Justin Hubbell's blog

MTM is probably most known for strapping two engines to an Audi TT in order to set a speed record. Thus, MTM is definitely an "all-out" tuner that I have come to respect due to their innovative/insane projects.

The new Audi S4 AVANT is the most powerful Audi S car out right now. The V6 3.0L supercharged engine will be boosted from 333hp (248kW) to 430hp (320kW) and 380lb-ft (515Nm) of torque. With the new engine upgrades this Audi will run from 0-100km/h (62moph) in just 4.7 seconds!

MTM also offers a custom exhaust kit, bimoto wheels (19- and 21-inch), MTM height adjustable suspension and performance brakes with 380mm discs and 8-piston calipers. Currently, MTM has not announced the specifics of the engine upgrades or any prices on these modifications. We might learn more at the Frankfurt Auto Show in September, though.

Russian tuner firm, Status Design, has taken the Porsche Cayenne SUV and given it a very nice and unique look. Status has outfitted the Cayenne with an insane, full body kit, which does look really good.

The new bumper makes use of specific angle to help generate more air flow into the air-intakes, similar to what we have seen in the Audi R8. There is also a new hood, with a pointed nose that goes down towards the front grille and some new front fenders.Read more

American Performance car maker, SMS Supercar, have just announced its prices for the SMS 460 and SMS 460X. Both are fully certified and street legal and are fitted with custom supercharged V8s delivering 470hp (350kW) and 427lb-ft (578Nm) of torque and 655hp (488kW) and 600lb-ft (812Nm) of torque respectively.

The MSRP of the 460 Mustang will be $64,990 for the Coupe and $69,990 for the Convertible. No info yet on the 460X version. Read more

Last year alone the number of items of luggage misplaced by airlines rose from 30 million to 42 million, an increase of 40%! ReboundTAG, a new UK startup has been working with help from IATA (International Air Transport Association) along with several airport systems developers to come up with a novel solution, by permanently attaching a microchip to a person's luggage.

There is also a barcode and number printed on the Microchip Bag Tag to insure that they function in airports where there are no microchip readers; when the luggage is found the owner receives an email and an SMS (text) to their mobile phone immediately.

The Microchip Bag Tags are made using a patented military grade encapsulation so that they are as close as possible to being indestructible, and can be used as often as desired anywhere in the world. The tags do not contain the customer's details at all, but have a unique ID corresponding to a private database. The Microchip Bag Tag also includes a second microchip that allows the most modern airports to encode your flight data onto the tag whenever you fly.Read more

The eX-L 18, developed by MAINGEAR, features dual NVIDIA GeForce GTX 280M graphics processing units (GPUs) with NVIDIA SLI technology, 18.4-inch (1080p) display, a selection of Core 2 mobile processors, multi-core performance and dual-channel DDR3 memory and a 3Mpix webcam.

Specs:

• OS - Windows Vista Premium with Free Windows 7 Upgrade Offer
• CPU - Up to Intel Core 2 Extreme quad processor
• Chipset - Intel MCP79
• Graphics - Single or Dual NVIDIA GeForce GTX 280M
• Memory - Up to 8GB DDR3-1333
• Storage - Up to 3 2.5" SATA or SSD drives (RAID Available)
• Optical Drive - DVD or Blu-ray
• Display - 18.4" LCD 1920x1080
• Inputs - eSATA, HDMI, USB 2.0, and FireWire

That's exactly what Mcchip did. Mcchip is a German tuner that specializes in modifying vehicle's ECU and engine management systems. The standard 2.5L turbocharged Audi TT-RS produces 340hp and 325lb-ft of torque. Mcchip can tweak the ECU to produce 380hp or 400hp and the torque can see a bump up to 406lb-ft. Pretty impressive for a 2.5L engine.

With this extra boost in power, the Audi TT-RS can reach a top speed of 186mph (31mph faster from stock) and run 0-62mph in just 4.1 seconds (0.5 seconds swifter). Read more

We've seen Gemballa mod the Carrera GT supercar before under the Mirage GT title. Most of their mods include a nice paint scheme; however, matte paint jobs are the hot item now and when applied to a Mirage GT... pure epicness!

This Mirage GT will feature the same 670hp (500kW), 465lb-ft (630Nm) of torque engine that we've seen in other versions, which isn't a bad thing.

Race Specs:

• 0-62mph (100km/h) = 3.7 seconds
• 0-124mph (200km/h) = 9.7 seconds
• Top Speed = 208mph (335km/h)

These 3.5-inch external HDD are the first ones to be released from Toshiba. The product offers digital consumers and business professionals a stylish and affordable back up device with dual connectivity, robust software features and up to 1TB of capacity from a trusted brand.

Aesthetic Features

• Slim form factor and foot print to save desk space
• Sleek high gloss finish
• Vaporized metallic silver rim
• LED activity light with white glow effects

The core clock speed and the SDR DRAM cache have been bumped from 166MHz to 180MHz and have a 64MB onboard cache. These drives also house a custom firmware designed specifically for performance junkies. OCZ also states that we will see read and write speeds of up to 270MBps and 210MBps, respectively. The Vertex Turbo SSD will come backed with an industry leading 3 Year Warranty, as well.

Currently, OCZ has not announced any prices, but I'm pretty sure you can expect to see 30GB (32), 60GB (64), 120GB (128), and 250GB (256) versions to hit store shelves shortly. Check out the full spec sheet on the Vertex Turbo SSD here.

The 370Z Roadster will be available for purchase this September with the 6-speed manual transmission starting at $36,970. Another version will be available with a 7-speed automatic transmission for $38,270. Also offered are two Touring models, which add a 6CD Bose sound system, XM Satellite Radio, Bluetooth Hands-free Phone System, HomeLink Universal Transceiver, aluminum-trimmed pedals and power leather-appointed heated and cooled ventilated net seats. The 370Z Touring Roadster 6MT is priced at $40,520 and the $370Z Touring Roadster 7AT is $41,820.

For a summer-type car, it's rather odd that this will be released near the end of the warm, sunny season. Also, its price puts it up near other luxury roadsters that have more of an appeal to most consumers based on their brand name. I'm just really curious as to how well this roadster will fare in the marketplace…