The Red Monkey

This is not the new A-Team van. It’s just a boring old Chrysler minivan fitted with an http://jalopnik.com/tag/ateam/” title=”Click here to read more posts tagged #ateam”>A-Team-van-emulating red stripe and red wheels. Doesn’t take away from the B.A. Baracus wanna-be lurking in the background. (H/T to Curt)

Send an email to Ben, the author of this post, at ben@jalopnik.com.

2010 Hennessey HP700 Camaro to make official debut at SEMA

by Drew Phillips (RSS feed) on Oct 30th 2009 at 8:01PM

2010 Hennessey HPE700 Camaro – Click above for high-res image gallery

We’ve seen the pictures. We’ve seen the videos. Now we’re finally going to see the Hennessey HPE700 Camaro in person when it makes its official debut at SEMA next week. There’s a lot to love with Hennessey’s halo musclecar, starting with the LS9 V8 from the ZR1 packing 725 horsepower and 741 lb.-ft. torque (up from the initial figures, 705 and 717 respectively). Those numbers are good for a 0-60 time of just 3.5 seconds, and the trip back to a complete stop takes just 104 feet thanks to 15-inch Brembo brakes. Then there’s the subtle Cam-Aero carbon fiber body kit that adds a front splitter, side skirts, rear bumper, and a diffuser, with the look is finished off with a set of Hennessey’s three-piece, 20-inch wheels.

Expect plenty of photographs and our first person impressions when we come face to face with the HPE700 Camaro next week. Until then, check out the new high-res photos in the gallery below or read the official press release and the full specs list after the jump.

Gallery: Hennessey Camaro HPE700

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[Source: Hennessey Performance Engineering]

PRESS RELEASE:

LAS VEGAS, NV – Hennessey Performance Engineering (HPE) is set to debut the company’s limited edition, Corvette ZR1 inspired, 2010 HPE700 LS9 Camaro on Tuesday, November 3 at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas. Powered by Hennessey’s tweaked LS9 engine, the supercharged HPE700 Camaro cranks out 725 bhp and 741 lb-ft of torque twist. 0 to 60 mph is achieved in just 3.5 seconds. The HPE700 LS9 Camaro will be on display in the Mobil 1 booth (#24466).

The HPE700 LS9 Camaro is able to whoa as well as it can go with massive 15 inch Brembo brakes with 6-piston calipers in front and 4-piston calipers in rear. Ride quality and handling are also improved with the addition of KW Variant 3 coilover suspension with upgraded sway bars. Combined with Hennessey’s own light weight 3-piece 20 inch wheels shod with Michelin PS2 tires, the HPE700 Camaro is capable of generating 1.01 g on a 200 ft. skidpad. Rounding out the package is the ZR1-inspired Cam-Aero ™ carbon fiber body upgrades consisting of a front splitter, side skirts and rear bumper with diffuser.

Production has been limited to just 24 examples. “This may be one of the most special vehicles our company has ever built”, said company founder and president, John Hennessey. “Time will tell, but I would venture to say that the 2010 HPE700 LS9 Camaro may go down in history as one of the most significant modern muscle cars ever built”.

Cost for the HPE700 LS9 Camaro is $119,500 which includes one day of driving instruction at Hennessey’s Lonestar Motorsports Park race track facility.

About Hennessey Performance Engineering (HPE)
HPE has been making fast cars go faster since 1991. Founded by John and Hope Hennessey, the company now operates from it’s 30,000 square foot workshop and showroom facility situated on 143 acres near Sealy, Texas (about 45 minutes west of Houston). HPE offers a wide variety of dyno proven, track tested parts and upgrades for a variety of modern performance vehicles. HPE is also the only tuner in North America that has its own private test track – Lonestar Motorsports Park.

2010 Hennessey HPE700 LS9 Camaro Specifications

Power:
• 725 bhp @ 6,400 rpm
• 741 lb-ft Torque @ 3,200 rpm

Performance:
• 0 – 60 mph: 3.5 sec.
• 1/4 mile: 11.3 @ 126 mph
• Skidpad: 1.01 g
• 60 – 0 mph braking: 104 ft.

2010 HPE700 Camaro Includes:
• Base 2010 Camaro SS with 6-speed Manual Transmission
• Your Choice of Exterior Factory Colors: Cyber Gray Metallic, Aqua Blue Metallic, Inferno Orange Metallic, Imperial Blue Metallic and Red Jewel Tint Coat
• LS9 6.2 Litre Supercharged Engine with Intercooler
• Mobil 1 Oil & Filter
• Cam-Aero ™ Body Components: Front Spoiler, Rear Bumper Diffuser & Side Rocker Panels
• Long Tube Stainless Steel Headers
• HPE Extreme Duty Clutch & Flywheel Upgrade
• HPE Race Shift Knob and Shifter Upgrade
• HPE Light Weight Alloy Wheels
• 20 x 11 inch (rear); 20 x 10 inch (front)
• Michelin Pilot Sport 2 Tires, 275/35-YR20 (front); 305/35-YR20 (rear)
• Brembo Front Brake Upgrade: 6-Piston Calipers with Light Weight 15 inch Cross-Drilled Rotors
• Brembo Rear Brake Upgrade: 4-Piston Calipers with 14 inch Light Weight Rotors
• KW / HPE Variant 3 Adjustable Coil-Over Suspension Upgrade
• KW / HPE Front & Rear Sway Bar Upgrades
• Painted Hockey Stick Side Stripe with LS9 logo
• Hennessey Embroidered Head Rests & Floor Mats
• Limited Edition HPE700 Dash Plaque & Hood Plaque
• HPE700 & Hennessey Logos Painted on Rear Deck Lid
• Hennessey Letter of Authenticity
• HPE700 buyers will also receive a 1-day performance driving course at Lonestar Motorsports Park – a 1/4 mile dragstrip facility located adjacent to Hennessey’s 30,000 square foot production facility and showroom.

Options:
• Connolly Leather Interior with Custom Colors
• 850 hp Twin Turbo Upgrade
• 1000 hp Twin Turbo Upgrade

Filed under: Aftermarket, SEMA Show, Coupe, Performance, Chevrolet

Tags: 2010 Chevrolet Camaro, 2010 Hennessey HPE700 Camaro, 2010ChevroletCamaro, 2010HennesseyHpe700Camaro, Camaro, Chevrolet, Chevrolet Camaro, ChevroletCamaro, Hennessey, Hennessey HPE700, Hennessey HPE700 Camaro, Hennessey Performance Engineering, HennesseyHpe700, HennesseyHpe700Camaro, HennesseyPerformanceEngineering, SEMA, SEMA 2009, sema show, Sema2009, SemaShow

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LOL: Drunk Ewoks Ruin Today Show Halloween Segment

Posted on Friday, October 30th, 2009 by Peter Sciretta

A Today Show Halloween decorating segment was interrupted by a pair of scene stealing Ewoks, who began throwing food, fighting each other, doing the moonwalk, and humping both the floor and the leg of Al Roker, who was dressed as Han Solo. I know it might sound like I’m describing a FunnyOrDie parody or something, but it actually happened on live television.

There have been accusations that the little people in the suits were actually drunk before the segment began. At one point, one of the Ewoks tried to drink one of the alcoholic Halloween-themed beverages, and was scolded by Ann Curry (dressed as a mask-less Darth Vader), ”You’re not allowed to have vodka!” The video is embedded after the jump. The madness begins around the 2 minute mark.

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We already knew it was coming, but today Google is officially launching built-in music playback results on regular Google search queries.

Much has been made of this new feature, and it certainly will make it easier for users to get straight to a song they’re looking for, but it’s not something we’re getting all that excited about. We’ll admit that finding and playing back a song when all you’ve done is search for lyrics is kind of cool. Still, Google already puts video results from YouTube in the search results page, and more often than not they’re what you’re looking for, anyway.

Right now we’re not seeing the updates in our results, but chances are you’ll start seeing them in the next day or so if you aren’t already.

So what do you think? Excited about the new music-in-Google features, or kind of lukewarm like us? Let’s hear your thoughts in the comments.

Making search more musical [Official Google Blog]

Send an email to Adam Pash, the author of this post, at adam@lifehacker.com.

Highway officials say they have determined wind and traffic vibrations caused a rod to crack on the Bay Bridge on Tuesday night, forcing an ongoing closure of the bridge.

The rod recently was added as part of a quick-fix Caltrans designed and commissioned during a Labor Day weekend bridge closure to complete other work. During that weekend, inspectors found a crack in the bridge’s east span and hurriedly designed and installed a series of rods and brackets, much like a splint, to ease stress on the cracked steel beam.

Officials said then that they believed the fix was solid and that the bridge was safe for reopening. Less than two months later, however, one of the rods snapped, pulling a second rod and other pieces of steel down onto the deck during commute hours.

“In retrospect, we should have done more isolation on those tie rods, so they wouldn’t have vibration issues that they had,” spokesman Bart Ney said today.

Ney said officials are rebuilding the fix but retrofitting it with crossbars to give the rods more stability. That work was slowed today by high winds.

Ney said Caltrans officials aren’t sure when they will reopen the bridge. It could be late today or Thursday morning, Ney said.

Federal Highway Administration officials are on site to review the cause and Caltrans’ repairs and offer technical assistance, a spokeswoman said.

The original Labor Day fix, done by C.C. Myers of Rancho Cordova, was completed quickly, and the design of the repair brackets and rods is unique. Ney said Caltrans has not determined that there were problems with Myers work. Today’s repairs are being done by another Sacramento-area company, MCM Construction of North Highlands. MCM crews were nearby and were first to respond to the scene Tuesday when Caltrans put out an urgent call.

Myers had crews in the area working on the new bridge that will replace the existing structure. Caltrans would have assigned those crews to work on the fix if MCM had not gotten there first, Ney said.

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Call The Bee’s Tony Bizjak, (916) 321-1059.

Traffic vibrations? Really, isn’t there a lot of that thing on the bridge and it could not withstand that? Remind me not to dive across that damn thing anytime soon.

A top Department of General Services manager resigned and a Department of Transportation employee was reassigned Tuesday as the Schwarzenegger administration reacted to an investigation by The Bee that found officials spent $5.5 million on new vehicles this year but left many idle and gathering dust for months.

Kathleen Webb, a Department of General Services deputy director who oversaw the state’s vehicle fleet, offered to resign during a probe into the purchase of $1.2 million worth of hybrid Toyota Priuses, said Erin Shaw, a spokeswoman for the State and Consumer Services Agency, which oversees the General Services department.

“Her resignation, effective Oct. 31, was accepted,” Shaw said.

Webb, who was appointed by the Schwarzenegger administration on June 12, 2008, earned $106,800 a year.

The Bee reported that the Priuses sat parked on the roof of the state garage for months, even as legislators nearby slashed state spending, cut state worker pay and eliminated key public services after tax revenue plunged and they needed to balance the budget.

In a related move, Mark DeSio, a spokesman for Caltrans, confirmed that an agency employee had been reassigned. It was part of a personnel action launched in connection with a number of truck purchases made earlier this year, including a flurry on June 30 – the last day of the state’s fiscal year.

DeSio said that because of state personnel and privacy rules, he could not name the employee, give details about the reassignment or say why the employee had been disciplined.

The actions came late Tuesday, after Schwarzenegger spokesman Aaron McLear said at a morning news briefing that officials were investigating vehicle purchases that The Bee had highlighted and would act, if warranted.

“We want to make sure that taxpayers’ dollars are being used effectively,” McLear said.

The Bee reported Monday that General Services and Caltrans spent more than $5.5 million on new trucks and cars earlier this year but left many idle.

Thirty-seven of the 50 Prius hybrids that General Services bought in February had no committed buyers among other departments at the time. They’re now being converted into plug-in electric vehicles as part of a pilot project – with more public money.

The Bee also reported that Caltrans bought dozens more trucks while it still had pickups and larger trucks parked in its yard that it had purchased in 2006, 2007 and 2008, some with extended warranties ticking away. Those vehicles are sitting idle in Caltrans yards beneath or beside Highway 50, awaiting final assembly.

Monday night, Dale E. Bonner, secretary of the state’s Business, Transportation & Housing Agency, sent a letter urging Caltrans Director Randell Iwasaki and his officials to cut spending and “wisely” buy only items “critical to the health and safety of Californians.”

“Given the impact of the recession on the California economy, and the continuing strain on the state’s budget, it is very important that every employee in our organization share responsibility for preserving resources, spending wisely, and incurring expenses solely on things that are critical to the health and safety of Californians,” Bonner wrote.

Fred Aguiar, head of the State and Consumer Services Agency, also blasted his Department of General Services for spending the $1.2 million on the Priuses and letting them sit for months.

“The fact that the Department of General Services purchased fifty Priuses and let them sit longer than necessary is completely and totally unacceptable. As soon as agency became aware that those cars were sitting unused, I immediately ordered the department to put them into circulation,” Aguiar said in a statement.

Acting General Services Director Ron Diedrich, asked to comment on Aguiar’s remarks, said he agreed, adding: “The taxpayers of California expect more from government, and I will work to ensure that they get it.”

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Call The Bee Capitol Bureau’s Andrew McIntosh at (916) 321-1215.

Eight Most Sexually Suggestive Car Names

By Matt Hardigree, 3:30 PM on Wed Oct 28 2009, 4,456 views (Edit, to draft, Slurp)

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Caltrans officials today said they hope to have the Bay Bridge reopened by Thursday morning but warned that emergency repairs are proceeding tentatively and it could take another day before the structure is reopened.

Crews are replacing two rods that broke and bent and are installing additional supports, spokesman Bob Haus said. High winds continue to hamper the repair work. If work goes smoothly, officials say they can do tension testing on the repair later today.

Meanwhile, bridge engineers are inspecting the broken parts in an effort to determine the cause. Caltrans officials say bouts of high winds in recent weeks may have been a factor.

At least two vehicles — a car and a small truck — either were struck by or ran into the fallen rod, said California Highway Patrol Officer Peter Van Eckhardt. No injuries were reported.

The rod that fell Tuesday was erected last month during an emergency repair job. It was holding in place a saddle-like cap that had been installed over a cracked link discovered over the Labor Day weekend.

When the rod apparently snapped at about 5:30 p.m., it brought down with it a steel patch roughly 3 feet long, authorities said.

“If you look at the totality of the circumstances – you’ve got the 5:30 commute, you have a 5,000-pound piece of steel falling out of the sky. We are so fortunate that no one was injured or killed,” CHP Sgt. Trent Cross told KTVU-TV.

Officers managed to clear the Oakland-bound traffic from the lower deck of the bridge by 8 p.m. but were still clearing cars from the few remaining open lanes of the upper deck an hour later, he said.

The bridge was closed last month over the holiday weekend for long-planned earthquake safety upgrades. When the crack was discovered, state transportation officials initially feared it would prevent them from reopening the span in time for the start of the work week. But the unexpected work only ended up taking a few extra hours.

Abolhassan Astaneh-Asl, a civil engineering professor at the University of California, Berkeley, who has spent 20 years studying the Bay Bridge, called the initial crack a “warning sign” of potentially bigger safety issues with the bridge.

“The repair they were doing was really a Band-Aid,” said Astaneh-Asl, who criticized Caltrans at the time for rushing to reopen the bridge.

Astaneh-Asl said the failure of the repair job demonstrates the need for a longer-term solution. The bridge’s age and design make it susceptible to collapse, especially if commercial tractor-trailers are allowed to continue using it, he said.

“I think Caltrans is putting public relations ahead of public safety,” he said.

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