Autoblog

Using the slogan, "if you can dream it, you can build it with Mopar," the Dodge boys introduced Sam Hübinette's 2009 Mopar Dodge Drift Challenger. Team owner Shaun Carlson and driver Samuel Hübinette introduced the car and pointed out some of the unique features, like the 850-hp Hemi underhood. While that should definitely help Sam in his quest to retake the title for Mopar, one additional fun touch should help the team cut their repair bills. The driver's side rear fender has a built-in line of roller blade wheels to keep him skimming along the walls rather than tearing the quarter panels away on contact. We doubt it will hold up to anything harder than a five-mph brush, but it was interesting nonetheless. The car they showed us was actually a cutaway as you'll see from the gallery and hit the jump to read all of the specs.


Photos copyright ©2008 Frank Filipponio|Brad Wood/Weblogs

Click above to witness Hubinette's drifting skills

We know Sam Hubinette has incredible drifting skills. The Crazy Swede is a two-time champion in Formula Drift and makes a living doing stunt driving, but that still doesn't mean we would put our life in his hands. Streetfire.net's Creative Director Alexis Godschalk, however, seems to have more of either faith or bravery than we do. While filming a video intro StreetFire, Hubinette sends his Viper hurtling towards Godschalk and doesn't even flinch. Follow the jump to watch the video and see just how close Hubinette gets. (Hint: very)

[Source: StreetFire.net]

When you're winging a vehicle as expensive and powerful as a purpose-built Dodge Viper drift car, being fearful will only lead to a bad ending. Sam Hubinette doesn't have any such compunctions while sliding sideways at 90 miles per hour. Should he inadvertently hit the wall, whoops. Fretting over potential contact will likely only make it inevitable. The hairy-chested car guys over at 0-60 were hanging out at the third round of Formula Drift competition in Englishtown, NJ, and caught up with the Skidding Swede for a few minutes while shooting a larger video of the competition. The smoky event saw Hubinette's Viper place second to Tanner Foust's Nissan 350Z. Foust, you'll recall, is one of the hosts of NBC's domestic "Top Gear." Good to know he can drive. Now's your chance to take shots at drifting and complain about how it's not racing, and doesn't require any skill, though we assure you it is, and it does. You still don't have to like it. Video posted after the jump


[Source: 0-60]

When Jaguar's "Gorgeous" campaign TV ads came out a few years back with the XK, some ad critics questioned the none-too-subtle message they contained: older, distinguished gentleman gets to frolic with beautiful young women when he drives this car. Whether or not that's the case -- concerning the ad or in real life -- a new Lamborghini commercial with Sam Hubinette takes that same riff and, being Lamborghini, pushes it even further.

Hubinette and some wet, downtown LA roads show what the car can do, and the spot also shows what the car has. Boasting "features like no other," the first one of which is a Phone Number Collecting Set that appears to specialize in tall brunettes, the car also has an Anti-Boredom Assistant (that engine, a Talk of the Town Guarantee, and a Gets Into All Clubs function0. And that's all before you order it in Giallo Halys (that's Lamborghini-speak for "yellow.") Follow the jump to check out the video and the powerslides. Thanks for the tip, Eric!


[Source: YouTube]

He usually spends his time behind the wheel of a Dodge Charger, but recently Samuel Hübinette made an exchange for something with a lower roofline. Lamborghini asked him to take a seat in a 2009 Gallardo for the filming of a European-market commercial set on the streets of Los Angeles and Palm Springs. Blowing tire smoke for the camera is nothing new to Sam since his blue Mopar-mobile has been featured in many a BF Goodrich tire commercial. Unlike the Charger though, the Gallardo isn't quite the towering elephant. It is also equipped with all wheel drive, a feature that requires a bit more driving finesse in order to pull off an extended slide. Look for the spot to hit YouTube sometime in the not too distant future. Also follow the link to see a few more of Sam's photos from filming.

Thanks for the tip, Eric!
[Source: Samuel Hubinette Blog]

Click the above image for a high-res gallery of Drew Phillips' photos from the event

Spring Festival of LXs – that's the official name of the event, but we doubt many will make the connection to Chrysler's current crop of Hemi cars – you know, the hot-selling, multi-configurable, rough-and-tumble Charger/Magnum/300C platform. It would probably be better to rename it as the Modern Hemi Car Event or some derivitive thereof. Well, whatever they call it, close to 400 cars were in attendance (340 registered cars) at the DaimlerChrysler west coast headquarters in Irvine. Lots of SRTs in the group, too.

Besides all of the proud owners, special guests included Burke S. Brown (chief engineer of the LX vehicle program), Kris Pakizer (Chrysler 300 brand manager), Zoran Bogdanovic (Charger and Magnum brand manager), MOPAR's drift master Sam Hubinette, and of course, DUB, with several of their modified LXs including one of only two officially approved Barbie Edition specials with pink-over-silver paint and Swarovski crystal highlights. The event even hosted a wedding between two LX owners.

Saturday was the fun shine and show, but on Sunday class reconvened at California Speedway in Fontana. The participants had a lot to choose from during their track day. They were allowed to run on the road course (which includes part of the Speedway oval), they could do an autocross session, try their foot at the burnout contest, or even take a lick at the donut competition. We love when manufacturers rally the troops and treat them to a special day enjoying their vehicles they way they were meant to be.

[Source: Muscle Car News]