Magnificent DTM Safety/Pace Car: Porsche 928

Strange Maps: China's Population In Perspective

Strange Maps is one of my favorite blogs. It has been turned into a book. Here is a short review by the NYT.

The above map is illustrative of the blog's posts. It compares the populations of China's provinces to the populations of nations. Xinjiang is the same as Madagascar. The city of Tianjin is equal to Cuba. The official population of Guandong is Germany. Plus, the migrant workers in Guandong make up one Uganda. That's a lot of people.

Pan Am Innovator Bag: Perfect Stocking Stuffer for Traveler

In general, I am against all things retro. But I really dig this.

Tomica, Matchbox, And Hot Wheels Yellow Bees

Hot Wheels Dodge Mirada Stocker

Hot Wheels Olds Flat Out 442

Matchbox Superfast Datsun 128X

Matchbox Rolamatics Wild Life Truck

Hot Wheels Airport Rescue Fire Engine

Hot Wheels VW Hare Splitter

Tomica Lamborghini Countach LP500S

Tomica And Matchbox Silver Bullets

Matchbox Ford Sierra XR4i

Tomica Mercedes Benz 450SEL

Matchbox Superfast VW Bug Hi Ho Silver

Tomica DeTomaso Pantera GTS

Putin And Medvedev's Gait

Have you ever noticed how Putin and Medvedev walk funny? They both have this strut where their left arms move about freely while their right arms seem to be stapled to their hips. I looked into this.

In a 2005 article in The Atlantic, experts (a cardiac thoracic surgeon, two orthopedic surgeons, a physical therapist, and a neurodevelopmental therapist) looked at Putin's gait. Their theories on the cause of Putin's gait include:

• he had a stroke in utero,
• Erb's palsy from forceps squeezing his right shoulder during birth,
• polio.

My hypotheses:

• old judo injury,
• Putin is a badass.

What is more fascinating is why Medvedev walks with the same gait. He was coached to walk like Putin.

This video shows their gaits perfectly. At first, Putin is self-conscious about his gait so he exaggerates the swing of his right arm. He also fidgets with his right arm and hand by playing with his coat, wiping his face, and waving. But after walking a bit (0:52), he returns to his normal gait. And you can see how Medvedev apes Putin's stride.

Contrasting Towers

Pioneer Mill Smokestack; Lahaina, Hawaii

Emin Minaret; Turpan, Xinjiang

Carspotting (22): Mercedes W108 280S

Taken in Makawao, a paniolo (cowboy) town on Maui.

Tomica's Inglourious Basterds

I had always assumed that these six Tomica cars are the oldest in my collection. For as long as I can remember, they suffered from catastrophic corrosion. The other trait they all shared-- they're all two door mid-70s Japanese coupes.

Nissan Sunny 1200GX

Nissan Skyline 2000GT-X

Toyota New Mark II-L

Nissan Laurel

Nissan Sunny Excellent 1400GX

Nissan Bluebird 2000GT-X

Prototype 2011 Volkswagen Touareg caught

Hey there, odd looking, what you got cooking? Yes, we're pretty positive you're looking (or about to be looking) at the 2011 Volkswagen Touareg caught without its robe on. Visually speaking, not much has changed. The front clip and hood look more in line with the sixth generation Golf/GTI. From behind, you can see an awful lot of Porsche Cayenne – which is not surprising as the two SUVs are very closely related – especially these days.

We're always liked the Touareg. It's one of those special Volkswagens built almost entirely out of Ferdinand Piech's adrenal glands, akin to the Phaeton and Bugatti Veyron. All three are cars built (largely) without compromise. Don't believe us? Allow us to suggest a weekend with the twin-turbo V10 TDI model – it really will bring you around to our way of thinking. 553 lb-ft of blown diesel torque at 1,800 rpm tends to have that effect on people.

The question now is, will this new 2011 Volkswagen Touareg be anywhere near as phantasmagorical as the last one? We can't say (yet), but we're thinking VW's going to probably dial the "hell yeah!" back a bit. That's just the way of things. Of course, they may not. Either way, we just hope they figure out how to make the next one more reliable. A tip of our off roadin' flap hats to Paul!

Volkswagen's New Golf Crowned '2009 Carsguide Car of the Year' Winner

November The new Golf has taken top spot at the ‘2009 Carsguide Car of the Year’ awards, establishing itself as the benchmark in the small car segment with Australian motoring experts.

The new Golf was awarded ‘World Car of the Year 2009’ earlier this year and now uses its winning formula in Australia to continue the claim to fame. It went on sale in Australia in early 2009 and has received rave reviews since.

Anke Koeckler, Volkswagen Group Australia’s Managing Director, commented on the significance of this award. “It is a very important achievement for the Volkswagen brand in the Australian market to succeed against such an impressive range of contenders. This win demonstrates that not only the consumers but the media have embraced the new Golf as a leader in its segment and the market.”

The National Motoring Editor of Carsguide, Paul Gover, commented: “The right car won. The Golf was voted World Car Of The Year when it landed in Europe and now it has claimed the big prize in Australia”.

The judging panel on the ‘2009 Carsguide Car of the Year’ Awards consists of Motoring editors and senior writers from Sydney's The Daily Telegraph, Melbourne's Herald Sun, Brisbane's The Courier-Mail, Adelaide's The Advertiser, Hobart's Mercury, Perth's Sunday Times and carsguide.com.au. Nine judges evaluated the best new car releases of 2009 resulting in one overall winner.

Brazil Volkswagen To Invest BRL6.2 Bln Between 2010-2014

Volkswagen do Brasil said Thursday it will invest 6.2 billion Brazilian reals, or EUR2.3 billion ($3.5 billion) in Brazil between 2010 and 2014 and aims to sell 1 million cars in the country by 2014 in an attempt to overtake Fiat (F.MI) as the country's number one car and truck retailer.

Volkswagen AG's (VOW.XE) local chief executive, Thomas Schmall, said that the money would come from European headquarters as well as the subsidiary offices in Brazil.

"We will enjoy significant growth in Brazil this year and win market share. Our target is to sell one million vehicles per year in Brazil by 2014, thus making an important contribution to the success of the Group's Strategy 2018," Schmall said in a statement.

Deliveries to customers by Volkswagen do Brasil have risen 70% to 585,000 units in 2008 since 2005.

The 2010-2014 budget marks Volkswagen's largest investment ever in Brazil.

Brazil has become an important market for European car makers. While car sales have declined in Europe and the U.S., Brazil car sales continue to rise and will break a record 3 million vehicles in 2009.

Lower interest rates, tax breaks, and Volkswagen's introduction of its new Gol model helped push national sales higher despite a recession.

Human FAT Trafficking Ring In Peru

Note to self:

1. Hit the treadmill before I go on my overland journey through Peru.

2. NEVER drink Inca Kola again.

My Diecast Collection Travels Around the World

All the backgrounds are from Lonely Planet's big, glossy, and wonderful The Travel Book.

Matchbox Air France Airbus A300B flying over Peru.

Matchbox Ferrari 308 GTB at Venice's Piazza San Marco.

Hot Wheels VW Sunagon at Yosemite.

Tomica VW Microbus in Botswana.

Matchbox Audi Quattro in Liechtenstein.

Humain, Trop Humain

I just watched an extraordinary movie about cars. It's Louis Malle's 1974 documentary Humain, Trop Humain. The 70+ minute movie was mostly shot at a Citroen GS factory in Brittany. At the factory, there is no dialogue. There is no monologue; there is not even narration. The film just shows the workers assembling the car from start to finish. It's mesmerizing and shows how man and woman have become an integral part of the assembly line machinery. It's not a good fit. The eyes of many of the workers are glazed over. You can literally see the soul being slowly sapped out of them.

There's also a nice snippet from a car show. Apparently, not all French people were impressed with French cars and their eccentricities.

What did I learn? It took a lot of cigarettes and hammers to build a Citroen.

(It's available on Netflix.)

The Play Between Cal & Stanfurd (Enhanced Video)

Well, it's been yet another disappointing season for Cal. At this point, I don't even care if Jahvid Best plays again. I just want that kid to be healthy and graduate. But what will salvage this season is if we win Saturday's Big Game. Leland Stanfurd JUNIOR University is favored by a touchdown.

Here is an enhanced version of 1982's The Play, undeniably the greatest single moment in college football history (with Joe Starkey making the call).

Matchbox Tow Trucks

In my make-belief town, cars broke down. Fortunately, everyone had AAA tow coverage and I had three tow trucks on-call.

My favorite of the three was this Matchbox Freightliner.

Here it is towing a temperamental Matchbox Citroen CX.

This Matchbox Foden tilt cab was an odd duck. As its name states, the blue cab tilts forward 90 degrees.

Foden carrying a Tomica Fix It Again Tony X 1/9.

This Matchbox Leyland truck was a mystery to me. I never knew what the two holes on the bed were for. I used to get those toothpicks from club sandwiches with the colorful plastic on one end and stick them in the holes. Kids.

Going back to the unreliable French theme, here is a Matchbox Renault 5 getting a ride to the shop. I understand the scales are way out of proportion, but hey, I was eight!