What seemed to be a childhood dream to many comic fanboys who enjoyed their time on Playstation’s Gran Turismo, became a reality at SEMA 2019. Five uniquely different comic-themed cars were placed on display by the ever-changing builders from Projekt Cars. All but one was featured inside a booth, but all garnished a lot of attention and social media buzz during the event. After the approval from the artist to allow us the use of his art was received, we immediately contacted Mutoh on our comic-car takeover at SEMA 2019. The list of comic themed vehicles was as follows:
- Spider Buggy | NRG Booth
- Deathstroke Camaro | MGP Caliper Covers
- Spider Gwen Gladiator | Mutoh America
- Deadpool vs Carnage Mustang | Schrader
- Venom Charger | Mutoh America
Projekt Cars first began combining comic book-themed concepts with SEMA builds in 2012 with a Japanese Manga-inspired Evo. Then, with the popularity of Ryan Reynolds, they returned with a Deadpool GT350 for the Mutoh booth in 2015. After a brush with an attorney from Marvel, they sought out the proper protocol with Todd McFarlane and produced four different Spawn builds, two were featured in a booth at SEMA 2017. This year, they completed a multitude of character vehicles with the help and blessing of comic book artist Tyler Kirkham.
Tyler Kirkham is one of those rare individuals whose talent is only challenged by his generosity and good nature. We have enjoyed working him so much for the last few months that we wanted his artwork to reach beyond the realm of comic fandom. Thus, we decided to showcase his masterpieces on five different vehicles to be displayed at the world-renowned SEMA Convention in Las Vegas. This four-day event, which takes up all three halls of the Las Vegas Convention Center hosts over 3,000 vehicle parts manufacturers, with over 100,000 attendees each day.
Deadpool vs. Carnage Mustang
This 800-horsepower supercharged beast is the perfect vehicle to depict the raw power and gut-wrenching collision between these two Marvel favorites. The only s550 Mustang in existence with a carbon fiber roof, it shreds Toyo Tires, wrapped around Advanti Wheels as quick as Deadpool’s katana’s through an enemy’s torso. Once we received the raw Avery vehicle kit from Stacy Clausen from Feller’s Distribution, the wrap design was sent to Mutoh USA. Andrew Lewell, marketing director for Mutoh, ensured all pieces were printed according to the specs of the s550. The wrap was installed by Panda Wraps of El Paso, Texas, and complimented the new black/red themed interior. Said interior is also laden with custom carbon fiber pieces with a unique upholstery by ROADWIRE Interiors; black leather in double-diamond stitch with red suede bolsters. Air Design equipped the s550 with a flexible injected molding body kit which is enhanced by Anderson Composites carbon fiber hood and trunk. All that horsepower is transferred by means of G-Force driveshaft and halfshafts, with body manipulation controlled by KW Coilovers. This ain’t no make-believe unicorn, and a few twists drifting, you will be calling it “Daddy”.
BatCrawler JK
This is the vehicle we envisioned Bruce Wayne would need, to temper the outdoors, or go hunting in extreme, off-terrain environments. With bullet-proof body enhancements resembling the current Batman vehicle line up, this is a vehicle you don’t want to see in your rear-view mirror! Fortified with high strength 4340 chromoly Alloy USA axles and aftermarket suspension enhancements from Rough Country, Steer Smarts, and Rugged Ridge to tame any off-road obstacle. When you climb into the cabin, you are welcomed by custom leather and suede double-stitched seats by ROADWIRE, and have full access to enough lighting to brighten a city block with Diode Dynamics RGBs and LED bars. The engine is enhanced with a variety of Mishimoto cooling products from the performance radiator, oil cooler and hose. But what is most impressive under the vented DV8 hood is the snail turbo by Vortech, controlled by Diablo-Sport Tuning, in a R.I.P.P Supercharger kit. You can run, but this 450-horsepower tank will catch you.
The Buggy Projekt
Who would not want to cruise their friendly neighborhood in this Spider-Man themed buggy? We thought Tyler did an awesome job bringing back a childhood favorite vehicle back to the pages of Marvel with the two variants depicting the buggy, that we thought that this would be the first, of many, vehicle prize giveaways; offered through Tyler Kirkham Art. The final concept was on display at the performance hall in SEMA with various NRG Innovations products. To start, it featured a custom signature edition Tyler Kirkham steering wheel, with quick-release hub, race seats, race harnesses, seat brackets, voltage stabilizer and even floor mats. It also featured some off-road tires, supplied by General Tires, wrapped around the Raceline beadlock wheels, which were supported by EMPI upgraded suspension. The engine will not be too shabby either with EMPI chrome and theme-colored accessories and performance exhaust. Amigo Signs of El Paso used Avery matte black vinyl to give the Buggy details and finishing touches. Minus the hood, the black vinyl enclosed the red paint with a web design, while the hood received the current Spider-Man logo.
DeathStroke Camaro
Another project involving Fellers and Mutoh with Avery Dennison product, was the Deathstroke Mustang. Once the full 15-piece wide body from Extreme Dimensions was installed on the vehicle, we sent off our Avery vehicle kit to be printed with Tyler Kirkham’s art. Being that Deathstroke is Tyler’s favorite, we wanted to make sure this vehicle, which would be in the MGP Booth at SEMA, was perfect. Seeing that Vossen Wheels was supplying some very aggressive wheels, and would be only a couple of booths away from MGP, made the stress to reach perfection a little higher. Fortunately, after the K&N intake, Gibson exhaust and SCT Tune were installed, the wrap was laid to perfection. Some extra stretching was involved since the body kit was a little larger than anticipated, but it held well, all the way through the show, and attained the appropriate positive response from attendees.
