Since 1975, BMW has been commissioning artists to create one-of-a-kind Art Cars. The masterpieces-on-wheels were originally intended to be raced, but have since been leveraged by the German automaker to prove BMW's presence in the creative community. Of the 17 designs, the 1991 Art Car (above), by Ester Mahlangu, is my favorite. 

Contrast the 525i BMW Art Car with my 2000 Saturn SL1. It's depressing really. I drive the most generic, bland, uninteresting car in America. It's a white, 4-door sedan, with manual windows (you should see my forearms), and no style whatsoever. A few years ago, in a desperate attempt to separate my vehicle from the Saturn herd, I started calling it "Uranus." "Everyone pile in Uranus"... "Man, Uranus sure is roomy"... "Uranus is full of gas"... I know, I know, it's a cheap laugh, but it made me feel better about my car for a little while. 

Now Uranus is on the eve of turning 100,000 miles and I'm fantasizing about giving it a new look. Should I paint it? Design some sort of car wrap? Bedazzle it?  

Then today, I came across this picture on Flickr. Apparently, somebody felt the same way I do, and got a little sticker happy with their SL1. 

I'm starting to think I'll just celebrate the mileage milestone by getting my car washed instead.

I guess Pepsi watches Youtube for inspiration. Last weekend, I noticed that the cola company totally ripped off a clever Japanese music video entitled, "Hibi No Neiro." The band, Sour, used choreographed footage from their fans' webcameras to create some great effects (think Brady Bunch credits on speed). I suppose imitation is the sincerest form of capitalism.