Tag Archives: vehicles

News

Toyota’s GR Yaris Ad Pulled in Australia After Safety Ruling

Toyota has once again found itself on the wrong side of Australian advertising regulators, this time over a television commercial promoting its rally-bred GR Yaris hot hatch. The ad has been withdrawn from broadcast after being ruled in breach of the country’s motor vehicle advertising standards, reigniting a familiar debate about how performance cars can be marketed in a tightly regulated environment.

The commercial in question leans heavily into the GR Yaris’ motorsport image. It opens in a remote setting, where a driver clad in racing gear walks into a fast-food restaurant named Up’n Down Burgers and casually orders a burger, fries and a milkshake. While the food is being prepared, the scene cuts to the GR Yaris being driven hard across loose gravel, its rally credentials front and centre.

Things escalate quickly. The driver collects the takeaway order while executing a dramatic jump, before the car transitions to rain-slicked asphalt near a port. Here, Toyota showcases the GR-Four all-wheel-drive system, briefly switching to two-wheel drive before the GR Yaris finishes with a sharp sideways stop alongside the GR86 and GR Corolla—effectively framing the GR trio as a performance-focused family.

That final sequence proved to be the ad’s undoing. Following a complaint about unsafe driving practices, Australian regulators ruled that the commercial breached the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) Code. The determination stated that if the driving depicted had taken place on public roads, it would “almost certainly” have broken road laws in any Australian state or territory.

Toyota pushed back against the ruling, arguing that the advertisement was clearly fictional and stylised. The company highlighted the GR brand’s genuine motorsport pedigree, noting that the driving portrayed rally-style action carried out by professionals on closed roads, in vehicles closely related to its Gazoo Racing competition cars. According to Toyota, the intent was not to promote recklessness, but to dramatise what a capable driver and a purpose-built car can achieve under controlled conditions.

Regulators were unconvinced. Despite Toyota’s objections, the media agency responsible for the campaign was instructed to pull the ad from broadcast, and it has since been removed from television programming—though it remains accessible on YouTube.

“Toyota Australia confirms the decision made by Ad Standards. The current ad for the GR Yaris has been suspended until we make the necessary adjustments,” a Toyota Australia spokesperson said in an interview with Drive.

The episode underscores the ongoing tension between carmakers eager to celebrate performance and regulators determined to ensure advertising does not appear to endorse dangerous driving. For Toyota’s GR division, the challenge now is clear: how to sell rally-inspired excitement without crossing the increasingly fine line drawn by compliance rules.

Source: Toyota

News

When Luxury Meets Improvisation: The BMW E38 Turned Battlefield Tool

The BMW E38 7 Series was never meant to leave the asphalt. Launched in the mid-1990s, it represented peak German executive luxury—smooth V8 power, bank-vault build quality, and understated prestige. Yet on the outskirts of Bakhmut, Ukraine, this former symbol of boardroom success has taken on a radically different role: an improvised multiple rocket launcher.

At first glance, the idea sounds like something pulled straight from dystopian cinema. A slightly worn luxury sedan, stripped of its trunk lid and fitted with launch tubes, repurposed into a mobile weapons platform. But this is not fiction. It is a real-world example of battlefield ingenuity, born out of necessity rather than novelty.

Ukrainian territorial defense units, including elements of the 114th Territorial Defense Brigade, have converted the E38 into a fast, disposable fire-support vehicle. Where the rear of the car once carried luggage, a rack of rocket tubes now sits, transforming the long-wheelbase sedan into a shoot-and-scoot platform designed for rapid deployment and retreat.

From an automotive perspective, the choice is not entirely irrational. The E38 offers rear-wheel drive, a stable chassis, and enough structural rigidity to handle additional hardware when reinforced. More importantly, it looks ordinary. In a conflict where drones constantly scan roads and fields, a civilian sedan blends into the environment far better than traditional military equipment.

Painted in muted grey-green camouflage, the BMW moves between firing positions with its launch tubes laid flat along the roofline. When the crew reaches a suitable location, stabilizing legs are deployed, the launcher is manually elevated, and the team clears the area before firing. Moments later, the car is on the move again—speed and unpredictability compensating for the lack of armor or advanced targeting systems.

This is not Ukraine’s first experiment with improvised weapon platforms. Earlier in the conflict, pickup trucks and light utility vehicles were commonly adapted to carry launchers for short-range indirect fire. Even BMW itself has appeared before in unexpected roles, including a modified 6 Series convertible fitted with a heavy machine gun in 2022.

What makes the E38 particularly striking is the contrast. This was once a flagship luxury sedan, engineered for comfort at autobahn speeds, not survival near an active front line. Yet its presence underscores a broader truth about modern conflict: adaptability often matters more than specification sheets or brand heritage.

In a war where conventional resources are limited and every tactical advantage counts, even an aging German luxury car can find a second life—far removed from its original purpose, but fully aligned with the realities of the battlefield.

Source: VERTEX via YouTube

Tuning

Mansory Wraps the Electric Rolls-Royce Spectre in Gold

Mansory has never been a brand for the faint-hearted, and its latest creation proves once again that subtlety is not part of the brief. Based on the Rolls-Royce Spectre, the German tuner’s newest project is called Equista Linea d’Oro, a name that hints strongly at what defines this car more than anything else: an unapologetic celebration of gold.

At first glance, the front end sets the tone. The Spectre’s fascia has been completely reworked and finished entirely in gold, transforming the already imposing Rolls-Royce presence into something closer to rolling jewelry. Even the iconic Spirit of Ecstasy has not escaped Mansory’s attention, now reimagined as a transparent gold figurine that glows with an almost surreal sense of excess.

The hood is new as well, crafted from forged carbon fiber and distinguished by large, golf ball-like flakes embedded in the material. This forged carbon and “golf” theme continues along the flanks of the car, where oversized carbon panels dominate the front side sections and a matching visual line stretches elegantly from nose to tail. Gold accents punctuate the design throughout, with door handles and window surrounds shimmering like precious metal in a display case.

Lower down, the drama intensifies rather than fades. Gold and carbon elements are layered onto the side sills, wrapped around the taillights, integrated into the rear diffuser, and even applied to the spoiler. Completing the exterior statement are massive 24-inch forged wheels, finished in gold to ensure nothing about the Equista Linea d’Oro goes unnoticed.

Inside, Mansory has treated the Spectre’s cabin with the same philosophy. Every seat is trimmed in plush white leather, offset by gold piping and stitching that reinforce the car’s ultra-luxury theme. White seat belts add another visual contrast, while carbon fiber and gold dominate the dashboard, center tunnel, and steering wheel. The attention to detail borders on theatrical: gold speaker grilles, gold switches and buttons, and even door umbrellas fitted with gold handles underline the extent of the transformation.

Mechanically, the Spectre remains true to its original identity. As an all-electric Rolls-Royce, its battery and motors are left untouched, preserving the serene, silent performance that defines the model. However, Mansory could not resist adding one final, unconventional twist. Mounted beneath the rear bumper is a set of external speakers designed to emit artificial petrol engine sounds, a provocative nod to combustion theatrics in an otherwise whisper-quiet electric grand tourer.

The Mansory Rolls-Royce Spectre Equista Linea d’Oro is not about restraint or tradition. It is a bold statement piece, engineered to divide opinion and command attention wherever it goes. For some, it will be the ultimate expression of bespoke luxury; for others, a step too far. Either way, Mansory has once again ensured that looking away is not an option.

Source: Mansory