Ride Me

Jay Leno is railing against the light punishment for most perps caught stealing catalytic converters as the L.A. crime wave is turning deadly ... specifically with the recent murder of "General Hospital" actor Johnny Wactor.

The stand-up comic and renowned car guru tells TMZ ... it's outrageous the penalty for ripping off converters -- usually a $1,000 fine amounting to just a misdemeanor charge -- isn’t vastly harsher.

JL adds ... The slap on the wrist most thieves receive -- if they even get nabbed -- is the reason they're so brazen.

IndyCar star Pato O'Ward is giving an inside look at what it's like leading up to one of the most prestigious races in motorsports ... telling TMZ Sports he's like a kid on Christmas Eve the night before the Indianapolis 500 -- 'cause he can barely sleep!!

The Arrow McLaren driver is starting eighth in Sunday's huge event ... with the hopes of securing his first-ever victory at the Brickyard.

We asked the 25-year-old if he has any pre-race rituals or superstitions he's implemented into his routine to get ready for 500 miles of chaos ... and it turns out, it's pretty simple.

NASCAR's All-Star race Sunday night looked a whole lot more like a UFC event -- at least at the end -- when Ricky Stenhouse Jr. hauled off and socked Kyle Busch in the face for wrecking into him earlier in the evening.

The scene was chaotic ... after getting run over by Busch in the second lap of the contest at North Wilkesboro Speedway in North Carolina, Stenhouse Jr. waited all night long to confront the NASCAR superstar in the raceway's garage.

He got in Busch's face, told him he was pissed over the crash ... and then he threw a right hand that connected with the driver's left cheek. He appeared to throw at least one more punch -- before all hell then broke loose.

'Kool-Aid' McKinstry made sure to put a big smile on his mom's face for Mother's Day ... the newly drafted NFL rookie gifted her a brand new Mercedes G-Wagon, and her reaction was priceless!

Kool-Aid (real name Ga'Quincy) shared the heartwarming moment on Sunday via Instagram, showing the former Alabama cornerback at a Mercedes Benz dealership in Birmingham with his mom, Geneva Allen.

It's unclear if mom knew she was getting a car, but when dealership staff member pulled a black sheet off the beautiful Gelandewagen to surprise her, Geneva broke down in tears.

Xzibit got fans hyped with a video teaser making it seem like he's bringing back his "Pimp My Ride" franchise -- but it's actually a mobile game that confirms he's still fully dedicated to car culture!!!

Mr. X to the Z checked in with TMZ Hip Hop Friday to discuss his partnership with Chrome Valley Customs, which added his likeness and all sorts of digital accessories to the app.

X tells us he was surprised fans associated the announcement with 'PMR' -- especially because it's been off the air since 2007 -- but understands the passion for it.

Hundreds of protesters attempted to storm Tesla's factory near Berlin Friday ... and CEO Elon Musk has already called out the demonstrators -- who got into an ugly clash with cops.

German police confirmed they stopped hundreds of activists from accessing Tesla's production site in Grunheide ... after social media footage went viral showing protesters dressed in black charging the factory.

Check it out ... the protesters hold hands as they make their way through the woods and an open field, facing off against police decked out in riot gear. The cops even utilize pepper spray to deter protesters from pursuing the factory.

El pie hinchado de Britney Spears, el que ella misma dice que podría necesitar cirugía, todavía puede pisar el aceleador, ya que está de vuelta al volante a pesar de la lesión.

Brit estuvo dando vueltas por Thousand Oaks, California el lunes en su Mercedes-Benz blanco, a menos de una semana de su drama en el Chateau Marmont, donde llegaron los paramédicos y ella sufrió la lesión en el pie.

TMZ fue el primero en dar la noticia, la estrella del pop y su novio Paul Soliz estuvieron en el famoso hotel de Sunset Strip la semana pasada cuando se acaloraron en una discusión en su habitación de hotel que se extendió hasta el pasillo.

Britney Spears' swollen right foot -- the one she says might need surgery -- can still put the pedal to the metal ... she's back behind the wheel, despite the severe injury.

Brit was tooling around Thousand Oaks, CA Monday in her white Mercedes-Benz less than a week after her drama at the Chateau Marmont ... where paramedics showed up, and she sustained the injury to her foot.

TMZ broke the story ... the pop star and her BF Paul Soliz were at the famed Sunset Strip hotel last week when they got into an argument in their hotel room, which spilled into the hallway.

Jennifer Lopez fue una de las muchas estrellas que asistieron a la cena pre-MET Gala de Anna Wintour este fin de semana, pero fue la única que tuvo problemas con su carro.

Zendaya, J Lo, Sienna Miller, Bad Bunny, Chris Hemsworth y James Corden llegaron por separado a la casa de la editora de Vogue en Manhattan, e inmediatamente tuvieron que lidiar con una noche lluviosa en la ciudad.

Por suerte todos estaban preparados con sus paraguas, así que el agua no fue problema. Sin embargo, mira lo que le pasó a Jen a la salida...

Jennifer Lopez was one of many stars who hit up Anna Wintour's pre-MET Gala dinner this weekend ... but she was one of a few who seemed to have a little car trouble too.

Zendaya, J Lo, Sienna Miller, Bad Bunny, Chris Hemsworth and James Corden rolled up separately in their SUVs to the Vogue editor's Manhattan home -- and immediately had to deal with a rainy night in the city.

Luckily, they've all got people for that ... as umbrellas were on hand to cover everyone's 'fits. Check out what happened to Jen on the way out though ... a lil' SUV mix-up, it seems.

Dave Bautista is selling an iconic car ... giving up his vintage Chevy Impala, complete with a gorgeous mural dedicated to a WWE legend -- and, it's gonna fetch the star serious cash.

The actor and former wrestler is selling his 1964 Chevrolet Impala SS Custom Lowrider through Past & Present Motor Cars -- a popular car reseller for vintage vehicles based in Florida -- for $85K.

The car's got a 350 V8 engine, automatic transmission, a custom hydraulics setup ... and, a beautiful paint job complete with a custom mural of late-wrestling champ Eddie Guerrero.

Dave Bautista está vendiendo un carro icónico. Hablamos de su vintage Chevy Impala, con un mural precioso dedicado a una leyenda de la WWE.

El actor y ex luchador está vendiendo su  Chevrolet Impala SS Custom Lowrider de 1964, por medio de Past & Present Motor Cars -un revendedor de carros populares para los vehículos de época con sede en Florida- por $85K.

El vehículo tiene un motor 350 V8, transmisión automática, un sistema hidráulico personalizado, y un hermoso trabajo de pintura completo con un mural personalizado de Eddie Guerrero.

A tornado in Nebraska made a lot of motorists' days scarier ... forming right on the side of a freeway before crossing over the motorway, a new viral video shows.

The video, currently making the rounds on social media, shows the tornado on the I-80 near Omaha finding its shape on one side of the roadway before spinning its way across multiple lanes of traffic to the other side of the road.

The weather event throws off some drivers ... who seem unsure how to proceed at the moment and either slow down or slam hard on the gas to get past it.

Meek Mill is regretting his latest auto purchase ... the "Dreamchasers" rapper posted a video of his new Hummer EV vehicle and the evidence is as sour as a lemon!!!

Back in March, Meek posted a flick of a wrecked GMC but recently revealed how it happened -- he claims the brake pedal fell off, and the car even started driving on him ... while it was in park!!!

According to Meek, he barely had the whip for 4 hours but witnessed several safety features fail on him, including the airbags ... which he, unfortunately, experienced during the crash!!!

Elon Musk isn't just building cars -- he seems to be in the submarine business too ... that's what this video of a Tesla driving through several feet of water indicates, anyway.

A new video shows the inside of one of Elon's EVs while it drives through the rain as Dubai experiences torrential flooding ... and, the water climbs higher and higher from the outside. At one point ... the deluge covers the whole windshield, cutting off nearly all visibility.

Ultimately, they're able to get to the other side successfully ... and video of what appears to be the same car cutting through the water is also online, only seen from a bird's eye view.

Prop tanks from the 2014 war film "Fury" are about to hit the auction block, and they're expected to fetch tens of thousands.

Tracks & Trade -- an auction platform for unique historical military vehicles -- has listed the 2 tanks featured in the movie starring Brad Pitt and Shia LaBeouf, which were used in place of actual WWII vehicles during filming to prevent potential damage to the authentic ones.

One of the tanks listed is called the "Sherman," while the other is named the "Tiger" -- the latter which had limited gear change opportunities.