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Moto News Weekly Wrap December 2, 2025 What’s New: Daniel Sanders to lead KTM’s 2026 Dakar efforts Dakar admin and tech scrutineering complete Beau Bailey tops Victorian Solo Championship North Brisbane Cup – End of an Era Jo Shimoda undergoes successful surgery Dean Wilson to defend UK Arenacross title in 2026 KTM’s AusProMX roster revealed […] The post Moto News | Dakar | SX | MX | NSW Track | Sand Racing appeared first on MCNews. View the full article

The 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports v NASCAR antitrust lawsuit trial began in earnest on Monday and included jury selection, opening statements by both parties and the partial testimony of the first witness. Denny Hamlin. Between the partial testimony of the co-owner of 23XI, which was conducted by Jeanifer Parsigian, a partner at Winston & Strawn, and the opening statement delivered ...Keep readingView the full article

Ducati’s Panigale V4 S to be available at MEGA Ride Days MEGA (Motorcycling Events Group Australia) and Ducati Australia & New Zealand will team up to give riders access to the Panigale V4 S at Ride Days at two of Australia’s most iconic circuits – Sydney Motorsport Park and Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, kicking […] The post Ride Ducati V4 S with MEGA at SMP and Phillip Island Ride Days appeared first on MCNews. View the full article

High performance Ducati bicycles and e-bikes on the way While KTM have divested their interests in the bicycle industry, Ducati have upped its investment in the category with a new project dedicated to the development, production, and distribution of a broader range of high-performance bicycles, after having first entered the e-bike world in 2018. The […] The post Ducati reveal new high performance bicycle & e-bike range appeared first on MCNews. View the full article

Florida introduced a new rule on 1 October that many drivers still don’t know exists. Earlier this year, Florida implemented a law that targets first-time speeding offenders, and now they've aimed the crosshairs at drivers with license plate decorations. What used to be a harmless bit of personal style or a common dealership add-on can now saddle everyday motorists with a second-degree misdemeanor. House Bill 253 was pitched as a targeted crackdown on people who intentionally hide their plates, especially those using gadgets to dodge speed cameras. In reality, the law sweeps much wider, and plenty of innocent drivers are only now realizing that the tiniest frame, cover, or accessory could leave them with a criminal record. Small Details Turn Into Big Trouble Getty HB 253 increases the penalty for obscuring a license plate from a traffic infraction to a second-degree misdemeanor. The text is blunt: “A person may not apply or attach a substance, reflective matter, illuminated device, spray, coating, covering, or other material onto or around any license plate which interferes with the legibility, angular visibility, or detectability” of the plate. In theory, the wording targets deliberate tampering. In practice, most people have no idea their plate is “obscured” at all. License plate frames from dealerships, covers left by previous owners, and novelty borders that clip a corner of a hideous license plate now fall under the same legal category as someone using a flipper or reflective spray to fool cameras. Punishment includes up to 60 days in jail and a fine of up to $500 despite these accessories being openly sold for decades. Why Innocent Drivers Will Pay the PriceThe bill states that only those who “knowingly” alter or obscure their plate commit the second-degree misdemeanor. The problem is that “knowingly” isn't clearly defined. If your car came with a decorative frame from the dealer, did you “knowingly” obscure it? If you bought a used car and the previous owner installed a cover, does that make you criminally liable? Under HB 253, the answer could very well be yes. Worse still, the law groups accidental obstruction with possession of a “license plate obscuring device,” a category that includes flippers, switching mechanisms, and anything designed to hide a plate from detection, like the Vusi Studios Vanish Plate. Possessing one is also a second-degree misdemeanor. Selling or distributing one, on the other hand, is a first-degree misdemeanor. And using one during a crime escalates the charge to a third-degree felony. Myth:Reality: A Crackdown That May Create More Problems Than It SolvesWe're all on the same page here. Hiding or obscuring your number plate should be illegal. But HB 253 will lead to decorative license plate frames and covers joining the list of the most commonly broken driving laws – an infringement that shouldn't carry the same punishment as a person driving under the influence, nor a person who installed a device designed to evade law enforcement. Much like Texas's new vehicle registration law, Florida's HB 253 will lead to thousands of Floridians suddenly carrying criminal records. Instead of hunkering down on reckless drivers who put others' lives at risk, this new law targets oblivious drivers with no ill intent. View the full article

In America, if a consumer doesn't like the product, they have the right to explore legal recourse, and many do. Honda has been taken to court over steering issues, Ford is being sued due to a missing F-150 Lightning feature, and GM has to resort to legal counsel because of allegedly defective V8 engines. Now, Toyota is heading to the courtroom for a class action lawsuit arising because of allegedly defective eight-speed transmissions, according to Car Complaints. The transmissions are produced and supplied by Aisin, which is a member of the Toyota Group and, according to the lawsuit, is 25% owned by Toyota. That's not quite accurate, as Reuters reported last year that Toyota has offloaded some $1 billion in shares, bringing its stake from 24.8% to 20%. Regardless, the lawsuit blames Toyota. So what's the problem, and which cars are affected? Numerous Toyota Models Named In Class Action Toyota The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California by plaintiff Neil Pallaya, alleges that numerous Toyota and Lexus models equipped with the eight-speed auto "slip, hesitate, lose power, make loud whining sounds, shift erratically, and fail." That's quite a list of concerns, and the lawsuit names the following models: 2017-present Toyota Highlander2024-present Toyota Grand Highlander2018-2024 Toyota Camry2017-2020 Toyota Sienna2019-2022 Toyota Avalon2019-present Toyota RAV42023-present Lexus RX 3502021-present Lexus ES 2502019-present Lexus ES 3502022-present Lexus NX 250 and NX 3502024-present Lexus TX 350The abovementioned plaintiff bought a new 2020 Toyota Highlander in December of that year, which features the 2GR-FKS 3.5-liter V6 engine and UA80E transmission, the latter of which also appears in all the abovementioned cars. The car came with a five-year/60,000-mile limited warranty, which would have been all good, but in September 2025, with roughly 67,200 miles on the clock, "the eight-speed transmission began making a persistent high-pitched whining noise when pressing the accelerator." The lawsuit alleges that a dealer inspection revealed that the transmission had failed and needed replacement at an estimated cost of $7,451.33. With the warranty having expired, the customer was on the hook for the bill. Plaintiff Files For $5 Million, Alleges Toyota Knew About Issues For Years Toyota The suit, which is asking for "more than $5 million," reportedly cost Pallaya $405 to file. His transmission still has not been repaired, and he says that the Highlander SUV has a "diminished quality and value than represented and failed to meet ordinary consumer expectations regarding safe and reliable operation." Moreover, he contends that Toyota and Aisin knew about the problems with this transmission (where excessive heat allegedly builds up inside the torque converter, causing the transmission fluid to burn and prematurely degrade, damaging the clutch) all the way back in 2015. Related: Toyota Sued for $5.7 Billion Over Mirai Hydrogen Cars Pallaya's class action claims that the two companies should have ordered a redesign of either the torque converters or the transmissions after Toyota's warranty analytics group allegedly flagged the transmission as a "high-priority powertrain concern" by February of 2017. This is said to have prompted a series of Technical Service Bulletins (TSBs) to address a "harsh shift," "hesitation," "abnormal transmission noise," and "improper torque converter operation." The lawsuit also brings attention to the transmission control module software and claims that the transmission should last at least 200,000 miles. The numerous relevant TSBs are listed below: Toyota Tech Tip T-TT-0410 (August 17, 2016)T-SB-0187-17 (February 20, 2017)T-SB-0194-17 (March 2, 2017)T-SB-0330-17 (December 11, 2017)T-SB-0001-18 (January 8, 2018)T-TT-0474-18 (January 10, 2018)T-SB-0010-18 (February 2, 2018)T-SB-0018-18 (March 2, 2018)T-SB-0160-18 (December 18, 2018)Customer Support Program JZC (April 18, 2019)T-SB-0107-19 (August 15, 2019)T-SB-0152-19 (November 1, 2019)T-TT-0580-19 (November 4, 2019) and T-TT-0580-19_Rev (January 27, 2020)T-TT-0615 (June 1, 2020)L-TT-0288-20 (June 10, 2020)T-SB-0105-20 (October 18, 2020)T-SB-0122-20 (December 14, 2020)T-SB-0008-21 (February 9, 2021)L-SB-0003-21 (February 9, 2021)T-SB-0087-23 (November 3, 2023)View the full article

The Elite Motorsports Million could create the first million-dollar drag racing payday. Here's who we think could win the big money.View the full article

Did We Find The Best All-Around Mud Terrain Ever Made? We just tested a set of 37×12.5R17 Firestone Destination M/T2 tires on the 6G 4Runner, and these are the best... The post Firestone Destination M/T2 Review – The Best Mud Terrain On Wet Roads? appeared first on Trail4R.com - 5th Gen 4Runner Mods. View the full article

Tamarit Motorcycles. If you've been around the custom scene for more than a minute, that name is synonymous with Triumph Modern Classics. The Spanish workshop, based in Alicante, has established itself as the world’s leading specialist in transforming bikes powered by the venerable Triumph engines.T... View the full article

When it comes to road trips we’re always saying that it is the journey, not the destination, that is most important. And when building hot rods or race cars we often say that the process is as important as the finished product. So if those things are true, does the process have to match the finished project. If you are building an ultra high end hot rod, do you need to use ultra high end tools? Or can you build one with what you have and the finished product is all that matters? And to take it to another level, do you need to use period correct tools for the build you’ve got going? Does a 1990’s custom truck need 1990’s tools? If you are building a traditional hot rod that is going to look like it was built in 1950, do you need to use 1949 and 1950’s era tools for the build? The Iron Trap Garage boys talked about this recently on their podcast, so what it below and let us know what you think. Video Description: Matt and Mike sit down to discuss a very interesting topic that gets brought up during conversations and in the comments sections of our videos, modern tools for building a “traditional hot rod”. While we feel that that look and style of the car is what makes it traditional, some people feel it should be built the traditional way was well! Leave a comment with your thoughts!! The post Can We Use Modern Tools & Tech And Still Build A Traditional Style Hot Rod? Is The Finished Project All That Matters? Or Does The Method Matter Too? appeared first on BangShift.com. View the full article

Reworked for SpeedWhen it comes to pure acceleration and performance, Electric Vehicles (EVs) have always been at the top of the food chain. We've all seen those videos of Tesla models seemingly obliterating the most powerful ICE supercars and hypercars at drag races, only to be beaten by another EV in a separate race. The competition's just that tough. When it comes to utilitarian pickup EVs, though, the conversation changes; speed isn't necessarily the most important feature. In the case of the Rivian R1T Quad Motor, the highlight was the "Tank Turn" when it was first announced. Rivian has already gone back to the drawing board and reworked the Quad Motor R1T for its production guise – and this time, the EV startup gave it the acceleration of a true performance EV, as seen in a recent independent test. Four Motors and 1,025 Electric PoniesIn a recent test by Car and Driver, the publication put the Rivian R1T Quad Motor up against the Tesla Cybertruck to see if there is indeed a significant improvement over the previous Quad Motor. The Rivian hit a blistering 0-60 mph sprint of just 2.6 seconds. Of note, the Tesla kept up despite being on less sticky tires than the Rivian. As the speeds increased, things changed. According to the publication, at 70 mph, the Rivian noses ahead of the Tesla. At 100 mph, the R1T is almost a full second ahead, at 6.0 seconds, compared to the Cybertruck's 6.9 seconds. Even more, the Rivian blasts past the quarter mile at 128 mph in 10.6 seconds, while the Tesla only manages an 11.0-second run at 119 mph. It seems insane to think an EV pickup could have Bugatti power, but it's become the norm nowadays. We see the likes of the GMC Hummer EV with around 1,000 hp, and then the Tesla Cybertruck in Cyberbeast configuration at 834 hp. Rivian has responded with the recalibrated Quad Motor R1T, featuring 1,025 hp and 1,198 lb-ft of earth-moving torque. Rivian Quicker Than MostThe numbers posted by Rivian during the test are nothing to scoff at, mind you. They aren't just quick for a truck – they're quick. Period. Just to put things into context, the Rivian R1T Quad Motor is quicker to 60 than purpose-built, carbon-shod performance supercars like the Chevy Corvette E-Ray, Mercedes-AMG GT63, and, get this, thePorsche 911 GT3 RS. All of this makes the Rivian R1T Quad Motor a true sleeper in EV form that can haul stuff you won't dare in your Porsche. View the 3 images of this gallery on the original article View the full article

It’s a beautiful afternoon in early May, and Mo-Kan Dragway in Asbury, Missouri, is hosting the inaugural 405 Shootout. Although Speed Promotions Racing (formerly No Prep Kings) is hosting their season opener at Famoso Dragstrip near Bakersfield, California, on the same weekend, numerous OG Street Outlaws cast members are at Mo-Kan, including James “Doc” Love, Joe “Dominator” Woods, Sean “Farmtruck” Whitley, Jeff “AZN” Bonnett, and Jerry “Monza” Johnston. Editor’s Note: This story originally appeared in DI #196, the State of Drag Issue, in September/October of 2025. Since then, Speed Promotions Racing cancelled the final races of its 2025 season, effectively ending the Street Outlaws era. After 15 seasons of the original show, plus countless spinoffs, many of the drivers are at a crossroads: with no television deal currently in place and fewer contracts being offered, they must decide how to proceed moving forward. Drag Illustrated sat down with Love, Woods, Whitley, and Bonnett during the 405 Shootout to discuss the early days of the show, how it evolved over time, and what the future holds. Looking back on when the original 405 show first started, did you ever believe it would blow up and become as popular as it did? Sean Whitley: Oh no, we definitely thought they were cops. We thought it was a sting operation. And whenever they sent the guys out to film the sizzle reel, I thought, “They’re going to film us racing each other for how long? Eight weeks?” I thought they’d never air a single episode. The first season was eight episodes, and I really thought we weren’t going to make it out of our first season. For it to go 12 years, and we’re still recognizable, that blows me away. Everyone recognizes the truck. That’s just an old crappy truck that we built in my garage. We worked on it on weekends and started racing it, brought it out of town and it was a great sleeper, it worked. But yeah, I’m still blown away that we can go to a track and have a line. Jeff Bonnett: I think Farmtruck says it all. Farmtruck, he was just a friend. I had all but sold my car. I was helping my buddy get his truck down the road, talk crap, and getting races. But the moment the film crew came and legitimately started filming the show, we knew our lives were going to change. We just didn’t know what direction, for good or bad. But we said yes, we committed, and I think every guy or gal on the show in the very beginning was committed. We were all ready to do the job, and that’s the big coincidence in it. All eight to 10 of us were ready to say yes and commit to the entire filming. Joe Woods: No, I truly didn’t think it was going to be that big of a deal. We were just doing some silly, stupid teenage stuff in our adulthood. We filmed the first three seasons in the first year, and right after season one aired, Thunder Valley put on Outlaw Armageddon. I didn’t even take my car. At that point in time, I didn’t realize we had become anything. I got down there, and they were 15 feet off the fence. My brother couldn’t see the track. The stands were completely packed, and he and his wife were standing on top of the bathroom, just so that they could see the races. That’s when I realized, “Holy cow, we’ve lit a fire in something that I honestly didn’t think was possible.” I was just happy as shit that I’m on the list of the baddest dudes on the street at the time. I had no clue that it was going to become what it became. James Love: Yes and no. Yes because what we did was frigging cool as hell. You can look around at the spectators now, just to watch some idiots going out there and doing burnouts and street racing. In that aspect, how could it not be a hit? Then it’s like, “I’m just a diesel mechanic nobody from Oklahoma City. This can’t be happening to me.” We’d never had a camera in our face, and most of us, myself included, sucked at the beginning of it. You just tense up and don’t know what to say. Everywhere you look, there’s a camera guy and a sound guy, and everybody’s watching you and they’re wanting you to just be normal. From the aspect of a camera crew filming some stupid, redneck, backward-ass guys doing stupid shit on the streets at 2:00 in the morning, did I think that was going to make a hit? No. But at the same time, I believed in it, and that led to 12 years of awesomeness. You all have done this for quite a while now. Looking back on the show, what’s either a favorite memory or accomplishment that each of you had over the course of Street Outlaws? Love: It’s no secret that me and “Big Chief” [Justin Shearer] never really got along. “Murder Nova” [Shawn Ellington], being best friends with Chief back in the day, it was kind of always me against them. Probably the first moment that really sticks out – besides taking the Crown away from Murder Nova – was when I raced Petey Smallblock in an out-of-town race, and everybody got behind me and put their own money up. Chief told those guys from New York, “You put your pot together, we’ll match it.” I believe the pot ended up being 21 grand, so winning that race and winning 21 grand for Team 405, having all my boys stand behind me, put their own money on me, it’s just a great feeling. You beat the out-of-towner. Everybody believes in you, and it was the biggest money race of the night. Besides winning the Crown, that’s probably my second-highest achievement, right there. Woods: I never actually had the Crown in my possession. Three weeks before we started filming, I was racing Murder Nova for number one. I had to race on a budget even back then. The whole reason I started racing with these guys on the street was because I couldn’t afford to race at that caliber at the track. The first Cash Days I showed up to, I had a small-tire Z28 that was driven in Daily Driver. I start walking through the pits and I’m like, “These are all back-half cars, full-blown big tire, three-kit nitrous deals.” I didn’t even pay my money to get into Cash Days. That’s just a waste. Two weeks later, I had my Dart, and I was ordering a transmission. I put a 509 in it and a 500-shot of spray, and that’s where I started. Bonnett: That’s a tough one. I guess for us, as hard as it is, it was the places this took us. It took us to Canada, it took us to Australia, it took us to South Africa. For us to be able to look at how other car cultures and countries do this gave us the gratitude to be able to look at how good we have it here in America. Yeah, we filmed a lot. We had a lot of races, we won a lot, we lost a lot, but it was the perspective we were given that we have it pretty good here. Yeah, nothing’s perfect. Other countries do a few things cool and a little bit different, but at the end of the day, this is the greatest car culture on planet Earth. Everyone should go experience something different to gain the gratitude that we should all have here. That’s what keeps us motivated, that’s what keeps us going – because we know how good we actually have it. Whitley: Talking about memories and favorite moments…my favorite moment is when we built the Dung Beetle, and AZN got behind the wheel. He had to row gears, and he showed them all how it was done. It was the only stick-shift car out there and he did pretty damn good, outrun a bunch of supercars with it. Even though we’re not related, he’s 20 years younger than me and it was like watching my boy. We built the car, we raced the car, and that’s one of my fondest memories. As things progressed, it wasn’t just the 405 show anymore. With nearly 20 spin-off shows, you were basically filming year-round. With a cast made up primarily of regular, blue-collar workers, how did you balance your regular jobs and filming full-time? Whitley: Well, first of all, you mentioned spin-off shows. I think we, or Street Outlaws, set a record for the most spin-off shows in any reality TV show series. We’re proud of that. Woods: I was very fortunate. At that time, I was a welding and structural superintendent for a drilling rig company. I had 42 rigs in the field total. Half the town worked for the man that owned the company. When he sold the company, I had to interview to keep my job. We built 22 drilling rigs in 24 months. We had 147 welders working for us, and it was chaos. The whole time we’re building these rigs, I’m racing in the street. There were times when I would come to work with my car on the trailer out in the parking lot, because I just came back from racing in the street. My phone rang 24/7; I literally slept with it under my pillow so it would vibrate and wake me up. I’ve been building and working on cars since I was a kid. I would race in the street and chase the oilfield stuff. I couldn’t keep up. We had some disagreements at work, and I was like, “It’s time.” It was not a hard decision. I stepped away from that and focused on the show. Love: We were a hodgepodge of everything you could think of. There was one year that I personally filmed four different TV shows. I know it was our original show and No Prep Kings. I did Mega Cash Days, and something else. I can’t remember what the other one was, but I filmed four shows. I never made America’s List, so I could have been doing five, maybe even six shows. It cost me my career. I couldn’t be there to run my shop. I had to rely on other people to run my shop, and nobody can run your shop like you do. I had to make the decision: close the shop and continue filming, or quit filming and go back to the business. I don’t want to be a diesel mechanic. I’m tired of working on diesels. My hands hurt, arthritis, shoulder, back. I chose the path to do something I love. Even though we’ve been struggling, I still want to go down that road. I love the fans. The racing can be as bad as it can be, and the fans all turn it around. Bonnett: I think what you saw was an expedited evolution of car guys. We start out racing go-karts, and then we get a little street rod, then big tire, big blocks, and now we’ve got fiberglass bodies. In a 12-year period, you had an influx of sponsors and investors, you had people that wanted to be involved at any cost. And I tell people, these cars were the fastest on the planet because every single manufacturer was waiting to give these parts away. Tires couldn’t get any better, there were no bigger superchargers, nitrous was what it was, and they were just throwing parts at it. And now, these other events, they’re trying to emulate the culture that this show created to go backwards. You’re seeing all these Top Fuel guys, these characterized athletic type of divisions go backwards a little bit to recapture what Street Outlaws may have created, but at the end of the day, that 12 years was a fast-track on the launch pad to the evolution of a normal car guy. One of the most popular spin-off shows was No Prep Kings. How did you all balance the idea of being street racers that are now competing at the track, but also giving fans of the show the opportunity to come out and experience what you’re doing? Bonnett: I’ll be short with my answer. I think Farmtruck and I, at that point, that was maybe the seven- to eight-year mark, we saw the show evolving too fast and we saw the ship growing and we saw it getting out of control. Farmtruck and I took it upon ourselves to say, “OK, I don’t know if the other guys are into this, but we’re going to at least try to throttle it down. We’re going to try to throttle-stop this. We need to start going backwards, guys. We need to start capturing the audience that was paying attention, because they’re not catching up with us. They don’t understand how fast this is going and they can’t relate.” So we tried to bring relatability back, first with Daily Driver and then Locals Only. It didn’t work a hundred percent, but Farmtruck and I at least gave a valiant effort to reel back the evolution a little bit. Love: We personally didn’t care. We’re getting paid to race. That was the road to us going to full-time jobs with this stuff. Our fan base was literally seven-year-olds to 75-year-olds. What part of that fan base is actually going to get to see us race on the street? A very small percentage. The only way we could give back to our fans was to go to the track. No prep was invented to get street racers off the street. It evolved into its own animal, took off, and it’s its own thing now, as far away from street racing as it could be. Everybody wants to outrun everybody. That evolution led to where it’s at now: the best of the best cars, parts, and tuners. Nobody does it alone, like we used to. Am I happy with it? No. I wish it was still back to the original, real no prep days. That’s where I feel like blue-collar guys like me, that can’t afford the best of the best, will shine. Woods: I thought I understood what NPK was going to be, but in the beginning, we were on sketchy, small-town, little bitty tracks. Birdman’s Firebird would run mid-3.90s. My car ran high 4.20s, and I could outrun 3.80 or 3.90 cars because the surface wouldn’t take it, so it was legit. You can have a 5,000-horsepower program, and it doesn’t do you any good. You have to get down the surface. We were in Kentucky and the fire marshal showed up and locked the gate, and there was still a six-mile line in both directions. You can’t go anywhere without being recognized. I’m not complaining about that. I’ll talk to every single person that wants to have a conversation. Without the fans, we don’t get to do what we do on the platform we’re doing it on. My hope in this whole thing is that those little kids that are running in Jr. Dragsters never stop drag racing. I want to hook those kids. Whitley: Well, a little bit of the history of the show and how it evolved. Every human wants a nicer home and a nicer car. Same thing with racers – they want to go faster. We had run out of real street racers on Street Outlaws to race and the producers started finding us races, and that’s when you saw Pro Mods show up. All the other guys said, “Hey, we’re in front of the world here. We got to step up our game. If we’re going to be racing Pro Mods on the street, we got to do this.” They did what they had to do to compete. AZN and I, we knew we couldn’t compete. We just wanted to keep it simple. So we still have the same old Farmtruck. We put a bigger and better motor in it, but it’s still streetable, and it’s still what we wanted the show to be. Our last season, we were driving street cars, we were cruising, we were getting back to our roots. Everybody was having fun, no one was arguing. We were racing in other towns, other states. That was the best the show had been in a long, long time. With the evolution you talked about – the never-ending desire to continue going faster combined with big-money teams jumping in – do you believe it eventually went too far from what made it popular to begin with? Love: I’ll say something about that. We had some new guys come in and immediately make an impact. Clay Cole, Nate Sayler, the Gucci car, those guys basically built Ryan Martin’s car in a different body. They literally called Pro Line and said, “I want to run with Ryan, I want to compete with Ryan Martin,” and they told them how to build the car. It’s the same tuner Ryan has, so now instead of one Ryan Martin, you have five. That’s where it went, and I’ve just never been a follow-the-leader-type guy. I didn’t want to be like the next guy, nor could I afford to build a $300,000 car. So we just do it the Doc Love way and try to make the best of it. If it ever goes back to the way it used to be, I’m so much smarter now than I used to be, so much more ahead, that I feel I could go back to dominating like I used to. Whitley: Well, it’s gone too far for us, but not for them. They did it, and I’m glad they stepped up and built these awesome cars to compete. People evolved and they got better at what they do. AZN and I, we’re still stuck in the past. Bonnett: I have to look at it from a business perspective, so it has gone beyond fun. It has gone beyond recreational weekend activities. It’s now a business, and so the question is can you maintain a level of redneck loyalty with a business? That’s to say have monster trucks gone too far and should return back to being trucks? Hell no. They can’t have boring caricatures. They can’t turn into NHRA where it’s like, “I’m Scott and I’m sponsored by A&A Attorney Company. It’s been a good run this year.” You got to lose this monotone; you got to reinvent the wheel a little bit. The cars have got to be fast, they’ve got to be safe, but they’ve got to be relatable in some regard. They’ve got to find a lane outside of what NHRA is. Don’t be NHRA; be something different. Woods: That was my fear because the track was always the equalizer. Even Murder Nova bashed what we were doing in the beginning. Then he shows up and he’s like, “Holy shit, this ain’t no joke.” The programs we are racing against today, a lot of those guys spend $2-4 million a year. I’m happy for them, don’t get me wrong. I would love to be in their shoes. A lot of them rotate their engines and their transmissions every year. To be fair, I still don’t have two engines. When I put the Noonan Hemi in my car, for three years it never came out. I don’t push it to the absolute limit. I would love to, but I’m not in that financial boat. If I break the engine, I’m done for a month. The reality is – and this is a very hard pill to swallow – if you’re not on that level, you’re getting your teeth kicked in. Looking ahead, with Speed Promotions Racing taking over what was formerly No Prep Kings, and no television show currently in place, what are your plans moving forward? Will you continue with SPR, or focus more on match races and paid appearances? Woods: I don’t want to quit. I don’t. It hurts, and a lot of people don’t understand, but the reality is I don’t want to see Street Outlaws die. I’ve given 12 years of my life to this. At the same time, I’ve been blessed. My car ran 4.80s, now it runs 3.80s. I’ve learned how to make a car go a full second faster. I love the Speed Promotions thing. I’m going to do the ones that I can afford to go to, because I still want to be a part of it. It’s hit the point where the only rule right now is steel roof and quarters. Well shit, Kye [Kelley]’s car weighs 2,560 pounds. Mine weighs 2,700 pounds. He’s 140 pounds lighter than mine. I can’t hang with that. But I’m going to do everything I can. I love the fact that I have the time right now to go do appearances. We haven’t got to do appearances like this since NPK started. The one-on-one with these people, listening to how they’ve got this car or they’re building that car, that’s my drive to continue doing this. Love: If we were still on TV, I could tell you a better direction where we’re going to go, but honestly, we’re in the dark out here. I can’t afford to chase these multi-million-dollar teams around. I’m asking a 30-year-old repurposed bracket car to do what it was never built to do in the first place. Yes, I get paid a little bit of money to go, but in the long run, it’s not worth it. I hate to say that the fans aren’t worth it; I just can’t financially compete anymore, so I’ll do what I can. If I can’t do a Speed Promotions race, then I’ll do an appearance like we’re at right now. In the last five years, we didn’t have time to do appearances. We didn’t have time to go out and just meet the fans and race our cars for fun, so I want to get back to that. I’ll still get in front of the fans, entertain, and do the best I can. I’ll do that until they don’t want to see me anymore. Whitley: No, we want to do what we want to do. We want to build cool stuff. We just got done with our “Funny Farm,” which is like a double truck, with two front ends. And we want to have a lot of fun creating stuff like that. We want to come to these tracks, do some grudge racing. We don’t do much street stuff anymore. A lot of these small towns will block off the roads and let us race. We love that stuff. We’ve been invited to go out and race with the other guys [SPR], but we didn’t hear from them in a long time and so we booked the whole year, and we really don’t have it in our schedule to go this year. We love doing stuff like this at small tracks like Mo-Kan. There’s lots of friendly people, a lot of hardcore Street Outlaws fans that come out to see us. Bonnett: Farmtruck and I, we’re the zebras in the horse pen. We don’t know exactly where we fit into that program. I have no doubt that Speed Promotions would open the gate and treat us well, but at the end of the day, we just don’t know where we fit into that, and I don’t know if they do. I’m sure they’d reserve us a pit area, let us meet the fans, and sell the merch. We found that in the past few seasons of being involved, the Farmtruck can’t compete, so we’re out there doing exhibition races. It’s just tough for us, and we really rally for those guys to do well and we want that series to do well, but until we find our own lane in that series, we’re just going to keep setting up garage sales across the nation and selling our wares, so we’re cool with that. And if it don’t work out, we’re going to start an OnlyFans. The post Life Beyond ‘Street Outlaws’: Four Original Stars Talk Past, Present and Future first appeared on Drag Illustrated. View the full article

BMW did something unorthodox with the E90 (sedan), E92 (coupe), and E93 (convertible) M3s back in the 2000s. After years of relying on an inline six-cylinder engine for the M3, the brand switched to a high-revving 4.0-liter V8, known as the S65. It transformed the driving experience and character of the M3, while dramatically elevating its straight-line speed. Besides its towering performance, this was the last time an M3 badge adorned a convertible or coupe, once the M4 replaced it. It was also the last time the M3 had a naturally-aspirated engine. Special for all these reasons, prices of the E90/E92/E93 have dropped down to the point that you can acquire one for close to $20,000, which is what you’ll pay for a new budget car in 2025. Related: Review: 2008 BMW M3 Coupe Cheap to Buy, But Not Cheap to Run 2010 BMW M3 Cars & Bids View the 3 images of this gallery on the original article Scouring through this year’s M3 sales on Cars & Bids, one 2010 M3 Convertible sold for as little as $12,720, although it did sustain “unspecified damage” in 2018, so that one was far from perfect. Many others sold for under $20k, over the last year or two, but all had flaws of some kind. Last month, though, a neat 2010 coupe sold for $22,027. That aligns with the Kelley Blue Book fair purchase price for a 2010 M3 Coupe, which is $21,809. On the face of it, that looks like a miraculous bargain for something so powerful and luxurious, but as with many older BMWs, the purchase price doesn’t tell the full story. Cars & Bids This 2010 M3 had already covered 126,000 miles and had its rod bearings replaced—a common and often serious issue with this generation of the M3. The related S85 V10 fitted to the BMW M5 and M6 of the period also suffers from premature rod bearing failures. Various forums indicate that this job could cost you as much as $4,500 on the M3, and it’s recommended to perform this preventative maintenance job every 70,000 miles or so. Many M3s with the S65 and at this lower price point have had their rod bearings done. Regardless of which one you buy, it should be factored into your budget if you buy a used E90 M3. However, cumulative smaller maintenance items can add up quickly, too. Last year, the seller of a 2011 M3 with 108,300 miles shared a service and maintenance bill of nearly $12k. This service contained many routine items, such as replacing the brake pads, but also many rarer fixes that inflated the overall bill. These are the maintenance costs you can expect with a higher-mileage V8-powered M3, and they can soon exceed the cost of purchasing the car in the first place. Related: BMW’s Legendary V8 M3 Just Got a Modern Exhaust Upgrade Performance Aplenty From Last M3 of Its Kind 2010 BMW M3 Cars & Bids View the 3 images of this gallery on the original article The 4.0-liter V8 in this generation of the M3 produces 414 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque. It powered the M3 to 60 mph in around 4.5 seconds, assisted by a sky-high red line of 8,400 rpm. Transmissions included a six-speed manual or a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic, which were available across all three body styles. The DCT was far better than the clunky SMG equipped to the E46 M3. Back then, M3s were all rear-wheel drive, with no all-wheel drive option. Controlling all that power through one pair of wheels wasn’t always an easy task, but taming the beast that was the E90 was all part of the fun. It helped that this generation of the M3 was smaller than today’s M4, too. To date, this is the only V8-powered M3 BMW ever made, and quite likely the last. That’s if you discount the E46 M3 GTR, with BMW ultimately deciding not to sell the road-going version to the public. The E90-series M3s hold a special place in enthusiasts’ hearts, but although they're now affordable to buy, they're far from affordable to run, so keep that in mind if you take the plunge. View the full article

Porsche's Unexpected SaviorWhen the original Cayenne landed more than 20 years ago, it kept Porsche alive and opened the brand to buyers who needed something more practical than a 911. It also effectively placed Porsche in an unexpected corner of the SUV world. Despite its luxury-car focus, the Cayenne proved surprisingly useful off-road, enough that custom off-road builds and lifted one-offs became a quiet subculture. Now the Cayenne Electric enters the picture as a separate model line. It brings a new platform, new powertrain, and a curb weight that climbs to roughly 5,830 pounds, making it the heaviest Cayenne ever. Porsche, however, insists the added mass hasn't turned it into a soft-roader. In fact, the company says the EV version performs "much better" off-road than the combustion model it will sell alongside. And Here's WhyMichael Schaetzle, Porsche's vice president for the Cayenne line, says the team expected the EV to match the combustion-powered model. Testing suggested something else. "We are working on the car so that the off-road capabilities are as good as the combustion-engine Cayenne," Schaetzle told Australia's Drive. "We did our work in Weissach, and then we came to Dubai, and it was better than we believed." "It's unbelievable. You have to switch on the sound mode because it's very important you hear the slip. It's so easy because you've got so much power. You're going up the dune and you can modify the power perfectly. It's much better than the ICE," Schaetzle added. The optional Offroad Package lifts the EV to roughly 9.6 inches of ground clearance and increases the approach angle to 25 degrees, along with reworked axles, tires, and Porsche's Active Ride System. Not Bad in Other SUV Tasks, TooOf note, the Cayenne Electric has a 7,700-lb towing capacity, matching the previous versions. Porsche knows towing hits range, but the company argues this is normal across all powertrains. In the same report, Dirk Britzen, who heads Cayenne's sales and marketing, notes that load, speed, and terrain will determine how much range falls off. To verify the numbers, Schaetzle said that Porsche towed its own speedboat about 236 miles from Salzburg to Stuttgart. The EV managed roughly 155 miles of motorway cruising with the boat in tow. With its 800-volt architecture enabling up to 400-kW DC charging, Porsche says a 10-80 percent recharge took less than 16 minutes during development tests. Porsche View the 6 images of this gallery on the original article View the full article

The Lamborghini Revuelto is already arguably the most alien-looking machine on the road (perhaps with the exception of the unparalleled Czinger 21C), but that didn't stop the mad modifiers at RDB LA from taking things a step further with a new widebody kit. Over the course of just one week, RDB LA applied a 1016 Industries carbon fiber Vision Widebody upgrade, along with several other bits and pieces from the prolific designers of aesthetic enhancements for supercars. The Revuelto costs over $600,000, and 1016 Industries isn't shy with its pricing either, with the wider front and rear fenders alone setting buyers back $29,995 - and that's before paint or fitment. Aggressive Looks All Around RDB LA View the 3 images of this gallery on the original article On the OEM bumper, RDB fitted a carbon fiber lip and carbon fiber center grille inserts, along with extensions that sit on either side of the headlights and ahead of the vented front fenders. There's also a new carbon fiber front hood, which gives the car a bit of Aventador SVJ flavor, while carbon mirrors complete the look of the front. A massive two-piece carbon fiber scoop has also been added to the roof, and this leads all the way back over the engine cover with a large fin that apes the look of Le Mans hypercars. Moving to the side, carbon fiber side skirts with fins behind the front wheels fit well with the OEM door, and more carbon fiber appears in the side intakes, which are also widened. Related: Zacoe Builds the Lamborghini Revuelto SVJ Before Lamborghini Can RDB supplied the polarizing (if not controversial) wheels, which start at $10,000 for 20-inch items, and some of each rear fender had to be chopped away to allow these to fit without rubbing. At the back, a double carbon fiber wing was installed, and this is static to avoid hitting that fin when it articulates. 1016 Industries supplied brackets that reportedly make the car's software think the wing is still active, so there shouldn't be any errors on the dash as a result. Finally, a massive carbon fiber add-on diffuser was fitted before a satin silver wrap was applied. Pricing To Make Your Eyes Water RDB LA View the 2 images of this gallery on the original article RDB LA didn't make any mechanical changes (who needs them, with the Revuelto developing 1,001 horsepower from factory?), but that's a good thing because then this Revuelto might have cost seven figures. A look at 1016 Industries' website reveals that the carbon front lip costs $5,995, with the upper central add-on priced at $3,995. The DRL surrounds cost the same, while the hood adds $10,995 to the bill, and the vented front fenders (if you haven't gone for the aforementioned full widebody kit) cost $7,995 alone. Door blades are another $4,495, mirror covers another $2,995, and side skirts $8,995. Side intake vents are $4,595, and the rear diffuser is a whopping $12,995. The lower rear spoiler is $6,995, with the fixed race wing mounted above it priced the same. Then there's the roof scoop at $8,995, and finally, the roof scoop fin at a relatively reasonable $1,995. All in, you're looking at $122,025, excluding paint (or vinyl), fitment, and wheels. That's out of this world, but then again, so is the look. View the full article

Ethan Steding picked up a win in his first-ever Pro Mod racing. Now Steding is ready to take on the Snowbird Outlaw Nationals. View the full article

What Exactly Are We Looking At?Replicas have become better over the years – from high-end recreations of classics like the Mercedes 300SL Gullwing, which now cost more than a Ferrari Purosangue, to pop-culture icons such as full-scale Batmobileslisted for sale. That said, Germany has become home to a new entry in the replica scene: a Nissan GT-R lookalike built on a Ford Cougar platform. And... let's just say it isn't as great as those we've mentioned, but hear us out. This particular GT-R recreation arrived on Germany's Mobile listing website. It's registered in Lithuania and positioned as an accessible alternative for buyers drawn to the shape and presence of Nissan’s performance flagship, but at a fraction of the cost. While it doesn’t promise supercar pace, it does demonstrate how far some builders will go to merge affordability with aspiration. mobile.de Godzilla by Name, Cougar at HeartThe vehicle is listed at about $9,000 at current exchange rates, and even offers financing at $95 a month, making it a budget-friendly entry point for something styled after a modern performance icon. Built in 2019 on a Ford Cougar chassis, the car has accumulated only 932 miles since its conversion and 3,107 miles total. At least it has a V6, though it's not Nissan's glorious VR38DETT – it only produces 163 hp and is paired with a manual transmission. While output is modest compared to the real GT-R, the car maintains the mechanical simplicity of its donor vehicle. Exterior modifications include original GT-R bumpers, an aluminum hood, fiberglass body panels, new LED lighting, and new alloy wheels fitted with Pirelli tires. The interior has been fully reupholstered and features automatic climate control, parking sensors, a rear camera, a TV, a sunroof, and various safety systems, including ABS and stability control. The listing also notes an unusual detail for a coupe: sliding doors on both sides. Although that detail might sound dubious, it certainly would be interesting. mobile.de A Humble Replica Albeit With Off-Putting ProportionsIs this a genuine GT-R? Absolutely not. Is it one of the most entertaining listings in Europe right now? Without question. For the price of a decent gaming PC, you could own a conversation piece that confuses purists, delights onlookers, and turns every gas-station stop into a Q&A session you never asked for. And honestly, in a world where replica supercars regularly sell for mansion money and movie-car clones get snapped up by collectors, this Ford-Cougar-turned-Godzilla feels… refreshingly humble. It knows what it is. And for less than $9,000, maybe that’s the purest GT-R experience you can buy today – even if it’s only GT-R-shaped in spirit. mobile.de View the full article

Supercars are becoming more and more dangerous, and the demographic of those who can afford to buy and drive them is getting younger and younger, creating inherent risks for road users. But McLaren is doing something about it, with a new patent submitted with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, first noticed by CarBuzz. The patent suggests locking a "race driving mode" behind a wall until the car's GPS detects that the vehicle is in a safe environment, i.e., a racetrack. Simply put, the idea is to lock McLaren supercars into a performance mode no more aggressive than Sport when on the street, with the hardcore Track or Race modes only available when the driver is on, well, the track. This makes even more sense considering that these modes often lower the suspension in a way that may "not meet one or more safety standards in order to be certified for use on public roads," says the patent. McLaren Sports And Supercars Will Still Be Fast On The Road McLaren Typically, a high-performance car will have (at least) three modes; the McLaren 750S in these images has Comfort, Sport, and Track, and this patent doesn't suggest turning the road-legal modes into hamstrung settings that make McLarens as slow as a new Prelude, or reducing horsepower to levels that would rival a Mitsubishi Mirage. Instead, the idea is to put the most aggressive (and most dangerous) mode out of bounds, leaving the baseline performance settings as they otherwise would be. USPTO/Patentscope Comfort is meant for everyday cruising, with relaxed suspension, steering, and throttle response settings. Sport mode turns things up a notch, often with sharper steering and throttle calibrations, and slightly stiffer suspension. Traction control is usually loosened a little, too, while Track mode puts the car in its most hardcore setting, which would typically mean total deactivation of traction control and electronic stability management programs, with the most sensitive throttle and steering settings and the lowest and stiffest suspension calibration. In some cars, Track also offers a Drift mode, making it easier to kick out the tail and light up the rear tires - not something you want to see on a public road. What About Temporary Racetracks? McLaren Fortunately, McLaren's patent acknowledges that temporary racetracks - like Lord March's driveway, used for the Goodwood Festival of Speed - also exist, so McLaren owners could still take their cars to autocross events held in parking lots, but there are still some problems with this technology if it ever becomes a reality in production cars. For one thing, McLaren would need to be aware of the autocross event in advance to update the car's GPS for the duration of the event. In addition, rallies or runs where the police are involved and allow the occasional rip may prove problematic. Another problem is that a poor internet connection could make it impossible to enjoy one's car to the full, even if in a safe and legal environment. Then there's the concern of how one's location data is used. On the other hand, a technology like this could prevent high-performance cars from someday being outlawed under possible legislative measures to make roads safer, and if widely adopted, put an end to street takeovers. With approximately 6.14 million road accidents in the U.S. last year, with nearly 40,000 fatalities, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, it's certainly an idea worth considering. View the full article

Josh Hart's racing career enters a new phase with John Force Racing. Hart's move to JFR has felt seamless and he's ready to take on 2026.View the full article

BYD's Performance ArsenalAt this point, BYD has already built a global reputation for mass-market EVs and plug-in hybrids. However, the company's identity is also tinged with performance projects that draw a lot of attention. The most visible example is the Yangwang U9, the wild quad-motor 3,000-horsepower electric hypercar that set a Nürburgring lap record for EVs. It also grabbed headlines with a verified 294-mph run, giving BYD bragging rights in an area long dominated by European brands. Now another model from BYD's layered brand network is being lined up for Germany. Instead of another Yangwang, the task falls to Denza, BYD's other premium arm, which is preparing its Z sports car for a timed lap at the Nürburgring Nordschleife. Denza The Denza Z Heads to Green HellAccording to a report from Autohome, the announcement came during the recent Denza Night event, where General Manager Li Hui confirmed that the production version of the Denza Z will head to the Nürburgring for an official challenge. Three audience members were selected on the spot to witness the run in Germany. The Z first appeared as a concept at this year's Shanghai Auto Show in April, showing a compact, two-door, four-seat layout that immediately drew comparisons to the Porsche 911. While not confirmed, the production version is expected to deliver 536 hp and a claimed 0-62 mph time of 3.2 seconds, though some reports have stated higher power outputs and quicker acceleration times. Denza has confirmed the model will use steer-by-wire, BYD's Cloud Carriage-M chassis tech, Easy3D system, and a version of the trippy DiSus "body control" dampening system found in the U9. Final specifications and timing for the lap attempt are still to come. Denza What Denza Brings to the TableOriginally founded as a joint venture between BYD and Mercedes-Benz, Denza was created to tap into the growing premium EV segment in China. Mercedes-Benz has since reduced its stake, but its early involvement helped shape Denza's positioning as the more upscale wing of the BYD portfolio. The Z represents Denza's move beyond crossovers and MPVs into something more expressive. Taking it to the Nürburgring means that the brand wants to be associated not just with comfort and tech, but with performance credibility. With the U9 already setting benchmarks, the Z's upcoming lap will show how deep BYD's performance bench really goes. Denza View the full article

Safety Recall Announced for 2025 Nissan SentraNissan has issued a new safety recall covering 41,797 units of the 2025 Sentra after discovering that some windshields may contain visible air bubbles that violate federal safety standards. These air bubbles could hinder outward visibility, thus increasing the risk of a crash. Additionally, these bubbles may fall outside the acceptable limits defined by FMVSS 205, which prohibits imperfections extending more than 13 mm from the edge of the glass. The issue affects cars built between July 5 and October 17, 2025. Nissan How the Problem Was DiscoveredThe issue initially surfaced during a routine yard audit in August 2025 at Nissan’s Aguascalientes A2 plant in Mexico. A technician noticed bubbles within the glass and laminate layers on the front windshield of a Nissan Sentra, leading to the vehicle in question being quarantined and an investigation being initiated with the windshield supplier. Over the next couple of months it was discovered that the bubbles were being caused by foreign particles getting trapped between the layers of the windshield during the manufacture process, resulting in separation of the glass and laminate layers. The root cause of this delamination was finally traced to misaligned locator pins within the glass molds, which prevented proper air evacuation during assembly and allowed foreign particles to create the bubble-type delamination. Nissan What Owners Need to KnowNissan dealers will inspect affected vehicles and replace the windshields as required. The repair is said to take about two-and-a-half hours, and will be undertaken at absolutely no cost to owners. Dealers have already been notified about this issue, while Nissan will start reaching out to owners of all potentially affected vehicles from January 2026. If you think that your Sentra might be among those affected, you can verify this by running your VIN through Nissan’s recall lookup system, which has already been updated with this issue. View the full article

Porsche 911 fans were shocked in the 1990s when the 996-generation of the iconic sports car arrived, primarily because of its controversial design. The contentiousness centered around the 996’s headlights, which deviated from the classic rounded style with what became known as the “fried egg” headlight design. An independent designer from Simas Design Studio has now envisioned what a 996-inspired design would look like if applied to a modern 911. It’s a question nobody asked, but the final result isn’t as off-putting as you may imagine. A Fresh Take on the Modern 911 996-inspired Porsche 911 Simas Design Studio View the 4 images of this gallery on the original article Whereas the 996’s entire light cluster assumed the fried egg shape, the designer instead chose to pair the traditional round headlights with integrated vents. Together, the vents and lights mirror the look of the traditional 996. The look adds a modern twist to the current 911 GTS without the car losing its classic, instantly recognizable profile. The only other change appears to be Turbo Look II wheels inspired by those on the original 996.2 Turbo. Simas Design Studio Commenters on social media mostly reacted positively to the changes. After all, finding a way to morph this 996 design cue into something that looks good takes some skill. Not everyone loves it, though, with some preferring to leave the 996 relegated to the past. Asked about the inspiration behind this design, the designer told CarScoops it was "a quick personal experiment" to see how the two generations of the 911 could be combined. 996 Was a Huge Departure 1999 Porsche 911 Bring A Trailer View the 4 images of this gallery on the original article Although still lauded for its feedback and engaging handling, the 996 was such a massive departure from prior 911s that Porsche fans still look at it as a low point in the sports car’s generally unblemished history. Besides the new design, the 996 introduced a new generation of water-cooled engines, a departure from the older air-cooled mills. To save costs, the development of the 996 was shared with the cheaper, first-generation Porsche Boxster (986). For many, this diluted the appeal of the 911 at that time, an aspirational sports car that should have had little to do with the much cheaper Boxster. Bring A T Thankfully, there’s still much to appreciate about the 996. The flat-six engines still emit an intoxicating wail, but the car is about 110 pounds lighter than the older 993, so with close to 300 horsepower on the early base model, it feels a lot quicker. Later, the 996 Turbo arrived which, when equipped with the X50 Package, raised the output to a heady 444 hp. The 911 has moved on since the 996’s arrival, though. Today, the cheapest model has 388 hp and is nearly as quick as the 996 Turbo. You can also get it in hybrid form, although a plug-in hybrid doesn’t appear to be part of Porsche’s plans for its legendary sports car. With all that’s new under the skin, maybe it’s time for a more revolutionary approach to design, just as the 996 did for the nameplate in the 1990s. Related: Spied: Porsche Could Revive One Of The Strangest 911s Ever Built View the full article

The Scoox Zero X7 shows how new brands are bending categories in the EV space with outlandish styling choices and modern technology. View the full article

The phrase "Let there be light!" takes on a whole new meaning with Rigid Industries' Phoenix off-road lights, as they're powerful and almost endlessly configurable. View the full article

John Force’s office inhabits the northwestern corner of the second floor of a sprawling, 60,000 square foot Infiniti car dealership turned race shop in beautiful Yorba Linda, California. It’s a big office, of course, affording a spectacular view of the mountains of Chino Hills Range. Even the empty parking lot below seems impressive from this vantage point, though nothing more than asphalt. It’s difficult to shake the feeling that this is the house that drag racing built. On a recent January morning, Force, looking trim in a white linen dress shirt and a dark blue blazer with Castrol on the right chest, sits in an executive chair behind a massive multi-tiered polished black desk, drumming his fingers. Beautifully framed photographs hang on the wall all around him: His daughter’s baby pictures; John with his wife and daughters at the NHRA awards banquet; professionally taken black-and-white shots of his wife Laurie, as well as daughters Ashley, Courtney and Brittany. Editor’s Note: This story originally appeared in DI #51 in March of 2011. Sitting behind a desk, the man born John Harold Force is a bundle of nervous energy, it’s as if he’s hiding something, perhaps keeping a secret he’s dying to tell. He leans forward, looks first to his right, then to his left, seemingly checking to see who all is listening. “You know how much work goes on in here?” asks Force. “None.” His unsettled behavior starts to become a little clearer; Force genuinely isn’t comfortable in this setting – it’s not natural. He stands up, walks out from behind the desk towards a picture window overlooking the lobby, which is literally packed with countless trophies and pieces of racing memorabilia, as well as five complete Nitro Funny Cars – including the mount that carried him to his 15th NHRA world championship just a few months prior. “My office?” he asks. “Try the cab of my Ford F150 pickup truck. A tour of my truck probably wouldn’t be as much fun, though.” Admittedly, Force is a gypsy. The nomadic lifestyle of the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series and its 22 national events send him and what he refers to as his “traveling road show” back and forth across the country every season, and has since 1979. Life on the road isn’t anything new to Force, though. The son of a long-haul truck driver, Force inherited his highwaymen genes from his father, Harold. As a kid, Force spent his summers in the bed of a dump truck, riding up and down the California coast through the San Joaquin Valley, picking berries with the rest of his family. “I lived all summer in the bed of a dump truck,” Force says. “We all did. We had our refrigerator in it, we slept in it – people don’t even know.” Suddenly, it’s not that hard to understand why Force is like a cat on a hot tin roof within the confines of an office space, no matter how large or plush. “I’ve got this office here, full of trophies and pictures of my family, my grandbaby, Autumn, everything. I’ve got an office in Indy they built me – state-of-the-art – and it sits right now today empty. I never moved into it.” Surprising? Not really. Despite having become inarguably the most popular and successful drag racer in history, Force struggles to accept the role, though he can certainly play the part. He’s won championships, set records, defied all odds, time and time again, but for whatever reason refuses to accept the battle as over, the job done, the dream fulfilled. In the world of drag racing, John Force, at the age of 61, certainly isn’t the sole elder statesman; though by and large the majority of racers who have enjoyed continued success in the sport in their senior years have done so by transitioning their careers to team-ownership or some other facet of the industry. Force, in spite of his myriad business ventures, has been enjoying one of the biggest years of his racing career, particularly in the driver’s seat. With his 2010 NHRA Full Throttle Series world championship, his 15th total as a driver, 17th as a team owner, Force’s domination over the sport for more than twenty years is unparalleled in any professional sport. Drawing inspiration from people like Donald Trump and Henry Ford, Force has branched out of the racing industry with various business ventures. He recently broke ground on what will soon be a television studio and production company across the street from his racing facility in Yorba Linda, that already houses a museum and apparel store. “I read once where Donald Trump, he never took vacations,” says Force. “Then he finally took one to some island and he ended up buying a hotel while he was there. It made me laugh because I think the same way. Whether it’s trying to win another championship or build this traveling road show like PT Barnum – I always try to create excitement.” Though many racers and fans felt Force’s days as a competitive member of the Nitro Funny Car ranks were behind him after a devastating crash in 2007 left him hospitalized with a severely broken left ankle, a deep laceration on his right knee, a fractured and dislocated left wrist, and abrasive injuries to his right hand, he was only down, not out. An emergency six-hour surgery and extensive physical therapy at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, Texas, gave Force and family hope that he would walk again, but driving a 300mph race car seemed completely out of the question. Force even had his doubts. “My family was at my side every step of the way,” he says. “They all told me that I’d drive again, and I have to hand it to Robert [Hight] and Ashley – they have that determination.” And drive again he did, but that was about the extent of the experience as the years following the crash were a wash. For the first time in 23 years, Force endured an entire race season without a trip to the winner’s circle in 2009, though Ashley won two races and son-in-law Robert Hight won the championship. The next year, Force returned to his old form and proved that washed up he was not, adding six more wins in 2010 to his resume that already included 126 national event victories. Tom “The Mongoose” McEwen, a legendary drag racer in his own right, has been a friend of Force’s for years, and was one of the drivers that he aspired to be like in his early days. He says he talked to Force in the months following his accident in 2007, and told him he had to “suck it up” and get back to the track. “A lot of people,” says McEwen, “when they meet John, they think he’s on something – he’s so wound up. You have to know, that’s just John. It’s who he is. When he was down, struggling to qualify, let alone win races, I had to tell him that all he had to do was make the decision. He had to make the decision to win, to get back to kicking their asses like had been. It wasn’t up to anyone else. It was up to him.” As the tour through the John Force Racing headquarters continues, a young woman enters what is scheduled to be our last stop for the day, the showroom – the third floor of the building, which houses Force’s growing car collection as well as row after row of Funny Car bodies – she’s holding a stack of papers, carrying a concerned look on her face, and glances at her watch briefly before politely pulling Force aside. “Did you eat your breakfast?” she asks him. “Yes, berries,” Force says. “Good choice.” The woman, Stephanie Fernandez – Force’s assistant, who he explains helps keep his head on straight – smiles. “I thought you would like them,” she says. Force, making a point, replies, “She knows I’ll just drink coffee all day if she doesn’t put food right in front of me. I don’t slow down long enough to think about feeding myself.” Fernandez again checks her watch. “Remember, you have a conference call in a few minutes,” she says. “Or do you want me to try and push it back?” “Might have to push it back,” says Force with his million-watt smile. “We’re just getting started with the storytelling.” If John Force happens to stop by any of the local eateries for a bite to eat, maybe take a minute for himself if he dares and run by the theatre to catch a movie – it’s like everyone’s favorite relative is in town – the lady at the theatre wouldn’t dare charge him, waves him on in and calls him by name; the waitress at the restaurant already knows his order. A gypsy, as Force describes himself, is by definition strangers in all lands, but everywhere he goes people know him. Sure, he’s had more TV face time than any drag racer ever, but that’s not the John Force any of these people know. In public, and on camera, every move Force makes is authentic. He laughs genuinely, smiles often, and doesn’t hesitate to say exactly what’s on his mind. As a youth, Force famously lived with his parents and four siblings in a mobile home at a trailer court in Bell Gardens, California, and spent many a night looking out the window dreaming about the day he’d get out on his own. Though not afraid to talk about his humble beginnings or the success he has achieved in life, Force refuses to fully embrace one or the other. Perhaps it’s that very characteristic that has made him appeal to the masses – his bold and electrifying personality took him out of the trailer park and made him a superstar, while his endearing, lovable demeanor and rags-to-riches story has allowed him to connect with the everyman, and put him in the hearts of millions. John Force’s story makes anything seem possible, and his uncommon ability to tell his story and assume both roles simultaneously has created shoes that will never be filled. “I come from a family of storytellers,” says Force. “I used to tell stories at truck stops to get a free lunch, and to this day I’m telling those same stories only in a press room. There’s no difference. My momma used to say, ‘Nobody in our family died of cancer, nobody ever really died of a heart attack.’ I’d always ask her, ‘How did they die, momma?’ ‘Well, Johnny,’ she’d say, ‘most of them were hung for telling lies.’ Me, I never lie. I may embellish a good story, but there’s a big difference.” Widely considered one of the best drivers ever to grace the drag strip, Force’s strongest attributes have little to do with cutting lights or manhandling an 8,000 horsepower hot rod. It’s his ability to connect with people that has served him so well for all these years, though probably not as much to credit for his successes as Force’s never-ending belief that his dreams can, and will, come true. “Our family is full of very emotional people,” he says. “We believe in the dream. My dad left his family during the depression and hitchhiked to California in the snow – chasing the dream. My momma came from the dust bowl. My family lived The Grapes of Wrath. But we never stopped believing.” For Force, it would appear the dream has come true. Fame, fortune, and championships – he’s climbed to the top of the mountain. In a list of the Top 50 drivers of all time compiled by the NHRA in 2001 to commemorate their 50th anniversary, Force was named No. 2, second only to “Big Daddy” Don Garlits. Force openly admitted that he would have liked to be number-one; even though that’s a rating he’d never give himself. “In my mind, I’ll never be better than Don Prudhomme, [Kenny] Bernstein, McEwen,” says Force. “I idolized those guys. That’s who I wanted to be, and I’ll never let myself believe that I’ve surpassed them no matter how many championships we win. It’s never been about championships for me. That’s not what the dream is. If I was to let myself think I was the best, what’s left to accomplish?” As we exit the showroom, passing by a framed check hanging on the wall from the National Hot Rod Association to John Force Racing for four-hundred-thousand-dollars, Force leads us back downstairs towards the lobby, stopping as we approach a red, white, and blue Automobile Club of Southern California Ford Mustang Nitro Funny Car once driven by the late Eric Medlen – the first of Force’s Next Generation drivers, who passed away in a tragic accident in 2007. The tale of John Force is defined, like any story, by the actions of the main character when faced with a crossroads. Force identifies two in his life, both involving survival – the first his own, and the second that of those he cares about most. “I was sitting in my eighteen-wheeler at an interstate truck stop just outside of Memphis,” says Force. “I’d pulled over to call home. My daddy picked up the phone and he told me, ‘John, you have to come home.’ He told me the bank was broke, that I didn’t have any money – it was over. I didn’t know what to do. I remember my head going down on the wheel and I started to cry. “We didn’t have cell phones in them days. I was parked next to a phone booth and the next day my dad called back. He said, ‘a race track in Houston wants to book ya’. They lost their drivers, Prudhomme and Bernstein, because of a national event rainout, and he said they’ll give you money right now.’ I called the promoter and I asked how much he was paying. He started negotiating with me and I said, ‘Look, I’m either coming or I’m not, but I’m broke – I need a room, I need food for the two people I got with me, and I want half of what you would have paid Prudhomme.’ And he said, ‘You got a deal.’” Out of gas, figuratively and literally, Force was preparing himself to accept defeat, to quit, and give up the dream. Six hundred miles from a little backwoods track in Texas, Force chose to believe. More than 30 years later, he still is, though that truck stop wouldn’t be the last time his resolve was put to the test. Winning championships, setting records, his daughter set to make her Nitro Funny Car debut, his team growing, John Force was on top of the world. And then he lost Eric. “I went home and I looked at my trophies, and it made me sick,” Force recalls of the days following Medlen’s death. “What good was any of this without this young kid that was the next generation of John Force Racing? He had helped Ashley, he helped Robert – hell, he was even teaching me. Eric Medlen was really special, and then he was gone. “All of that glory, all of that wanting to be a hero, wanting to be a star; pounding coffee in the morning, energy drinks through the day, beer every night so you could sleep, and all of a sudden you realize – you’re nothing. All you thought mattered, didn’t matter.” Force did his best, but he was struggling. Mad at the world, confused, he was moving ahead, but only to a small degree. Nothing made sense, especially racing for trophies, and the most terrifying thing of all – his own daughter, his son-in-law, they were still racing. He was ready to quit, just like he was in Memphis. Again, Force chose to believe – mainly that these cars could be safer, and that Eric Medlen would not have died in vain. Seeking answers from points all across the motorsports landscape, Force took heed of the unforgettable advice of NASCAR President, Mike Helton, who told him, “You should surround your drivers with armor.” “I took that message to Tom Compton at the NHRA,” says Force. “I told him we needed more weight. Oh, no, these teams were screaming. They wanted to beat me up. Well, I wasn’t going back. I got my people around me – the brain trust, John Medlen, Austin [Coil], Bernie [Fedderly] – and I asked them ‘What are we going to do?’ Everybody went to work with Ford Motor Company’s engineers and we made changes to the cars, we changed the roll cages, we added padding. We couldn’t sit around and wait for another kid to die. It was about saving lives.” Little did Force know, ultimately, it would come down to saving his own life. Six months later, still unable to come to terms with Medlen’s death, begrudging everyone, God included, Force stood at the 1,000-foot mark in the pits of the Texas Motorplex on a Saturday night. “I was mad, drinking beer, and I asked God, ‘Why did you take Eric? Why did you give that family so much pain?’ I wanted a sign. I wanted a reason. The next day at 1,000-foot, the good Lord hit me with a hammer right where I had stood the night before, and he changed my life. “Kenny Bernstein and I ran into each other, all hell broke loose, and I almost died. If that wasn’t a sign, I don’t know what is,” says Force. “I woke up in the helicopter with bones sticking out of my feet, my wrists, my knee, and the doctors told me it was over. I lay in that hospital bed and my daughter, Ashley, and my wife, Laurie, they stood there and told me, ‘This is exactly what happened to Eric. If we wouldn’t have fixed the cars after his crash, you would have died.’ I realized then that Eric Medlen saved my life.” Far beyond our originally scheduled 60-minute time slot with the 15-time champion, Ms. Fernandez re-enters the room. Again she kindly reminds Force that he has other commitments that day, and by the acknowledging look on his face, it’s clear that our time is soon coming to an end. Having been given a story for nearly every square foot of the John Force Racing headquarters, it’s probably best that we met in California and not Indianapolis, where his 150,000-square feet shop serves as home base for the race teams, as well as houses the chassis shop, paint shop, Boss 500 engine program, Eric Medlen project, apparel store and another museum. (“You’ve got to come see this place in Indy,” he says. “It’s unbelievable.”) As we head towards the door, stopping briefly to load up our camera gear, Force takes the liberty of pushing back his pending conference call once again, which makes me feel, at least for a second, pretty important. He says he enjoyed showing us around, talking about racing, and life, but he the story wasn’t quite over. “I know I aggravate my people,” he says. “But I know I couldn’t do it without them. I am not a one-man band. It’s the people around me that have orchestrated this. Honestly, everyone is a part of this puzzle – well, it’s more like a Rubik’s cube most the time.” Throughout the course of our conversation Force has been candid; no holds barred, no topic off limits. Though books have been written chronicling his journey to the top of drag racing, he says he’s never spoken so openly. Maybe it’s therapeutic, or maybe it’s the berries; there’s no telling. Fortunately, nor is there any telling what he might say next. “These are things that I don’t usually talk about,” he says. “Maybe it’s just the mood I’m in this morning. I’m in a different mindset.” Almost every massive cardboard check on display in the museum, virtually every plaque and award on the wall, not to mention 132 coveted NHRA Wally trophies, all have his name inscribed on them, but if you asked John Force who was responsible for them he’d probably put his name last on the list. “I’m not a smart guy, I’m not a wiz kid,” he says. “Some people say I’m smart like a fox, but no – I’m actually dumber than mud, probably. But I surround myself with brilliant people. I surround myself with people that can take me where I want to go. “Education is a wonderful thing, and I am happy for those that have the money and the time to get a college education,” he continues. “I’ve given that to all my children, and my wife has her degree from San Diego State. I went to school to try and play football, and I didn’t last till noon on the first day. There are other ways to get educated – on the streets. I became a rich man in my lifetime because I worked seven days a week, I surrounded myself with people that could do what I couldn’t, but on top of that – I lived it. All day, every day.” Forking over the credit to his team and thanking his sponsors, Force attempts to sum up his success by quoting Paul Newman in the 1956 movie Somebody Up There Likes Me. “You know, I’ve been lucky,” says Force. “Somebody up there likes me.” Though his championship-winning performance this past November in Pomona looked much like a perfectly executed plan, Force can’t help but shake his head in amazement when he talks about it. “Beating Hagan,” he says, looking up. “Did that make any sense at all? That everything went wrong for him, and everything went right for me? Think about it. No, it doesn’t. There’s a higher power running this show, and I’ve learned that.” Force insists he has five years left to drive a race car, and that he’s going to give his fans and his sponsors all he’s got for every last one of them. “There won’t be any big announcement, there won’t be a retirement press conference,” he says. “Some older people want their finals days to relax, and God Bless them. When I step out of the seat, I know that I’m going to have to work harder to run the teams, to grow the business; whether it’s at the racetrack with the NHRA or if it’s in Hollywood. “I’m 61 going on 100,” he quips. “I will die at a drag strip. I know it’s already in the books, and it’s a good way to end my movie.” Even when speaking of his own death, Force recognizes an opportunity, and though it may be a tough pill to swallow when his body finally tells him that driving is no longer an option, it’s just one more road to cross. “Believe me, the legend is only beginning,” says Force. “It’s not about me. It’s about the future; it’s about our young drivers, our young crew chiefs. I’ve still got Bernie [Fedderly], and I’ve still got [Dave] Densmore, we’re the last of the old timers, and they remind me where I came from. We’ve got these young kids to take us to the next level.” Our hour-long meet and greet that had somehow morphed into a marathon confessional was finally winding down. Force has a meeting later this afternoon with Castrol in Los Angeles, which is clearly a priority. The first time he signed with Castrol was in 1985 for $5,000, and now he’s headed to their corporate offices to discuss what is certainly a multi-million dollar deal that will take the two partners into their 30th year together. “I’ve been racing for better than 30 years,” says Force. “It was never about the money. Just like I don’t work in that office upstairs, or live in these big houses I’m embarrassed to own, I don’t race for money or championships. Sure, I’ll take ‘em, and I’m proud, but there’s more to it than that. “So, what’s the motivation? What do I have left to prove?” he asks, preempting my question. “Nothing. I never did. All I’m doing is chasing the dream.” For John Force, the dream is simple – to be somebody. It’s been a lifelong quest to hear the crowd roar, and it’s served as both a blessing and a curse; the never-ending pursuit of the next accomplishment and tireless worth ethic keeps the championships coming, the sponsors on board, while the fear of failure and returning to that trailer house in Bell Gardens keeps him from ever truly enjoying his successes. “You have to understand,” says Force. “It’s where I came from. I was nobody. When I hear the cheer of the crowd, I can’t explain it – Superman comes out of me. It’s an addiction. It’s my ego.” So there it is, the dream. John Force has spent his whole life hoping, praying, and dreaming that one day he’d matter, that it’d be him the people stood and applauded. Though he’ll never rest, never stop fighting the good fight, Force’s dream came true a long time ago, and even if he called it quits with number fifteen – the crowd will never stop screaming every time they hear his name. The post DI Classic: John Force’s Dream first appeared on Drag Illustrated. View the full article