“Ralph Lauren is transporting his most exquisite car collection to the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris for a special exhibit called ‘The Art of the Automobile: Masterpieces from the Ralph Lauren Collection’”

Scion, everyone’s favorite forward-thinking car brand, is running an interesting promotion to reel in more of you gearheads with a taste for personalizing your ride as much as possible. The Unlock the tC Road Trip contest sparks a series of interactive gaming challenges that culminate in an event where four finalists will compete for a new 2011 Scion tC to call their own. Players take part  virtual rally across the United States, accumulating points by completing specified tasks and side-trip challenges and inviting friends to join in along the way, with leaderboards keeping track of the action and encouraging players to pull ahead of the competition. Did you ever wish being really good at Grand Theft Auto would get you a new whip? Check out the Unlock the tC contest at www.unlockthetc.com.

Autoblog brings a vehicle mod to the Defender which indeed makes it better. I need this. “Produced essentially unchanged since 1983, the Defender is the very definition of the go-anywhere off-road workhorse, a favorite of military and expeditions worldwide. Leave it to the Italians, then, to give the British truck an extra dose of style… A customization atelier best known for their Mini conversions and that outrageous custom Corvette, Aznom has given the Defender a similar visual treatment to the Abarth 500C, with a matte two-tone white and black paintjob with red detailing and front and rear bumpers made of carbon fiber. The interior has also been decked out in orange-tan leather, Alcantara and carbon fiber trim with Sparco racing buckets. And underneath the hood.”

More looks at the Aznom Land Rover Defender after the click.

“Video guru Tim Hahne descended on this year’s 24 Hours of Nürburgring with nothing but his trusty Canon 5d Mk II and a handful of lenses. The guy was there through the thick and the thin of the race – from the first drop of the green flag to the final fall of the checkers – and managed to nab a heady 19,500 frames of racing action for the world’s enjoyment. It’s all in delicious HD, dripping with the kind of glory we’re unaccustomed to inmotorsports videography.” (autoblog)

Someone was just asking about a moto with a sidercar. Then out of the blue we received a mail from Ural Russian Motorcycles on their new 2WD Patrol bike with sidecar. “The new Ural Patrol T is an all-season sport utility motorcycle with the world’s only on-demand two-wheel-drive sidecar drive shaft. Originally designed to perform in cold, wet and icy off-road conditions in the Siberian wilderness, Urals maintain their authentic old-school appeal but are modern machines that deliver a durable and comfortable ride with advanced components ideal for any urban or off-road environment.” This moto retails for just under 12,300$US.

More looks at the Ural Patrol T Model 2WD Motorcycle with Sidecar after the click.

Autoblog reports in on the passing of Donald Frey. “On the day we’ve reviewed two descendants of his original creation, we find out that the man who designed the Mustang, Donald Frey, passed away at 86. As with the car’s decades of success, the inspiration for it was unlikely: the Chevrolet Corvair… Frey, who was assistant general manager and and chief engineer of a Ford Motor Company still suffering dry heaves over the Edsel, said he watched GM put bucket seats in the Corvair and rename it Monza, and it began to pick up with customers. There was also the dinner table motivation of his kids telling him his cars stunk.”

Has it been that long? Porsche celebrates 60 years of business on US shores way back in 195 when the first one rolled onto the streets of New York. “From the beginning, Dr. Ferry Porsche saw the limitations of selling his 356 sports car in the Western European markets. He knew in order to sustain and grow his dream, Porsche would have to export its products to larger, more affluent markets like the United States, which had been virtually untouched by World War II.” While we’re on the topic, I have a close friend who has totaled more Porsches than you can count on two fingers. He, for one, is still buying them. Why? Nothing drives like a Porsche.

A few more photos from the Porsche 60 Years in the U.S press announcement after the click.

I was under the impression that the Trabant was the worst car ever made but Jason Vuic has me thinking differently. Amazon’s description of the book The Yugo: The Rise and Fall of the Worst Car in History, is awesome…

“Six months after its American introduction in 1985, the Yugo was a punch line; within a year, it was a staple of late-night comedy. By 2000, NPR’s Car Talk declared it ‘the worst car of the millennium.’ And for most Americans that’s where the story begins and ends. Hardly. The short, unhappy life of the car, the men who built it, the men who imported it, and the decade that embraced and discarded it is rollicking and astounding, and one of the greatest untold business-cum-morality tales of the 1980s. Mix one rabid entrepreneur, several thousand ‘good’ communists, a willing U.S. State Department, the shortsighted Detroit auto industry, and improvident bankers, shake vigorously, and you’ve got The Yugo: The Rise and Fall of the Worst Car in History.”

Available now from Amazon.

Our friends at Materialiste give some insight behind the current Mercedes SLS campaign as composed by Nick Knight and Gareth Pugh. Clive Boot shot some behind the scenes looks from the shoot for the campaign The video really tells the full story. The model’s name is Julia Stegner – she is lovely.

More looks at the Nick Knight And Gareth Pugh for Mercedes SLS AMG Campaign after the click.

In the “set your goals high” category, comes the end all be all for 2009 in carbon black driving machines. “As if your average, run-of-the-mill Aston Martin wasn’t special enough, the folks that regularly rifle around in 007’s garage have now put together a pair of limited editions of their DBS and V12 Vantage sports coupes. As you might guess by the Carbon Black name, the special versions have decidedly noir paint schemes. The metallic black finish is formulated to flip around depending on how the light hits it, giving a different look at different times.” (autoblog)

More looks at the after the click.