The Auto World

Private ALPR databases contain billions of timestamped vehicle sightings. Insurers can use the data to verify garaging, vehicle use, and claims. Private networks face far less public scrutiny than police-operated systems. You probably know if your insurance company is tracking your driving. Maybe you downloaded its app in exchange for a discount, plugged a device into your OBD-II port, or bought a car that quietly reports driving behavior through its connected services. That’s shockingly commonplace today. But there’s another way companies can learn about your car. Only in this case, you don’t have to download anything, and you don’t have to agree to anything. All you have to do is drive past the right camera. More: You Can Hide From Flock’s Cameras, If You Turn Your Car Into A Blindfold Private automated license plate recognition networks are photographing vehicles across America. When they do, they add t...

Spanish brand Galloper returns with rebadged Nissan 4x4s. Ayanet pickup and Gredos SUV pack Mitsubishi engines. They launch in October with pricing from €26k ($30k). You might think we have enough new brands and their models emerging from China, but this trend has made it easier for defunct companies to come back from their graves. The latest example is Galloper, a Spanish brand known for selling a Mitsubishi-based off-roader in the ’90s, and is now doing the same with a pair of rebadged Nissans. Some automotive enthusiasts could probably remember the Hyundai Galloper. The Korean ladder-frame SUV was a rebadged version of the Mitsubishi Montero / Pajero , with two generations debuting in 1991 and 1997 respectively, before being discontinued in 2004. In Spain, the off-roader was imported by Galloper Espana and distributed via the Mitsubishi dealer network with Mitsubishi emblems. A Mitsubishi SUV reworked by the Koreans and then impo...

Thieves have been targeting Land Cruiser models in recent years. Owners will now be able to have a secondary immobilizer installed. The new immobilizer includes a new fob and a security siren system. In response to rising thefts of the Land Cruiser Prado 250 and Land Cruiser 300 in Australia, Toyota has launched a secondary immobilizer system for both models. It comes after several years of surging thefts and Toyota previously launching a steering wheel lock, which it obviously felt didn’t go far enough to dissuade thieves. Toyota’s new secondary immobilizer works alongside the primary system and will not allow the vehicle to start unless the immobilizer fob is in range. In addition, Land Cruiser models fitted with the new system include an independently powered siren with battery backup that’ll trigger in the event of “unauthorized actions,” even if main power to the vehicle is disconnected. ...

Bright yellow Porsche 928 is an officially confirmed period Gemballa conversion. 5.0-liter V8 remains stock but bodywork definitely isn’t to Stuttgart factory spec. More than €50,000 was reportedly spent at a Porsche Classic Centre recently. There’s a Porsche 928 S4 for sale in Germany, but it’s very different to any 928 you could have bought from your Porsche dealer in 1990. This one received the full Gemballa treatment, transforming Stuttgart’s sleek, understated V8 grand tourer into something that looks ready to swallow a standard 928, and a dozen 911s, whole. Converted to Wide Version II spec at the Gemballa ’s Leonberg workshop just west of Stuttgart, it gained new bumpers designed to meet the swollen wheel arches, as well as deep side skirts, vented rear quarters and two rear spoilers, including a wraparound ducktail. Related: The Marsien GT Costs Five Times More Than The 911 Turbo S It’s Buil...