Too much? Chinese customer orders $670k gilded Fiat 500

The beauty of the Fiat 500 is that it’s loaded with Italian style, but comes cheaper than anything this side of a Vespa. So if you were in the market, how much would you consider spending on a Cinquecento? $20K? Maybe $30k for a fully-loaded Abarth? How about €500,000? That’s equivalent to about $670,000, and stands as the absurd price some anonymous Chinese businessman has apparently paid for a particularly opulenttacky example of the retro minicar.

The order came to Fenice Milano, the Italian studio whose Liberace-grade work we’ve reported on previously. They started with a 500C Abarth convertible, slathered it in paint infused with real 24k gold flakes, decked the interior out in teak, replaced the brightwork with more 24k gold and gave it a diamond-studded iPad docking into the dashboard. And just for good measure, they let Romeo Ferraris have at it. Their tuning jacked the stock 140-horsepower engine up to 200 hp, and they added Brembo brakes and a custom suspension for good measure.

The end result is about as nauseating an example of nouveau-riche excess as you’re likely to find. If the owner thinks that by tying in his investment to a solid commodity like gold to stave off the negative effects of depreciation, he may be in for a rude awakening come resale time. Check out the video footage after the jump and the updated high-resolution image gallery below.

Honda fc Sport Car Design Concept

As you know by now a sports car that reaches the higher limits also has a big engine that must be fed in order to attain those higher limits. Therefore you can expect to burn a lot of expensive gasoline.

Grand entrance, hybrid technology, which is now being used to make the new fuel efficient cars. Most of this type car is designed to be very light weight as well as highly aerodynamic with small engines that hopefully maximize fuel efficiency.

Mitsubishi has their hybrid sports in most auto shows around the world, it is called the Mitsubishi Eclipse Concept-E, this car is a very good example of the design and looks of sports cars in the near future.This vehicle takes advantage of the hybrid technology.

The front wheels are powered by the parallel hybrid system. What this means is the electric motor is integrated with the gasoline engine which is a 3.8 liter v6, this car can believe it or not, put out as much as 270 horsepower.

BMW: 1 Series M Coupe’s main competitor is… a used M3?

The 1 Series M Coupe is a car capable of turbocharging the dreams of many an enthusiast, BMW or otherwise – but the question many have is whether it can it turn the dreams of M3 buyers into something less… dreamy. During this week’s Detroit Auto Show press days, we spoke to Dr. Kay Segler, president of BMW M GmbH, about what 1 Series M Coupe means for Bimmer’s performance brand and the M3.

Dr. Segler responded to those worried about the 1 Series M Coupe being better than the M3 with “the M3 is the car of M, the icon, playing in another league. The best feeling is still in an M3.” So even though BMW’s product and technology PR rep Matthew Russell described the 1 Series M as “an M3 in a 1 Series body,” the 1 M is distanced from the M3 by its limited options, including the fact that the M button on the steering wheel only adjusts throttle response, nothing else.

On the other hand, when discussing concerns that the 1 M was engineered so as not to step on the M3′s toes, Segler said “It was never held back at any stage. It is as good as it can be, this was exactly the car to build.” When we asked how much one would have to spend in order to make it better than an M3, we were told that it would make more sense to buy an M3. “It is not a replacement for the M3,” he also said. Russell added, “The M3 is in the middle of its life, it has a long way to go.”

And finally, our favorite answer came when we asked what is the competition for the 1 Series M Coupe, and Russell amusingly remarked, “A certified pre-owned M3.”

What say you? Is BMW just being cocky or does the auto industry offer a true direct competitor for the 1 Series M Coupe?

Click past the break for a comparison chart between the 2012 BMW 1 Series M Coupe and the current BMW M3.

2012 Chevy Camaro Convertible configurator pops its top

The time has come to virtually create your own modern-retro (an oxymoron? Not these days…) muscle car convertible. That’s right, the 2012 Chevrolet Camaro convertible configurator is now online. The base price for a standard-grade 1LT model with a V6 comes in at $29,150. Stepping up to the top-level SS model will empty the wallet to the tune of $39,650… but if you’re like us you will end up closer to $50,000.

To get there, we threw on the RS package and blacked-out 21-inch wheels along with the dealer-installed ground effects package. However, once we looked to the cost summary and saw $49,635 we began to backtrack a wee bit on the options. We ended up at $47,920 for a tasty new Camaro Convertible painted up in classic white with orange racing stripes.

Head on over to the Chevrolet Camaro convertible configurator and see what your ideal setup will cost you.

Shelby builds 1000+ rwhp twin-turbo GT500 prototype

There’s so much going on at SEMA it’s all-too easy to miss a few things. And while there are a ton of Mustangs, one would think that this Shelby prototype would have caught our attention – particularly since we were aware of its existence. Back in September we reported that on some potential future Shelby models, one of which was a 1,000 rwhp twin-turbo GT500.

Nicknamed “Code Red,” this particular GT500 was created in collaboration between Shelby American and Nelson Racing Engines – the same firm responsible for the 1,800 horsepower Mosler MT900S. The heavily modified 5.4-liter V8 features twin 61mm Turbonetics turbochargers along with a dual fuel system that includes cells for both race and street gas as well as an electronic boost controller that can vary boost for each gear.

If Shelby offers a production of the “Code Red” GT500, expect plenty of other goodies to be included like Baer 14-inch brakes, Shelby/Eibach adjustable suspension system, 9-inch Currie rear end, 10-point roll cage, and plenty more? Price tag? Shelby estimates that the package (car not included) would cost around $100,000.

Shelby loses court battle to trademark Cobra shape

Shelby and Factory Five Racing have been going at it for years. Back in 2000, Shelby filed suit against the Massachusetts-based replica builder, which resulted in Factory Five being allowed to continue building cars as long as it made no reference to the terms “Cobra,” “427 S/C,” “Shelby,” “Shelby Cobra,” “Daytona Coupe” or “Daytona Coupe Cobra.” Eight years of apparent peace passed until Shelby again filed suit against FFR because the company felt that the the replica builder’s Type 65 Coupe name was too close to its Shelby Daytona Coupe. The court ruled in favor of Factory Five.

The two companies went back to court a third time because Shelby recently attempted to patent the shape of the Cobra. Well, the case has been settled and the result is yet effectively another victory for Factory Five Racing. The United States Trademark Trial and Appeal Board felt that the shape of the Cobra does not solely belong to Carroll Shelby. Factory Five had the following to say:

Video: Chevy S-10 boom truck nearly rattles itself to death, creates new hairstyles

There are sound systems, and then there are walls of speakers capable of melting cinder blocks and turning your average Chevrolet S10 pickup into a buzzing, trembling box of terror. The audio setup in the video after the jump falls safely in that latter category. A group of devoted bass enthusiasts have managed to turn an unsuspecting lowered S-10 into a carrier of audio assault. Fortunately, all involved seem to only use the vehicle’s power for good. You know, things like rattling windows, setting off car alarms and engineering Tina Turner-like hairstyles on cute girls with nothing but the sheer might of sound waves.

It’s plenty impressive (if utterly pointless), but it might just be one of the better uses left for a 1999 S-10. Still, we’ve got to wonder exactly how long the vehicle can withstand that kind of vibration before the vehicle’s sheets of glass and trim give up for good (just witness how the Bowtie’s trim tries to rearrange itself or flee in the beginning of the video). Supposedly, the wall of speakers is tuned to 28 hertz for maximum punch. Hit the jump to have a look for yourself.

2011 Dodge Charger R/T and Challenger SRT8 392 make more power than expected

As part of its Hemi Highway Tour, a country-wide tour that started in November of 2010 and just recently came to its end, Dodge decided to stop and spend some quality time with the boys and girls from National Speed in Wilmington, NC. Though that company’s main purpose is modifying high-performance machinery to make even more power, Dodge decided to put a couple of its brand new 2011 models on their dyno to see what kind of power could be had right off the showroom floor.

As a preface to the actual dyno results, you should know that Ralph Gilles, Dodge Car Brand President and CEO, claims that a bone-stock 2011 Challenger SRT8 392 ran the quarter-mile at Infineon Dragway in just 12.44 seconds at 110 miles per hour. That, boys and girls, is seriously fast. And those figures are backed up by the data spat out by the computers hooked to National Speed’s dyno.

Without further ado, the numbers: The 2011 Dodge Charger R/T put down 327 horsepower at the rear wheels and 349 pound-feet of torque. For a car rated at 368 horses and 395 lb-ft, that’s quite good. Remember, the dyno measures power after it’s already gone through the transmission and through the wheels to the ground, which saps around 15 percent of total power.

Indian Debut for Pininfarina-Styled Tata Pr1ma Sedan Concept

Following its world premiere at last year’s Geneva Salon, Tata brought its oddly named Pr1ma concept car back home for the New Delhi motor show. Designed and built by famous Italian coachbuilder Pininfarina, the Pr1ma is suppose to offer an indication of how the next generation of Tata saloons could be stylistically interpreted.

The compact-size four-door saloon is based on the platform of the first Indian sedan, the Tata Indigo, and features a wheelbase of 2.700 mm. Neither Tata or Pininfarina have released any more information about the Pr1ma.