Autoblog

Foose Design and the man for which the company is named, Chip Foose, announced last Friday that it is severing all ties with Unique Performance. The Dallas-based company had agreements with Foose to produce the Foose Mustang Stallion (pictured), Foose Camaro, Foose Challenger and Foose Motorcycle, as well as handle the sales and marketing for the Hemisfear. The break up comes after Shelby ended its relationship with the Unique last month, and a police raided Unique's facility last week for suspected title washing. Foose Design wants to let its customers know that it now has no affiliation whatsoever with Unique Performance, and that Unique does not have any rights to anything regarding Foose for any project. Follow the jump for the official press release from Foose Design.

[Source: Foose Design]

Click image for live gallery from SEMA

It seems that a lot of companies are realizing that unless your horsepower claims are in the four-digit range, they barely get noticed anymore. With that in mind, the team at Mothers Polish cooked up a very special 1970 Chevelle SS hot rod with 1,000 HP under the hood. And it happens to be powered by propane gas, hence the "ProPane" name. Jim Holloway from Mothers came up with the concept, Chip Foose did the design, Johnny Omundson of Obrothers Design handled the engineering, Haigh Blocks & PPI (Propane Performance Industries) were responsible for that 527 ci Chevy small block, and Paul Gonzalez of PGCC did the build. The result is one of the cleanest and cleanest burning resto-mods we've seen.

Follow the jump for the press release and build sheet.

[Source: Mothers]

Click the pic above for a high-res gallery of images

The common mantra for most people that have made the unfortunate transition to adulthood goes something like this: "Wish I would have had that when I was a kid." We feel your pain, probably more than most, and especially when it comes to the four-wheeled delights that most adolescents have at their disposal. So when we heard about Chip Foose's newest endeavor (seriously, has that guy invented a 32-hour day?), our initial reaction was "Cool!" followed by a series of mutterings reminiscent of one our elderly uncles.

Thankfully, we've been provided with a way to relive our misspent youth in the from of the RIDEMAKERZ Ford Super Chief (Base MSRP $28.00), jacked-up to all get-out and completely pimped with hood scoop, utility chest, and flashing lights.

So how else could we review this newest line of toys? Naturally, we're putting it through our own series of tests that any media whip would get, so follow the jump for the complete review.

Great, another retail establishment that can't spell. Here's a tip: "Z" does not equal "S." Using Z to pluralize words will also not make you hip or cool. Rather, it will point out that it's an obvious stab at being cool, without actually attaining coolness. Alphabet abuse aside, the concept of RideMakerz is cool. From the soft, cuddly folks at Build-A-Bear Workshop (and Chip Foose, natch) comes a less fluffy, more greasy idea. Those of us who spent hours inhaling Testor's model glue fumes finally have a mall refuge for our car-freak offspring. Kids can pick the type of vehicle they want to build, trick it out with accessories (pardon us, accessoriez), add decals, and even customize the license plate and add remote control capabilities, depending on Mom and Dad's available credit. The first store opens in Myrtle Beach this week, and the Mall Of America is going to get one soon, too. If they make you kiss the engine, turn around three times and recite some incantation, just watch out for the fan blades.

[Source: RideMakerz via Jalopnik]

The interweb is atwitter today thanks to a piece published by the Detroit News that hints Chrysler may revive the storied Cuda nameplate. Such a car would obviously share a platform with the upcoming Challenger, though would be sold as a Chrysler model since its original parent brand, Plymouth, is long since shuttered. The rumor was started by an interview given by famed hot rod tuner Chip Foose at the 2007 New York Auto Show earlier this month in which he mentioned the possibility of such a car.

We think the rumor has pretty weak legs to stand on, considering it originated from a guy who doesn't even work for Chrysler. Though Foose has partnered with DCX on a number of projects, there's no reason they would release such sensitive information to him. It could be the case that Foose wants a Chrysler Cuda to be developed and sold, but that's an entirely different story.

Plus, the New York Auto Show has been done and over for about three weeks. The possibility of a new Cuda is pretty hot info, so as a fellow publisher we're boggled why The Detroit News would sit on it for so long. As for the rendering that appears with the source article, while tastefully done by our friend George Achorn, is clearly just a tweaked version of a Challenger pic with a new color and different wheels. If Chrysler ever did decide to build the Cuda again, hopefully it would be differentiated by more than that.

The rendering we chose to use (above) is one done by the excellent Doug Schramm of www.creatingthelie.com fame. We found his pics of a Chrysler Cuda hanging out on ChryslerCuda.com. Cleary the Cuda's return became the wish of many Mopar enthusiasts as soon as the Challenger Concept first took the stage at the 2005 Detroit Auto Show.

[Source: The Detroit News]

Click the image above to view the Autoblog Chip Foose interview

Questions remained surrounding the Ford Chip Foose F-150, so we set out in search of answers and found ourselves speaking to the man whose name appears on the truck. A couple of questions and a Chip riff or two later, here's what we learned - the inspiration for the truck was Foose's own F-series, the truck should be available in three or four months (!), and a lighter-weight two-door version might be on its way if Chip's crew has its way. SVT may not be able to resurrect the Lightning, but we think this would be an adequate substitute. Press through to watch us stutter and stammer our way through an interview with the Hot Rod Hall of Famer after the jump.

click above image to view five desktop wallpaper-sized pics of the F-150 Foose Edition

We reported late last year that Chip Foose had hooked up with Ford to produce some special Foose-ified Blue Oval models, and the F-150 is the first vehicle to get the famous tuner's treatment. Based on the F-150 FX2 Sport, the Foose Edition will not only be the fastest F-150 every produced, faster even than the SVT Lightning, it will also be the fastest half-ton pickup in the world, according to Ford.

The truck has been lowered and sits on giant 22-inch wheels. A new grille and bumper up front are joined by rocker panels that accentuate the lowered look, while the body is adorned with custom striping. The interior is also augmented with Foose headrests and floor mats, as well as a leathe-wrapped center console with serialization plate.

The Foose Edition F-150 is powered by a supercharged version of the 5.4L Triton V8 producing 450 horsepower at 5,200 rpm and 500 ft-lbs. of torque at 4,000 rpm that sends power through a four-speed automatic. That's not as much power as the Dodge Ram SRT-10, but that 500-hp truck went out of production in 2006, leaving the mantle of World's Fastest Pickup for the F-150 Foose Edition to pick up. While this is technically a concept, the production version it inspires will go on sale this fall. Incredibly, Foose and Ford developed this truck in the time after last year's SEMA Show in November when discussions between the two began. There's no word on pricing or how many will be produced, but expect the F-150 Foose Edition to be expensive and exclusive.

[Source: Ford]


UPDATE: The F-150 Foose Edition may not be the fastest truck for long, as you'll read in our ride and drive of the new Saleen S331 Sport Truck that also features 450 hp and 500 ft-lbs. of torque in a body with two less doors. That should make for a fine head-to-head comparo.

Click image for gallery of live and press pics

When we saw this car at SEMA, it wore the Hemisfear moniker. But something happened on the way to (limited) production. Rumor has it Chrysler balked at the use of "HEMI" in the name, and so the Foose Coupe was born. Still available with a 392 crate motor, the Coupe can also be had with a Ford 5.4-liter supercharged engine like the one in the late GT. Foose describes his coupe as "Part supercar, part custom, part hot rod, it's the ultimate ride." Well, there will certainly be at least 50 people who think so. The Foose Coupe will be limited to just 50 copies and each will be hand signed by Chip when construction is completed at Metalcrafters, Inc. in their California facilities. We expect them to go quickly, despite their $295,000 base price.

[Source: Unique Performance via Fast-Autos.net]

Click image for high-res gallery

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Well, apparently each of the pictures in the custom mural paintjob on this Hummer were worth $1,000. More a thank-you gift for making a huge donation than anything, the Overhauled Hummer was perhaps the biggest star in the massive constellation of Saturday's Barrett-Jackson auction. After acknowledging all of the service people in the crowd, the bidding started and quickly went up in $50,000 increments. In the end, the Warrior One brought a high "bid" of $1,000,000 for the Fisher House. The second highest bidder even added another $250,000 to the pot, just for the heck of it. Probably the only Hummer to ever bring one-and-a-quarter mil. Only the excitement surrounding the sale of Shelby's personal Supersnake Cobra came close to matching this moment. Funniest part of the whole week, though, was when they had to roll the Hummer further down the stage to be able to see the bidders over its roof.

Yet another custom Mustang story. OK, we understand you might be getting overwhelmed by all of the special 'Stangs on the market right now, but as America's only affordable sportscar with a V8, it's an obvious tuner choice. And this happens to be a Mustang by one of our favorite customizers, Chip Foose. As we reported back in November, Chip Foose was working on a project with Ford to sell limited edition Fooseified products through select Ford dealers. Speculation was that it would be a version of his Stallion Mustang that had been available since June through select dealers. Well, that speculation was pretty accurate. But there's a twist.

While a supercharged version of the Foose Stallion will continue to be sold through select dealers, a new naturally aspirated base model will also be offered, through ALL Ford dealers. In partnership with Unique Performance, the base model Foose Stallion will be built with the Foose Stallion styling package as well as upgraded brakes, exhaust and wheels/tires. The complete rundown of modifications goes something like this: a Ford Racing exhaust and suspension, 11-inch rear and 12-inch front DecelaRotors, Chip's custom embroidered seats, Foose sill plates, Foose ID plate, signature logo on the dash, plus the custom Foose upper and lower billet grille and 20-inch Foose Nitrous wheels. The base model Foose Stallion is available now at a starting MSRP of $36,365. We swung by the local Tuttle-Click Ford dealer with our pal Drew Phillips and got some pics of a nice black base model.

Click the images to go to the high-res gallery and follow the jump to read the full press release.



[Source: Unique Performance]