Mods

How's this for an inspiring DIY project: three generations of a family whipping out the tools and working together to save a vintage car from the scrap heap.

That's essentially what's come about since CNET's own Jared Kohler bought a battered 1969 VW squareback for 500 bucks, with an eye toward getting it back on the road.

The tale involves not only a family bond but also the bond we form with things, be they iPhones, computers, or cars. It also speaks of how these two types of bonds are sometimes themselves bound together.… Read more

If you've ever tried to join a conversation on an enthusiasts' forum about modifying your car for better performance, it may have seemed to you that everyone was speaking a foreign, abbreviation-based language.

What's the difference between NA and FI? I/H/E? What's that? Should you just add more NOS? If so, do I pour it straight into my FMIC? Some of you may already know the answers to these questions, but many are probably staring blankly at these seemingly random groupings of letters.

In this week's edition of the ABCs of Car Tech, I'… Read more

Per the video, couples can use the SwissRoomBox to shower and have pillow fights.

The Swiss took a simple pocket knife and made it open bottles, burn ants with a magnifying glass, and saw down trees. So we are not terribly surprised to see the SwissRoomBox. Its red-painted sides conceal a stove, sink, shower, table, and bed, and it can be fit into different types of cars.

This promotional video shows a couple on a splendid car camping adventure somewhere in the European countryside, taking advantage of the many uses of the SwissRoomBox, and proving that the Swiss do, in fact, wear leather underwear. … Read more

LAS VEGAS--This week, tuners showed off their latest automotive creations, putting new body work, stereos, and engine mods in cars such as Civics and Velosters at the SEMA show in Las Vegas.

The Specialty Equipment Manufacturer Association (SEMA) held its annual show in Las Vegas this week, and CNET was on hand to see the latest outlandish car mods and new technology on display. SEMA is a show for stuff you can do to a car after it leaves the factory.

Here are a few highlights from the show: … Read more

It may not win any awards for audio performance, but just in time for Halloween, Steve Meade Designs stuffed a Rockford Fosgate Punch 8-inch subwoofer in a carved-out pumpkin.

Check out these Web videos Steve Meade Designs posted on Facebook and YouTube. The top video shows how the speaker was actually made. The second video shows how the pumpkin subwoofer performs.

The BMW M3 is a masterpiece of German engineering, the best that BMW could turn out using a high-tech engine, transmission, and suspension for unbelievable performance. Yet there's always someone ready to improve on apparent perfection. In this case, it's German tuner G-Power, which supercharged the current M3 to make it the most powerful version currently available.

The modified M3, dubbed the G-Power M3 Tornado RS, hits 62 mph in 3.7 seconds, about a second faster than a standard M3, and boasts a top speed of 205 mph. … Read more

Move over, NASCAR. We've got a racing series that combines speed, ingenuity, and large adults on itty-bitty vehicles.

Welcome to the Power Racing Series, where makers modify Power Wheels and Little Tikes cars for a series of races that includes a road course, drag race, and endurance race. These lean, mean toy racing machines can reach harrowing 20 mph speeds.

Teams are allowed a $500 budget to modify a car. Change the battery, swap out the motor, put on some tougher tires, and shore up the suspension to handle your adult heft.

Personally, I would start with the $400 Power Wheels Barbie Cadillac Escalade Custom Edition. Pretty in pink!

Receipts are required to prove that a car is within the budget. Violate the rules and your vehicle will be forfeited to the Power Racing Series officials for the non-negotiable price of $100.

Safety equipment doesn't fall into the budget restrictions, so you can spend as much as you want on brakes, helmets, and air bags--if you can figure out how to fit them into the miniscule dashboard on your Dora the Explorer Jeep Wrangler.

The Power Racing Series has just launched a Kickstarter project aimed at expanding the series for 2012. The fund-raising goal amount of $20,000, if reached, will go to developing a new timing and scoring system, adding new races, buying more safety equipment, and inventing new event obstacles.… Read more

Belgian design company Quinze & Milan will show a "creative reinterpretation of the new seven-seater" Chevy Orlando at the Superbrands London exhibition occurring September 22 to 25.

The seven-seater Orlando is no longer made for the U.S. market, but it was chosen be in the designers' showcase for the 100th anniversary of Chevrolet.

Making it look a bit like the Volkswagen Polo Harlequin, Quinze & Milan used its QM Foam product on the interior and exterior of the Chevy crossover. The design company said in a press release that the modded car demonstrates QM Foam's versatility … Read more

They make limos out of anything these days. Stretch a Corvette? Maximize a Mini? No problem.

But how do you stretch a Nissan Leaf, with a lithium ion battery module the size of a kitchen table top integrated into its floorpan?

Imperial Coach Builders of Springfield, Mo., will begin making Leaf conversions this month with an eye toward supplying zero-emission limos to green-conscious fleet customers.

But it's no standard slice-and-stretch job, concedes Tom Catterson, Imperial's director of marketing. The company's engineering staff first had to tear apart a Leaf to figure out where the car could be … Read more