Tag: visits

Video: Translogic visits Japan’s Dream Factory Blow

Filed under: Aftermarket, Etc., Japan, Videos

Translogic at Dream Factory Blow

Translogic at Dream Factory Blow – Click above to watch video after the jump

The Translogic crew is still bumming around Japan. For the show’s third episode in the island nation, host Bradley Hasemeyer heads to Sagamihara to tour Dream Factory Blow.

No, it’s not a cocaine supercenter. The customs shop specializes in laying unique fiber-reinforced polymer bodywork over the sheet metal of the lowly kei-car – the 660cc-engined machines that make up the lowest rung of the automotive food chain. Dream Factory Blow specializes in tweaking the aesthetics of the pint-sized cars to create miniature interpretations of classic American iron like a 1972 Chevrolet C10 pickup truck or a 1985 Chevrolet van.

But Dream Factory Blow isn’t just bolting on body panels. For that sweet little Chevy pickup, the fabricators started with a Suzuki Lapin, hacked off half of the rear body work and crafted an entire pickup bed. It’s too awesome for words. Of course, dismantling a substantial portion of a vehicle’s body structure does have an impact on frame stiffness, and to that end, Dream Factory Blow has to have its vehicles tested by the Japanese government for safety. Hit the jump to check out the video after the jump.

[Source: Translogic]

Continue reading Video: Translogic visits Japan’s Dream Factory Blow

Video: Translogic visits Japan’s Dream Factory Blow originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 14 Dec 2010 19:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Hennessey Venom GT visits Jay Leno’s Garage

Filed under: Coupe, Performance, Videos, Celebrities, Specialty

Jay Leno drives the Hennessey Venom GT

Jay Leno drives the Hennessey Venom GT – Click above to watch video after the jump

In his quest to get his mitts on every piece of covetable sheetmetal on the planet, Jay Leno has just had a Hennessey Venom GT in his modest little garage. With 1,200 horsepower packed into a lightweight chassis supplied by the gurus at Lotus, the machine is what our supercar dreams would be made of – if only we took LSD before bed. John Hennessey, the man behind this beast, says that the original goal for the Venom GT was to create a vehicle that made no apologies for its performance and power-to-weight ratio. As a result, don’t expect too many creature comforts to crop up in the cabin.

At around 2,700 pounds, the Venom GT provides one of the best power-to-weight ratios of any vehicle made today – production or otherwise. The biggest surprise is that even with all that power, the engine is sucking down about 18 psi of boost and runs off of pump gas. Sounds tasty to us. Hit the jump to see the late night funny man’s take onthe Venom GT.

[Source: Jay Leno’s Garage]

Continue reading Video: Hennessey Venom GT visits Jay Leno’s Garage

Video: Hennessey Venom GT visits Jay Leno’s Garage originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 06 Dec 2010 14:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Autoblog visits the 1936 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic at the Mullin Museum

Filed under: Classics, Bugatti

1936 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic In Detail – Click above for high-res image gallery

My first time going to the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance was back in 2003. There were some incredible classic cars on the 18th fairway, with Ford celebrating its 100th anniversary and Bugatti as the featured marque. In the multitude of millions of dollars worth of cars, though, there was one car that stood out from all the others – Peter Williamson’s 1936 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic. Despite my complete lack of knowledge of pre-war cars at the time, even I could recognize that the car had a presence about it that no other vehicle at the show could boast. My intuition was right, and the Bugatti eventually went on to win the coveted Best of Show award that year.

The Bugatti made the news again earlier this year when Gooding & Company announced it had sold the car to an unnamed buyer in the range of a record $30-$40 million. Soon after, it was announced that the car would be on display at the recently-opened Mullin Automotive Museum in Oxnard, CA. Since I’m always looking for an excuse for the museum to let me look at their incredible collection of cars, I called them up and convinced them to let me have a look.

After an hour of inspecting and photographing every inch of the car, I’m declaring the 1936 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic worthy of its title as the world’s most expensive car. Hit the jump for my top ten reasons why.

Gallery: 1936 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic In Detail

Photos copyright (C)2010 Drew Phillips / AOL

Continue reading Autoblog visits the 1936 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic at the Mullin Museum

Autoblog visits the 1936 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic at the Mullin Museum originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 10 Sep 2010 21:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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