A month ago, ex-General Motors vice chairman Bob Lutz was proclaiming to be "emperor" of the United States. Now, he's teaming up with the Chinese government to buy bankrupt Fisker Automotive.

Reuters reports that Lutz and Wanxiang Group have made an offer to buy the cash-strapped plug-in hybrid automaker for an undisclosed amount. Among his many ongoing consultancies, Lutz co-owns VL Automotive, a new automaker that combines the Fisker Karma's body with a Corvette powertrain.

Wanxiang is the group that purchased the remains of failed battery maker A123 Systems of Waltham, Mass., which had been Fisker's exclusive supplier until it went formally bankrupt (and changed its name to B456 Systems) in October. The company's U.S. arm, in addition to owning Walgreen stores in the Midwest, provides parts to one of every three new cars manufactured here. But while Wanxiang is private, the parts supplier's CEO is a member of the Chinese national legislature and has "close ties to prominent state-owned businesses," according to the Boston Globe. You don't get to be China's largest auto parts supplier without the state somewhere in your pocket.

As usual, no one will or has made any official statement on the offer. 

Some feel that social media has no place in the car and is a dangerous distraction. But the Kansas City, Mo., high school students who signed up for an after-school program put together by the nonprofit group Minddrive may beg to differ.

The group of at-risk high schoolers and their mentors at Minddrive built an electrified 1967 Karmann Ghia and modified it so that runs on posts, mentions and likes on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Next week, the team will drive the Karmann Ghia from Kansas City to Washington, D.C., to meet with elected officials to promote education funding and projects like Minddrive.

To get from K.C. to D.C. -- and to raise awareness about their project as well as their cause -- the group has integrated an Arduino microprocessor into the Karmann Ghia’s electric drivetrain, and it’s programmed to allow the car to move only via social media mentions of the project. 

 

Welcome to Exhaust Notes, our self-titled, semiregular roundup of automotive bits and pieces from around the Web.

Unlike other posts on this blog, these are truly notes, but they're worth a few moments of your precious time.

Today and this week, Toyota shows us a taillight off the forthcoming 2014 Corolla, Honda's jet plane takes another step toward certification, and Audi tries paying for parking without stepping out of the car. 

Even in chic European cities like Vienna, it’s uncommon to see a 100-year-old Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost, which has been called the most valuable car in the world. But imagine seeing more than 40 of these ultra-expensive vehicles rolling through the streets of Vienna.

Then imagine spotting more than 100 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghosts a week later in Italy, which will be the largest gathering of its kind in the world. Even more incredible is that dozens of these rare Rolls-Royce models are not pampered museum pieces and will take part in a 100-year-anniversary​ re-enactment of a historic Alpine rally.

After failing to finish the grueling Austrian Alpine Trial in 1912, British aviator and adventurer James Radley, pictured above with his Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost, was determined to complete the course as well as win awards along the way.  He did both, with a little help from champagne at the starting line.

 

Chrysler Group is developing a supercharged Hemi V8 with power approaching the 640 hp of the SRT Viper's V10.

 

The 6.2-liter engine, code-named Hellcat, is expected to debut on the next-generation Dodge Challenger and perhaps other vehicles, according to sources within Chrysler.

The engine's existence was revealed on the Internet site Allpar.com and confirmed by Chrysler insiders.

 

A spokesman for the automaker declined to comment, saying that the company doesn't discuss future products.

 

The getaway Mustang coupe that Nicolas Cage drove in the blockbuster "Gone in 60 Seconds" sold for $1 million last weekend.

In the 2000 film, Cage steals 50 cars for another thief threatening to kill his brother, and just like the 1974 original, a Mustang nicknamed "Eleanor" proves to be his riskiest heist in the final scenes. It's not too difficult, as Eleanor is actually a brand-new car underneath its replica Shelby GT500 body, replete with a 400-horsepower V8 engine and modern tires, brakes and suspension.

While three Eleanor Mustangs were built, the one sold at Saturday's Mecum Original Spring Classic auction in Indianapolis was used in all the movie's close-ups and promotional materials; the other two were crashed during chase scenes. In 2008, the same car found no buyers after a failed bid on eBay. Other movie cars have done very well at auction, including the original 1966 Batmobile, which sold in January for $4.62 million.  

The 2013 edition of the Gumball 3000 rally didn’t even make it through the first day before claiming its first supercar casualty.

The world’s most controversial 3,000-mile get-together of wealthy auto enthusiasts, now in its 15th year, was barely hours old last weekend when a young man, apparently dressed in a tiger-themed "onesie," wrecked a rare Lamborghini Murcielago LP670-4 Superveloce.

We’ll repeat: A guy dressed as a tiger crashed one of just 186 Murcielago SVs ever built. If that doesn’t pique your interest, just stop reading now.

The 2013 Gumball rally began in Copenhagen, Denmark, on Saturday and will finish in Monte Carlo on May 24. A total of 115 cars started the journey, ranging from ultra-rare exclusives like the unfortunate Murcielago SV to classic Volkswagen Beetles and American muscle cars to one-off oddities such as the Batman-inspired Tumbler and the GT-R-based TG1 from Saudi Arabia’s Team Galag. Other fun entries this year include an Aston Martin DBS wrapped with a pink-and-chrome color scheme and a Local Motors Rally Fighter.

 

From the folks who brought you the Venom GT and countless other cars and trucks capable of putting up ridiculous numbers, Hennessey Performance is back with another concoction, the VelociRaptor SUV.

Based on the standard Ford F-150 Raptor, the truck is converted to a full-size SUV (think Ford Excursion) with seating for up to eight people. Though it's based on the Raptor, don't expect to go extreme off-roading with it, as Hennessey states that this car is intended for on-road use, as well as light to moderate off-roading.

Equipped with the same 6.2-liter 411-bhp Ford V8 as seen in the Raptor, buyers can opt for the VelociRaptor 600 Supercharged (600-bhp) package for an additional cost. Other optional goodies include Brembo front-brake upgrades, larger wheels and tires, LED lighting upgrades, security armoring systems and more.