Some people kick their mindfulness into high gear at the end of each year. Most think about new resolutions for New Year’s Eve, but others might prefer a retrospective of the months that have passed.
And, as far as the automotive industry is concerned, that is valid both in the real world as well as across the imaginative realm of virtual automotive artists. Such is the latter case with London, UK-based pixel master Al Yasid, better known as al.yasid on social media, who shares yet another couple of crazy JDM-inspired ideas – one done as a recent custom design and another that is most likely entirely wishful thinking.
One thing of note about this CGI expert is that over time, he has become so utterly famous that he sometimes has big periods of social media inactivity. But when he comes back to his channel’s fans, there is always a cascade of ideas flowing in overabundance. The same happened recently when he started churning out one digital project after another, in no particular order, irrespective if the project was done for art’s sake or as a client commission.
Some of the most interesting dreams or visions have found their rightful place with autoevolution. I am thinking about that old Plymouth Road Runner that went for a BTTF Adult Swim and came out as a virtual time-travel device for Rick and Morty instead of Marty and Doc. I am also contemplating the bonkers plan that saw a couple of W100 Mercedes-Benz 600s converted into a slammed widebody Pullman or ultra-luxury pickup truck Ute lowrider.
But there was a fight within me – which project should get the crown for Al Yasid’s best work of 2022? Well, the runner-up is, of course, the digital Honda ‘Targa Speedtail S2k’ that married the iconic S2000 with Porsche’s legendary Targa top and then wrapped everything with a McLaren Speedtail-style long tail! As for the king and queen of this virtual automotive artist’s year, I present you his ‘NASCAR’ Nissan 300ZX and commissioned retro-futuristic twin-turbo Toyota 2000GT.
And I also have a confession to make. I cannot make up my mind about which one of these crazy CGI ideas is best. First, we have the Nissan that appeared from behind the “you have to attend the NASCAR races and all you have is a 300ZX” stroke of genius. The rest is priceless, in the form of a streamlined Nissan 300ZX (the nameplate designates the Z-car series’ third and fourth Z31/Z32 generations) with Americana-style aero work, side exhausts, big and meaty Goodyear tires, and also a potential fit into the virtual world of Cyberpunk 2077.
Secondly, there is also an “exaggerated” Toyota 2000GT that looks wider than a Star Wars pod racer (as someone aptly suggested) and completes the slammed and widebody looks with protruding twin-turbo aids. Also, do notice all the other cool cars surrounding these two bonkers projects!