Posted Dec 6th 2007 11:59AM by Chris Tutor Filed under: Etc.
Dear Santa, We've been good better boys and girls this year. We're not asking for much, just a carbon fiber wallet, some dice, a retro neon sign, Jeff Gordon dental floss, and, and... Oh just check out the gift guide. And, unlike last year, we're taking it easy on you. Nothing costs over $25,000.
Love and kisses, The Autoblog staff
P.S. If we don't get at least 40% of the stuff on the list this year, we're bootin' ya from the comments, old man.
The Holiday Season is upon us, and just like the rest of us, you're undoubtedly running around finding the perfect gifts for everyone on your shopping list, naughty or nice. But short of a Porsche, Ferrari or Bugatti race car with a red ribbon tied around it, what kind of gift would you get for a car nut? Especially when Autoblog already gives the automotive enthusiast all the octane he or she can burn.
Well, for what we can't give you, we give you this: the Autoblog Holiday Gift Guide. In it you'll find an assortment of gift ideas for the car nut on your list, everything from jackets to racing schools, toy cars to laptop computers and a whole lot in between.
So, from all of us at Autoblog: Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, Kool Kwanzaa (and Festivus for the Rest of Us)!
Posted Dec 5th 2006 6:28PM by John Neff Filed under: Etc.
Here we have another Autoblog scoop of a smaller but no less important nature than the Toyota Tundra Crew Max photo we brought you earlier. Patrick Calello, the founder and principle designer of Automoblox, has released to us exclusive images of his next line of heirloom quality toy cars. Dubbed the R-Line, this division of Automoblox will eventually pump out "high performance" versions of current models, like the C9R shown above and the S9R after the jump. Just like Mercedes-Benz has AMG and BMW boasts of an M-division, Automoblox now has the R-Line. What distinguishes the R-line from standard Automoblox models is the addition of go-fast goodies like a deck spoiler, chin spoiler, rear diffuser, and side skirts, all made out of polycarbonate plastic and finished to look like carbon fiber. The wheels will also be larger than stock rims and be wrapped in lower profile rubber. Unfortunately, the R-Line won't be available before mid-2007, so if you were planning on stocking your Christmas tree with Automoblox toys, you can either go for the full set of standard cars or nab the limited edition C9p sports car in pink.
As each of us gets older and has a harder time remembering when all we wanted for Christmas were toys, it's healthy to find a way to dive back in the past and relive those simpler times. That's a tough exercise to pull off with TPS reports that need copying and a 9-5 that doesn't allow for play time. Enter the "Race in a Briefcase", which is our name for this German-engineered executive toy that marries a very serious looking stainless steel briefcase with a 2-meter long toy car track on which two racers can compete. The track is slotted, and unlike the kiddy kind of yesteryear that only called for a trigger finger strong enough to last ten laps, the "Race in a Briefcase" requires deft throttle control to stay on course and not send your car flying off the boardroom table. The track uses a standard 9 volt battery that powers the fun for five hours, and a stopwatch is even included to officially time your runs. It looks like a sweet toy that can be easily slipped by your boss for hours of on-the-clock fun. Be prepared to cough up a paycheck for the privelage, however, as the "Race in a Briefcase" costs €598.00 (about $766).
Posted Oct 21st 2006 11:09AM by John Neff Filed under: Etc.
You know what the fashionistas say, pink is the new black. Or is that black is the new black? Whatev. The point is that pink's a hot color. In fact, many of us with kids that lack a Y chromosome (read: daughters) are treated daily to the sight of Barbies with pink hot pants, Hello Kitty notebooks with pink covers and, perish the thought, diapers with pink waistbands. So it's obviously important to expose our impressionable young daughters to car culture as early as possible if we ever hope to raise the next Danica Patrick, Kathryn Legge or Ashley Force, and the best way to do that is to bring together their favorite color and your biggest passion. Automoblox does just that with its new limited edition pink sportscar, the C9p. It's just like the Automoblox heirloom toys we showed last year, except for the pink plastic greenhouse and pink rubber wheels. Fortunately it's not the hot pink that tends to scar the retinas, but rather a muted, subtler shade that's easy on the eyes. Little ladies, start your imaginary engines.
The official set of 2007 Porsche calendars makes me regret ever giving Google Calendar a try. Abandoning the old wall calendar for the digital domain is clearly a mistake if we have to give up looking at vehicles like these 365 days of the year. Porsche's new set of official 2007 calendars includes three large, traditional wall calendars and one date planner. Each calendar has a theme, like "Symphony of Colors" that shows various locations where the featured car's color either starkly contrasts with the surroundings or blends in. There's also "On the Move" that shows us behind the scenes of Porsche's museum collection and "Design... turbocharged" (shown above) that displays various design sketches and views of the new 911 Turbo from the men and women who designed it. Finally, the smaller date planner features 50 years of Porsche advertisements going all the way from 1957 up to the present. You can order the calendars at Porsche's website, and we suspect more than a few a Porsche-o-philes will find these under the tree at Christmas.
Follow the jump for a couple more pics of calendar pages.
Continuing a long tradition of offering special edition rides in its Christmas catalogue, Neiman Marcus and BMW announced today the availability of the Limited-Edition 2007 BMW Individual M6 Convertible in the 2006 Neiman Marcus Christmas Book. Only 50 examples of this rare beauty will be sold, but for the pittance of $139,000.00, one gets a 2007 BMW M6 convertible bathed in Ruby Black paint and upholstered in a special Gold Brown shade of BMW Individual merino leather.
We're glad to hear that in addition to the car, this Christmas present also includes a four-night trip to Munich where the proud owner and a guest will steep themselves in BMW culture and meet the designers who designed, or really picked out the color combo, of their unique M6 'verts. One question for Neiman Marcus, though: do you guys gift wrap?
Once again Mercedes-Benz is teaming up with upscale department store Saks Fifth Avenue to offer the CL600 Signature Edition for sale in the "The Gift" catalog this holiday season. Only 20 Signature Editions CL600s will be produced and offered in the catalog that goes out to Saks customers in mid-October.
The CL600 Signature Edition features the marque's twin-turbo 12-cylinder powerplant that produces 510 horsepower and 612 ft-lbs. of torque. The only real change to the coupe is the addition of an exclusive color palette designed to compliment the holiday season. The exterior is Mystic White, while the interior is swathed in Porcelain Nappa leather and Piano Lacquer Black wood-trim. Pricing for the CL600 Signature Edition has not been announced, but last year's offering, 20 specially-equipped S600 sedans, were priced at $145,775 and sold out in just seven minutes.
For gearheads, there's little better place to be than the local dragstrip on a cool summer evening. Indeed, for anyone with blood running through their veins, the words "Test-n-Tune Night" should indeed raise one's pulse and get Metallica's "Fuel" cued up in the ol' mental jukebox.
Our beastly Impala SS is still laid up in the garage waiting for some new transmission internals (more on this soon!), but fortunately a couple friends from the local B-body club were nice enough to invite us along to US-131 Motorsports Park in Martin, MI. We'll start things off by providing some tips for those who haven't yet attacked the 1320.
As each of us gets older and has a harder time remembering when all we wanted for Christmas were toys, it's healthy to find a way to dive back in the past and relive those simpler times. That's a tough exercise to pull off with TPS reports that need copying and a 9-5 that doesn't allow for play time. Enter the "Race in a Briefcase", which is our name for this German-engineered executive toy that marries a very serious looking stainless steel briefcase with a 2-meter long toy car track on which two racers can compete. The track is slotted, and unlike the kiddy kind of yesteryear that only called for a trigger finger strong enough to last ten laps, the "Race in a Briefcase" requires deft throttle control to stay on course and not send your car flying off the boardroom table. The track uses a standard 9 volt battery that powers the fun for five hours, and a stopwatch is even included to officially time your runs. It looks like a sweet toy that can be easily slipped by your boss for hours of on-the-clock fun. Be prepared to cough up a paycheck for the privelage, however, as the "Race in a Briefcase" costs €598.00 (about $766). 
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