Coupe Deville De Elegance on 2040-cars

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Lutz dishes dirt on GM in latest Autoline Detroit

Bob Lutz sits down for Autoline Detroit - Click above to watch video after the jump
Autoline Detroit recently played host to Bob Lutz, and, as is always the case, the former General Motors vice chairman dished out some great commentary. Lutz was promoting his new book Car Guys vs. Bean Counters: The Battle for the Soul of American Business, and talk quickly turned to his role as it related to product development and high-level decision making at GM. While on the topic of brand management, Lutz revealed a few rather interesting tidbits about his former employer:
All Chevrolet vehicles were required to have five-spoke aluminum wheels and a chrome band up front, as part of the Bowtie brand's overall image.

Shatner's Rivet motorcycle to enter limited production with CTS-V engine [w/video]

William Shatner has entertained the world for decades, from playing Captain Kirk on Star Trek to covering songs like Rocket Man and Common People. Now in his 80s, Billy Shatz has embarked on one of his weirdest projects yet: helping to design the wild Rivet One trike with motorcycle fabrication company American Wrench. Now, you can order one too with power as crazy as the three-wheeler's design. We last saw the Rivet One's aluminum body with the styling like a menacing, art-deco easy chair a few months ago, but now Shatner has started talking about the trike's powerplant, which is based around the heart of a Cadillac CTS-V. "It's a beast with advanced guts. It's powered by an all-aluminum, computer-controlled, supercharged and intercooled V8 engine – producing over 500 HP," Shatner said to Gizmag. Keep an eye out because Shatner intends to captain the Rivet One from Chicago to Los Angeles later this year. Also, if you want a ride like Captain James T. Kirk, the company is taking requests for the trike, made on a build-to-order basis after completing Shatner's job, according to Gizmag. Prices aren't announced yet but expect the number to be as out of this world as a voyage of the Enterprise. The video below provides a further look at the Rivet One's unconventional design. Superheroes Wanted - A Look At The Machine from Rivet on Vimeo. News Source: Gizmag, Rivet via VimeoImage Credit: Rivet Motors Celebrities Design/Style Cadillac Motorcycle Performance trike William Shatner american wrench

Carpool Deville aims to be the world's fastest hot tub

The world needs crazy inventors with wild dreams. While we might not long for the things that they create, their contraptions certainly make the day a little more enjoyable. Take the Carpool Deville as an example. Nobody (well, almost nobody) is asking for a hot tub fashioned from a 1969 Cadillac that is still drivable. But now that you know that such a beast exists, don't try to tell us you aren't at least intrigued.
The team behind the six-year-long project has a pretty ingenious setup worked out. The Caddy's original 472-cubic-inch (7.7-liter) V8 both provides propulsion and heats the water. The interior is entirely replaced with a watertight, fiberglass tub that includes working jets, and the controls are all done by hand.
As if just building a mobile hot tub isn't enough, the team behind the Carpool Deville plans to take it racing too. Specifically, they intend to go to the Bonneville Salt Flats later this year to make a top speed run while immersed in water at over 100 degrees. They even have a roll cage all set to install to meet the safety requirements there.