The Dodge Challenger A/T Untamed Concept is just a rendering for now, but Ruiter says a real version of it would feature long-travel suspension, underbody protection (skid plates, rock sliders, etc), along with those flared fenders and the lower light bar.
Though Ruiter thinks a tuned version of the Challenger's V6 would be the best engine choice for the A/T, he did agree, when pushed by US website Autoblog.com, that the recently released Hellcat V8 would make it "the most insane ride ever".
The Good Oil likes his style.
Curvy Volvo one out of the box
The little Volvo PV444 turned heads when it was introduced in 1944.
Volvo has been making cars since 1927 - but for some reason people still think of the relentless squareness of the 70s and 80s.
One of the curviest Volvos of all time turned 70 the other day - the PV444.
It debuted at the Royal Tennis Hall in Stockholm on September 1, 1944, just before the end of World War II and kicked the company back into life. The Tennis Hall debut attracted 148,437 visitors over 10 days, resulting in 2300 pre-orders for the car, which didn't enter production until 1947. There was that messy war business to deal with, remember?
The PV444 was, at the time, the smallest Volvo to be built and was the Swedish company's foot in the door of the lucrative US market.
Its 1.4-litre OHV 4-cylinder engine produced a tiny 30kW, but was surprisingly technologically advanced for the time, as was the monocoque chassis that it sat on.
Though Volvo had previously never built more than 2000 cars, it set a bold target of 8000 PV444s. But the "little Volvo" hit the market at just the right time and went on to sell close to 200,000 units by 1958 - and if you include the revamped version of it, the PV544 which was in production until 1965, that number climbs to 440,000 cars.
Happy birthday curvy little old Volvo!
We are the world
• Producer Deadmau5 made Ferrari purists cringe when he bought himself a 458 and had it wrapped in a blue/pink/rainbow tribute to internet meme "Nyan Cat" and rebadged it as a "Purrari". Ferrari USA sent him a cease and desist letter ordering him to remove the custom badges and floor mats. Really. As Deadmau5 himself tweeted: "I wonder if the jackass lawyer at @FerrariUSA who sent us a 'cease and desist' letter over the purrari is un-butthurt now that I unwrapped."
• UK man Steve Goldstraw was driving home from the park after exercising his dog when he heard a strange noise coming from his engine. He stopped and found a tiny nine-week-old kitten staring at him out of his engine bay. The kitten - since named Lucky - was sitting in front of the radiator, centimetres away from the spinning fan.
Making his marque
When you are the designer of pretty much every Jaguar on sale today, then you have quite a few very attractive cars to choose from for your own car. But what if you want a classic car?
Well, Jaguar designer Ian Callum solved that conundrum - he designed his own and got a renowned Jaguar restorer to build it.
Callum decided he wanted a classic Mark 2, but with modern technical and design twists. Under the bonnet is an uprated 4.3-litre XK engine hooked up to a five-speed manual transmission, as well as uprated front brakes.
The suspension has been drastically altered, with new independent rear suspension, as well as upgraded springs, adjustable dampers all round and new front and rear roll bars.
The chrome bumpers were the first thing Callum dumped from the outside of the car in his search for a "clean, uncluttered look", but he couldn't resist adding a few (functional) louvres to the fenders.
A set of 17-inch split-rim multi-spoke wheels add purpose to the Mark 2's 30mm lower ride height, while the interior gets a modern makeover with red leather and a pop-out touchscreen audio system.
"This is a very personal statement," he said. "A long-held notion that, although the Mark 2 has always been a beautiful car, it could be even more exciting in shape and performance. Whilst maintaining the purity of the car's form, I wanted to add a number of modern twists to the design. Simplification and clarity was my objective."
And he seems to have done that rather nicely, as far as we are concerned - although not everybody is as convinced as us and the crusty old Jag purists have been making a few creaking noises.
Not that this bothers Callum: "It may not be to everybody's taste, but at the end of the day it is my car ... "
Well said, Mr Callum, well said indeed ...
Number Crunching
527 KW
The Challenger SRT Hellcat is the most powerful Dodge
25YEARS
Between production of second and third generation Dodge Challenger
8 ENGINES
Available to power the Challenger between 1969 and 1974
2 KEYS
Needed for the Challenger Hellcat to unlock the full 527kW
