XILOMEN'S 1995 Ford Probe

MTV's Pimp My Ride worked its magic once more and transformed a seemingly hopeless 1995 beat-up (badly) Ford Probe owned by a 19-year-old artist, Xilomen.

The Ford Probe's condition was so bad that the interiors are falling apart, literally. The ceiling could cave in the passengers any minute. Only one "eye" (the front lights) could get out of the shutter-lid style.

Xzibit took the dreary-looking car and then, as usual, Galpin Auto Parts did their best to make the car look stunning. Green lighting, as well as audio relaxation were installed in the car for Xilomen to relax and chill whenever needed. The exterior is a splash of blue, yellow, pink and purple in artsy designs (by Man One, a famous artist) to complement Xilomen's hobby. The trunk, which was previosly a jungle of tools and other whatnots and knickknacks, was treated to several kick-ass compartments, to give some organization to Xilomen's things.

Of course, it's tradition for Pimp my Ride to give a gift to the owner, suited for his or her needs. This time, the mint on the pillow came in the form of a portfolio, with a monitor at the front for Xilomen's artworks.

Some Pimp My Ride episode pictures:

Sometimes, waiting for the next Pimp My Ride episode could grate our nerves, especially for Pimp My Ride Maniacs like us. You probably know what I'm talking about.
So to take your agitation off while waiting for the new episode, you can try and do your own pimping (virtually of course, LOL). Let's play the Pimp My Ride Game, you guys! Look at my ride:




It's pink 'coz I like pink, and convertible and really pimped. Wouldn't it be great to have a real car jazzed up like this? Like an old Speedster, and then the interiors would look something like this:

Mucho cool, eh? Right.

Way over-pimped.

That's the thing that crossed my mind when I saw this article. The car could have been a great vehicle if not for the riduculously extravagant paint job. It's great work, beautiful and intricate details, but it soen't really go well on a car, we all have to admit.

A few kick ass motors, engines and accesories (with a simpler but no less eye-catching paint job) would've made this car absolutely to die for. It's easy to get carried away when you're customizing a car and you have the budget for it, Pimp My Ride is at times guilty of that too. Unnecessary accessories make the vehicle more of a cluttered waste than a great ride. Sometimes less is really more.

I hope Pimp My Ride never goes over board like this. LOL.

I just got a DVD copy of the movie Grease, and I can't help thinking that the car John Travolta an dhis gang restored was probably the, uh, roots of today's Pimp My Ride. LOL. Look at it:


Hard not to think about my fave show when you that.

BTW, I found out that Mad Mike has been customizing cars for over 20 years. He can hook up your cars with complicated wires and accessories but without sacrificing convenience and style. He stayed with Pimp My Ride and GAS when West Coast decided to cut ties with MTV. He says he's a freelancer anyway, LOL.

His site is right here.

My Favorite episode so far (for this season was Dante's 1976 Ford Encoline episode. Remember that guys? It was the infamous Ice Cream truck that housed 8 mice (according to GAS staff) and scared the children away instead of luring them into buying.

I loved what they did to Dante's truck. The exteriors were painted sapphire blue with white flakes spray painted on it to make it look like it's a huge ice berg. Quite fitting for an Ice Cream truck, I'd say.

The interiors is a really eye candy, almost literally. :P It was fitted with multi-colored striped seat covers and ceiling. 22" Giovanna rims and a sugar coated dasg with REAL crystals were also put in.

New shelves for the candies and (my favorite part) a 27" monitor that serves as the menu for the products, which they will select using a new 10" touch screen. The touch screen will send the info to a brand-spanking new DELL laptop, which is like the cashier/cash register in one.

The entertainment lounge: 42" plasma with satellite, high definition TV and TiVo. I swear I wanna live in that truck.

Other extras:

Robot arm that hands out the ice cream
New Ice Cream song and new speaker
Microphone up front
2 iPods with a Numark iDJ iPod mixer to boot

TRIVIA: this is the second time that the GAS staff found mice living in the vehicle. Teehee.

Some Trivias About GAS

Have you noticed those wheels that Pmip My Ride gives to battered cars' owners? Aren't they something to look at? They should be, since GAS has over a couple of hundred wheels to select from. That's why no matter what car MTV brings in to pimp up, GAS always finds the best looking wheels for that vehicle. I wish MTV would also pimp my ride (I can imagine it now: Please MTV, can you please pimp my ride? LOL.)

I found out that GAS constantly upgrades their wheel selection. They have wheels for all kinds of vehicles: Tyotas, Hondas, SUVS, Mazdas, all kinds! No wonder a lot of their "Galpinized" cars always gets featured in magazines and TV shows, huh?

More about GAS next post.

JOHN'S MERCURY COUGAR (episode details)
**episode pictures at the bottom

EXTERIOR:

Staff Luis of GAS took over the Cougar and gave it a whole new racing-style look. He painted the body of the Cougar jet black with canary yellow stripes and the number twenty-four (24) stenciled in on both sides or the car. The result was so amazing that the cougar went way beyond recognition.

INTERIOR:

The insides of the Cougar was painted bright yellow as base, and to go with these, the seats were fitted with black-and-yellow striped seats. No Pimp My Ride is ever complete without putting in those monitors, is it? Well for this episode a total of 9 monitors were attatched to the Cougar's hood.

MOTORS:

John's car couldn't start up without hot wiring the engine first, so GAS put in a new starter motor. And the overhaul wouldn't be complete without some roaring and raving equipments to go with its brand-new race car look. Roush Racing Engines were installed to match the racing style exterior, with high power headers as well. These headers give out more power to the wheels: it's equipped with heavier exhaust metafold. That is so cool! When the staff at GAS started the engine, whoa, it literally roared!

SOME PICTURES:



EXTRA ADD-ONS:

*A 30-inch inflatable screen and a projector kept in the trunk of the car with Xbox to boot. Funny how Xzibit muttered "That is ridiculously unneccessary" when it was shown to him and John! LOL.
*A cougar growl played when pushing a button inside the car

Mad Mike and the staff of GAS (Galpin Auto Sports) once again pimps up a beat up, badly dilapidated vehicle, this time a 1968 Mercury Cougar belonging to a basketball coach named John.

John's Mercury Couger has been passed around his family for generations, and (in John's words) what could've been a dream car, is actually a nightmare. The Couger can only run on first gear (40 miles per hour), a reason why fellow motorists frequently get mad at John when on the road. The exterior has no paint, and the headlights have to be uncovered manually from the front. The "key" of the trunk is a silver bread knife, and the Couger will only start up by 1. Turning the key in the ignition, 2. pushing a button on the dashboard and 3. hot wiring the engine from the engine itself. Which sits openly for everyone to see, since the Couger's front hood flew off from the car the first time John took it out.

As Xzibit took the keys from John to get it all pimped up, John warned him that he has to use arm signals when turning. Xzibit took it in his stride and just took the beat up old mobile from John to GAS, where Mad Mike and the rest of the staff are waiting to once again transform the Couger to a "proud vision of beauty".

PARTS INSTALLED:

1. Exterior: Jet black and canary yellow racing style paint job.
2. Engine: Remote controlled Roush Racing Engine, a starter motor and headers with heavier exhaust metafold
3. 9 monitors
4. 30" inflatable screen with Xbox
5. Yellow and black striped interiors

**details and pictures next post

MTV's Pimp My Ride, hosted by Xzibit, is an automobile version of the rags-to-riches fairy tales. Pimp My Ride transforms the most trashy looking automobiles to flashy vehicles complete with kick-ass parts and equipments. In a span of a few years, the show gathered a lot of audiences. And why not? Together with Mad Mike, Pimp My Ride never fails to amaze the viewers with those out of this world transformations.

Fans of the said TV show are never disappointed as every new car and vehicle gets a completely amazing overhaul, from out of this world accessories (such as top-of-the-line monitors, DVD players, Xbox and PlayStations) sometimes customized according to the owner's interest.

Pimp My Ride takes the cars of young car owners (participants are limited from 18-28 years old) and then takes it to a car custumization garage (West Coast Customs or WCC from seasons 1 to 4 and Galpin Auto Sports or GAS for season 5). Customization generally includes paint and accessories suited for the owner's needs, but new and high-powered motors are installed into the cars.

This season, GAS (Galpin Auto Sports) will take us for a very pimped up ride as they transform cars, trucks, and every kind of vehicle from rags and tatters to a "proud vision of beauty". Here we will discuss the featured cars, both brand and model, as well as the parts and accessories that Xzibit uses to pimp up those beat-up automobiles and vehicles. Who knows? Maybe one or two of you could even pick up a few tips here and there so that you could jazz up your own vehicle.