Insane GSXR-Powered Beetle Proves That Not All Hot Rods Have To Be V8s

If you're going to build a publicity stunt car, better do it right. Preferably, it should be a crackers engine swap, like shoehorning a Nissan GT-R twin-turbo V6 and AWD powertrain into a Juke crossover. The Juke-R is a fine example of the 'We built it because we can' breed, and so is this creation.

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Meet the Hudlow Axles 1967 VW Beetle Hot Rod. Hudlow is a Georgia USA-based engineering shop specialising in fabricating custom axles and driveshafts for trucks, racing cars, and custom one-offs.

To show off just what they're capable of, the team cut a '67 Beetle shell into a hot rod silhouette, fitted airbag suspension and outboard wheels mounted on custom axles.

For motive power, Hudlow shunned American muscle, and went instead with the engine from a Suzuki GSX-R 1000 superbike, mounted in a wonderfully bespoke custom cradle.

That's 1000ccs, four cylinders, and tuned to develop 185bhp at 10,800rpm. In a stripped out hot-rod weighing just 545kg and packing a close-ratio six-speed transmission, that's more than enough for some slidey bad behaviour, and has the bonus of making an old-fashioned rat rod sound like something out of Star Wars. Hooray for the custom builds!