Up next Diesel News 4.9.18 Published on April 09, 2018 Author Adam Blattenberg Share article Facebook 0 Twitter 0 Mail 0 Diesel World Roundup: The 5 Best April Fools’ Pranks of 2018 If there’s one thing automakers love besides profit, it’s April Fools’ Day. Each year, the 1st of April allows everyone from overstressed engineers to PR hacks to loosen their collective ties and indulge in whimsical flights of fancy. Here are our top prank picks this year: 1. The Honda CR-V “Roadster” Photo: Honda Motor Co. Tired of being cocooned in copious amounts of truck sheet metal? Honda has just the thing for you!Subscribe Our Weekly Newsletter Following in the footsteps of the notorious Nissan Murano and Range Rover Evoque, Honda’s CR-V Roadster concept has upped the convertible ante by completely removing the top. The lightweight SUV boasts faster acceleration and improved mileage by doing away with pesky things like structural reinforcements and complicated drop-top mechanisms. This un-convertible was painstakingly designed by Honda’s crack R&D department PR team with the help of a Sawzall, resulting in 0% structural rigidity and 100% fun. 2. Aston Martin’s Monster Truck Photo: Aston Martin Q Division As luxury marques like Lamborghini and Porsche branch out into the booming SUV business, Aston Martin was determined not to get left behind. In fact, the British carmaker went all-in by unveiling Project Sparta, AM’s very own monster truck program. Aston Martin says the truck will use the same 6.5-liter V12 engine found in the Valkyrie AMR Pro to produce 1,100 hp and enable it to crush the competition. Oh, and its hybrid too. 3. MG’s Alpaca-powered SUV Photo: MG Motor We at Diesel World love our diesels, but MG Motor wants to change all that. The Birmingham-based motor company believes the future lies in alpacas – specifically, alpaca waste. Its new MG ZS SUV will be powered by alpaca droppings. According to Daniel Gregorious, Head of Sales & Marketing at MG Motor UK, “We have launched a pilot program in the UK with the Faerie Tale alpaca farm in Kenilworth and the initial results are very impressive. Following our decisions to no longer sell diesel-powered vehicles in the UK market, we wanted to take it one step further and see what was possible using alternative fuels to develop low emission vehicles.” What a load of alpaca waste! 4. Porsche’s Mission E Tractor Photo: Porsche AG Everyone knows how Lamborghini had its modest origins from agricultural tractors. Porsche wants to do reverse: go from high-performance cars to humble farm equipment. Following on the heels of an all-electric coupe and wagon, the latest addition to the Mission E family will be a tractor. Porsche says the upcoming Mission E Tractor will produce over 700hp, making it the “fastest accelerating agricultural vehicle in the world” and capable of “pretty good lap time” in the Nürburgring. We look forward to featuring the Mission E Tractor in our Tractor Talk column! 5. Banks Power under investigation by Homeland Security Photo: Gale Banks Engineering While strictly not a carmaker, we can’t help but include this on the list. Known for its diesel aftermarket parts, Banks Power claims to be under federal investigation thanks to its iDash 1.8 Super Gauge. The gauge is allegedly an exact duplicate of the top-secret primary control interface used by NASA’s “command center”, as well as the Space Shuttle. Acting on a complaint by NASA, agents from the Department of Homeland Security swooped down on founder Gale Banks and brought him in for questioning. Banks Power has released an official statement, claiming that while Gale was involved in the development of NASA technology, the statute of limitations has expired and that Gale is free to use the iDash for commercial applications, together with his ex-NASA partner, Dr. Emmett Brown. Yup, looks legit alright. (Photo: Gale Banks Engineering) Total 0 Shares Share 0 Tweet 0 Pin it 0 Share 0
Diesel News 4.2.18 Engine of the Week Serious U.C.C. Qualifier David Petrick’s 07 Cummins With the countdown to Indy on, 2018 Ultimate Callout Challenge qualifier David Petrick is […] Adam Blattenberg April 02, 2018 Diesel News
Diesel News 3-18-19 Truck of the Week Championship-Caliber Super Stock Truck For Sale Carl Atley’s Lethal Weapon Super Stock Ford is up for sale and, while not […] Adam Blattenberg March 18, 2019 Diesel News
Diesel News 03.21.18 Engine Of The Week Deck-Plate Dmax to run at UCC Will the Duramax Horsepower Record be Broken in May? With Ultimate Callout Challenge less than […] Adam Blattenberg March 20, 2018 Diesel News
Diesel News 9.10.18 Truck of the Week 11-Second Dinosaur Diesel Shop LLC’s 300K mile Super Duty Building a drag truck around a stock bottom end 7.3L with nearly […] Adam Blattenberg September 10, 2018 Diesel News