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Between its potent performance, gorgeous lines, and presence in the James Bond film Goldfinger, the Aston Martin DB5 has achieved legendary status. It also paved the way for today's powerful Aston Martin GTs. The grand tourer’s rarity—just 1,022 models were built between 1963 and 1965—is another factor contributing to its desirability, which is why a Welshman named John Williams refused to give up the DB5 he bought in the early 1970s. Now, thanks to Aston Martin Works, Williams’ DB5 has been fully restored, to the point where its value has skyrocketed up to £1 million (around $1.32 million). That’s not bad for a car that was originally purchased for £900. Related: All 25 James Bond movies ranked only by their cars A Dream Car Purchase 1965 Aston Martin DB5 Aston Martin View the 4 images of this gallery on the original article Not many of us get to purchase our dream car as a teenager, but John Williams accomplished that with this DB5 in 1973. Aged 19, he was a welder and garage owner, and set a goal the previous year of saving up enough to buy a DB5. The 1965 example he found required an hours-long train ride from North Wales to London, where he handed over the £900 (just short of $1,200) for the GT. Williams used the car as a daily driver for four years, but a new job in the Middle East in 1977 meant it ended up standing on his driveway. Aston Martin “Then… 'life' happened, he said. “I'd had offers to buy her, and times when I could have done with the money, but I resisted and, as Sue [John's wife] said 'you'll never get another one'.” The car’s condition deteriorated over time, not helped by the neighbors’ kids who bounced on the hood and even snapped off the exhaust pipe when they came over to play. Decades later, Williams chose Aston Martin Works in Newport Pagnell to complete the restoration, a process that started in 2022 and took three years. Related: James Bond Aston Martin V8 with its gadgets headed to auction Returned To Its Former Glory 1965 Aston Martin DB5 Aston Martin View the 4 images of this gallery on the original article The completely restored DB5 looks as regal as the day it left the factory. This was much more than an aesthetic refresh—the car was restored right down to the chassis and Superleggera frame. This particular example has a particularly desirable specification. It’s finished in Silver Birch paint, one of only 39 DB5 saloons in this color. It also has the higher-output Vantage 4.0-liter six-cylinder engine, which produces around 325 horsepower. It took the Panel, Paint, Trim, and Heritage Workshops at Aston Martin over 2,500 hours to complete the restoration. “Although the car was in a profoundly run-down condition when it arrived, we always relish a challenge and I knew we have the skills, dedication and expertise to return the car to a better-than-new condition,” said Paul Spires, President of Aston Martin Works. “I know it has been understandably emotional to see the car that they have owned for more than half a century restored so meticulously, and I know that every member of the team here hopes they can enjoy many years of happy motoring in their 'new' DB5.” 1965 Aston Martin DB5 Aston Martin View the 6 images of this gallery on the original article While Williams spent under $1,200 on the DB5 when he originally purchased it, Spires estimates that the restored GT is valued over $1.3 million, which is some return on one’s investment. “It's probably almost 50 years since I have driven this car, but the experience is phenomenal,” said Williams. “It's just... unbelievable. My girl's back and up and running! Back to her former glory.” A few years ago, Aston Martin announced a run of 25 DB5 Continuation cars, which were track-only reproductions of the DB5 from Goldfinger. The first one was completed in 2020, and all had a starting price of $3.4 million. That project, along with this restoration of John Williams’ 1965 DB5, underlines the passion that still exists for one of the British marque’s greatest cars. View the full article

A SEMA Idea ResurfacesBefore the Mustang GTD era swallowed most of Ford's performance attention, there was another factory-backed monster waiting in the wings. At the 2023 SEMA Show, Ford revealed the original Mustang FP800S concept package, built around the S650 Mustang GT and a 3.0-liter Whipple supercharger that pushed the Coyote V8 to 800 horsepower. It was meant to preview a future production upgrade, though after that event, the trail went quiet and no formal follow-up ever came from Dearborn. Well, until recently. A new version called the FP800S Bronze Magneride Package has appeared on the Ford Custom Garage website. Ford has yet to issue any official announcement, and the package is still labeled as a concept. However, with the content on full display on a customer-facing configurator, Ford may be preparing to finally offer the 800-hp upgrade to owners. For those who remember the SEMA car and wondered if it would ever graduate from showpiece to reality, this is the clearest sign so far. Ford Custom Garage What the Package Comes WithThe bones of this new Bronze Magneride Package are familiar. The headline item remains the 3.0-liter Whipple supercharger, backed by an air/oil separator kit, upgraded half shafts, and a "street" lowering kit. A Borla Extreme cat-back exhaust is also present, along with the expected Ford Performance badging. Owners will also get a ProCal tool to recalibrate the speedometer once the hardware goes on properly. What sets the new package apart is the 19-inch R1 forged wheels, which wear bronze accents. That color carries over to the lug nuts, graphics, and the inserts on the front grille. The bodywork gets a few upgrades too, including wheel spats plus front splitter, hood vents, mirror caps, and a carbon fiber Dark Horse spoiler. Recaro seats with Ford Performance logos and an FP800S keychain round out the interior inclusions. Ford Custom Garage How Much, You Ask?As mentioned, the package is still listed as a concept on Ford Custom Garage, and the Blue Oval has not confirmed when customers will actually be able to order it, so that's a mystery at this point. The lack of pricing also leaves a large question mark. Looking at the hardware involved, it is unlikely to be positioned as a casual add-on. Between the supercharger, carbon bits, and chassis upgrades, customers should expect a figure that sits above what Mustang owners typically spend on appearance packs. Ford Custom Garage View the 7 images of this gallery on the original article View the full article

This onboard footage of the 2025 Macau Grand Prix might make you think you're watching it at 2x speed, but I promise that you're not.View the full article

The new JOG Electric brings Yamaha into the battery swapping era with a light, friendly city scooter. View the full article

Say hello to the new Harley-Davidson X440T, which refines and reimagines several of the styling cues from the X440 that fans didn't previously like.View the full article

Does this mean that I #bearacer? No. But did I feel like one every time I took this lil guy out on track all weekend? Definitely closer than I thought.View the full article

Safety ConcernsAutomotive lawsuits cover a wide range of issues. They are usually filed for faulty products, missing features, or, worst, for vehicle occupant safety being put on the line. The latter is the most concerning, considering that a bulk of the value sold to a customer is the safety features and safeguards installed in the vehicle. A lawsuit filed against Ford in Arizona belongs in the latter, claiming that a defect in the C-Max Hybrid's design has some very serious, lethal repercussions. Ford Deadly ChemicalsThe lawsuit was brought to light by the Jinks Crow Trial Lawyers and Beasley Allen Law Firm, who are representing the plaintiffs – the family of 60-year-old Abimael Feliciano, a Dothan resident who died after toxic fumes filled the inside of his Ford C-Max Hybrid. According to the law firms, "Feliciano was found unresponsive inside his vehicle at a traffic light in Dothan on August 8, 2023. The Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences later confirmed that he died from hydrogen sulfide exposure, a toxic gas that can be deadly even in small amounts." During the investigation, apart from confirming hydrogen sulfide exposure, it was also determined that Ford didn't properly install the hybrid system's battery vent tube, leading to toxic fumes leaking into the cabin while the vehicle was being driven under normal conditions. Ford Insufficient Safety Measures and FeaturesThe suit names the Ford Motor Company as the defendant, along with Bill Luke Tempe, Camelback Ford Lincoln, and Sanderson Ford – all Arizona-based dealerships. It claims that the vehicle contained serious defects and that the repairs, warnings, and safety protections intended to protect drivers from toxic gases were insufficient. In other words, the plaintiff and their lawyers argue that there should be more standard safety features for hybrid battery vehicles to prevent this from happening, and they are also seeking to raise awareness of the issue. Historically speaking, lawsuits regarding Hydrogen Sulfide poisoning are brought up by factory workers or residents who were exposed to the harmful toxin by being near industrial sites. The fact that it occurred in a vehicle that is supposedly a finished product raises serious concerns for the plaintiffs. Ford View the full article

The inReach Mini 2 is almost universally beloved by explorers, backcountry athletes, and hunters. But Garmin's new inReach Mini 3 sets the bar even higher.View the full article

When I was a kid in the mid-80’s, my dad worked at a Chevrolet dealership and had a demo car. His was an IROC-Z with the 305 and a 5-speed. The stick wasn’t offered behind the 350, but the 305 still put smiles on faces, so that’s good. I remember lots of speed shifts, clutch dumps, and fun. So when Dylan recently found this abandoned IROC-Z in a score that included some other fun projects, I knew I’d want to follow along on the rescue. Video Description: This Camaro IROC-Z was left abandoned in a storage building since the late 90s. Can we make it run and drive to relive its former glory? Follow along with our restoration process! The post ABANDONED Camaro IROC-Z Rescued After 28 Years! Will Dylan McCool Be Able To Make It Run and Drive? appeared first on BangShift.com. View the full article

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