I’m not sure if you’re familiar with the 24 Hours of Lemons races, but to be very brief the official site describes it as “A nationwide series of endurance races for cars that cost $500 or less.” That $500 includes the purchase AND building costs. The entries are very interesting, the teams are hilarious, and the whole deal raises money for charity. So now that you’ve got a run-down on the competition, let’s see just how far you can stretch that $500 budget with a bit of know-how, a lot of had work, and a sense of humour. This frankenstein hatch-back started out life as a Geo Metro (a.k.a. Suzuki Swift to my fellow countrymen, hence the title), which was gutted and then had it’s rear end violated by some Ford V6 goodness from a Taurus donor car, awesomeness ensues.
VTR1000 Streetfighter
It’s been a couple of months since the last bike build, so I’ve dug this Honda VTR1000 out of the submissions list. While streetfighter bikes aren’t really my 2-wheeled style of choice, (I’m more of a cafe racer or bobber man myself, which doesn’t really count for much since I don’t even ride) there’s no denying the amount of work invested into this build, nor the impact of the finished product. The completed bike was also very popular amongst it’s peers, winning the 2009 Streetfighter Buildoff hosted by CustomFighters.com.
Thanks to Mike for submitting via email.
Bentley EXP Speed ​​8 replica
One very dedicated Swedish builder has been spending the last 3 years creating his own Bentley Speed 8 replica. By taking a 1:18 scale model and having it scanned in 3D, he was able to recreate the body shape in full-size and drape it over a hand fabricated tube-frame chassis. With a 4.2lt Audi V8 sitting behind the two lucky occupants, this home-made creation will surely have the performance to back up supercar looks. At the start of the thread there appears to be a twin-turbo setup in the works, but sadly it disappears later in the thread, so let’s hope it makes a return somewhere down the track. After you see the home-made CNC machine & plasma cutting table, you’ll agree with me when I say “chalk up another build to the crazy Scandinavians!”
Thanks to Ger from Ireland for the submission.
‘Like’ Build-Threads.com on Facebook
I know I’m a bit late to the party, but Build-Threads.com has finally jumped on the social media bandwagon. Head on over to the page and push that “like” button as if your life depends on it. Become a fan and be conveniently notified on your wall when a build is published, sure beats scrolling through a million pictures of some kid belonging to some chick from highschool that you don’t even remember. Or, instead of reading yet another attention-seeking status update ending with “you know who you are”, be entertained with automotive news and tidbits that don’t necessarily warrant a full post on the blog.
Click the above image to get connected!
Chevy Astro audio build
Well here’s a first, I don’t think I’ve ever featured an audio-centric build on this site. Building an intricate competition-spec audio system might not be everyone’s preferred flavour of fabrication, but it takes just as much planning, patience and technical know-how to do it all properly. Am from Blade Ice sent me a link to his Japanese import 1997 Chevy Astro which packs over £50k and 4000kg worth of ear-bleeding audio equipment, I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many speakers, amps, batteries, and wiring in my life. If the sound of your loud exhaust pisses off your neighbours, imagine what you could do with this!
Japan
I’m sure by now you all are well aware of the different ways you can donate, but I will still urge you to contact your countries branch of the Red Cross and help in any way you can. I have added a link on the side panel to the relief project being held by the Heartbreaker car club, it’s a great way to score a cool sticker for your ride while helping out those in need.
Upon seeing the recent devastation that the truly amazing country has been subjected to, it made me realise that I never shared any of my photos from the time I spent there last year. In August I traveled to Tokyo, Fuji, Hiroshima, Kyoto, and Osaka, back when we described Japan by using words such as culture, structure, respect, engineering, perfection, and efficiency, instead of earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear. So think of this as my pictorial tribute, and I hope you enjoy some of my captures of this stunning part of the world prior to the terrible events of 2011, click for slightly larger versions.
Continue reading “Japan”
’72 Martini Porsche RSR recreation
Continuing the trend of international readers submitting builds, Arlo from Belgium brought this amazing car to my attention. A very dedicated British enthusiast named Mike flew all the way over to Arizona in the US to purchase a ’72 911 RSR replica. As if that long-distance acquisition wasn’t impressive enough, once it was transported it back to the UK it was promptly torn down and received an intense restoration, with attention paid to the utmost detail. The actual car that this Porsche is based on is the 107 Martini Targa Florio car, and Mike intends to take his recreation over to Sicily once it’s complete to participate in a re-run of the event. This pleases me.
The Widow Maker
Don emailed me his crazy build way back in June last year and I remember looking at the first page and getting an instant view of how ridiculous it was, which is a good thing. Those of you with a keen eye would have seen a teaser of this build in my Speedhunters guest-posts last month, so here it is in its entirity.
The Widow Maker is a first-generation 1991 Eagle Talon, or what’s left of it anyway. With a stroked 2.3 4G63 motor and a whole lot less bodywork, it certainly puts a new spin on open-top driving.
AE86 GT-APEX Trueno
Okay, the Speedhunters posts are done and dusted for another year, hopefully I’ve picked up some new readers with the increased exposure so let’s get back to business and feature some builds. Romas emailed me his Trueno build only a couple of days ago, hailing all the way from Lithuania. The AE86 was already modified when it was shipped over from Japan, but it was quickly torn down and rebuilt to his own standards, which meant fitting a 4AGTE and some S13 suspension bits, including the IRS rear end.
Time-lapse DIY repaint
Here’s a cool video of a bunch of friends respraying an MA70 Supra in a very sinister shade of flat black. Click it!
