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Caption:

1991 BMW 850i, 300 horsepower, $9425 (fair condition)

You’ll have to search a bit to find an 850i that comes in under our budget, but you’ll likely be plenty happy once you do. Those efforts can net you one of BMW’s most singular designs, 5.0-liter V-12 power, and a car that stickered for six-digit prices when new. Looks really good in black, too. 

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Not so many years ago, cars that produced 300 horsepower or more were considered rather rare and desirable things. Generally only the top tier of sports car or the very most posh boulevardiers had engines that could muster such prodigious output, and the price tags of the vehicles reflected it.

These days though, thanks to depreciation, a decade-long power race, and newly changing customer tastes, 300 horsepower cars can be had for much more reasonable rates—often less than $10,000. Those power and dollar figures are exciting starting places for those second-hand shoppers who may be looking for a deal on a performance machine, which is why we picked them as our two markers for making this list.

We’ve gotten our pricing estimates from the good folks at Kelley Blue Book, though we understand that in some cases much better deals can be had. Unless otherwise noted, the prices we’ve listed represent the private party value of a car in “excellent” condition with about 80,000 miles on the clock. We’ve also strived to get the best combination of power and newness when selecting between discrete model years, all while keeping a close eye on the budget. Click through our gallery above to read about our 300 horsepower/$10,000 picks, and then be sure to let us know which gems we may have missed, in comments.

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As if the Porsche Cayenne GTS wasn't impressive enough, the team at Edo Competition has gone one step further in making the GTS truly mean. Tweaks to the engine means that the Edo GTS produces 450 horsepower and 530 pound-feet of torque, an increase of 45 horses and 161 pound-feet. That means 0-62 miles per hour happens in just 6.4 seconds and this GTS will roar all the way up to a top speed of 168 mph. All of this added performance comes courtesy of a high-flow catalytic converter, performance air filter inserts, and a new ECU calibration.

Engine aside, Edo has also outfitted this Cayenne GTS with a new brake system, featuring six-piston mono-block calipers with thicker and larger-diameter brake rotors (15 x 1.5 inches). A revised sport suspension has also been added, with adjustable height, compression (fourteen different settings), and rebound damping (continuously variable). On the design front, a new front skirt with four foglamps has been added as well as twenty-two-inch forged wheels. Customers can opt for painted wheel centers, as well.

No word on pricing, but we're sure that the Edo GTS comes at quite a premium over the standard factory model, and we think this is a great alternative to shelling out the cash for a Cayenne Turbo or the upcoming Turbo S.

+ Global Motors: edo Porsche Cayenne GTS

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Japanese tuning house Wald International hasn’t released any specifications, colorful copy, or information of any kind really, regarding its rather frightening (in a good way) new take on the Bentley GT, preferring to let the pictures speak for themselves. Called the Bentley GT Sports Line Black Bison Edition, we can only guess that the brutal coupe is remarkably fast, and are sure that it will work wonders in turning the heads of fellow motorists. Go ahead and take a lengthy dip in our gallery of BGTSLBBE (just rolls off the tongue) images above and rest assured that we will bring you more details, as we have them.

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Have you ever wondered if there was a way to combine the fuel-efficiency and style of a Scion xB with the convenience of a rolling taco stand? Well, Toyota and Louie Contreras have your answer -- the Scion xB Taco Truck. Even though the SEMA show ended last week, this is indeed a better-late-than-never contender worthy of some laughable attention.

Marketed as a taco and paint supply truck, this xB comes complete with a custom body and white aluminum skin. Inside, there's a stainless steel kitchen, diamond plate floors, rear cooking chimney, griddle, industrial stove, food/drinks, paint supplies, a trucker seat, and a flip-up passenger seat. As Toyota says, it has "everything and the kitchen sink."

Would you flag this xB down if it came rolling through your neighborhood? Leave a comment and let us know. Also, click through our gallery to see detail shots of the Taco Truck.

+ Carscoop: Scion xB Taco Truck

With the weather turning rather cold, rather quickly up around our way, we’re getting ready to kit out our long-term Volkswagen Jetta TDI with a fine new set of snow shoes. We had a good experience with the Bridgestone Blizzaks we used for our Scion xB long-termer, and we thought we’d ask which sort of foul weather tires our readers prefer. Are you planning on a set of snows this year—and if so, which brand do you prefer? Give us your picks, in comments.

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Forum member Hellmet over at The Jalopy Journal is working on a car that should get the blood of any auto enthusiast boiling, whether they happen to be into hot rods, or not. This sleek black kustom is a painstakingly detailed reproduction of legendary hot-rodder Jack Calori’s 1929 Lakes Roadster racer. Take a closer look at the car in our gallery above, or click through the link below to read more from the JJ community and the builder himself.

+ Jalopy Journal: Calori Roadster

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Over the weekend, we caught wind of a very unique auction for a rusty and drivetrain-less 1963 Pontiac LeMans Tempest. From a modest starting bid of $500, a book-worthy story has sprouted in Harrison, Michigan.

We were handed the link to this article (which apparently crops up in more-or-less the same form every year) by our EIC Chris Paukert earlier today, spurring us to wonder what junk was in the trunks of our faithful readers? What dark and mysterious secrets lay at the bottom of your boot? Give us the low-down on your load, in comments.

Ah, badge engineering. Where would our automotive marketplace be without it? When Pontiac released their new rear-drive G8, it was no secret that the "American" sport sedan was the product of slapping a new face and some badges on an Australian-market Holden Commodore. However, the folks Down Under at JHP Vehicle Enhancements have now created a kit for North American consumers to transform their G8s back to Commodore style.

A new hood, hood latch, hood insulator, front bumper fascia extension, upper grille radiator, front bar fascia, front bar absorber, and fog lamps round out the whole transformation package, costing just $1990. To get the full effect, we recommend opting for the Holden badges and wheel center caps, which run $150 each for a set of four.

For even more customization, G8 GT owners can spend $3880 and upgrade to a Holden Special Vehicles (HSV) enhancement kit which is essentially the same package of parts, but with a more serious design that mimics the Commodore HSV R8 and GTS.

+ Motor Authority: Holden Commodore conversion kit for Pontiac G8 (via Jalopnik)

One of the worst Porsche body kits we’ve seen, this terrifying revision has been foisted upon one of Stuttgart’s finest by an aftermarket company called Phataz Bodyz. It’s true that the picture here, from the SEMA show floor, doesn’t show us a finished product. But good god, the Bodyz boyz are going to have to get their hands on some pretty miraculous paint to pull this one out of the crapper. Uh, unless you like that sort of thing.

Thankfully, it doesn’t look like any actual Cayman’s were harmed in the making of this kitted up show car—the images showing a rather empty tub where the interior should be. Click through the link below, if you have the stomach for it, to see a few additional images.

+ Car Domain Blog: Stuttgart is Screaming: Phataz Bodyz Porsche

After Honda's Mugen Civic Si took off last year, the automaker has officially announced that they will be offering Mugen parts for the 2009 Fit. All of these parts will be available on an a-la-carte basis and will be sold through authorized Honda dealers.

The list of Fit-ready Mugen parts is quite extensive, including sixteen-inch alloy wheels, an aluminum oil filler cap, front sport grille, front under spoiler, side spoiler, rear under spoiler, sports silencer, rear emblem, quick shift kit, special shift knob, sport pedals, sport floor mats, and a rear-view mirror cover.

No specific engine or suspension upgrades were mentioned, so Honda tuners will have to look elsewhere for Fit-ready performance modifications. Look for these Mugen accessories to go on sale in the Spring of 2009.

A Romanian man has put a local used car website to innovative use, offering up his 25-year-old wife who he has apparently become “fed up with.”

Alex Cretu of Bucharest advertised his bride for the rather steep price of $6.4 million, describing his bride as “Model 1983, good condition. Full option, nice suspensions, spacious boot, second owner.” The frazzled husband added, "Price is negotiable, comes with three-year-old and five-year-old accessories. Seriousness demanded."

Though Cretu has received several offers already—low ball bids or parties asking for a sort of human lay-away plan—he has been forced to lower his original asking price substantially, now demanding only $4800 for the troublesome life partner and hoping for a “quick sale.”

Joke or not (and we really, really think this guy had better be joking), we’re not sure that this sort of misogynistic tomfoolery would fly on eBay Motors, spacious boot or no.

+ Rian.ru - Romanian man advertises wife for sale on used car website

High on our list of concept cars that probably won’t see the light of day is this new, and rather bananas concept from Moller International, a flying version of Ferrari’s 599 GTB called the Autovolantor.

Designer Bruce Calkins has theoretically fitted the wacky supercar with a specially designed hybrid fuel and electric power system to run the eight thrusters that would give lift to the car/plane, a system that Calkins believes could be good for as many as 800 horsepower. That power translates to a top speed of 150 miles per hour in the air, with altitudes of up to 5000 feet attainable.

The fans propel the concept on both the ground and in the air, pushing the Ferrari body forward on its wheels with a “firm but not-too-powerful thrust of deflected air,” or skyward with a hovering effect.

The 599 was chosen as the base vehicle for this project because of its distinctive shape, with Calkins noting that testing with scale models, “allowed us to quickly verify that it could in fact be done.”

A production version of the Autovolantor, as unlikely as it may be to every come about, is estimated to ring up for something like $800,000 per vehicle, and could conceivably lead to the worst crash in the history of the Ferrari marque. Happy flying.

+ Telegraph.co.uk

While Pontiac's GXP division isn't necessarily known for producing staggeringly fast performance cars, the minor visual and power tweaks are usually enough to move a good amount of GXP-badged vehicles off of GM dealer lots. For this year's SEMA show, however, Pontiac is bringing two new concepts -- the Solstice GXP Coupe and G8 GXP Street Concept.

The Solstice Coupe features a Stage 2 GM Performance Parts kit, intake kit, and a cat-back exhaust system, along with an upgraded sport suspension, graphics kit, iPod interface, custom leather-trimmed seats, and race-inspired pedal covers. While the basic engine mechanics are largely unchanged, the added performance modifications boost horsepower from 260 to 290 ponies.

On the other hand, Pontiac's G8 GXP Street Concept gets a whole raft of performance modifications, including the new LSX454 crate engine from GM Performance Parts. Yep, that's the ZR1's engine, and it will crank out 638 horsepower and 600 pound-feet of torque under the G8's hood. Stiffer springs have been added as well as the Cadillac CTS-V's brake kit wrapped behind twenty-inch black chrome wheels. A more aggressive front fascia rounds out the front while a new rear fascia incorporates a performance exhaust system and rear diffuser.

Both of these cars will officially be unveiled in Las Vegas next week.

+ Autoblog: Pontiac Solstice GXP Coupe Concept
+ Autoblog: 638-horsepower Pontiac G8 GXP Street Concept

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GLK Pikes Peak Rally Racer

With its GLK Pikes Peak Rally Racer, RENNtech from Lake Park, Florida has created a motorsport vehicle inspired by the unlimited class of the legendary Pikes Peak Hill Climb in Colorado. The drivetrain of the RENNtech GLK is complemented by a hybrid module that guarantees excellent acceleration figures.

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Mercedes-Benz continues to try to shed its sometimes stodgy image, through liberal use of its rather funky GLK small SUV, some imaginative tuning houses, and everyone’s favorite Animal House-style auto show, SEMA.

We tend to believe that this sort of thing is only acceptable in Las Vegas, where bigger and brasher almost always overpowers good taste and sense. How else can you explain a GLK decked out like the Pike’s Peak Suzuki Escudo, or another chopped into a speedster that Lil John might find a bit obscene? All in good tuner fun we suppose. Click through the gallery above for the official M-B line on each concept or find the rest of the press release below.

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The wizards over at Techart have churned up something fantastic, modifying a 997 Porsche 911 Turbo into what they call the GTstreet R. Taking the twin-turbo flat-6 from the regular car, the output has been  boosted to 600 horsepower and 634 pound-feet of torque simply by adding two new turbos, larger carbon fiber inlet pipes, revised intercoolers, a new cat-back exhaust mated to the revised manifold, and some electronic fiddling. All in all, it manages to give the Techart 911 a 0-60 time of 3.4 seconds with the automatic transmission, or 3.5 seconds with the old fashioned manual. Top speed: listed at 214 miles per hour.

Along with the engine tweaks, the GTstreet R comes with a new set of coil-over kits, and 20 inch wheels. The new body moldings aren't just for looks, as they have been finely crafted in the wind tunnel. When working in conjunction with the carbon fiber spoiler at the back, the bodywork will produce around 22 pounds of down force. To complete the overall image, Techart also added on a new hood, carbon fiber headlights, side sills and air ducting for the rear bumper.

Check out the full press release below.

Talking about transplanting a different/better/more powerful engine into a car that might be crying out for a new personality, is the sort of conversation that we can (and have) keep going for the better part of a work day. If you could create your dream “hybrid” with a body from one vehicle and powertrain from another, what would your two donors be? Give us your ultimate automotive Frankenstein, in comments.

Suzuki announced today that it will be bringing a turbocharged version of its SX4 Crossover to next week’s SEMA show in Las Vegas, Nevada, a hot little number inventively titled the SX4t Turbo Concept. The concept car may be a little light on originality but it will provide what seems like a highly attainable target for SX4 owners who’ve been bitten by the tuner bug.
 
The SX4t most notably adds a 16G GT3 turbo with a Tial wastegate kit from Road Race Motorsports, which helps to bump the Suzuki’s engine specs from 143 horsepower and 136 pound-feet of torque to 221 and 208 respectively. The concept also gets a new set of springs and a rear sway bar, along with uprated front brakes and pads, and a much more aggressive wheel/tire package. A carbon fiber hood and darkened roof pillars dominate the exterior appearance upgrades, and give the Suzuki a bit of visual drama to match its greatly improved performance.

Read the full SX4t Turbo Concept press release below and stay tuned for many more images of the car after its debut on Tuesday, November 4 in Vegas.

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Two companies: Superformance, the maker of replica Shelby Cobras, Daytonas, Ford GT40 kit cars, and Roush Performance Engines, a division of Roush famous for creating performance crate 'street engines,' both have recently teamed up to release the Roush/Superformance Special Edition MKIII-R.
 
Though this special edition was first intended only as a one-off showroom vehicle, high interest after its debut at the 2007 SEMA show in Las Vegas has pushed it into production. Currently the Special Edition is offered as an upgrade package, separate from the standard Superformance MKIII roadster.

What separates it from the regular? Roush embroidered leather seats, unique gauges, and a billet short-throw shifter for one. It'll also come with Roush embroidered floor mats, dual gauge pod, and a serialized plaque.

Under the hood, lucky buyers can choose from a variety of Roush motors, including the 427 IR V-8 that is dyno tested at 576 horsepower and comes with a 2-year/24,000 mile warranty. A Tremec 5-speed transmission transfers the power to the 18 inch American Racing pin drive wheels, while the independent suspension helps keep everything on the ground.

All in all, the Special Edition will give the seeker just a bit more exclusivity in a Shelby MKIII replica. And come on, with a beautiful classic endowed with a massively powerful engine—how can one go wrong? Judging by the pictures, it's certainly impossible.

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