Articles by Karla Pincott

Holy hot baby SUVs, Batman. Nissan has built a custom Nismo Juke up to Gotham City spec. The Nissan Juke Nismo Dark Knight has been revealed – and will be a competition prize -- just as news arrives that the original TV Batmobile will go under the auction hammer in January. The Juke timing ties in with the latest of the Dark Knight movie series, and the car gets an arsenal of batworthy features. Designed at Nissan’s London ‘batcave’ design studio where the Juke was spawned, the special edition is finished in the matt black of the Dark Knight’s own Tumbler, set off with gloss black wheels and red accents. Bat badges on the grille, tailgate and doorsill kickplates are matched by reflective bat logos on the suede sport seat headrests. Door mirror downlights project the classic bat signal onto the ground while an uplighter in the cabin shines it onto the headlining – which is handy if Bruce Wayne is already in the car with you, but otherwise risks the superhero not getting the message. Based on the Juke Nismo, which goes on sale overseas in January, the Dark Knight features the same 160kW 1.6-litre turbocharged engine with a six-speed manual gearbox driving the front wheels – and a claimed 0-100km/h time of 7.8 seconds. There’s no mention of the rubber-bullet machine guns and cannon of the Tumbler, or even the rear rocket thruster, Bat Smoke, Bat Photoscope or other features of the TV car – so we don’t think the Tumbler need fear being sent to the scrapheap just yet. The Juke is being offered as a prize in a UK competition. But those for whom the TV Batmobile will always be the only one are bound to keep an eye on bidding when the original car goes up for auction in January. The 1960s TV Batmobile was customised from a one-off 1955 Lincoln Futura concept prototype that was unveiled on the Ford stand at the 1955 Chicago motor show – in a pearlescent blue-white finish. It also later got a red paint makeover for a bit part with Debbie Reynolds and Glenn Ford in the 1959 movie, It Started With a Kiss. But its life as the Batmobile didn’t start until about five years later, when the TV series brought its air date forward and needed a vehicle within a couple of weeks. The producers dumped the existing car plans and knocked on designer George Barris’s workshop door – behind which the Futura had been gathering dust. The concept car had cost Ford around $250,000, but Barris had bought it from them for a nominal $1 after the Chicago show. He completed the customisation in three weeks – and the Batmobile was born. The car is likely to get bids of more than $2 million when it goes under the hammer in the US on January 19, although auction house Barrett-Jackson has not released an estimate. “The 1966 Batmobile by George Barris is one of the most famous Hollywood cars in history and it has become a true icon that has been carried from generation to generation of Batmobiles to follow,” Barrett-Jackson CEO Craig Jackson said. “This vehicle not only marks the significant Bat logo that sits on the middle of its door, but a time in television history where they defied the odds of making a car the real star of the show. It revolutionized an entire industry that followed in its footsteps and we couldn’t be prouder to have it cross our block in Scottsdale as it goes up for sale for the very first time.”      

It’s the world’s most famous calendar – coveted, exclusive and not for sale. And the 2013 edition is already making waves. Normally the Pirelli Calendar features models in various stages of undress, but the chosen photographer elected to shoot the 2013 has elected to keep the clothes on. Steve McCurry is well-known as a documentary photojournalist – famed for a 1984 National Geographic cover of a young Afghan woman – and for the Pirelli Calendar commission, he took the models to the streets of Brazil. The calendar features Karlie Kloss, Summer Rayne, Isabeli Fontana, Hanaa Ben Abdesslem, Liya Kibede, Kyleigh Kuhn and a heavily pregnant Adriana Lima. And these are more than just pretty faces. Each model was selected because of their high-profile involvement with charities, and calendar information highlights the work the organisations do. "I tried to portray Brazil, its landscape, its economy and its culture, along with the human element," McCurry says. "This was the story I wanted to tell through my lens. For me photography is an important expressive means to tell large and small stories of daily life." “In the background, Rio is bustling with life, with its historic quarters like Lapa and Santa Teresa, its favelas, its bars and nightclubs, its markets, dance centers and gyms, its schools and bus stops. The city appears at its most authentic, very different from the usual stereotypes. "I walked a lot through the streets, looking at all these moments of daily life and taking lots and lots of pictures. I look for the moment of passage, when the image reveals a bit of tension." “I would say I am a street photographer doing ‘found situations’. You can photograph nudes anywhere. But these models are clothed, and each of them has her own charity. They are purposeful and idealistic people. So I wanted to photograph them in a special place, and Rio was perfect for this,” The 2013 Pirelli Calendar comprises 34 images bound together in a calendar-book. It features 11 models, actresses and singers: Brazilians Isabeli Fontana (who appeared in Bruce Weber's 2003 Pirelli Calendar, in Patrick Demarchelier's 2005 edition, in Peter Beard's of 2009, in Karl Lagerfeld's of 2011 and in Mario Sorrenti's of 2012) and Adriana Lima (also in Patrick Demarchelier's 2005 edition), actress Sonia Braga and singer Marisa Monte; Italian-egyptian actress Elisa Sednaoui, Czech model Petra Nemcova, Tunisian model Hanaa Ben Abdesslem, Ethiopian model Liya Kebede, and American models Karlie Kloss, Kyleigh Kuhn and Summer Rayne Oakes. Twenty thousand copies of the calendar will be printed – and less than 200 come to Australia – but none are for sale. They are all given to a secret list of VIPs as gifts. But of course one calendar is already listed on eBay for about $1000. Previous photographers who have shot the Pirelli Calendar have included fashion guru Karl Lagerfeld, Annie Leibovitz and Richard Avedon.  

The 1960s TV show Batmobile – and for many Batman fans, the car that will always be the true Batmobile -- went under the hammer on the weekend at US auction house Barrett-Jackson.But the car that hit rocket-thruster icon status in the schlock small-screen show was not born as the black ultra-finned collection of Bat gadgets that shot it to fame.The 1960s Batmobile was customised from a one-off 1955 Lincoln Futura concept prototype that was unveiled on the Ford stand at the 1955 Chicago motor show – in a pearlescent blue-white finish. It also later got a red paint makeover for a bit part with Debbie Reynolds and Glenn Ford in the 1959 movie, It Started With a Kiss.See our gallery of Batmobile photos.But its life as the Batmobile didn’t start until about five years later, when the TV series brought its air date forward and needed a vehicle within a couple of weeks. The producers dumped the existing car plans and knocked on designer George Barris’s workshop door – behind which the Futura had been gathering dust.The concept car had cost Ford around $250,000, but Barris had bought it from them for a nominal $1 after the Chicago show. He completed the customisation in three weeks – and the Batmobile was born.“The 1966 Batmobile by George Barris is one of the most famous Hollywood cars in history and it has become a true icon that has been carried from generation to generation of Batmobiles to follow,” Barrett-Jackson CEO Craig Jackson said.“This vehicle not only marks the significant Bat logo that sits on the middle of its door, but a time in television history where they defied the odds of making a car the real star of the show. It revolutionized an entire industry that followed in its footsteps and we couldn’t be prouder to have it cross our block in Scottsdale as it goes up for sale for the very first time.” 

Dreaming of escaping today’s peak-hour traffic jams? A single-seat remote-control helicopter from a leading toymaker could be the future answer. Japanese brand Hirobo has been making innovative radio-control toys since the 70s – among them the world’s first four-wheel drive RC cars and the only belt-drive 4WD circuit model ever made. In recent years they’ve concentrated on RC helicopters of all kinds, ranging from tiny coaxial-bladed indoor buzzers to massive outdoor models. But their latest venture is their most ambitious yet: a remote-controlled helicopter that becomes a one-person rescue and retrieval vehicle. Or a personal flying machine for the well-heeled. The single-seat HX-1 is basically the same as a model RC helicopter – but larger. Hirobo says it’s designed to be flown by remote-control but can also be controlled by somebody on board if needed. The electric chopper is estimated to have a 30-minute flight time at 100kmh, and is scheduled for its first flight tests in 2013, although some hover testing has already been done. The company sees the HX-1 as an emergency rescue vehicle that could fly unmanned to a location and evacuate an injured person. But Hirobo also says it could be used as “a pleasure purpose for rich people”. But knowing how easy it is to smash a remote-controlled toy into smithereens, we’re not sure we want to see the HX-1 added to everyday commuter carnage.

When Oregon father Kim Ridley wanted to showcase his 1977 Datsun on the US eBay site, he tried to make it look more attractive by adding a provocatively-posed – and somewhat underdressed – young woman with it. If she were a professional model, there would probably be some tut-tuts but little surprise. But what has shocked people is that the young woman is his 20-year-old daughter, Lexxa. The eBay images showed her in a variety of sexy poses around the car: in one with her legs spread and the car seen between them; and in another leaning over the bonnet and pushing her derriere towards the camera. Advertising industry journal Adweek says that Kim being Lexxa's father "puts a strange and newly unwholesome spin on the … 'Sex sells' motif that goes beyond the usual cliches." However Mr Ridley said he has no regrets about taking or using the images. "If I felt bad about it, I wouldn't do it," Mr Ridley told Adweek, adding that he often used sexy photographs of Lexxa and her friends to sell items. Mr Ridley eventually sold the Datsun -- which had desirably low mileage at 49,964 miles (78,860km) -- for $7,500. Did the photos go too far? Or is the father-daughter relationship no different to any other 'sex sells' advertising?  

Judging by the epic back-forward-back-forward dances -- and accompanying paint exchanges -- on most Australian streets, clean parallel parking is a skill beyond many drivers. How many times have you waited in stopped traffic while a hapless motorist edges in and out of a spot that should be an easy target? They could take a lesson from German stunt driver Ronny Wechselberger -- who performs with the stage name of Ronny C. Rock. In 2011, Rock broke the Guinness World Record for the tightest parallel parking, drifting a Volkswagen Polo into a space with just 26cm to spare. However, earlier this year that record was smashed by Chinese stunt driver Han Yue, who drifted a Mini Cooper into a park with just 15cm space left -- having broken several records in succession as he worked down from 20cm, whittling the record by a centimetre with each attempt. But Rock has returned to the record book this week with a reverse-drift parallel park. He slid a Volkswagen Up into a space with 35cm to spare. It's unlikely that driver's watching the video will be easily able to copy Rock's feat. And if any are reckless enough to try, it will likely collect even more paint than their normal parking antics -- but at least it will keep the stalled traffic entertained.

The Los Angeles auto show opens later this week, with the covers coming off fleets of future vehicles. But we’re already able to see part of the show buzz, in the entries for the annual Design Challenge. This year, manufacturers are presenting their visions for the highway patrol vehicles of the future. And while the chosen year is not far away – 2020 – the designs are closer to sci-fi set millennia from now than anything on the roads today. General Motors – which has a rebadged Holden Caprice as a real-world future US police car  – has drawn on its latest electric-hybrid drivetrain for the Volt Squad. A three-vehicle unit built around the core principles of “observe, pursue and engage”, the squad uses a van, a streamlined pursuit car and an airborne bike to hunt and collar the baddies. Subaru has set their entry in the tropical paradise of Hawaii, with the SHARC (Subaru Highway Automated Response Concept) patrol vehicles able to be operated autonomously. Despite their unmanned ability, Subaru designers have optioned the vehicles with a range of future-uniformed police – looking more like a badly rewarmed Village People than anything dreamed up for 60’s hit Hawaii Five-0. Book ‘em, Danno. Fashion murder one. Honda also turned to retro police action with vehicles for the future “CHiPs” – California Highway Patrol for those of us who don’t live there or are thankfully too young to remember THAT cheese-toasted 70s show. The CHiPs 2025 Traffic Crawler is designed to enforce the rules in a predicted California traffic boom fed by zero-emissions, zero-driver vehicles. Honda describes the ungainly three-wheeled Crawler as combining “sporty mobility with the toughness to respond in severe traffic situations”. This hints that Honda suspects green, driverless vehicles will be no less accident-prone or confused than the sleepy commuters of today. Honda’s CHP Drone Squad is a paired combo – punk van and motorcycle – that work in tandem, with the van able to control the two-wheeler as a riderless drone when needed. Judge Dredd would be horrified at manoeuvring his bike from the comfort of the van’s command point, but it’s possible his summary capital punishments are off the future charge sheet menu.  BMW has also droned on with the E-Patrol – a two-seater mothership with a trio of wheeled or airborne drones to deploy, either remotely or with the drone operator hitching a joyride while the main vehicle’s driver follows. Bound to reverse the classic battle over who commands the car keys in every buddy-cop flick. Mercedes-Benz has taken a mild path, entering a police-livery version of the Ener-G-Force concept they will unveil in the metal at the show. It looks futuristic enough at first glance, but under that Bladerunner skin it’s simply the latest rework of the G-Wagen that first appeared in 1979 and still soldiers on in military forces around the globe 33 years later. Back to the future in Stuttgart.  

The hit of 1961 New York motor show, the Gyron was an outrageous stab at what we would be driving in 2000: a space-ship bodied oddity with just two wheels, balanced by gyroscopes.The concept car was lost in a fire, but the studio model -- created by Ford design legends – survives. It’s rare for scale design models to get into public hands, and this one had been in the hands of former Ford design studio head Joe Oros until earlier this year, but is about the cross the auction block.There is already collector buzz about the fibreglass model, not least because it was a collaboration by Blue Oval creative giants Alex Tremulis, Bill Dayton and Elwood Engel. It was also the final Ford project for Syd Mead – who went on to design the vehicles for blockbusters like Tron, Blade Runner, Star Trek and Aliens.Under their creative pens, a vision emerged of a car that would travel at 320kmh, with tyres deflating and narrowing at the higher end of the speedo. When stationary, the Gyron was supposed to balance on its two wheels with the help of a gyroscope. But the technology cost – about $115,000, or closer to $850,000 in today’s terms – meant it was never fitted. The show car instead was given two outrigger ‘trainer wheels’ that unfolded to keep it level when stopped. The concept also fell far short of the planned speeds, with its electric motors powered the speedo needle no further than 10kmh.Sets of pedals in both footwells meant driving duties could be swapped between the two seats, with both able to steer and accelerate using a centre-mounted dial, while on-board radar scoped the route.And despite its technology having remained on the drawing board, the Gyron’s design influenced Ford styling for years to come. The concept model will taking bids on December 13 in the US, going under the hammer of specialist modern design auction house Wright’s. 

It would be hard enough to get the BMW M6 Coupe around a circuit laid with a double track of paper. Add in using special ink to print perfect tyre marks, and you’re talking about some really skilled driving. BMW inked in the stunt at Illinois’ Blackhawk Farms Raceway with their top US driving instructor, Matt Mullins. With years of performance training to draw on, Mullins screamed the M6 around the track while releasing controlled jets of ink onto the tyres – creating a record of the car’s considerable acceleration abilities. The high-speed artwork is being converted to special one-off ‘M Prints’ to be sent to M6 owners and prospective buyers.n It’s not BMW’s first foray into the art world.  In 2009 South African painter Robin Rhode used a BMW Z4 convertible as a high-powered brush – using reservoirs of brightly coloured paint mounted to the rear axle, and dancing the car around a piece of canvas roughly the size of a football field.  

The RAV4 has been a popular compact SUV, but the seven-year-old design of the current third-generation vehicle now looks markedly out-of-date against the fresh metal in the field, including the Mazda CX-5 and coming Ford Kuga. So Toyota needs to play style catch-up to keep the RAV4 in the front lines of the sales race, and the 40-second teaser video hints that the new RAV4 will have a much more stylish approach. It’s taking the best of new cues from the rest of the family, with a redrawn grille, bumpers and light clusters. There’s no information yet on what’s under the skin, but while you can depend on a four-cylinder engine continuing for the base models, Toyota is unlikely to persevere with the outdated four-speed automatic gearbox on the current 2.4-litre. Expect to see either a smoother, economy-focused six-speed or a continuously-variable as the auto option. The current 3.5-litre V6 engine could also be an endangered species, and is likely to be replaced by either a higher-tuned version of the four-cylinder, or an economical small diesel. We’ll have more details as they’re revealed on the RAV4 and all the other highlights of the LA motor show leading up to its opening on November 28.