World Auto News & Reviews

Of all the auto marques on the market, Smart isn’t exactly the first we’d associate with high performance. That’s where Brabus comes in.

The longtime Mercedes-Benz tuner has emerged as something like Smart’s own AMG – that is to say, the factory-approved tuning house of choice – offering an array of aftermarket accessories for the diminutive city cars. But once in a while, Brabus also cranks out something truly unique.

Earlier today, during the ‘IZOD Presents Hot Wheels Fearless at the 500? at the Indy 500, Tanner Foust successfully landed a ramp-to-ramp distant jump of 332 feet. The three-time X Games gold medalist smashed the previous world record by an impressive 31 feet at the 100th anniversary of the Indianapolis 500.

Generally speaking, we’re more into the vinyl wraps than the chrome treatment. That’s because most vinyl wraps give a car a nice matte finish that contrasts nicely with the glossiness of your standard factory offering, while your average full-body chrome treatment is – more often than not – little more than an eyesore. This latest innovation from the Czech Republic, however, combines the two.

Anyone that has gone to a decent-sized auto show has likely seen a display that involves hanging a car upside down, on its side, or with a laser cutaway. But it isn’t every day that you see a fully assembled, fully functional car inside a museum that clearly wouldn’t fit said vehicle through it’s doors.
For some lucky visitors viewing “La Forza del Toro” at Chiostro del Bramante, a small museum in Italy, that is exactly what visitors got. Luckily for us, someone filmed the entire process including hauling in the precious parts piece by piece, tire by tire, and then beginning a grueling assembly process with only hours to get the job done.

Last November, Oprah Winfrey gave us our first tease of the spanking  new 2012 Volkswagen Beetle during one of her daily shows by revealing  the car’s silhouette. Now, being that the show reaches millions of  American viewers, and as everybody knows, Oprah has that special Midas  touch when it comes to promoting products; Volkswagen had no problem to  donate a brand new 2012 Beetle to each of the 275 audience members.