Autoblog

Cake Boss builds 2,000-pound Bumblebee Camaro cake

Zach Bowman — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 13:50:00 EST

Filed under: Coupe, Performance, Etc., Videos, Chevrolet, Celebrities

Bumble Bee Transformers Cake - Click above to watch video after the jump

Chef Buddy Valastro has stepped up his cake game in a big way. Valastro stars in the TLC series "Cake Boss" and was recently approached to build a confection to celebrate both the Chevrolet Camaro and Transformers: Dark Side of the Moon. He wound up building a 2,000-pound cake sculpture that includes Bumblebee in both Autobot and Camaro forms. To pull it off, Valastro and his team had to partner up with special-effects gurus to create a special hydraulic system for the piece. As a result, Bumblebee's wings actuate up and down. The cake also features glowing eyes and fireworks.

The rest of the creation is made from vanilla pound cake and buttercream frosting. Valastro said that the cake was the biggest challenge of his career in more ways than one. The sculpture had to be crafted outside of the chef's bakery due to its height. Hit the jump to check out a video of his creation and the full press blast.

Continue reading Cake Boss builds 2,000-pound Bumblebee Camaro cake

Cake Boss builds 2,000-pound Bumblebee Camaro cake originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 25 Jun 2011 13:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Resume Chopping: TLC bringing back American Chopper, pitting family as foes

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 14:29:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., Motorcycle, Celebrities

TLC, which in this case rather ironically stands for The Learning Channel, will once again be teaching us all what's it's like to live in a truly dysfunctional family. No, we're not talking about Jon and Kate, we're talking choppers. American Chopper, that is.

Unlike before, when the reality television series focused on the lives of one family and its quest to assemble raked-out custom motorcycles, it will now focus on, um, two families... sorta. Both of them will still have the same last name, but anyone who watched the show over the last season or so knows that the two Paul Teutuls don't get along in any shape or form.

As such, the show will reportedly follow both father and son as they build motorcycles in different shops, one of which we assume will be Senior's Orange County Choppers. The other will presumably be Paul Jr. Designs. Sounds to us like a giant case of Teutul overload, but what do we know? Thanks for the tip, Quest!

[Source: The New York Post]

Resume Chopping: TLC bringing back American Chopper, pitting family as foes originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 08 Apr 2010 14:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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End of the Road: American Chopper chopped, fat lady sings

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 16:58:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., Motorcycle, Celebrities

It's been a long time coming, but celebrity gossip site TMZ reports that American Chopper has finally been canceled. A spokesperson for TLC, which picked the show up after its first few years on The Discovery Channel, said, "The Teutuls will always be a part of the Discovery family and we congratulate them on a tremendously successful series run." The final episode will air February 11 at 9:00 PM.

It wasn't tough to see this one coming from a mile away. The hit show has seemingly been just a shell of its former self since two of the original Teutul trio have stopped speaking to their father and disappeared completely from the Orange County Choppers shop.

Recall also that Paul Teutul filed a lawsuit against Paul Teutul Jr. for over a million dollars a couple of months ago and it's easy to see that things have been going south for quite some time. Finally, now that the crew has built customs that run on everything from gasoline to ethanol, diesel, compressed natural gas, electricity and even a hybrid, there just don't seem to be any more alternative fuels left to conquer.

[Source: TMZ]

End of the Road: American Chopper chopped, fat lady sings originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 16:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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New reality series Family Armor combines vehicle bulletproofing and Mormons

Jonny Lieberman — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:08:00 EST

Filed under: Aftermarket, Etc., Work, Celebrities, Specialty

We're not precisely sure how to treat this one, so we're going to go ahead and use the "jump in with both feet" method. TLC is launching a new reality show called Family Armor that follows the exploits of two Mormon brothers-in-law that build bulletproof cars for a living. That doesn't sounds so sexy. Try this quote from the press release on for size:

"When not at the factory, Trent is the father of six rowdy children and married to his live-wire of a wife, Courtney. Jason and his wife Lacy are first-time parents, working to catch up in the baby race. Trent and Jason devote their time to work, kin and religion...and along the way they get to shoot guns and blow things up."

Yeah! Much better, right? It's such a hairbrained, preposterous, stretch of an idea for a show that it just might work. Now, we know they're on different networks, but if Family Armor can somehow hook up with The Real Housewives of Atlanta, well, fireworks people - fireworks! Full press release after the jump.

[Source: TLC]

Continue reading New reality series Family Armor combines vehicle bulletproofing and Mormons

New reality series Family Armor combines vehicle bulletproofing and Mormons originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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New York City shops for next generation taxi at Detroit Auto Show

Alex Nunez — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 10:33:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, SUV, Etc.

Click image for a gallery of the '07 Ford Escape Hybrid Taxi

As capable a taxi as the Ford Crown Vic has been for New York and other big cities, the big sedan is nearing the end of its run, and since it makes up the majority of NYC's taxi fleet, the Taxi and Limousine Commission is on the prowl, looking for a proper replacement. Ideally, they'd get a custom design that provides passenger space, ample cargo capacity, easy access for the disabled, reduced fuel consumption, and clean operation. Like London's iconic black cabs, the ideal NYC taxi would also have a unique, easily identifiable style.

You can't get something like that without help, however, so TLC chairman Matthew Daus headed to the Detroit Auto Show to begin lobbying automakers for a purpose-built NYC taxicab. The commission has enlisted the assistance of Ricardo to come up with a list of "dream cab" specifications that will be circulated among the various automakers. Whether any of them will step up and deliver an all-new taxi remains to be seen. A well-done fleet car like that would certainly have appeal in other major cities, too, so there would likely be buyers outside the Big Apple. We figured that the Escape Hybrid (above), which already has an established presence of its own in NYC's taxi fleet, would be a lock to replace the Crown Vic when the time comes. If no automakers go to bat for the TLC with a custom taxi, it still might. Ideally, however, we'd see a purpose-built cab that blends the utility of the Escape, the comfort of the Crown Vic, the green credentials of a modern hybrid, and the charm of a Checker Marathon. With jump seats, of course.

[Source: Automotive News-- sub. req'd]

Gallery: 2007 Ford Escape Taxi

New York City shops for next generation taxi at Detroit Auto Show originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 19 Jan 2008 10:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Your 15 minutes of fame await: Overhaulin' accepting apps

Jonathon Ramsey — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 18:56:00 EST

Filed under: Tuners, Etc.

NOTE: DO NOT SENT REQUESTS TO GET ON OVERHAULIN' TO AUTOBLOG! We don't have anything to do with the show, so while we'd like to help you get your cars fixed up, we can't... Go to Chip Foose's website here http://www.chipfoose.com/OverhaulinApplication/ and fill out the application, and good luck to all of you!

Overhaulin', the car customization show that's less pimp and more ride, is looking for new cars to overhaul. If you know someone with a good clunker and a great story, you can help them get to the bright lights in the big smoke. This year, the show will accept applications from folks outside of Southern California, which means that a GTO rusting in a Michigan shed even has a chance at glory. The catch: you can't nominate yourself. Time to start calling in favors, eh?

[Source: Hemmings]

Your 15 minutes of fame await: Overhaulin' accepting apps originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 06 Sep 2007 18:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NYC cabbies threaten September strike over GPS

Alex Nunez — Sun, 29 Jul 2007 17:47:00 EST

Filed under: Etc.

With the NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission's October 1 compliance date for installation of GPS-equipped information and payment systems in New York's 13,000 taxis, a driver's advocacy group is gearing up to strike in protest. The source of the controversy is the screen above. The system provides riders with useful info like news and weather, as well as credit card payment functionality and the ability to watch the route the taxi is taking to its destination in real-time. We tried it out during the New York Auto show and found it to be pretty cool and easy-to-use. For tourists, it's a nice setup. The only negative observation our driver made when we asked him his opinion of it was that the system didn't take well to fast inputs when in payment mode. Slower, deliberate taps on the touchscreen worked better.

According to the New York Taxi Workers Alliance, a non-union group representing drivers' interests, the GPS-based systems are a bad thing, and it claims that its 8,400 members will go on strike September 1 if the TLC doesn't put the kibosh on its fleetwide GPS plan. The organization claims that the systems overreach and are an invasion of drivers' privacy -- a sort of "Big Brother" that'll be used to track cabbies whereabouts at all times. The TLC notes that there are several benefits to drivers in addition to the added functionality it gives riders. Pick-ups and drop-offs are automatically recorded, eliminating the pencil-and-paper system used up until now. Also, drivers will be able to receive real-time traffic info and will gain a measure of protection against the criminals who sometimes prey upon taxi drivers. The GPS should help police track down cars in distress and nab the perpetrators in these situations. Lastly, the TLC says that drivers in cars equipped with the systems already make 18% more in tips. That tidbit has not been part the NYTWA's talking points. According to the TLC, most operators (73%) have already chosen a system ahead of the 10/1 date, anyway. Still, it looks like a showdown between the the TLC and Taxi Workers Alliance is imminent, as the TLC is very unlikely to back down. Whether or not the dustup will actually amount to anything significant remains to be seen.

[Sources: NY1, Newsday via Engadget]

NYC cabbies threaten September strike over GPS originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 29 Jul 2007 17:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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