Special Car, auto, cars, vehicles

So it's with this appreciation of the aftermarket-accessory designer who thinks he can do better than the highly trained, highly paid automobile stylist that I bring you the latest road monstrosity, this one from a Metro Detroit Ford dealer: the Flex Woody. Not since the K-Car Chrysler LeBaron Town & Country convertible has a pile of lumberlike plastic transformed a new car as much as this.

Details? Can't say how much for the after-treatment -- there was no add-on sticker to accompany the Monroney. Truth is, I was a bit worried about what kind of salesman might come outside and try to sell me this thing as I studied the sticker. This much is evident: It's a base-model Ford Flex, with rather snazzy houndstooth cloth seats. MSRP was $29,050, a real stripper save for the fake bark, which I'm sure pushes the crossover into the lower $30s. What with dealers desperate for car sales, you can probably get the sales manager to throw in the "wood" for free. The dealer, Huntington Ford, advertises itself as a "Ford Factory Outlet," which could apply to any domestic dealer in this area. Most people in these parts walk into local dealers with a predetermined discount, because they work for Ford, GM, or Chrysler or know someone who does, and there's no need for haggling.

Anyway, photo credit goes to Frank Markus, who had his camera with him when I spotted this homage to the Golden Age of Country Squiring.

So the questions of the day are, what's your favorite aftermarket treatment? And what kind of SEMA treatment would you like to see on a new model?