The Red Monkey

Hotrods of every mix were on site at the 2009 NSRA Golden State Nationals at Cal Expo in Sacramento. This year however seemed a little different than the last trip I took to the show in 2007. This year the show seemed much larger. While I do not have any confirmation from the show organizers I can speak from experience that there was a lot more of Cal Expo covered in cars this year than in 2007. The vendors were also in full forces filling up the buildings as well.

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Another year and another great Sacramento Autorama, the longest running indoor car show in North America. This time however I did not make it there until after 2 pm on Sunday. It seems that is the time for the multitudes of real weirdos to attend the show. Sadly this also meant that I missed Catherine Bach, better known as Daisy Duke, as well as Chris Jacobs from Overhaulin’. Not too excited about meeting the guy who hosts a show about cars anyway. Like previous years there were not enough Mopars there. The outstanding exception was the 1970 Challenger with a new 6.1 liter HEMI sitting next to a brand new SRT Challenger. They had a room full of Mercs but they were all pretty much customized the same with different paint and little creativity. Some of the coolest stuff to be seen were off in the little rooms where they had an actual horseless carriage.

This show always has something for everyone, from Mercs to the Munster mobile and of course the General Lee. Its a great show to attend and its great that such a large show is in Sacramento. Maybe next year I will actually go check out the auction.

The stock 6.1-liter 440 Hemi V8 in the Challenger STR8 is good for a stout 425 horsepower which, for most, is a healthy dose of adrenaline. Consider RDP’s 1000 horsepower twin-supercharged Challenger a healthy dose of adrenaline with some performance enhancing drugs thrown in for good measure.

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Reported on by Jalopnik.

The LA Times has this video from the LA Autoshow that I had not seen yet. Its the newly developed Dodge EV dragging a Challenger SRT. Watch the video for the surprising results.

Last week Jalopnik brought you the story of Ken Imhoff, who followed his dream by building his very own Lamborghini in his basement. Over the last week Jalopnik has been working with Mr. Imhoff to put together a story that will not only do justice to his car, but to his vision and persistence.

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Today behind the internet buzz surrounding Google’s all new Android based phone being offered on TMobile Chrysler quietly introduced the world to the first EV Town and Country along with an EV Jeep and a mule in a Lotus Europa skin. Autoblog has a great write up about these vehicles with some shots of them.

What makes this really interesting is that with all the fanfare and hoopla surrounding the Volt, Chrysler secretly developed these vehicles and made production ready versions, except for the sports car which obviously needs a Dodge skin applied which we could only hope is the Dodge Demon enthusiasts have been waiting for. Its really exciting to see the promise of two very popular Chrysler vehicles getting the EV treatment.

The Jeep EV uses an electric motor making 200kW (268 hp) and 295 lb-ft of torque, while the Chrysler EV uses a 190kW (255-hp) motor making 258 lb-ft of torque. If these numbers end up being realistic then they have a couple of real winners. The other prospect is what kind of range enhancing motors will be available as well, will there be a 4 banger or a 6 squeezed in for a more typical hybrid or is this the direction that Chrysler sees taking all of its vehicles?

Check out these official Chrysler videos and the pictures of the new vehicles in the gallery.

So here are a ton of pics from the epic Cherry’s Jubilee Show n’ Shine on Cannery Row. As with a lot of general rod shows there was a serious lack of Mopar to be seen but I think my favorite was the 1972 Challenger with the blown HEMI. There were lots of great cars to see and as always the owners were very friendly. In the last two years this show has grown quite a bit down at Laguna Seca with the addition of Big Rigs and bikes. Enjoy the pics, by clicking on the picture at the top or enjoy these little videos that were broadcast live via qik.

Here is a preview for the Cherry’s Jubilee auto event here in Monterey this very weekend. Lots of great hot rods, food and music. Tonight is a cruise down Alvarado and then tomorrow on Cannery Row. For more information on the event go HERE. I also have some pics to throw up there.

Lil John Buttera, famous for making some of the most visually and technologically unique dragsters and funny cars, died yesterday after a long battle with cancer.

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