There Are Things You Can't Un-See

Recently spied in Pacifica, California:





















Buried somewhere underneath all that crap is a fifth generation Honda Accord. This is what it would have looked like prior to being defaced by its current owner:



If you know of a minor who's being abused, you can call Child Protective Services. I think these pictures argue strongly for the creation of a Car Protective Services agency.

Jalopnik Used My Story Idea!!!!

I am very pleased to say that the automotive site Jalopnik has used a tip which I submitted to them and written the following cool article:

Sega Rally Fan Turns Car Into Videogame Star

Badge Engineering

Recently spied in San Francisco:
















At first glance, this Scion XB in BMW clothes would appear to be the epitome of rice: A cheap, Japanese car festooned with badges and styling elements from a much more prestigious, better-performing make and/or model.

However, I have to give this car's owner some credit, because it appears to be more of a rolling sight gag than an attempt to disingenuously elevate the status of the vehicle or its driver. In fact, it is a rather well-executed gag. Any fool can glue a BMW badge to a Scion, but who takes the time, or has the skill, to retrofit the twin-kidney BMW grille, or to acquire genuine BMW rims and make sure they fit properly?

I do find it curious that this car's front end wears a Mini emblem, whereas the rear carries the badge of an entirely different model, the 2.5ix.

The Mini badge is interesting in that Mini is actually a separate marque owned by BMW, as opposed to being simply a BMW model. But never mind. The overall effect is rather whimsical. Unlike so many of the customized look-at-me cars out there, here's one that doesn't take itself too seriously. I like that.

Life in the Fast Lane

I saw this monstrosity earlier today, in Daly City, California:



There is sooooo much wrong here...



But I find this little detail to be the most amusing:



Just so you'll have some frame of reference, this is what the car, a Mazda MX-6, would have looked like prior to falling into the hands of the aesthete who "upgraded" it: