Donks, Boxes, Bubbles, and Hi-Risers: A RideLust Pictorial, Dirty South Style

Interestingly enough, I have nothing snarky to add to any of these photos, and largely because I was raised in the South - the Philly Ride Share program horrifies me more than donks do. I’d like to note, however, that back in high school I dated a guy who drove a brand new ‘94 Camaro that I had to practically pole vault to get into, and up until a few hours ago, that’s what I believed a true donk to be. As I was going through these pictures, though, I realized that “monster cars” like Jason’s Camaro have been almost completely replaced by these shiny new chrome jobs, painted colors like bitchass-purple.

Oh, these kids today.

Full gallery after the jump

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RoadandTrack.com’s First Drive: 2009 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1

2009 Chevy Corvette ZR1. All Photos by Marc Urbano

Check out Shaun Bailey’s article on the 2009 Corvette ZR1:
“This is not a happy day for other exotic-car owners. The $103,000 super Vette, the ZR1, is out. Its 638 horsepower was unleashed on a select group of journalists at GM’s Milford proving grounds near Detroit for a controlled drive. A testament to the ZR1’s civility and balance is the fact that no one crashed, although a few orange cones were sacrificed to Jake. Who’s Jake, you ask? He’s the evil-eyed skull mascot for Badboy Vettes that’s emblazoned on the C6.R racer and has made his first appearance on a production Corvette, worn proudly on the ZR1’s intake ducting.

Rather than see journalists jeopardize their driver’s licenses by letting Jake out onto the street, GM had us drive their new baby around what is commonly referred to as the Lutz ring — a technical track whose corners simulate those from great circuits the world over. The focus is testing driveability. Most notable is the bowl-turn that simulates the Nürburgring’s famous carousel.

Check out the Corvette ZR1 Video and The Slideshow

For our limited drive, we were kept off the bowl and our speeds were hampered by a mid-course cone chicane. Even so, our top speed was well above 100 mph and nearly the entire track could be done in 3rd gear. With the massive twist of 604 lb.-ft. of torque on tap, it behooved us to avoid dropping to 2nd gear, except for the slowest of corners.

2009 Chevy Corvette ZR1 Speedometer

As expected, the supercharged LS9 superbly blends the Z06’s raucous LS7 with the smoothness of the modern LS3. At idle there is only a hushed V-8 warble, yet get to 3000 rpm with intent and a pleasant snarl emanates. Knowing that there is an extra 133 horsepower on tap, beyond the already terror-instilling Z06’s 505, I worked my way up to applying full throttle. Surprisingly, the ZR1 is far superior to the Z06 in driveability, refinement and speed.

Everything we gripe about in the Z06 — aside from the unsupportive seats — has been remedied. The twitchy rear end is gone, thanks to Magnetic Ride Control that allows for softer springs and heavier anti-roll bars. At times on the track I’d think, If I were in a Z06, I’d never go flat over this rise, but in the ZR1 the confidence and road-holding abilities are there.”

2009 Chevy Corvette ZR1

More at RoadandTrack.com

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1974 Chevrolet Impala [Down On The Street]

Welcome to Down On The Street, where we admire old vehicles found parked on the streets of the Island That Rust Forgot: Alameda, California. Today's car is a great big moldering slab-o-Malaise iron, which I found parked- strangely enough- on Bay Farm Island, a part of the city built up with new, garage-equipped tract homes and thus not a great hunting ground for vintage street-parked iron (though BFI does have some pretty good vintage BMWs).

What is a great gas-swilling old survivor like this doing serving regular street duty in a neighborhood like this? Is the original owner a visiting relative? Or maybe the rebellious teenage son of the family feels more comfortable driving in the kind of car appropriate to a Bayonne water-heater salesman in 1976 than he would in the usual 10-year-old Corolla. There's just no telling.


It's pretty beat, with the usual rear-window-area rot you get on GM cars after a few decades of rainy Bay Area winters, but it's still doing its job. With no engine-displacement emblems, we must assume it shipped from the factory (probably the Southgate plant in Southern California, if it's a California native) with a plain ol' 350 or 400 under the hood. By now, though, it could have anything from a 262 to a 454, depending on what was available in the junkyard when the previous engine gave up.

First 300 DOTS Vehicles • DOTS FAQ

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The Chevrolet Concept Mini-Cars: Cutting Fresh Trax

At the 2007 New York Auto Show,GM, apparently in collaboration with Jam Master Jay, introduced three new sub-compact concept cars: the Chevrolet Beat, Groove, and Trax. Chevrolet has asserted that the 3 mini concept cars were “designed to be more stylish than the Aveo”…but the jury is still out.

Although admittedly not so ugly as to inspire gastrointestinal reaction, the mini cars are an acquired taste. The Groove and the Trax are of a very similar design, definitely reminiscent of the ill-fated Scion XA, but the Beat strikes a particularly sour note(ouch, sorry, no pun intended) as it appears to be the Toyota Prius: Honey I Shrunk The Design Plans edition.

Perhaps as a nod to this obvious character trait/flaw, executives at Chevrolet announced that the Beat will see European production by 2009 – but won’t ever set its little rubber feet on American soil. 

So what can Uncle Sam expect? By 2011, either the Groove or the Trax – Chevrolet isn’t ready to reveal their final decision yet - but my money is on the Trax.

Of the three, The Chevrolet Trax is the most “rugged” [and I use the term very loosely] and has been described as a micro SUV. A four-door hatchback, the Trax features 1.0L, 3 cylinder engine and, depending on how adventurous the consumer is feeling, will be available in either front-wheel or all-wheel drive. Although it’s boxy, sport design will probably work wonders softening the blow of the die-hard SUV enthusiast forced to downsize, the Trax is not a replacement for a good old-fashioned truck. According to a delusional marketing department, however, Chevy says they’re hoping to push the Trax towards “active urban city dwellers who like to go off-road on weekends.” Off-roading? Where? The unpaved parking lot?

Still, the bigger, stronger Trax seems the only one in the trio that a Chevy, known for its stereotypically American cars, could ever have any success marketing.
The other contender, the Groove, appeared to be ill-suited for the American market after line 1 of the press release. According to Chevy, the Groove’s narrow, slightly-chunky exterior and overall styling is aimed at inspiring a sense of “funkastalgia.” What does this look like, a disco? Pass.

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VIDEO: Garage 419 pits GT-R against rented Hertz Corvette... with nitrous

Filed under: Motorsports, Coupes, Sports/GTs, Etc., Videos, Chevrolet, GM, Nissan, Special/Limited Editions

Click the image above to view the gassed 'Vette take on the Nissan GT-R after the jump

The Garage 419 team is anything but conventional, so when they say they're going to race a Nissan GT-R against a $500 competitor, you know it's going to be entertaining. Host Matt Farah had the easy task of rolling to the strip in the Godzilla of street racers, with 478 horsepower, all-wheel drive, and launch control at his beck and call. Editor Gene Sanchez had the tougher task of obtaining a $500 car to challenge his co-worker. Sanchez had a couple tricks up his sleeve, though, as he rented a $200-per-day LS3 Corvette from the Hertz Fun Collection and added a bargain-basement $300 nitrous system. Unfortunately, the 'Vette was burdened with lousy run-flat tires and a six-speed slush box, but at least the yellow underdog had the crowd on its side. Does a juiced up Corvette have a chance in Hell of besting a bone-stock GT-R on a one-eighth mile drag strip? The only way to find out is by hitting the jump to see the race for yourself.

Continue reading VIDEO: Garage 419 pits GT-R against rented Hertz Corvette... with nitrous

VIDEO: Garage 419 pits GT-R against rented Hertz Corvette... with nitrous originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 19 Dec 2008 13:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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