The Hot List: Volume 16

Every week we sift through a truly amazing amount of “stuff” in the dozen or so hours we spend online—you know, the time spent not driving sweet cars. A lot of the cool stuff we find has to do specifically with new cars, naturally, but there’s also a huge amount of awesomeness that doesn’t completely fit in the normal Winding Road world. Once, we were in the habit of simply reading, watching, or talking amongst ourselves about this web detritus, but recently we thought it might be a good idea to start sharing it with you all. Thus, The Hot List.

 

We aim to bring you a list of the most interesting bits of information we run across. Ten worth-knowing-about things that may or may not be related directly to the world of cars, but all of which we think our typical enthusiast readers will be able to really dig into. We don’t know, from week to week, what will show up on this list, which is part of the fun for us and for you.

 

Read, enjoy, and comment. If you happen to know of something that you think would make for a good inclusion on next week’s list, drop us a line at [email protected].

 

 

 

 

Are you an owner of a BMW M product, or just a big fan? Now you can show off your performance brand loyalty in your living room with the M division coffee table. This powder-coated steel furniture was designed by Jason Phillips, who we can assume is also a car guy.

 

 

 

 

A very dedicated tinkerer machined a tiny, working V-12 engine by hand. It only took him 1220 hours. See the beautiful process (edited for time) and the final product here. It’s mesmerizing.

 

 

 

 

Helmets are expensive enough as it is. You don’t agree? Then maybe you’d appreciate this piece of work. It features chains, spikes, and Swarovski freakin’ crystals. Yours for just $2995.

 

 

 

 

Science, man! If you don’t care that much about your microwave, you can create plasma (the electrically charged state of matter, not the blood component) in it using only a grape and a glass. Nuking the prepared grape can produce steam that becomes ionized, floating around in the glass like some sort of eerie, fiery blob. io9 has more.

 

 

 

 

Don’t’ feel like spending the weekend ruining home appliances with your amateur science experiments? Why don’t you get out of town? The New York Times has a travel guide called 36 Hours: 150 Weekends In The USA & Canada. Take a quick road trip, with these nearby destinations and practical itineraries.

 

 

 

 

Our in-house photographer/videographer Chris Amos made his own sliding track mount for nice moving shots of still objects (usually cars). If you aren’t into building you own rig, though, Mobislyder is built to do the same thing for use with small cameras, including smartphones.

 

 

 

 

The Traxxas XO-1 electric RC car requires no assembly, and is capable of going 100 miles per hour without any modifications, and it hits that speed in under 5 seconds. It looks and sounds badass, as it should for $1100. It connects to your iPhone for real-time tuning and data utility. Check out the video of it at Texas Motor Speedway.

 

 

 

 

Like flying radio-controlled airplanes, but find the cost restrictive? Are you a terrible pilot? This video shows how to build a low-cost, very durable foam plane you can fly without breaking the bank.

 

 

 

 

If you love enjoying a barley pop while you game, this home arcade system is a dream come true. It not only features a steering wheel, pedals, adjustable seat, HD projector, and controls for various types of games, but it has a built-in tap that can hold a half barrel of your favorite brew. And cupholders. It has cupholders.

 

 

 

 

Ferrari is publishing a rare book about the brand, its history, and its vehicles. It weighs 81 pounds, comes in a carbon-fiber clamshell, and even features a diamond-encrusted prancing horse on its leather cover. Only one copy will be available per country, for a cost of $250,000.