truck nuts".
Talk about having a case of the Mundays (Office Space reference). This unfortunate guy got pulled over on the side of the highway and actually received more than what he bargained for. Upon driving to the shoulder, a semi-truck comes up from behind and plows right into his car. Epic Fail.
It's always a good idea to have a backup plan, especially when operating with heavy machinery, automobiles, fire, cell phones, the wife, or any other life threatening situation. The operator of this (very nice) tow truck did not have a backup plan on this particular rescue operation and while flipping over a stranded semi truck on the highway, the semi begins to roll back and causes the tow truck to flip over. Epic FAIL.
Man would this suck or what. A Japanese towing company thought of a new way to commandeer (like Jack Sparrow) your vehicle using a crane to do the dirty work. I don't think this would work too well with a full size Ford or Chevrolet, but hey, I'm sure someone has tried. Check the video inside.
A member at Jalopnik came across this custom off-road'n, mudd bogg'n, dixie blow'n, lifted Jaguar XJS luxury car at a local Wal-Mart in Ft. Pierce, Florida (so cliché). Underneath the carriage of this bogger is a straight axle conversion with gas charged shocks, 40 inch Super Swamper mudd tires, custom front and rear bumper guards, side guards with integrated steps, trailer hitch, and a pink star sticker on the rear window...that's hot.
If you were too concentrated on the
Republican National Convention last week and did not check out Truckblog at all (which is a depressing thing), this is your chance to get a recap on our top stories.
Also for our jubilee of "Office Space" remembrance this week I ask, how many pieces of flare did you wear to work today or over the weekend?
Dutch mobile DJ Artist Olaf Mooij (try to say that 3 times fast), is re-mixing it up (not the birthday cake kind) to new levels with extreme mobile DJ'ing. His ridiculous car (some would call it art) is inspired by the Catholic Church's Pope mobile. Complete with a PA system, two turntables and gigantor speakers, Olaf's custom talent is available to rent for parties (how bout a Beerblog party?) What do you think?
During the famous Gumball 3000 race last week, one driver caught a hefty accident on tape while cruising along of a Ford Excursion towing a large trailer in the slow lane and all of a sudden, the trailer starts fish tailing and causes the Excursion to whip around, jackknife, and flip over. This video leaves me thinking, WWJD?
Do you share the same tag line "Work Sucks" as the 1999 movie "Office Space" does? We're sorry if you feel this way about your job, but one thing that definitely does not suck is our Truckblog.TV podcast on iTunes. Be sure to check out our latest episode as it will make work suck less and allow you to use the free bandwidth at the office. Here's the re-cap from last week.
Christ Car Wash Systems have released their (very hot) 2009 calendar showcasing their car wash systems with beautiful ladies each month. I don't know if there's any connection between the name "Christ Car Wash Systems" and "Christ" as in "baby jesus", but this calendar spread is definitely a gift from the heavens. Click the "Full Story" link for the full spread inside.
This guy totally has a death wish. After zooming by trucks, semi's and other vehicles at ball-hair raising speeds, the motorcyclist finally gets taken out by a small four door sedan on a side road.
Bob Dullam of the SuperHeroHype forum, is certainly a huge batman freak fan (Hit Me!), going all the way to spend $70 grand on a working replica of Batman's Tumbler attack vehicle "Batmobile" from "The Dark Knight" and "Batman Begins" movies. Welding the whole freakin thing himself, Dullam created the monster off of photos from the intarweb. He's even got his own Batsuit (see inside) and an afterburner!
The following story explains how to successfully run over and destroy your Apple iPhone 3G, brought to you by one of our own members, GE2. In the accident, the iPhone's glass screen is completely shattered and the back side of the phone remains unscratched, thanks to the Gadget Guard protective layer that was added.
A couple of dumb ass guys decided it would be cool to jump an old beater truck several feet in the air over a home made jump, after crashing the truck into a tree a dozen times (what's with people these days?). In doing so, one of them ends up in the hospital with a couple pins in his back (serves him right). The video's titling is pretty rad too, way better than our Truckblog.TV videos...not. By the way, make sure you check out our podcast on iTunes (sorry for the shameless plug). You can see the video of all the jumping, crashing, and destruction inside.
Someone give this guy a Darwin award. A dumbass man from Shelby County, Texas (I'll leave his name anonymous to help save his man-hood), drove his brand new Dodge Ram 2500 diesel pickup with new travel trailer into the side of an ATM drive through, taking down the whole exterior of the building and roofing. According to the genius, he was circling the bank to park on the other side when the corner of his travel trailer caught the corner of the bank awning and the next thing he heard was the awning falling onto his truck, crushing the drivers side door. Somehow he was able to unbuckle his seat belt and make it out the passenger door in the nick of time. Check out the video inside.
Only on eBay would you find crap like this. You have the chance to bid on a "Condition: Used" 1984 GMC 4 axle camper with sauna trailer, NO RESERVE!, "UNIQUE", for $3,800 bucks! Vibrating and rotational bed not included. Located in Lantana, Florida, the custom van has four axles "fixed dually on the middle, two steerables on front and one steerable on back. I made it out of three vans that I built together. It's a dream camper with a full RV-gear on board".
Measuring in at thirty feet long, ten feet high and weighing as much as a school bus or 13 tons, the "Monster Motorbike from Hell" was designed by stunt driver, Ray Baumann of Perth, Australia. Powered by a Detroit Diesel truck engine, six speed Allison transmission, and a two speed Eaton differential, the monster motor bike also has 10 foot tall tires. Check out the pictures and video inside.
Hunting fanatics pay attention! You can now camouflage your truck just like a deer with Truck Antlers, a revolutionary product that "turns your truck into a buck!". Way better than your neighbors bumper sticker "I'd rather be hunting", Truck Antlers are easily mounted to your window jam and are made out of high quality plastic. The dimensions are 17 x 14 x 9 inches and they can be purchased for only $29.98. Check it out inside.
Back in April, two U.S soldiers rented a new 2008 Chevrolet Suburban sports utility vehicle and took it on base during the night, at Dugway Proving Ground in Utah. As it turns out, the two men were driving about five kilometers from the area of the range that was used for live firing (snicker snicker). An F-16 fighter jet was in the area and the pilot thought he was firing at a target within the range.
Ever since I was a child (some of you can stop laughing now), I have had a fascination for pre-runner desert racing trucks and although I know the sport pretty well, the following video would make me scream for an "oh shit" handle. Driven by Marty Coyne, father of Travis Coyne whom we interviewed last year at Championship Off-Road Racing, managed to save the race truck from rolling over after jumping dozens of feet into the air and landing sideways. Check out the video inside.
Not quite Fred Flintstone status, the Trailcart is the world's first pedal powered four wheel drive off-road vehicle. The Trailcart features a permanent four wheel drive system that can conquer anything in it's path up to a 400 Milli-Meter axle displacement. To stop this bad boy, it has a double action mechanical hydraulic braking system. The whole Trailcart itself is constructed from sports-bike parts, including it's eight speed shifting system. With eight gears under your ass, you're guaranteed to scream "Yabba Dabba Doo!".
As if the plethora of vehicles were not bitchin enough in the first Transformers movie last summer, Transformers 2 is currently in production and has even more trucks, explosions, fire, and megabots! Woo Hoo! Can you tell I'm a fan? The Hummer HX concept is one of the new vehicles in the movie, and some spy shots were taken of the hog in action. Check them out inside.
Developed as a concept, The Handwrench was created by Paul Julius Martus, a designer with strong fabrication and building skills from Grand Rapids, Michigan. The wrench allows you to tighten any nut using the adjustable finger, while showing off your manhood at the same time in a very disturbing way. I think I'll just stick with my Craftsman tool set, thanks.
Is this not cool or what? Molson Coors Brewing Company, also known as Coors Brewing Company, will be the official E85 Ethanol Producer for the 2008 Democratic National Convention. What does that mean? Coors is converting their wasted beer that is lost in packaging or deemed "below quality standards", and are turning it into E85 ethanol gasoline to power your pickup truck, or in this case a fleet of vehicles for the convention. I think that deserves a whole round on the house! Press release inside.
Apparently the driver of the Jeep Grand Cherokee in this photo loves to pay expensive gasoline costs, and does not care for fuel efficiency very much. Life couldn't be better anywhere else than Russia, right? Cheap fuel prices, plenty of vodka, and a little bit of water run off in the winter.
A car dealer by the name of Max Motors in Butler, Missouri, is giving customers who buy a new car, the choice of $250 dollars in gasoline or a free semi-automatic handgun. "We got high gas prices, theft, carjackings, innocent people getting hurt" says Walter Moore of Max Motors.
As if Hearse Con 2008 wasn't bad enough, this would definitely ruin your day. Apparently in Russia, the roads are absolutely horrible during the spring, summer, fall, and you guessed it, winter seasons. They are however, at their "worst" conditions between seasons, when all of the insane amount of snow begins to melt, creating a mudd bogging paradise for most southerners here in the states. According to the original source, the authorities don't give a crap about the conditions either (sounds like lovely Russia doesn't it?). Check out the pictures inside.
You're going to have to check this one out for yourself. Unfortunately, we missed the second annual Hearse Convention 2008, which was held in Englewood, Colorado this month. The rides that showed up are pretty slick though, featuring machine guns mounted on fenders, lots of skulls all over the place, the famous "CARGOYL" Hearse, and blow up dolls. Yes, blow up dolls. Now that I have your attention, check out the video inside.
Exactly one week ago, a category 2 tornado with winds of 150 miles per hour touched ground in Leighton, Alabama. Someone crazy enough to stand near a window during this event, captured some remarkable footage of a group of cars in a parking lot being tossed around, like dead leaves that fell off of a tree. Somehow the trucks on the right portion of the screen were not affected. Check out the video inside.
Today's gem of "The Internets", which happens to be a perfect heavy weight contender for our weekly Friday Beerblog, is of an extremely unhealthy individual that decided to drive their "old fart cart" through the drive-thru window of a Wendy's fast food restaurant. It is very obvious in the photograph that when you're too fat, even your hybrid car will hate you, or, you are simply fed up with the current price of gas standing at $3.61, according to the EIA. Either way, it made for a good chuckle this morning.
Found on Axis of Over Steer, this accident happened in Hungary during the Central Europe Rally, which is part of the Dakar Racing Series. The driver and co-pilot both survived, however the VW Touareg trophy truck did not. The picture leaves us begging the question: What Would Jesus Do? Check out the larger version inside.
Are you feeling the Friday Beerblog love yet? This new one was found on Gizmodo, where the latest way to lift your automobile is by hooking up a lift jack balloon to your vehicle's exhaust, using the expelled gas to inflate the bag, thus lifting the car. Is this thing not dumb-ass proof or what? Anyone in their right mind who would get near this inflated hazard, is asking for it, even if the claims are "it's strong enough to lift a three-ton vehicle 18 inches for up to 45 minutes". Videos inside.
In efforts to protest gasoline and diesel fuel prices, a sign painter in Kentucky has hung up his paint brushes, and traded in his pickup truck for a new model horse. I don't know how he could possibly be saving money though, as the cost of oats for a horse are higher than the price of gas, at $84.61 for a 50 pound bag, according to Simply Natural. Oh well, at least homeboy made it on CNN. If you feel inclined to see the story on TV, you can view the video here.
Just in case you wanted to decorate your tires for the next car show, there's a new product on the market called SweetSkinz. What is it? Sweetskinz are colorized graphics that can be printed with specialty inks, which hold special reflective elements inside known as "Retro Reflectivity". This technology allows you to map out your image across the tire without painting it on, using a vulcanizing process. This product might be perfect for the hunter in mind. Camouflaged tires anyone?
Simply put, the ultimate gadget guide, Gizmodo, totally rocks for finding the weirdest things on the Internet. This Friday Beerblog gem wins the Ghetto Car Stereo award, which is a piece of crap car, where someone installed a 52x PC CD Rom Drive as the head unit to play Cd's. They also stuffed foam into the stereo-din to hold the unit in place. Check out the full resolution photo inside.
Truckblog's own, Michael S, came across this photo yesterday of a Jeep wrangler that crashed into a tree and, well, as you can see, leads us to one "hair" raising experience!
Earlier this year, YouTube's nottasrt4 spotted a Nissan 350Z with a "modified K&M Supercharger" in the wild. With camcorder in hand, he recorded a mini-documentary of what he saw. Upon catching up with the youthful driver of the 350Z a second time at a stop light, nottasrt4 rolled his window down and got an exclusive interview with the driver, revealing the true power of this sweet ride with 422 HP at the rear wheels. The driver claims his K&M blower runs at 14 PSI, his chipped 3.5L has stainless-steel twin cold air intakes, and rocks a stock exhaust which actually gets "better horsepower with the stock". The videos have to be seen to be believed. [via Muscle Car Blog]
I don't know where the guys at Jalopnik find this crap, but it's really amazing. As seen in the photographs, the vehicle is a Holden UTE sport truck, which are sold in Australia. Lifted on huge Mickey Thompson Baja Claws and packed with a 6.0 liter V8 engine, "Da Hulk" as it's called, also has what seems to be hydraulic cross over steering, a full Dana 60 front axle, leaf springs, a Westin Bull Bar, six Lightforce HID off road lights, flared fenders, chrome side steps, and roll bar. Mudding anyone?
I honestly don't know what the hell this guy was thinking, but this one of a kind creation is guaranteed to turn heads at any gas station. God forbid you have to sell your truck or SUV because of our outrageous gas prices and are forced to purchase an old Volkswagen Golf car like this one, be aware that there is a new replacement available for your spare tire.
Holy toledo! The caption of these photos state that "after losing control on a patch of ice, this pickup truck is literally hanging on with only a tiny piece of metal. It's a 70 foot drop to the bottom of the river". That's crazy insane! It just goes to show how important a frame's strength, rigidity, and flexibility is for pickup trucks. I guess my next question is, how the hell did they get him out of there?
The Toyota Tundra, in all of its blades of glory (sorry, no Will Farrell in this one), has been named "Truck Of The Year" by one of the leading agriculture trade publications in the United States for "high-income, Midwestern farmers", called Farm Industry News. The Tundra was chosen from a drawing that was held in the magazine throughout the year, and the Tundra gained the most responses (or at least the Ford and Chevy guys never turned theirs in). The redesigned Tundra set new benchmarks in the full-size truck segment, offering 44 model variations, trim levels, and more. Move over Ford, Chevy and Dodge boys, 'cuz there's a new hoss in town.
So you are probably thinking by now, "Oh great, more Hummer news- what's the deal Truckblog?". Well, today is unofficially, Hummer Friday. Why, you ask? Well, we found a handful of articles regarding Hummer and their vehicles, and decided to post them all today. And that leads us to our Beerblog, "The 110k Hummer H2".
Is this for real? Unfortunately, it is. You are looking at a one-of-a-kind, Honda Civic Tractor, customized by the guy featured in these photos. I'm sure when he cruises into town or across a field, all of the girls "think his tractor's sexy" (for all of you Kenny Chesney fans). The custom Honda Civic Tractor appears to also be amphibious, although I doubt it would hold up in any mud bogging. Either way, it grabbed some Beerblog status this week. More pictures inside.
Round 'em up and come 'n' get it! Only in Texas, would someone build a grill to resemble their gun. This gigantic 19 foot barbecue grill looks like a 1917 Double Action Colt-45 caliber pistol, straight out of the wild west.
Jalopnik, posted information regarding a researcher in Pennsylvania, Frank Pringle, who claims to have found a new alternative source for oil. By microwaving a tire inside a vacuum, he is able to extract the tires particles into a ready-to-use diesel fuel. Pringle says " A 14-inch tire yields about 1.2 gallons of diesel, 7.5 pounds of carbon black, 50 cubic feet of combustible gas and 2 pounds of high-strength steel". Nuking the tire in the microwave only costs fifty cents in electricity, and his newly found process is being reviewed for large-scale use. This mad scientist also found that microwaving grass clippings, you are able to turn it into ethanol. Anyone want to try this newly found diesel fuel?
Beware, this product is patented. It's called TruckShade and guess what it does?...You guessed it, provides shade for the side of your truck. I would like to see this thing survive one trip in the desert or any climate where there is any amount of wind, watching it break off and scratching the bed sides of your truck. The TruckShade weighs less than 5 pounds, "super compact" (like a tampon?), "quick and easy to set up", and retails at only $87.97 (someone took an economics class) for long bed trucks and $79.97 for 6 1/2 foot bed trucks. It's also been chosen as Dirt Rider Magazine's "Personal Picks" for "2006 Product of the Year". Well in my opinion, I vote the TruckShade as Truckblog's "2007 Crap Product of the Year". If you do like this product, you can visit their rad website at www.truckshade.com. They're almost in competition for the 2007 Webby Awards, watch out Truckblog.
I was looking through the Ford Collection website tonight after receiving some congratulatory junk in the mail from Ford regarding my new truck purchase and found this little gem, a "Built Ford Tough" branding iron.
"Manufactured in solid brass with a natural hardwood handle and rawhide hanging strap. Each comes up to temperature quickly when placed into hot charcoal or the flame of a gas grill."
It's not cheap... 70 bucks, but I think I'm going to buy one anyway -- will come in handy at this year's SEMA Show. The kids will love me.
Detroit Free Press has reported that more than 55,000 Toyota vehicles have been recalled due to complaints of "unintended acceleration caused by the mats sticking underneath the accelerator pedal"...Try telling that one to an auto insurance company. The vehicles affected are the Toyota Camry and Lexus ES 350, however complaints have also been filed with the Toyota Tacoma, RAV 4 crossover, Prius hybrid and Avalon sedans (Watch out Tom!).
Congrats to the couple who got married in this thing, however getting married in a Hummer is just lame. They even wore race suits during their "I Do's", while standing in the beds of Hummer trucks. Can you say extreme Nascar fans? Included in the wedding was a 3-D shaped Hummer wedding cake, Hummer wrapping paper, chance to ride in an H2 and go off-roading in their "full wedding attire". The honeymoon concluded with more than 100 Hummer truck owners in an off-roading trek that "puts vehicles to the maximum use", SICK! Hummers are cool. Getting in married in one is just STUPID.
If you wish to get married in a Hummer, click "Full Story" for contact information. What are your thoughts? Would you get married in a Hummer? Use the "add comments" button for your answer.
Here at Truckblog, we try our best to deliver the top news and latest aftermarket products, across the automotive industry. This one is a real gem of the internet. It's called "Insta-Sunroof", an "extremely fashion and new aparent sun roof, made of a sticker that will give any car the image of a real sunroof." and It can be installed in only 5 minutes! Check it out!
Just when you think you've seen it all, there's always something out there that will leave you in even more astonishment. Well, yesterday was that day, and it was horrid enough where I thought instantly, "beerblog status". While on my adventure to a local San Diego beach, I happened to park near a very customized vehicle that seemed to have been inspired by MTV's hit ghetto fab automotive customization show, "Pimp My Ride". So custom, they even took the time to match their rims to the overall paint scheme. The vehicle? A 1990 Honda Accord... groovy baby, yeah! Click "Full Story" to view pictures of this sweet ride.
This was a bit of an eye opener... today someone Digged an old Beerblog article from almost 3 years ago and it made the Digg home page for half a day or so. See image to the right. It also made it to the very top of the Jalopnik.com home page (direct article link).
The funny thing is that this image is almost as old as the Internet itself, and that blog article here is as old as Truckblog is. So if you feel inclined, go jump on the bandwagon and Digg it along with the other (currently 1,215) diggers. Thanks to "techchickblogr" for thinking of us.
It's a bird... it's a plane... it's a... Japanese Wooden Supercar of course! What the hell is it? Well according to Japan Probe, the car is made solely out of wood (I'm thinking Birch), and can travel up to a reported 80 kilometers per hour. So awesome you want to buy one too, right? It only costs $32,000(US)! Sweet! And finally, the wooden supercar was designed by a Japanese furniture company. Go figure. Click the "full story" link to view a video and demonstration.
Apparently PIXAR let a few of their computer animators loose at Truckblog. In preparation of a Disney PIXAR "Cars" spin off, "Trucks" will cast mostly Ford truck characters, including a few Super Dutys, Broncos, Rangers, and plenty of F-150s. Rumor has it that many of the characters from "Cars" will return, including Lightning McQueen, Sally, Mater, and Doc Hudson. Whether the film is sponsored by the Ford Motor Company or they just paid a hefty amount for product placement, we're not exactly sure.
Due in theaters summer 2010, check out some of the artists' sketches and prototypes for Disney PIXAR "Trucks". Can ya digg it?
This one definitely deserves some Beerblog status. I found (well Chris actually found it) the newest way to put a fat dent in your tailgate. Sick huh? It's a product called Pickup Hoops that plugs right into your bed for the ultimate, jaw wrenching, edge of your seat basketball game of your life. As quoted from their website, "Pick-Up Hoops is perfect for "Ballers" on the Go!" So I guess we should start seeing these on the back of every Escalade or Yukon? It's sure to help you win that 1st place trophy at the local show. Maybe you can make some money off of kids while you're there? Charge a buck or two per game to help pay for that beer you're going to need after purchasing this product.
I raise my beer high (yeah I can drink now) and give a toast, to the stupidest product we've seen in a while.
"Diesel up your bees everybody. We're gonna go ridin'!" While testing out the new TruckTube video library here at Truckblog I stumbled upon a video from the Great White North that is not to be missed. A bunch of Canadians take their 1992 Ford F-250 diesel 4x4 out mudding on the farm and turn it into a fish tank. The rusty old Ford survives, but just barely.
First they wanted your naked women, now they're after your balls. Bull Ballz that is. In another example of too much time on their hands, Maryland Lawmakers are trying to ban all anatomically correct vehicle decorations. With the fake bull testicles that adorn many trailer hitches around rural America being mentioned specifically.
– Texas Termin8er
In my day we called these a musical PA. This Beerblog is from the "Let's reinvent the wheel department". I would expect no less of an "invention" from a guy who thinks an H1 Hummer with Hulk Hogan airbrushed on the hood is the pinnacle of "cool".
– devnull
America, your lawmakers and legislators are hard at work keeping you and your family safe from dangerous things in society. In one recent example, the Arizona congress wasted about 500 man-hours of tax payer dollars to decide that for now at least the good truckers of the Grand Canyon State can still display naked woman silhouettes, and other pictures and phrases, on their mudflaps.
– devnull
You've seen them all... the fuzzy steering wheel covers, obnoxious bumper stickers, bullet hole stickers, fake hands, and even truck nuts. PrankPlace Novelties has assembled all your favorites in one place and made them easy to find, including the latest antennae topper for your ride... strippers.
For around ten bucks you too can now have Jenna Jameson, Raven, Diamond, or Brittni doing the dance on your antennae. Being stuck in traffic just got a whole lot more entertaining.
We've seen it all here at Truckblog, including the Mustang converted to a Ford Ranger pickup and the Mustang GT pickup truck conversion, but this one was a bit unexpected. Seems the new VW Beetle has caught the eye of a pickup truck enthusiast over in Deutsch-land. So much in fact that he's converted it to a pickup truck!
Truckblog crew member "BrianO" (Brian Olhausen) lives in a big world. From his 15-inch lifted Ford F-150 to his monster F-250 Super Duty that was at the 2006 SEMA Show in Las Vegas last week, everything is super-sized for this 6 foot 9 behemoth. So to feed him, we searched high and low and found the almighty German pancake at The Pancake House in Poway, CA. This mancake is huge and is not intended for the weak. So I sat back, drank beer, and watched this monster eat big people food, German style.
When it's time for you to graduate from the "Baby On Board" stick-on window sign for your ride, admittedly there aren't very many options. The defensive-driving folks over at Smile International sat down to re-invent that missing rear window ornament for your ride.
As we enter the holidays it's time once again to break out the Halloween decorations, followed by boxes upon boxes of Christmas decorations. One thing that's big for us this time of the year are holiday parties. Every year I'm looking for something new to spice up the holidays and add more holiday cheer. I don't know about you, but these boring holiday parties could sure use some more horsepower, don't you think?
Just a friendly reminder to everyone this weekend for those of you with a custom bed lift... make sure to keep your bed closed, especially around corners. You don't want to end up like this guy.
Ford's got it all wrong. Instead of cutting production of trucks and SUVs and cranking out more cross-over vehicles, they should be going bigger, much bigger.
I thought I had seen it all, and evidently I missed the Chrysler Group's "What Can You HEMI" contest last year. The grand prize winner won a HEMI-powered Chrysler, Jeep or Dodge vehicle. This entry, the 345hp 5.7L HEMI-powered bar-b-que grille by Tim Kowalec, didn't even make it to the finals but deserves an honorary Truckblog "More Power Award" ("ugh, ugh ugh").
So, you got a new truck and you're ready to accessorize. You have a motorcycle (that you tow). What do you do when you're not towing your "hog"? You put on your animated wheelie hog Hitch Critter, that's what you do. I'm really not kidding... this is for real. This bad ass pig does a wheelie and his headlamp lights up when the brakes are applied.
Starting McToday through the end of the McMonth you can now pull up to the golden arches in your extravagant HUMMER and drive away with a miniature (albeit less extravagant) McHUMMER toy. "McDonald’s Happy Meal and Mighty Kids Meal HUMMER line-up features eight dynamic vehicles, capturing the power, excitement and unique styling that make HUMMER one of the most recognizable vehicles on (and off) the road." Do my girls still get the McBarbie Jeep?
Why, oh, why, can't people just leave their bad ideas on the bar napkin? Clearly this is one of them. Introducing spinners... for your tailpipe. "The spinner will rotate in the exhaust stream. At high engine speeds the spring-loaded spinner is also pushed out of the exhaust tip, giving a visual indication of the revving engine." Certainly a performance degrading product, and who's looking at your tailpipe to determine that your vehicle is moving?
Note quite as ridiculous as last week's Beerblog about the carbon fiber toilet seat, in this week's Beerblog we continue spotlighting unusual products with these super-manly outlet and switch covers.
Made from billet aluminum (where's the carbon fiber version folks?), these covers come in both shiny happy chrome and a clear anodized finish.
Carbon fiber. It's light, ten times stronger than steel, and is now used to strengthen your favorite washroom. "You know how fast a little fiber can make you go," claims the manufacturer. "Finally, a high performance, race ready composite toilet seat." Can you say, "pimp my ride"?
The seat is hand-layered carbon fiber molded around a foam core using 550,000 psi tensile carbon fiber, and fits standard household toilets.
It's been a while since our last Beerblog, but it's once again Friday, and time to fall off the wagon. This Beerblog is a first. Denny Hao (DrSpeed), part of our Truckblog Crew was monumentally inventive the other night when out on the town. Denny thought, "Why not wear my super-sexy Truckblog shirt and have a few cold ones with the ladies? The ladies love the flaming hot logo, doood!" Next thing he knew, a strategically-placed Corona beer bottle was placed over the "Truck" text in the logo to read "Beerblog" (or would that be Cervezablog?) Thanks for the sweet camera phone photo, "doood"!
Do you remember the "Where's the Beef" lady from the Wendy's commercials? How about the chihuahua from the Taco Bell commercials? Of course you do. Today, in our Friday Beerblog, we bring you the latest American television commercial icon... VW German engineers. Volkswagen has unleashed three hilarious commercials as parodies to MTV's "Pimp My Ride" series. In this series of commercials, two engineers "un-pimp" rides to reveal the new VW GTI. Check all three commercials out here in the Truckblog Videos humor department.
When we say Truckblog is everywhere, we mean it. Take for example our recent trip to Australia to shoot a yearly auto show. Talk about brush guards! These Aussies outfit their rigs with commercial strength roo-guards. This Ford Falcon UTE was outfitted with what they called a "Roo-mover Max" -- one can only imagine what that bad boy does to Outback's finest.
Our own Truckblog member, "mercurdeez" (Specialist Big D), was on a mission to give Truckblog.com some middle eastern props. Next time you're deployed to Ramadi, Iraq, be on guard for a Truckblog-labeled 5-Ton and 4x4 golf cart on steroids.
Check out a few covert spy shots of these highly (un)classified desert rigs that our undercover brother sent in. No worries, Truckblog was authorized permission to display these images from the man's CO, so no unnecessary article 15 paperwork need be filed.
Sometimes a little gem of a story come across our newsdesk that is just too wacky to pass up. This one's a real stinker... literally. According to The Detroit News today, Ford Motor Company is now cracking down on restroom breaks at the truck plant in Wayne, Michigan. The average time spent on potty breaks exceeds 48 minutes which surely cuts down on production of the Expedition and Navigator SUVs. But is this a problem of company morale, lazy workers, or too many good magazines being left in the stalls? Ford better find out quick because monitoring bathroom breaks is not the answer.
In Buffalo, New York, police aprehended a slightly inebriated man who had stolen a potato chip delivery truck in an attempt keep his buzz alive.
Police later said the man drove off in a Frito-Lay delivery truck after the driver left the keys in the ignition. A witness told the police that the man offered to sell the whole truck for just 20 dollars but was easily persuaded to relinquish it for just five bucks because he wanted a beer.
People, we know our beer blogs are good, but you don't have to be drunk to read them.
I was looking through the 
This one definitely deserves some Beerblog status. I found (well Chris actually found it) the newest way to put a fat dent in your tailgate. Sick huh? It's a product called 
We've seen it all here at Truckblog, including the 
Truckblog crew member "BrianO" (Brian Olhausen) lives in a big world. From his 15-inch lifted Ford F-150 to his monster F-250 Super Duty that was at the 
I thought I had seen it all, and evidently I missed the Chrysler Group's "What Can You HEMI" contest last year. The grand prize winner won a HEMI-powered Chrysler, Jeep or Dodge vehicle. This entry, the 345hp 5.7L HEMI-powered bar-b-que grille by Tim Kowalec, didn't even make it to the finals but deserves an honorary Truckblog "More Power Award" ("ugh, ugh ugh").
It's been a while since our last 
Sometimes a little gem of a story come across our newsdesk that is just too wacky to pass up. This one's a real stinker... literally. According to The Detroit News today, Ford Motor Company is now cracking down on restroom breaks at the truck plant in Wayne, Michigan. The average time spent on potty breaks exceeds 48 minutes which surely cuts down on production of the Expedition and Navigator SUVs. But is this a problem of company morale, lazy workers, or too many good magazines being left in the stalls? Ford better find out quick because monitoring bathroom breaks is not the answer.
In Buffalo, New York, police aprehended a slightly inebriated man who had stolen a potato chip delivery truck in an attempt keep his buzz alive.
