Fast Five: The Week in Quirky Car News
5. Too Racy!
CARS.COM — Popularly thought of as a sport primarily followed by rural, Southern Americans with rural, Southern values, NASCAR fans expressed outrage this week over the racy outfits worn by the Monster Energy girls. Images of the track models show the women in revealing black outfits consisting of a bustier and Spandex pants. They replace the racing-suit-clad Sprint Cup girls of the former sponsor. Why, this might be enough to make race fans boycott this Sunday’s Daytona 500 and instead watch the E! network’s all-day coverage of people setting up for the Oscars.
4. City of Stars (and Sinkholes)
Los Angeles is well known for chewing up wannabe actors and spitting ’em out — but this week it was swallowing cars whole. Uncharacteristically heavy rains, as well as “possible sewer failures,” were being blamed for multiple sinkholes that opened up in the Studio City section of L.A., pulling occupied vehicles down beneath the ground. One incident necessitated a trapped motorist being rescued from the hole while water rushed in around her — a harrowing scene straight out of a Hollywood disaster movie.
3. Robbie Lobby
Actress Margot Robbie, most recently seen as the sociopathic Harley Quinn in Batman-adjacent blockbuster “Suicide Squad,” has signed on as ambassador for Nissan’s electric-car division, which produces the best-selling Leaf EV. It’s a shrewd promotional move on Nissan’s part, as the glamorous Robbie likely has no trouble finding someone to take a zero-emissions test drive with her — just make sure she’s not in character at the time.
2. Old ‘Hazzards’ Die Hard
Organizers of the Autorama hot-rod show in Detroit today were set to re-create a scene from the popular ’80s TV show, “The Dukes of Hazzard” — jumping a replica of the show’s General Lee 30 feet off of a 15-foot-high ramp outside the Motor City’s Cobo Center. The iconic orange 1969 Dodge Charger reportedly sports the original paint job, controversial Confederate-flag roof and all — so it’s difficult to say what’s more dangerous, the stunt … or the backlash.
1. Know Why I Pulled You Over, Doll?
We’ve heard of Babysitter Barbie, Cheerleader Barbie and even UNICEF Summit Diplomat — but HOV Lane Barbie? A state trooper in Tacoma, Wash., busted a driver for speeding in the carpool lane and found the car’s “passenger” was a blonde mannequin wearing a pink outfit with matching headband, which could easily pass for the supersize version of, like, Aerobics Instructor Barbie. The Washington State Patrol on Twitter noted that both the driver and passenger were properly seat-belted, so just the speeding and HOV violations were assessed.
Check back next Friday for an all-new Fast Five list!
