Hollywood is house to a wide variety of gearheads. These include A-listers like Patrick Dempsey who indulge himself with his alter-ego as a professional racecar driver. The Grey’s Anatomy-star competes in championships across the globe. Quite a lot of celebrities drive the weirdest and some of the most unconventional rides ever made.
As celebrated as these Hollywood stars maybe, they’re not even in the same league as the former host of The Tonight Show. Jay Leno is perhaps one of the most popular gearheads in Hollywood. The renowned automotive enthusiast is now hosting his very own CNBC TV series called Jay Leno's Garage which showcases some of the wildest rides in the world.
10 2017 Vanderhall Venice
Vehicle administrations across the globe classify three-wheelers as motorcycles. This means that these obscure three-wheeled offerings can deliver performance capable of rivaling popular sports cars at a fraction of the cost. Jay Leno is also a fan of trikes and was one of the first customers to buy the Morgan three-wheeler.
In 2017 Jay Leno hosted Steve Hall, the CEO of Vanderhall Motor Works who brought along with him the Vanderhall Venice. Under the hood of the Venice sits a 1.4-liter four-cylinder turbocharged engine that produces 180 BHP of peak power output.
9 SpeedKore Camaro
A while back, Jay Leno showcased SpeedKore's 1967 Camaro which was built with inputs from Iron-Man and the First Avenger. The design brief of the car was given by Robert Downey Jr. and the restomod build was carried out to be a gift for the Captain America-star Chris Evans.
The attention to detail throughout the car is astounding and there are several Captain America motifs spread throughout the cabin. Powering the Camaro is the versatile Chevy LS3 motor.
8 Local Motors Rally Fighter
Local Motors is a young American car company that is struggling to break out of obscurity. The company manufactures high-performance, all-terrain vehicles in a limited-volume capacity. The Rally Fighter is a high-riding sports car which even managed to stump automotive trivia veteran Jay Leno.
CEO of Local Motors, Jay Rodgers, took a global approach with the design of the rally fighter. This allowed designers from all over the world to take a communal approach to the design of the sports off-roader. Local Motors allows its customers to help assemble their vehicles.
7 Cadillac Elmiraj
Cadillac's Elmiraj concept was first introduced seven years ago; during the 2013 Concours d'elegance at Pebble Beach, California and the beautiful concept car stole the show. The concept car even got to share some screen time with Jay Leno alongside Ed Welburn who happens to be the Vice President of Global Design at GM.
Cadillac Elmiraj is a breathtaking 4-seater luxury GT coupe that is powered by a twin-turbocharged V8 motor that sends power to the rear wheels. The concept car rides on beautiful 22-inch, 14-spoke wheels.
6 Blastolene's Piss'd Off Pete
The beautifully customized and incredibly picturesque Piss'd Off Pete semi-truck made its way to Jay Leno's Garage. The eye-catching truck was designed by Randy Grubb who is also responsible for designing Jay's tank car. Piss'd Off Pete’s pièce de résistance is the ultra-rare 2-stroke Detroit Diesel V12 motor.
Each of the 12 cylinders is 71 cubic inches in size and the motor comes mated to two 671 superchargers. The powertrain produces almost 500 BHP of power and around 1000 lb-ft of torque. Randy uses a 4-speed automatic gearbox to help put the power down.
5 Koenigsegg Regera
The Koenigsegg Regera is one of the most exclusive hypercars in the world and made an appearance on Jay Leno’s Garage back in 2018. Regera is a completely robotized car which means every panel on the vehicle can be opened using an automated mechanism.
The rear end of the car features dual-electric motors (one on each wheel) that help with torque vectoring. The 5-liter turbocharged V8 produces 1479 BHP of power and 1475 lb-ft of peak torque which the driver can access through a single-speed fixed-gear transmission.
4 EcoJet
Jay Leno is not your average car collector. The celebrity automotive enthusiast has also collaborated with General Motors in the past and built a turbine-powered sports car. EcoJet is a one-off technological demonstration which is powered by a turbine that runs on 100% biodiesel.
The environment-friendly theme remains consistent throughout the car. EcoJet's cabin features cruelty-free materials and even the paint used on the bodywork is environmentally sensitive. The car is powered by a Honeywell LT1 helicopter Jet turbine engine which produces 650 BHP of power and 500 lb-ft of torque.
3 Nissan GT-R LM NISMO
Legendary Hollywood actor Steve McQueen was a diehard fan of Le Mans and even starred in a movie based on the legendary endurance race. Jay Leno might not share McQueen's enthusiasm for the fabled race but the comedian has a deep-rooted respect for Le Mans.
In 2015, Leno showcased the Nissan GT-R LM NISMO racecar which was a front-engine, front-wheel-drive prototype designed to participate in the Le Mans. The prototype racecar was powered by 3-liter, 60-degree twin-turbocharged V6 motor which produced 500 BHP of power.
2 KODE 0
Ken Okuyama took his styling chops to a Lamborghini Aventador and designed the beautiful Kode 0. The bodywork of the coach-built supercar consists of components made out of wet and dry carbon fiber. The car uses a Lamborghini Aventador’s carbon-fiber monocoque chassis and is powered by a 700 BHP V12 motor.
Kode 0 runs on bespoke brakes and suspension components and embodies a dream car theme. The original Lamborghini Countach LP400 was one of the key inspirations for the Kode 0. Contrasting bright green highlights are offered throughout the hypercar.
1 Tumbler Batmobile
The Tumbler Batmobile from Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight Trilogy is one of the craziest cars to appear on Jay leno’s Garage. Christopher Nolan is renowned for his use of practical special effects in his films.
This is the reason why he even insisted on a real-life functioning model of the Batmobile. The design brief for The Dark Knight’s ride demanded a crossover between a Lamborghini and a tank. The Tumbler Batmobile is powered by a 5.7-liter V8 engine that produces 500 horsepower and 0 to 60 MPH takes 5.6 seconds.