Another cool Redbull animation about the new F1 technologies that make racing a little bit more like a video game.

via Highsnobiety

The 2uettottanta – an Alfa Romeo designed by Pininfarina – is a hot little car. I especially like the cutouts behind the head rests.

It’s hard to believe that you can sell a car for $2,200. But that’s just what Ratan Tata B. Arch(!) ’62 figured out how to do over the last few years. The exhibit at the Johnson Museum is an exploded view of the car itself, pulled apart into major component groups and arranged so that you can walk around and explore the normally compacted car. Read more in the Chronicle.

Citroen held a contest to design a piece for the roof panel of their mini-car, the DS3. Flavio Melchiorre was the jury’s pick for winner. The Citroen contest site has more photos and video of the winning design’s graphics and install.

I’m not a huge car historian, but I did have toy cars when I was a kid. Premium ClassiXXs released this impeccably detailed replica of the BMW Isetta 250, a sort of hybrid car/spaceship/tricycle. Check out the wiki for more info.

I like the mass-customization process that Urban Outfitters put together with Republic Bikes. I picked out my colorway up top. I cannot vouch for the quality of the components, but $400 bucks is still a fair amount of money, so it’s no beater. Unfortunately, you can’t customize every little nut and bolt, but the options are enough to get you going on your way to customizing a bike and perhaps a primer for becoming some sort of gearhead. I am sure bike snobs out there are turning up their noses, but everyone has to start somewhere.

I think it’s a great idea and I would get one if it weren’t for the problem of finding space in our shoebox of a nyc apartment to store a pair of them.

via Nylon.

Inspired by this post on Jalopnik, about an upcoming gullwing Mercedes coupe, I thought I would look up its predecessor. The original Mercedes-Benz 300SL was manufactured, in its various forms, from ’52-’63. But the gullwing version only for two of those years. The structural members of the car’s frame necessitated the peculiar door operation and you can see where the doors don’t reach quite to the underside of the body. It is a thoroughly gorgeous machine. I love how light and trim it looks. Nothing is overbuilt, unlike the cars of today. We aren’t super car people, but I think we know something good when we see it.

Perhaps old news, but it’s the first I’ve seen of it. The Ape Calessino from Piaggio is a special leisure-style version of the Ape. The Ape is Italian for “bee” and to see a city full of these little guys buzzing around carrying their cargo from A to B is to imagine a hive of determined worker bees. Not flashy, not sexy, just doing their job. It’s nice to see that once in a while the Ape can be spruced up with the ragtop, whitewalls and woody panels.

These are stills from a very cool short video from Red Bull detailing the new vehicle design rules for the 2009 season of Formula 1 racing. The design changes are intended to increase mechanical grip and decrease aerodynamic grip/downforce, placing more emphasis on driving technique than body design. This should make racing more about driving than about technology, and make it more exciting at the same time. The animation is nicely done and explains these changes very clearly. Makes me want to watch F1, if only they had it in 3d…

I was watching a show about restoring an old International Harvester Scout on tv and I figured I’d look up what else they make. Turns out they make some pretty badass equipment. One example is the Steiger + Quadtrac tractor that features four independent tracks instead of tires. Tracks offer increased traction and flotation over soil, even though they look like they would do far more damage than tires. Not everything we feature here is as purpose-built as this tractor, but I think it is just as beautiful as all the other things we feature.