Sections: R56 (Coupe) | Video Oct 23rd, 2007 17 Comments 
All three Street Tuner Challenge cars have been built and they rolled them out Monday to a few media folks, myself included. Turns out that not only was I media, but also a judge!
All three cars were very cool in their own way. Each team took a different approach to the build, and you could tell in the way they came out. There was the street car (Ford Focus), the Racer (Mitsubishi Evo) and the Show Car (MINI Cooper R56).
Fireball Tim, Hubie Fuh, Brian White and Andy Limon from Fireballed! did a great job on the MINI! It is unlike anything you have ever seen before. The inspiration was an ode to our nations first responders. A car they would use for tracking down bad guys and stopping them in their tracks. Complete with huge nitrous bottle, trick body work, custom paint and a 1/4 scale remote controlled Sony stereo system that rode on brushed aluminum rails in the back.
The Focus, built by Focus Sport was based on the new ‘08 2 door and it looked fantastic. From the orange paint to the Sony stereo system, this car looked like it could have rolled off the assembly line. If Ford were to build a performance version of the Focus, it would look like this.
The Evo was all business. The guys from Skunk 2 Racing are veterans of the show and you could tell they knew their stuff. Suspension, lots of engine mods, body kit and wheels and tires that are ready for the track. On the interior, Alacantara covered the steering wheel, headliner and door panels. Sparco seats, front and rear and full roll cage.
Which did I like best? Well, for that you will have to watch Street Tuner Challenge. At the end of the day they interviewed all of us in front of the camera, so there is a good chance you might catch a glmpse of me toward the end of the season!
And, if you just can’t get enough, after each new episode you can catch a behind the scenes view over at Myride.com. You can check out Episode 1 now!
Adrian Amos Oct 23rd, 2007 Link
Ford did build a performance version of the Focus. It was available in Europe a few years ago, and I ran across a video of it outrunning a Lamborghini. It was stock, and the Lambo driver wasn’t my grandmother.
It did something absurd like a 4.4 second 0 – 60.
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jahpaul Oct 23rd, 2007 Link
Anyone have a torrent for Street Tuner Challenge? i dont have speedtv
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robble Oct 23rd, 2007 Link
neat. I figured out you can go to the next pic by clicking on the pic and dragging.
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BrantV Oct 23rd, 2007 Link
For those who might have liked to watch the story unfold over the 13 weeks, thanks for the spoiler alert.
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irieman Oct 23rd, 2007 Link
I don’t have cable so I asked my friend to set his TiVo to record all episodes. Went over to his place to watch it last night and he already deleted the first episode?!? :(
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msh441 Oct 23rd, 2007 Link
Spoiler aside (it’s been posted at Motoring Underground and I think NAM, too… so it was only a matter of time)… it’ll be interesting to hear the judges take on the MINI.
Seems like the EVO and the Focus became typical tuner/track versions like we all see everyday (or at least any open track day). The MINI is somthing else all together. From a visible change standpoint, the MINI is far and away the “most-changed” from stock. LOVE the matte black and red combo.
Looking at those headers, the massive turbo, intercooler and BOV (pointed out the front lower grille) I can’t wait to hear that thing fire up and see the dyno results.
Pretty cool.
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Nathaniel Salzman Oct 24th, 2007 Link
I must say, that dark matte gray and lighter roof color combo is AWESOME! I’d love to see that on a normal street MINI.
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ValparaisoExpress Oct 24th, 2007 Link
Man, that car is ugly! But I can see the amount of work that went into it. Just not my style.
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RB Oct 24th, 2007 Link
OMG…. That waz the worst excuse for a show I have ever seen. I don’t think Ill be following along with that crap even if a MINI is involved.
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agranger Oct 30th, 2007 Link
How about some photos of the community pictures… the 1 sq. inch community submitted photos that were to be incorporated into the design?
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