Bernie's Car Show Coverage: 2012 Gold Rush Rally Meetup: Atlanta

This past Wednesday was the Atlanta stop for the Gold Rush Rally. Because I was a virgin to automotive rallies, I didn't know what to expect, so I went in positive AND with an open mind. And you know what? I'm glad I did.



I got there a little too early. Despite media registration being open from 10-5, I got there at 2, knowing I should have gotten there by 5. The Gold Rush Rally participants have partied way too hard in Vegas (well, who could blame 'em) and they got to Atlanta uber late. Which meant, when I got there, there were only 6 cars. But those 6 cars carried a bit of weight to them.



To park within the area and to partake in the actual rally aspect, you had to get decaled. Gold Rush Rally was smart, and they brought with them Vinyl Styles, a automotive graphic company out of San Francisco to decal every single car at every tour stop. Let me repeat that. Every single car at every single stop. I asked them, how many decals do you put on each vehicle. Their answer... 25. And they decaled every vehicle- from the stock Chevy Surburban that confused me to the matte black Bugatti, and all those in between.



There were 19 cars that showed up- not counting the Subaru that belonged to one of the media and the factory Chevy Surburban and GMC Yukon. There were Lambos, Ferraris, A Rolls Royce Phantom, An SLS or two, an Audi R8 that had a questionable front license plate (the Georgia Flag), a Mercedes S550 that had the AMG accessories, a Mercedes Benz CL63 that was actually the AMG level, and the car that stole the show- the Bugatti Veyron that stole the show. But everyone knows that a racing event can't be considered a racing event without the two vehicles that are considered God of the import world- the Nissan GTR and BMW M Series, and they were both there as well.



We're all friends here, so we both know that when it comes to shows, I'm a critical person. I like cars to be at shows. However, even though there were 19 vehicles there that totalled to over 5 million dollars (if they were brand new), the Gold Rush Rally stop was the most productive show I've been to since SEMA. I met some great people- The Vinyl Styles guys, The Vossen Wheel guys came (the same Vossen Wheels that I feature on my site often), Jason from ATL Autorsports, Sunny from Speed Mischief, and I did meet more but I'm horrible with names. Basically the people who showed up are those who truely had a love for cars, not guys who customize cars to get girls.



I really hope that Gold Rush Rally comes back to Atlanta. Rallies don't come here, those are mostly a West Coast thing. That's why I made sure I attended. If they do come back, I hope they listen to the Gold Rush Rally volunteer who suggested for the Rally to be in Buckhead as opposed to Midtown. Midtown Atlanta is okay, but it was a business area- everything closes early in a business area.

P.S. I wish Gold Rush Rally would have given me a gift bag. Certain media members got one and I didn't. For more photos, well not much more (I mean, there were only 19 cars), click here to check out my Gold Rush Rally gallery

Platinum Motorsport Shows off a Rolls Royce Ghost

Platinum Motorsport released shots of a Rolls Royce Ghost sitting on Agetro F100 Wheels. Check it out...

ADV.1 Wheels gets their hands on a Rolls Royce Ghost

ADV.1 Wheels released photos of a Rolls Royce Ghost sitting on their ADV 5.0 wheels. According to ADV.1, 22′s just wouldn’t have been enough for the massive wheel arches of the Ghost so we opted to go for a 24X10.5 fitment with our Deep Concave forging. A ADV5.0 spoke design was chosen to give a more aggressive “non-bling” look to the platform and the wheels were finished off with a gloss black lip and inner and matte black spokes.

Photos are gorgeous...

How We Roll (Video): 713 Motoring

I've been talking about them a lot lately on this site, but as long as they keep customizing cars and send me the photos and videos, then they'll keep appearing on this site. It is free advertising, but some companies don't believe me when I say that.

Out of the goodness of their hearts, Houston's own 713 Motoring sent me a video entitled How We Roll. How We Roll would be a great commercial for the shop- Four fully customized cars parked outside with the Vice President of 713, Brandon, walking around and talking about the cars.

Brandon decided to show off a Blacked Out Mercedes Benz S550 with the smoked out tail lights, a White Chevy Camaro with a body kit, white wheels, and smoked tail lights, A Red Cadillac XLR with red wheels (rumor has it, the interior is red as well), and a White Rolls Royce Phantom that I featured on here before. Watch the video...



I haven't been to Texas yet, and I know that 713 Motoring is somewhere in the Houston area, but I can assume that this isn't the first time they've worked on a S550, a Phantom, the XLR, and a Camaro and it certainly woon't be their last. Well, maybe the Cadillac XLR- let's be real- how many of them have you seen on the road within the last 30 days? Go ahead, I'll wait while you count. Within the five years Cadillac produced them, they haven't been popular. I bet if you add up the total sales from 2004-2009 of the Cadillac XLR, Cadillac probably sold just as many Escalades within a year. I know the XLR was close to $100,000, but they were ugly. A CTS-V looks so much better and the difference in money you save- you can take the car to a reputable company like 713 Motoring to give it a fully customized look. Like how I came full circle with that one?

Also, no matter what day or what time of the day you drive past 713 Motoring, I can easily say that they will always have a stable of cars around. But I honestly don't think that they'll have a Phantom parked in the doorway..

David Beckham Unloads Fully Customized Rolls Royce Drophead Coupe

After years of driving around LA, David Beckham made the ultimate decision to sell his fully customized Rolls Royce Drophead Coupe. According to Celebrity Cars Blog.com, he bought it in June 2008, customized it, and is now selling it with a little under 6,000 miles.

How customized is it? Well, I'm glad you asked. According to the seller- Towbin Motorcars in Las Vegas, Becks had EVERYTHING on the Exterior of this PHANTOM has been Blacked-Out, from the R/R 'Spirit of Ecstasy' hood ornament, the Grilles, all the trim pieces, as well as the Custom 24-inch Wheels. The interior is covered in luxurious and classy CREME LIGHT Leather. There is even a custom installed Multi-Media TV/DVD Entertainment unit built into the front seatback.

And they're only asking a mere $389,888. For more details, check out Towbin's listing, and further instructions are listed. However, if your house costs less than this vehicle or 50% more than this vehicle, then do not entertain the thought of contact Towbin Motorsports. I'm only saving you from getting your feelings hurt.

This Rolls Royce is gorgeous, even if it's a Phantom.

"Diva Edition" Rolls Royce Ghost

An Italian fashion designer decided to take their talents from fashion to customizing cars...

... in which he came up with the Diva Edition Rolls Royce Ghost totaling to well over $1 million. According to the highly outraged The Daily Mail, "The Fenice Milano 'Diva' has been spray painted in 24-carat gold and the company is so proud of it they have described the model as a 'true.masterpiece.'
It is fitted with the same 6-litre twin-turbocharged engine of the Ghost, giving the saloon more than 560bhp and a top speed of 155mph."

"Fenice Milano believes their Rolls-Royce is a 'synonym for class, elegance and style'. many would disagree.
The interior has biscuit leather and 24-carat gold throughout. The standard Ghost costs £220,000 but the Diva is now for sale at £1.05million."

Maybe some things should be left up to car customizers... And why do I picture Bryan "Birdman" Williams buying this?

Forgiato Wheels Shows off an all Black Carbon Fiber Rolls Royce Phantom...

According to Forgiato,

Designed by Symbolic Motor Car Company in California, this Rolls Royce has been toned down on the usual luxuries, and bought in with a more racing friendly appeal. The use of 3M carbon fiber Vinyl has reduced body weight, but given a very special ‘racing vehicle’ appeal with the glossy finish, along with the prominent 24″ Forgiato Vizzo wheels. Though not much has been disclosed but the transmission and suspension also have been played with, to combine the luxurious comfort and a sporting characteristic to the vehicle. If you may have skipped the car before, this vehicle has the 6.75 liter V-12 engine with 6 speed auto-transmission and 453 HP of power. It also has auto-4 corner leveling system, power controlled doors, with extensive use of leather and fine quality glossy wood on the inside décor. The final price is a mystery too, but it is said to be above $420,000.

I love originality... This is one of the best looking Phantoms I've seen, however I still prefer the body of the Ghost over the Phantom.

Photos: SB

Lexani Shows off two Rolls Royces...

So the folks at Lexani released some photos AND a video about a Rolls Royce Phantom and a Rolls Royce Ghost. The Phantom is sitting on 26″ Lexani Radiant, while the Ghost is wearing 24″ Lexani LX-2 wheels. Personally, I like the wheels on the Phantom a bit better than the ones on the Ghost, and I like the Ghost itself waaaaaayyyyy more than I like the Phantom. Check out the photos...

And here's the video to go along with it...

ADV.1 Wheels Shows off a Rolls Royce Ghost

The wheel company with the best photography, ADV.1 Wheels, released shots of a Rolls Royce Ghost wearing 22″ set of ADV08 Deep Concave wheels with a brushed center spoke and a polished lip. For ADV.1, these photos stand out because normally racing imports and some SUVs usually wear their brand of shoes. Either way, they're happy since a different type of vehicle is sporting their wheels and I'm happy because I get to look at great photography... well, other than my own.

Wanna See the World's First Rolls Royce Platinum Matte Rosso Corsa Conquistador?

Many moons ago, I composed a post about Platinum Motorsport and the creation of the World's First Rolls Royce Platinum Matte Rosso Corsa Conquistador. They finally finished it, and released some shots of the new and improved Conquistador. Check it out...

I hope they bring this to SEMA which is just around the corner...

CEC Wheels on Ice Loves Coco and the CoCo Edition Car

Don't judge me, but I do watch reality shows. Not shows like the Bachelor or Survivor, but like Jerseylicious and Girls Next Door. Sundays at 10:30 on E is the time slot for the show Ice Loves Coco, starring Ice T and his wife, Nicole "Coco" Austin.

Sunday's episode had to do with Ice and Coco renewing their vows after 10 years of marriage, and they did it in LA. A portion of the show had to do with CEC Wheel Company because Ice's son, b.k.a. Lil' Ice happens to work for CEC Wheels in LA.



As a 10 year gift to celebrate their marriage, Ice decides to purchase a White 2011 Rolls Royce Ghost sitting on 22" CEC Wheels for himself and Coco. I wish E had some clips, so this clip of Ice T showing off the car was as best as I can do.



Aside from the Rolls Royce Ghost, they do own several cars like an Aston Martin, a Bentley Continental GT (breakdown coming soon), and Coco's "Coco Edition" Cadillac CTS that she's commonly photographed with.

Dubbed "The CoCo Edition", her Cadillac CTS is subtly customized with a body kit, chrome accents, the Coco Edition badging, White aftermarket wheels with chrome inserts, etc. I'm not sure about the interior seeing how I haven't exactly seen it, but all in all it looks great.