While we generally spend most of our time at SEMA walking through the halls of the convention center, there’s some pretty impressive cars outside, as well. Take this wild 1944 Mack fire truck, for example.

Built by Tom Stark of Precision Designs, the truck has been fitted with a 2005 Viper SRT10 V10 engine mated to a Dodge 48RE automatic transmission. The stock Mack axle remains up front, but the rear suspension and axle from a 2008 Ram truck resides out back. Other features include Dodge Ram SRT10 brakes, 24-inch American Force wheels and custom leather seating.

Lest you think this is just a show truck, Stark tells us that the owner plans to actually drive the thing. He is even going to make the trek from his home in Kansas City to the Goodguys Nationals in Columbus, Ohio come July.

You can see the Viper-powered 1944 Mack fire truck in detail in the gallery above.

Viper-powered 1944 Mack fire truck is one wild ride originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 03 Nov 2011 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Starting from the very first button press and the resulting cassette blasting the theme to Knight Rider, the video you see after the break may very well be the best beer commercial ever. It comes from Hahn Super Dry, which is our new favorite beer from Australia.

Looks like we’ve found ourselves a new Australian word for beer…

Just in case gender-bending bodybuilders, beer-filled panthers and a ferret wearing a hair net weren’t enough awesome for you, pay special attention about 25 seconds into the commercial. Your eyes do not deceive you, that is indeed a DeLorean monster truck.

Do yourself a favor. Click past the break and watch the most epic beer commercial ever. You won’t regret it.

Continue reading Most epic beer commercial stars DeLorean monster truck

Most epic beer commercial stars DeLorean monster truck originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 10 Jun 2011 19:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Everyone knows the danger of exceeding your vehicle’s tow rating. Perils aplenty await those foolhardy enough to brush off manufacturer recommendations, including nuked transmissions, en fuego brakes and popped head gaskets, to name just a few. But what happens when you put a standard-duty pickup truck up against something truly monumental. You know, something like a 600-ton mining truck?

The crew from Top Gear Australia wanted to know just that, so they borrowed a run-of-the-mill General Motors pickup, strapped one serious tow rope to the aft of both rigs and got down to business.

Or at least they tried.

Judging from the short preview clip after the break, things didn’t go quite the way the TG team imagined. It wasn’t for lack of trying that the big mining truck failed to budge an inch as the driver of the pickup sent a pair of what were certainly minty-fresh rear tires to their blazing great beyond. Follow the jump to check out the quick teaser.

[Source: CarPix via YouTube]

Continue reading Video: Top Gear Australia tries towing a 600-ton truck

Video: Top Gear Australia tries towing a 600-ton truck originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 19 Apr 2011 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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While keeping a fire extinguisher in your house or garage is never a bad idea, what do you do if things get a little too hot for your consumer-spec extinguisher to handle? Perhaps you might consider keeping this little gem in the garage as a backup. You’re looking at a 1960 Nash Metropolitan that has been converted into a fire truck.

Well, sort of. This machine was never actually meant to battle flames. Instead, the car was converted into an amusement park attraction by Overland Amusements of Lexington, Massachusetts. According to Hemmings, the company was responsible for all sorts of similar conversions in the ’50s and ’60s, though it tended to favor Crosley models for its fire trucks.

So, maybe you want to hang onto that kitchen fire extinguisher after all. There’s no indication that this Nash would be any help in an inferno, but it’s cool enough that we’re willing to give it a pass in the functionality department. If you like what you see, the seller is asking ,500 for the pleasure of ownership. Head over to Hemmings to check out the listing.

[Source: Hemmings]

Is this tiny Nash Metropolitan the smallest fire truck ever? originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 13 Mar 2011 18:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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