Style Points fo’ sho!
Gullwing doors? No. Suicide doors? No. It's all about the Disappearing Door! This is actually some concept car from Ford back in the 90s that was put up for auction on eBay last month (I know I live under a rock when it comes to these things, but hey at least this time I'm only a month behind...lol). Here's a little back story about the car from the seller:
Lincoln executives were concerned about the heavy and wide doors on the Mark VIII in the early 1990's especially in large cities with tight parking spots. They were toying with the idea of a Mark VIII that had doors that disappeared beneath the car which would require no additional space for the doors to swing open in order to allow the occupant to exit or enter. Back in the day, the major auto makers would sub-contract their concept designs to other engineering firms who specialiazed in auto concepts and executions. In this particular case, this Lincoln Mark VIII was shipped over to Joalto Design Inc. near Detroit. Joalto holds numerous US Patents dealing with this vehicle chassis and body construction (see pictures of patent plaques in interior section below).
Joalto Design Inc. created this amazing, one of a kind concept car and shipped it back to Lincoln for executive approval. Be sure to click on the video below to watch the door miraculously disappear underneath the car - you will be shocked and amazed. Unfortunately, the Ford Motor Company executives did not like the design and ordered the car (and the concept) to be sent to the junkyard and destroyed. The current owner had been tracking this car for nearly 20 years and finally convinced the previous owner to part with it.
Thus is the story of this amazing Lincoln concept car. There is no documentation to substantiate the claims above but it is completely within the realm of possibility and in fact likely that the events occurred as above. Since the executives wanted all evidence destroyed, we are relying on lore in this case.
Shocked and amazed I was. Although it may work wonders when working right, when the thing doesn't who knows what kind of a pain in the ass trying to get in/out of the car could be. I say just leave the doors down everywhere you go, it'll make it that much easier to ghost ride that whip or maybe freak out your friends as you roll down the door and drift that sucker.
Check out the auction while it's still up at eBay HERE
NARUTO HUNDO!!!
So this is just what I needed this weekend...Naruto Hundo! Cartoon Network will be running 100 episodes of Naruto. That's right...one hundred episodes of Naruto starting 600am on Friday and ending with a debut of a new episode at 930pm Sunday. That's a lot of Naruto. More like that's a lot of DV-R space, since I won't be home for most of the weekend. *sigh* Excessive a little bit, but at least I know there'll be something to watch at like 3am other than infomercials.
Wait a sec...is "Hundo" even a real word? Ehhh whatever.
I Love My S2K
Straight from my RSS Reader are shots of the 2008 S2Ks...so why not post them for all to see?
Hit the split for more...and some words from Honda!
Mattel Recalls a Large Amount of Toys
...including "Sarge" from their Cars line for the movie "Disney-Pixar's Cars."
Apparently, the replica car might contain lead paint. This is part of a massive recall by of toys manufactured overseas in China. If you happen to have Sarge, you probably should call Mattel and find out what they can do to correct the situation. I know a couple of these ended up in people's toy collections...I suspect the resell value has just plummeted for this old school Army Jeep =(
[Source: Autoblog]
RUMOR OF THE WEEK: Nissan Considering a New FR Car?
Autoblog has posted that Nissan is considering a revival of a small, cheap FR car in their lineup. With Toyota's look into a cheap RWD compact, maybe this market is heating up again. Finally! But a turbo-charged two liter pumping out 247hp? Nice indeed, but there has been such a big push away from turbos. I guess we'll find out come 2010.
[Source: Best Car via Autoblog]
Another Weekend Post…
It's the weekend for most, but for me it's still my Thursday. I had just got back from a wedding and dreading waking up tomorrow for another day of work. So what's going on this weekend for you all? This weekend will be a trip down to Mai Tai's in Long Beach. Nice little place, but it can never compare to the crazy nights in Honolulu...lol. The biggest difference and a key factor: the weather. It was perfect in Hawaii...not so much in Long Beach. Still though, a nice place to hit up every once in a while, especially when you start missing being on the islands. Check it out sometime...prolly on a nite when it's not so crowded like tomorrow.
Kind of missed a couple key news items this week, but I haven't really had time to catch up on stuff. Here are a couple things that caught my eye during the week, but didn't have time to post:
Mazda RX-8 40th Anniversary Edition: Another edition of the RX-8 will debut in Japan. This time celebrating the 40th anniversary of the rotary engine. Drawing inspiration from the Mazda Eunos Cosmo, it's a decent package that is along the lines of the previous Shinka models. Although this time it's a white/black combo, instead of the blackcherry/tan combo.
Toyota/Subaru Developing a Car?: Maybe a connection to the previous AE86 revival? Toyota and Subaru are pairing up to build a sports car(?) for the Toyota brand. Interesting indeed...if anything it'll be another choice in a dwindling supply of Toyota sport/sporty cars which is a good thing.
S2000 CR First Drive: Embargo's have been broken and test drives and impressions of the S2000 CR have popped up while breifly scimming through random RSS reports. Yup, the cow-catcher face of a car has had some mixed reviews pop up around the internet. Plusses: One of the finest tune Honda's to date. Minusses: It comes at a no frills package that will have many wondering, why buy it when you can get a better buy somewhere else? Might have to wait to see one and drive one in person before I go on about how Honda has left their Honda fanboys behind...
The K20A Civic Type R motor: Although people seem to have mixed opinions on Honda's state in the US, at least they listen to our Asian constituents. Temple of VTEC - Asia has a nice little write up about everything you'd ever want to know about the VTEC engine currently residing in the JDM Civic Type R.
METROID PRIME 3: Corruption: For all you hardcore Nintendo fans make sure to check out your Wii and download the previews for Metroid Prime 3! Just previews...not demos. What do you think this is, Xbox Live? Anyhow, coming out in a couple weeks...it is a must buy for any Wii owner. Let Nintendo know that hardcore gamers have also picked up a Wii by picking this game up!!
I'm still working on the pictures from SpoCom in Long Beach last Sunday. Hopefully after tomorrow I'll have time to upload the small amount of pics I have. For some strange reason most of the pics became really blurry when blown up on low quality settings. Bah I guess it's been that long...
I think I'll leave this post at that...so if you guys have anything coming up or at least to share you can always shoot me an e-mail at the admin@importjunkiez.com address. Any comments or suggestions will also be greatly appreciated...THANKS! Hope you all have a great weekend!!!
-Tanker!
Need another DS? I do!
Even though I already own a Onyx DS...I could really go for this two-toned DS to go on sale August 21st! So tempted to get one...Onyx Ying? Crimson Yang? Oh that crazy Nintendo PR department...
[Source: Kotaku]
Hit the split for the presser!
Wangan Midnight
Based off the manga, which had a couple OVAs and was recently turned into a tv show this past summer, Wangan has had a stream of video games, that were especially popular in the arcades. Like I said a few posts back about the Initial D arcade game, I had the pleasure of getting my ass handed to me in a Segaland in Okinawa by some dude driving that damn S30 Z. Anyhow, last week it made it's debut on the PS3, hitting the Japan game charts at number 22. *sigh* Compared to Forza 2 sales in Japan that's kind of dissapointing. Add on to the fact the 360 doesn't even sell, is a slap in the face. OK, I guess it wasn't that popular, but I liked the series nonetheless and the arcade games were palm sweating good. I might just have to pick up a PS3 if this game ever comes to the US and master that devil Z.
Why Mini-Vans/MPVs have gotten even cooler in my book
I must admit, I really am into mini-vans and MPVs. Yes, I know. I was ridiculed in high school for wanting a Previa. It was an awesome little van though...I mean come on, you can't go wrong with two sunroofs! Anyhow, saw this clip over at TheDriftScene and it has again re-ignited my love for all things Previa/Estima. Who needs a 4-door Skyline to take the family out drifting? It's all about using the family van and taking along the grandparents! Love it...shhh don't tell that to my car.
[SOURCE: Youtube via TheDriftScene]
SpoCom 2007: Cars and Vendors
So just got back from SpoCom. Plenty of vendors around to peddle their wares and lots of free-bees to be had. Although it didn't take long for banners and signs to start disappearing in the hands of the patrons. Tsk tsk...oh well, it was a good show for a first show. Good luck to them on future shows. I on the other hand prolly should have checked out the Rally at the X Games just north of here...BAH! Gallery to follow up within a week or whenever I get a chance to upload pictures.