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BMW may have recently announced the next-generation BMW Z4, but it doesn't mean that aftermarket companies are done with the current car. In fact, Germany's DStyle has worked up a rather interesting body kit for both the Z4 coupe and roadster.

Dubbed the Z4CS and Z4RS (CS for coupe, RS for roadster), this body kit is limited to 100 pieces, consisting of a new hood, new bumpers, doors, new side mirrors, side skirts, wider fenders, a sport exhaust system, and the nineteen-inch wheels from the BMW M6. The whole thing can be yours for a mere €8900 ($12,437), though if you wish to have the whole kit constructed out of carbon fiber, it can be arranged -- for a premium.

+ Global Motors: DStyle tuning kit for the BMW Z4 E85 Coupe and Roadster

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A new candidate for a spot at the top of our list of “Worst Porsche Kits Ever” (stay tuned for that one), is this confluence of design miscues from World Class Exotics, called the GT-1. Ostensibly the kit you purchase if you want your Porsche to look like a marginal Hot Wheels car (sorry Hot Wheels), the GT-1 kit attempts to recreate the fierce façade of the legendary Porsche Le Mans racer, though seemingly without recourse to measuring devices of any kind. The baffling kit is at least impressive for the sheer number of donor cars WCE is seemingly willing to slap it on, as the 914, 911, or Boxster are all fair game.
 
In what we can only imagine is an attempt at proving the world classiness of its product, WCE has posed its GT-1 in front of several high-end retailers, various mansions, and of course with an alarmingly young looking model. That’s class for ya boy.

It is worth noting that the rest of the WCE kits seem to be of a much higher standard than the GT-1 seen here. Click through the link below to check out the full range.

+ World Class Exotics

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A clandestinely named Japanese tuner company, Top Secret Performance, has come out with a new, rather pricey, and taste-sensitive widebody kit for the Porsche 996 911. Called the Porsche Super G-Force Widebody kit, the comprehensive set of bumpers, fenders, side skirts, and HID headlamps offers a massive makeover for owners who aren’t afraid to travel a slightly different road. The love-it or hate-it kit is rather brash (should a 911 kit be anything else) but well done enough that the $14,000 price tag may not be completely without merit. Of course, for that price, we wouldn’t want to, you know, hook it up ourselves. Have a closer look at the G-Force 911 in our gallery above.

+ Top Secret

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.

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Caption:

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.

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.

Able to express a wide range of emotions, nonverbally, and without so much as cracking a window, this “The Hand” radio-controlled window sign surely signals a leap forward in driver-to-driver communication.

Using the fancy and expensive sounding electroluminescent technology, The Hand will easily attach to the rear window of any car or truck. The device will then convey gestures ranging from “Power” to “I love you,” at the touch of a button, with plenty of range left to raise the occasional single finger salute. A $39.99 price tag leaves The Hand well within reach for most quirky gift shoppers, though the item is funny enough that you may just want to treat yourself—just be sure to keep your hands on the wheel.

+ Perpetual Kid

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Set to add another chapter to the illustrious and strange history of amphibious vehicles, the Seawolf150 is the aquatic pickup of your dreams—well somebody’s dreams at any rate.

Using standard Ford F-150 running gear, the good people at Seawolf will transform your trunk into a fully watertight hauler, using marine propulsion systems ranging from single engine 150 horsepower Kawasaki units, to the full-fat, twin engine, 500 horsepower offerings. The watery bits are all able to be serviced by your friendly Jet Ski mechanic and their addition to the truck won’t, according to the slightly vague website any way, alter your factory warranty from Ford.

Seawolf makes certain that each of its conversions is supplied with all the necessities for safety on the water as well, including running and navigation lights, life jackets, a CB radio, and a fire extinguisher with every truck. Pricing information is among the many questions the Seawolf150 website fails to answer, not the most heartening sign for potential customers, but we are told that a test ride can be arranged near the south Florida offices. Eat your heart out Amphicar.

+ Seawolf150

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When you go to Mini's website and decide to build a vehicle, it says that there are over 10 million possible configurations. As if that weren't enough, the folks at Mini have teamed up with Original Wraps, a custom graphics manufacturer to allow consumers to personalize their carseven further.

Original Wraps uses professional-grade 3M vinyl to create all of their custom decals which can be outfitted on any Mini vehicle bought since 2002. The wraps are coated with a glossy, laminated finish, and custom cut for perfect fit to each Mini. Original Wraps even allows consumers to create their own designs. "Mini owners are already personalizing their vehicles in one way or another, but there hasn't been a reliable one-stop shop with unique designs, until now," says Tom Stemple, CEO and founder of Original Wraps. There are a wide variety of stickers, stripes, roof decals, and side decals to choose from, including some limited edition designs.

Each graphic costs anywhere between $9.99 and $349.99 ("Limited Edition" full-vehicle wraps are priced higher) and can be purchased at minimotoringgraphics.com or through any Mini dealer. Browse our gallery to see some of the Original Wraps designs and be sure to check out their website for more photos and information.

(Full press release below)

The Japanese tuning firm Trust, known in the U.S. as Greddy, recently filed for bankruptcy in Tokyo District Court. It seems that Trust is approximately $60 million in debt and amassed $43 million in loans after a dreadful decline in sales from February of this year.

The falling sales were brought on by mainly two events. The first was the decrease in demand both in Japan and abroad, and the second was the increase in knock-offs and cheaper components manufactured by the Chinese.

Trust, founded in 1976, and Greddy, started in 1994, employed almost 200 workers and has been providing the world with CARB-legal exhausts to turbo systems. Though the company may try reorganize, with the aftermarket industry down overall and strong competitors elsewhere, it may be the last time the company is ever heard from again.

+ Autoblog: Japanese tuning firm Trust/Greddy declares bankruptcy

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HKS, one of Japan's largest aftermarket firms famous for beefing up Nissan products, will begin to offer the GT570 'racing package' for the company’s GT-R supercar to the Japanese market later this year. No word has been uttered if it will hit U.S. shores any time soon and so far, few kits as serious as this have been released anywhere near us.

The goodies include new wastegate actuators for the stock turbos with an electronic boost controller, aluminum intercooler piping, and silicon hose couplers. It also comes with straight pipes that replace the stock catalytic converter. This will reduce the back pressure but unfortunately, it will nullify the car's road legal condition as well.

As the name implies, the upgrades will nudge the output closer to the 600 horsepower mark – 562 horsepower and 540 pound-feet of torque at the wheels, to be exact.

+ Autoblog: GT-R tuning update: HKS GT570 package

Hyundai had planned on its upcoming Genesis Coupe being a big target for the tuner crowd from the very outset, going so far as to invite big players in the aftermarket parts industry to take an early look at the sports car. Now all that planning is set to produce tangible results, as Hyundai has announced that well known tuners HKS USA will be building a high performance version of the Genesis to bring to this year’s SEMA show in Las Vegas.

HKS president Rick Lafferty said that the Genesis Coupe possessed several qualities that attracted the tuning house to the project including, “an excellent chassis, rear-wheel drive, aggressive styling, and a new generation turbo-charged engine.” The new Genesis has been fortified with an HKS GT turbocharger, a new exhaust and intake system, revised engine management, and a fully adjustable suspension. All add up to a car that is likely to deliver a considerably stronger punch than the original 212 horsepower 2.0-liter four.
 
Readily visible modifications include a functional ground effects kit designed by Ken Style, and a totally revised interior.

The Genesis Coupe will undoubtedly be one of the highlights of the always entertaining Vegas SEMA show, which is due to kick off in the early part of November. Scroll down to read the official Hyundai press release.

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We knew the Apple iPhone would allow for some really great automotive applications. Our pal Marty Padgett at The Car Connection even rounded up the best of the apps a few weeks ago, which we republished here . But what we were hoping for was something that completely leveraged the iPhone’s accelerometers to effectively create a VBox , just cheaper and smaller.

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While covering a car like a Porsche 911 in gold leaf makes a certain kind of very decadent sense, gold-plating the wheels and brightwork on a late model Toyota Camry seems downright foolish.

No one should be terribly surprised to learn that this trick-out Toyota, which has been decked from stem to stern in 24 Karat gold plating, is for sale in that hotbed of automotive silliness, Dubai. The car’s owner is asking the equivalent of roughly $37,000 for his B.A. Baracus-spec 2007 Camry GLX, a bargain at twice the price for something this eternally tacky. Bids away.

+ Souq: Toyota Camry in 24 karats gold

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The list of best base cars to sport tune is one that could be argued ad naseum but we’re fairly confident that the fifth generation Honda Civic (1992-1995) would find its way onto most versions of it. Cheap, reliable, with a wealth of aftermarket options, JDM Civic-adds can run the gamut from serious performance pieces to poseur specials. Here are nine of our favorites.

Surely not what Chrysler stylists had in mind when they first penned the PT Cruiser, this “rockcrawler mudbogger 4x4 custom