Auto Industry News: DUI on Horseback, Tesla Woes, & Righteous Builds

Horseback DUI

You just can’t make this stuff up. Tesla woes, righteous builds, and even the Wrangler JL take a back seat to this headline. A woman in Park City, Florida was arrested Thursday for DUI after driving recklessly on… her horse? Police pulled the rider over after maneuvering her horse in busy traffic on a main road while clearly intoxicated. Take your pick of low-hanging fruit here, folks. Do you want a Mustang joke, or should we play it safe and say she can’t handle all that horsepower? Whatever the case, I think she deserves a toast: Whiskey for my men, and beer for my horses.

Tesla Woes

Luckily for the Park City Roughrider, she wasn’t the only one stumbling out of the gate. It appears rumors about “what’s wrong” with the Tesla Model 3 are being pushed off the production line faster than the cars themselves. Tesla apparently “shipped cars from the factory that lacked key parts,” ranging from seats to digital displays. Could it be that Tesla forgot to mention the $35K base price tag is missing a parts-sold separately clause? Not likely, as the company was quick to step in.

“Tesla is constantly improving its cars with over-the-air updates and often design and hardware improvements,” a spokesperson said. And whether or not that’s the truth, it seems like a weird way to expand for such a fast moving company. Plus this wouldn’t be the first recent frustration with Tesla’s production. Many fear the company won’t be able to reach its goal of “about 100,000 Model S and X deliveries projected for 2017″ with the year’s end staring them down.

Civic Build

And time is what Miguel Carrera had when considering his innovative Civic build. The young automotive technician is putting a 306 horsepower Civic Type R engine into a 2,100 pound fifth-generation Honda Civic. And if that feels like a massive crossover, that’s because it is. But Carrera hopes that the K20C1 turbocharged inline (held with his custom-made mounts) will help his 1992 Civic hatchback achieve a power-to-weight figure similar to that of a Dodge Challenger Hellcat.

In order to achieve such a goal, he’s going light, starting with abandoning the subframe and replacing it with a 4340 chrome steel tubular setup. Also, he’s ditching the stock wheels for lightweight BBS wheels taken from an Evo IX. And to support such a setup he’s taken measures into his own hands with custom CV axles. Though he knows the task is tall, Carrera is passionate about this build. Watch him gut and customize this build on Instagram.

MIT and Lamborghini Collaboration

It’s the classic case of brawn teaming up with brains. Lamborghini has been teasing the partnership that will likely debut something this week. Though no one knows for sure yet what that something is, there are educated guesses.

Rumor has it that MIT is working on solid state lithium batteries, which means we could be seeing an electric speed demon surface in the coming days. And some even speculate that whatever is announced could replace the Lamborghini Aventador. Perhaps that is what Lamborghini meant when they teased their “vision for the super sportscar of the future.” We’ve already seen the company experiment with other outlets like an SUV. However, there’s the possibility that this could just be a small-scale demonstration for MIT’s EmTech, but let’s assume the wildest reality.

New Wrangler JL Parts At SEMA

Last week, industry professionals from around the globe gathered together in Las Vegas, Nevada for the biggest aftermarket show – SEMA. No surprise here, some of the biggest excitement was around the all-new Jeep Wrangler JL. Mopar is said to release more than 200 Jeep performance parts with the debut of its Wrangler JL. According to AutoWeek, Mopar laid out roof racks, cargo carriers, and a tailgate table with space for food and beverages. They also will offer solid bikini tops and screen protectors for the Uconnect screens, as well as LED off-road lights, new rock rails, non-slip finish bedliners, off-road bumper guards, and 17″ aluminum wheels with beadlock capability among others. Good news for Jeep lovers at the point of purchase, but not such great news for the true aftermarket.

Around the Circuit

American Rallycross fans were hit with some exciting news of their own. World Rallycross Championship announced that a round will take place in the US for the first time next season. The event will be held at the Circuit of the Americas Formula 1 venue in Austin, Texas.

Kevin Harvick captured the win in Texas on Sunday, locking up a spot in the Round of Four along with overall standings leader Martin Treux Jr, and Kyle Busch. One spot remains for Brad Keselowski, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Chase Elliott or Jimmie Johnson.