Wow, life has been crazy in the real world lately, which means that the virtual world has been taking a back seat lately. Like the farthest back seat on a big yellow bus. It has been all I can do to create a post here and there every couple of days, let alone put together the Carnival of Wheels. Hopefully, life will return to normal soon, and with it the publishing frequency. For now, let’s share a pint and cruise some of the submission for the CoW that I was supposed to do last Sunday.

First up on the grid today is a newcomer who calls himself mleighto and writes a blog called Car Show Kiosk. mleighto has submitted a post about the care that needs to be taken when purchasing a clone type car. This is a pretty touchy subject with many people and I’m sure our own Gary Faules may have a comment or two on this post.
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Well, its no secret that the current clad Corolla is well over-due for its model year makeover. Toyota has now hung onto the current design, extending the conforming, utilitarian, and conservative (read: boring) outlook for 2 extra years. In some circles I have heard this to be a really interesting strategy:

1. Civic/Mazda3/Lancer are all enjoying a facelift late 2005 Impreza hits the scene in new-dapper present, mid-2006.

2. Celica is retired, RSX is hung, Civic SIR/TypeR is introduced in respective domestic markets, WRX/STI/MazdaSpeed3 readily available

3. Yaris making a nill impact with the dealership offered ‘aero package’ For those that absolutly unaware of Toyota’s new “flagship” sports compact, let me paint you a picture:

Yes, get a good look at that rear. This thing doesn’t have enough horses for you to see it again once you’ve passed it.

WTF is up with Toyota? are they too busy ENJOYING WORLD DOMINATION WITHOUT A SPORTS CAR? WTF???????
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Welcome to the Canada Day edition of the Carnival of Wheels! It’s been a busy couple of weeks in The Garage. We are in the middle of three weeks of track action and we’ve picked up a new to us SUV, so our work here in The Garage has been pretty self centered. Don’t worry though, our selfish posting will continue, as there are still tons of photos yet to be edited from the VARAC festival and next weekend is a double header. First we’ll have 2 days in the pits at the Steelback Grand Prix for Champ Cars and then on Sunday, Miss Shelby has her first race of the season. Elsewhere online, autobloggers have been busy churning out all manner of hot content, so sit down, strap in and get ready for a smoking hot lap of the blogosphere while you watch the French Grand Prix.

First up we’ve got another visit from Hello Kitty Hell, with a truly frightening tuner mod. This poor guy’s wife has actually installed this happy feline exhaust tip on their car! Be afraid, be very, very afraid.
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You’ve ruined my Saturday morning read! This from a friend who religiously reads the Wheels section of the Toronto Star every weekend. From reading The Garage, he’s already read most of the info that’s printed in the paper before it arrives. This may be the root of the problem between New Media and Traditional Media. New Media (ie blogs) publish the news as it happens. Traditional Media typically publish the news a week or even months after it actually happens. This problem is not limited to the motoring industry, as it affects all media outlets. News has always been about getting The Scoop. Due to the realities of publishing, bloggers get The Scoop more often than not these days and that has to be hurting the print guys. The print guys are striking back.
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Over at Pistonheads, they are reporting that the Lamborghini Miura Concept may be coming closer to production. While many people dislike the retro design trend, I think there are some timeless shapes that are worth working with. The Miura is one of those shapes. Reported to be based on the Audi Lemans coupe, the Miura will be powered by a 700 hp Lambo V12 that drives all 4 wheels. It may appear in early 2007 at a cost in the 300,000 lb area, with production limited to only a few hundred.

There is a guy in my neighbourhood who drives an original and it’s always a pleasure to see, not to mention hear. I’m looking forward to seeing this one reach production.

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We don’t normally pay to much attention to electric cars here in The Garage. They don’t make enough noise for our level of maturity. This thing is just too interesting though. The Zoop is an electric car, designed by Maison de Courreges. This house is actually a fashion design firm. Perhaps that explains the colour coordinated wheels. I hope it has one heck of an A/C unit.

Via The Cool Hunter

Related Mullen GT

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