Driving Game Offers Twitter Functionality

Sure, the Department of Transportation is all over driving distractions in the real world, but what are gamers supposed to do?

Activision has introduced Twitter functionality into its upcoming racing game “Blur” using Bizarre Creations’ social network interface. Players will be able to send tweets from within the game to hype their race victories, how many fans they have, cars they’ve unlocked, who’s ahead on the leader board, or just jaw at their friends in the multiplayer mode.

And when someone crashes into you because they’re busy tweeting, you have every right to bemoan the culture of driver (in a video game) distraction.

Chicago Blackhawks 2010 Camaro Debuts at Auto Show

If there’s one way to please us Chicagoans, it’s to plaster an awesome car with our favorite sports team that’s currently not sucking (another awesome shootout win last night). At this year’s Chicago Auto Show, you’ll find exactly that with a custom 2010 Chevrolet Camaro decked out in a Blackhawks theme.
 
This 2010 Camaro was created by local aftermarket parts manufacturer RealWheels Corporation. Down the Camaro’s side is a graphic commonly called a hockey stripe, which is used here at the highest level of appropriateness. The ‘Hawks theme carries inside with custom-sewn seats and the Blackhawks insignia etched into billet on the door sills.

If you’re a die-hard Blackhawks fan, you’ll be glad to know you can take this Camaro home by registering for a chance to win it at the 2010 Chicago show. Public days at Chicago’s McCormick Place run Feb. 12-21.

Full gallery: Chicago Blackhawks 2010 Chevy Camaro Photo Gallery

Blackhawks-Themed Camaro Coolest Car at Auto Show (NBCChicago)

Documentary of GM Plant Closure Nabs Oscar Nod

“The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant,” which follows several workers in the Moraine, Ohio, assembly plant during its last months of operation, has earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Documentary Short Film.

The 40-minute film is part of HBO’s 2009 Documentary Films Series and is the brainchild of filmmakers Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert, who hail from Yellow Springs, Ohio. The documentary follows an electrician, a toolmaker and a forklift operator among others, as GM prepares to shut down the facility. The interviews cover not only the individual lives of the factory’s employees but also delve into the United States’ decaying manufacturing base and the changes that have wrought on the nation’s blue-collar middle class. Sounds interesting to us.

Bognar and Reichert have received accolades for their previous work, including a Primetime Emmy and several screenings at the Sundance film festival. “The Last Truck” is scheduled to air on HBO’s East Coast feed at 8:45 a.m. Feb. 18 (5:45 a.m. on the West feed). The Oscars air March 7.

Today's News From the Cars.com Family

A reader wants to know if there are any American-made cars that are both hybrid and have all-wheel drive, and Ask.cars.com explains where to look for both features. Then, PickupTrucks.com takes a look at new powertrains for F-Series pickup trucks. Finally, MotherProof.com test drives the 2009 Audi A6, and our mom reviewer finds the vehicle fun but not as family-friendly as it could be.

Are There Any American-Made Cars That Are Both Hybrid and All-Wheel Drive? (Ask.cars.com)
Ford Powers Up New and Future Powertrains for F-Series Trucks (PickupTrucks.com)
A6 Focuses on Driving, Forgets to Be Family-Friendly (MotherProof.com)

Conan O'Brien Uses Bugatti Veyron to Get Back at NBC

There’s really nothing more that can be added to this bit of comedic and revenge-driven brilliance. "Tonight Show" host Conan O’Brien got back at NBC for giving him the boot by employing a Bugatti Veyron — the world's most expensive car — and the Rolling Stone’s “Satisfaction” — an expensive song to license — in what surely must be one of the most expensive comedy bits of all time (except for Jalopnik reports that Conan got the car on loan from the Peterson Automotive Museum) Check out the clip from Wednesday night's show.

Diddy Loaning Teen Idol Justin Bieber His Lamborghini

If you don’t know who Justin Bieber is then you don’t have any children under age 16. You should count yourself lucky that you’ve missed out on Bieber and his music. The pop sensation is rising up the charts and with fame comes spending time with other famous people. We’re not sure why famous people don’t hang out with non-famous people, but that just doesn’t seem to happen a lot.

The latest famous pairing sent Bieber to hang with Diddy for unknown reasons, but the music mogul promised the 15-year-old Bieber the use of his Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder, a $200,000 car, when the young man turns 16. That’s not exactly the car we’d pick for a 16-year-old to toy with. Since Diddy has to take a dusty car cover off the Gallardo Spyder to show it off in the video above, we’re guessing he doesn’t get much use out of it. Oh, famous people…

Vikings Offer Free Parking for E85 Vehicles

Minnesota Vikings fans who own flex-fuel vehicles have an extra incentive to get to each of the football team’s eight home games early. The first 25 flex-fuel vehicles to arrive will get free parking at the premium lot near the stadium, while everyone else who drives will have to plop down the standard $40 to park.

Additionally, even fans who don’t own flex-fuel vehicles, which can run on either gasoline or E85, can register to win a trip to Soldier Field to watch the Vikings take on the Chicago Bears on Dec. 28 for “Monday Night Football.” To register for “Vikings Road Trip, Fueled By E85,” click here; we’re warning you, we live in Chicago and Lake Michigan will undoubtedly be kicking up something fierce by Dec. 28.

The Vikings have partnered with the American Lung Association for the promotions, which are meant to raise awareness of “cleaner-burning E85” and ethanol-based fuel. Minnesota is a large producer of corn-based ethanol; Iowa, which also makes a lot of ethanol from corn, doesn’t have an NFL team.

E85 meets new stringent emissions rules just like regular gasoline. It emits less carbon monoxide than gas, but the fuel produces more acetaldehyde, a toxic pollutant. There are many environmentalists who believe the carbon footprint for corn-based ethanol is much more detrimental than fossil fuels.

National Geographic Peeks Inside Auto Factories

Thursday night is chock-full of good TV shows. Perhaps your tastes swing more toward “Survivor” or maybe you’re like me and can’t get enough of “The Office” and “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia,” but you’d better gear up the DVR for a series on the National Geographic Channel.

At 8 p.m. EST Thursdays, the channel will show “Ultimate Factories,” a reality show that looks at how some of the world’s favorite cars are built, piece-by-piece. The Chevrolet Camaro get its moment in the spotlight (well, one of its many moments in the spotlight) on Oct. 15 when the cameras peek inside a GM plant.

The show also focuses on the Lamborghini Murcielago SV, put together by hand in Sant’Agata Bolognese, Italy, which already aired this week but is on again at 3 p.m. EST Thursday; the Rolls-Royce Phantom, assembled in Dingolfing, Germany (Thursday); and the Porsche 911, assembled in Stuttgart, Germany (Oct. 22).

It’s an interesting lineup, ranging from the popular but still relatively inexpensive Camaro to vehicles like the Murcielago SV that most people will never lay a hand on let alone consider buying. We look forward to seeing the differences in how these vehicles go from frame to finished product.

National Geographic Channel to Show How a Lamborghini Is Built (Up to Speed)

Electric Ford Focus To Race on Jay Leno Tonight

Jay Leno’s new show may not be a hit with critics but the admitted car fanatic is hoping to get auto enthusiasts and greenies on his side with a new “Green Car Challenge” segment launching tonight — Friday at 10 p.m. EDT.

The first car to be tested — and driven by actress Drew Barrymore — will be a European Ford Focus seen here that has been converted to an all-electric car. This is one of the cars Ford has been testing in advance of a consumer version to go on sale in the U.S. in 2011.

Ford says the battery powered Focus has 236 lb ft. of torque — almost as much as a V-6 Mustang — 50/50 weight distribution and a number of other race ready parts supplied by Ford’s performance division.

That’s a lot of go while Ford also says the test-car can travel 80 miles on a single electric charge.

The Ford may also have an unfair advantage to future cars in the challenge. It has been tweaked and tested specifically for Leno’s custom race track he had built for the new show. Ford went as far as designing its own version of Leno’s track in Michigan for its testing.

Tune in to NBC tonight to see how Barrymore and the battery-powered Focus handle the pressure.

Eli Manning Back Hawking Cars for Toyota

The Greater New York Toyota Dealers Association has a secret weapon this football season — Eli Manning heading up the “Great Time to Sign” sales event.

A series of 30-second spots feature Manning in a run-of-the-mill Toyota dealership, buying a car from a couple of dealers who are ecstatic to have the New York Giants quarterback in their offices.

This year, Manning is joined by the New York Jets rookie quarterback, Mark Sanchez, with the joke being that the dealers (played by Chance Mullen and Joe Farrell) have no idea who Sanchez is.

While the spots certainly work in their own quirky little way, what do you think the odds are that either Manning or Sanchez ever gets behind the wheel of a Toyota for a night out on the town? After signing a multimillion-dollar contract, I doubt it’s that much fun to run out and buy a Camry.