LupiniPower's Chevrolet SportUte is a wild one; Packs 535HP from Supercharged V8

The Holden Commodore Ute may not have been given the chance for a career in the States as the G8 ST sport truck after the demise of Pontiac, but GM's modern-day El-Camino from Down-Under continues to be offered in markets outside Australia including South Africa were it is sold as the Chevy Ute SS.

LupiniPower, a local tuner from South Africa, has taken upon itself to introduce a hotted-up version sporting a 6.0-liter supercharged V8 with 535-hp and a massive 590 lb-ft (799 Nm) of torque. That's an increase of 173-hp and 200 lb-ft over the stock Ute with the naturally aspirated V8 engine.

Thanks to the added power, LupiniPower's SportUte completes the 0 to 60 mph (96km/h) sprint in 4.4 seconds instead of 6.0 seconds, while 0-100 mph (160km/h) goes by in 9.9 seconds, close to 4 seconds faster than the standard Ute.

Furthermore, the SuperUte reaches 125mph (201 km/h) in 15.5 seconds or over five seconds quicker than stock, boasts a quarter-mile time of 12.7 seconds at 113mph (182 km/h) and runs the standing kilometre in 22.8 seconds at 150mph (241 km/h), while top speed is up 25mph to 175 mph (282 km/h).

The South African tuner also improved the Chevrolet SportUte's stopping power with bigger race-specification front disc brakes and callipers, as well as the suspension setup. Optionally, buyers can add a full Bilstein suspension and a sporty limited-slip differential.

Finally, the supercharged Ute rides on new 20-inch alloy wheels wrapped around Bridgestone Potenza RE050 ultra-high performance tires.

The LupiniPower Chevrolet SuperUte can be had as complete new vehicle in South Africa for R639,900, equal to around US$94,000 / €67,400 / GBP58200 at today's rates.

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VIDEO: C6-based Rossi SixtySix Corvette appears on Jay Leno's Garage

Coach-built Corvettes are a dime a dozen, and usually when someone tries to do the "retro" thing with a custom car the result ends up appearing cheesy or shoddy at best. In the case of the Rossi SixtySix, at least the final product is better than the average attempt...I think. I'd still have to see the car in person to be 100% sure.

Underpinned by a 2007 C6 Z06, the most important aspect of the SixtySix concept is its appearance, which takes its fair share of styling inspiration ("the best of everything") from vintage Vettes.

The car was designed by David R, who hopes to be selling turn-key models for $120,000-$130,000 via his Rossi Motor Company in the near future. Other than retro exterior cues, the SixtySix also has a modified suspension/wheel/brake setup, power rear hatch, and a revised interior with rear-view camera.

Wearing a split rear window, sharky front end, and historical Corvette cues, the car looks pretty good. Not Perana Z-One good, but its market isn't the Euro-chic crowd, either. Check out the video clip from Jay Leno's Garage below and watch the anti-Conan talk a little shop with the car's creator.

By Phil Alex

Link: Jay Leno's Garage , Photos: Rossi

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VIDEO: Captiva Driver Shows Tow Truck Who’s Boss

Who wouldn't be annoyed to find, upon returning from the shops, that their car has been ticketed, clamped...or even worse...towed. As this hilarious clip proves, Hell hath no fury like a female SUV driver towed. Full video after the jump.

Here's the scoop for those who haven't seen it: a Shanghai woman is having her Chevy Captiva SUV towed, and she isn't happy about it. So she does what any (insane) person would do: gets in her car, starts the engine and drives off...with the tow truck still attached.

In a word, this video is epic. We've seen some ballsy things here at Carscoop, but this has to be one of the ballsiest. It's like Gone in 60 Seconds with a Chevy AWD or Jackass with a little Asian woman. Above all else, it's a defiantly erect middle finger directed at the money grubbing instigators of authoritarian traffic control.

I guess the tow truck driver should be thankful this was the only thing the Captiva driver did. I'd hate to see her behind the wheel of a tank, that's for sure. Watch the video and give us your verdict in the comments.

By Tristan Hankins

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Honey, I Shrunk the Camaro: VW Beetle-based 1970 Camaro Z28 Replica

Some replicas are outrageous because they use such unworthy underpinnings in their attempt to clone iconic cars. This here Beetle-based Camaro Z28 replica is a prime example. The all-fiberglass miniature "muscle car" has a Beetle chassis, frame, floor and 1.6-liter engine with dual carbs. The latter was recently freshened up - always according to the seller.

Even though it's a replica, the mini Camaro does have a few original Chevrolet components. These would be the 15x8 rally wheels and 1970 Camaro lights and bumpers.

The car's owner says these replicas were built back in the '70s (and are very rare), which could explain the weird choice of chassis: it was a ver cheap solution. The car is said to look and run good, mainly because it was stored since 1994.

The car is street legal, so you can buy it and drive it away, but forgive me for not finding one good reason to do so.

It's being sold on a number of specialty websites, with prices ranging between US $4,150-6,500. Wonder what's up with that... Whatever the cost, I'd never go for something like this. Even the idea of associating the Beetle with the Camaro is revolting, not to mention the heresy.

By Csaba Daradics

Link: Collectorcars

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