Steve Parker Motoring / The Car Nut: ITALIAN MUSTANG SMOOTHS THINGS OUT

EXCLUSIVE PHOTO ALBUM! 2009 GUMBALL RALLY 3000

See Steve's exclusive Gumball Rally video from NBC-TV's Whipnotic website (copy and paste): http://www.whipnotic.com/videos/viewvideo-558.html Over 120 gas-guzzling super-exotic sports cars, Hummers, Cadillac Escalade SUVs and an occasional interesting older car roared on May 2, 2009, from a California beach-side parking lot directly onto I-10, the Santa Monica Freeway, also known as the Christopher Columbus Transcontinental Highway, for the start of this year's Gumball Rally. The world's most politically-incorrect automotive street event, the Gumball Rally 3000, left Santa Monica (CA) Pier on Saturday, May 2, 2009 and headed toward its ultimate destination of Miami, FL eight days later. Participants reportedly paid $44,000 per car/team to enter the event. Though the Gumball stresses the skills of its drivers (and their cars) there are only two race track "special section" stops scheduled for the 3,000-mile long event, which will be run on public roads with all entrants subject to all highway rules and regulations. All photos (c) 2009 by www.SteveParker.com

December 03, 2006

ITALIAN MUSTANG SMOOTHS THINGS OUT

It's kind of a shame when the best-looking vehicle in your gigantic auto show display is an Italian design house take on one of your best-selling cars. But Giugiaro added a distinctly Euro-theme to this Mustang, FoMoCo's old standby and warhorse. (Remember to click on all the photos/thumbnails for larger images!).

Remember the Isuzu Impulse Turbo with a "Lotus Engineered" suspension system in the late 1980s? We mention that car because the show car concept of that was the Giugiaro "Ace of Spades". Parts of themes from that fabulous concept are still appearing on new cars today! Could this Giugiaro design study for Ford see parts of it wind up in other FoMoCo vehicles as the years go on? We'd almost bet on it. And we definitely hope so. (Parker Photos).

From the all-glass roof to the vertical-opening gullwing-like doors makes this Mustang come alive and look fast just standing still (like any typical Italian sports car, right?). The car's worst touch is the shaggy carpet throughout the interior ... yep, shag carpet! Guess it's possible to take that "Back to the '70s" thematic bit a little too far, eh?