Any one have tips on how to go about making a car cake? I have to make a lamborghini and I am not sure where to start!!! Another member told me about mikesamazingcakes.com video so I will check that out- any advice will be greatly appreciated!
thanks!

don't know about cars, but i have recently just completed my first truck and a farm tractor, carved all from cake. the next one i would carve out of rkt instead. i think i might be able to get much more detail that way, without worrying about the cake sagging or the weight of the fondant. on both pieces i took advice from cc about a square support piece hidden underneath the vehicle-but colored either black or pink (truck) and this is mainly to support the structure so that when you put your tires on they are not squished. i've posted pics in my profile. hth i also had to complicate matters by adding working lights-something i have not yet perfected, but was neat. i would also suggest if you are using cake to make sure it is a very dense, low crumb cake.

My advice would be to start with photos. I found a book in the library that cataloged cars and showed each model from all the various angles.

Once you have those photos, you can either draw or use some sort of photo software to resize them to the proportions you want.

Once you have a drawing (done to scale) of the sides, front, top, back and basic underneath shape, you have a template to use to carve out your cake.

I think you can get just as much detail on a cake car as a rkt one. The detail isn't just in the carving, it's in the impressions and details you put into your fondant. Plus, airbrushing, or accents made from fondant, royal or gum paste make it look very real.

I know some people hate the cake shows on TV, but if cake is good enough for Bronwon Webber, Duff Goldman, the Cake Girls and Cake boss to make cars out of (and they all have), it's good enough for me (and I have too).

Good luck.

my 1st attempt at a car...i simply carved and added detail with fondent. i even added headlights that worked which was fun, and detracted from any mistakes lol. unfortunately i was pushed on time..so i didnt get as much detail as i would like....but next time will be better....my next cake will be a fire engine so wish me luck!!

looking at your previous cakes i'm sure you'll be fine. just remember to carve a little at a time.

I have mikes dvd. It is truly amazing. If and when i have a car cake to make, i will go by his instructions. I have watched it several times. then took notes also. can,t wait to try one.

I too purchased Mike's DVD and he's so awesome he explains EVERYTHING on how to make the car. Well worth purchasing.

thanks for all of the tips. I had my dad make a wooden cake board so the cake won't be sitting directly on the wheels - I have pictures all ready to go and the client sent me some photos of the cake that she wants it to look like. I am so nervous but I hope to rise to the occasion! I am making it out of chocolate cake and will definitely put a board hidden in there for extra support.
thanks everyone! I will post pics when it is done )

Hey there, I also have to make a car cake in two weeks and I've very nervous about it! It's for a friend's boyfriend who is OBSESSED with his Mitsubishi Eclipse!
I'm thinking of using the "enhanced cake mix" cake because that seems to come out pretty dense so I think that will be best to carve. I have a lot of questions myself, so I'm hoping someone can help!
-What is the best way to make the tires?
-Someone suggested using a board, do you mean under the body of the car but on top of the tires? How does that work?
-I need to make it for 30 servings. Any ideas how big the car should be? I'm going to put it on top of a sheet cake, just so to be on the safe side though.
-Someone mentioned "working lights" - how did you achieve that???
-Any suggestions as to how to make the little details such as the decals/stickers and the license plate?? My friend wants it to look EXACTLY like her bf's car....

Thank you in advance for your help! I need as much advice as I can get!!

There's a great website http://www.the-blueprints.com which gives you pictures of cars from all angles which you can print off and use as a template.

This ones one of the styles of lamborghini

http://www.the-blueprints.com/blueprints/cars/lamborghini/24630/view/lamborghini_gallardo_2006/

This one is quite good for the eclipse http://www.the-blueprints.com/blueprints/cars/mitsubishi/672/view/mitsubishi_eclipse_2003/

thanks so much for that link- how helpful!!! I am doing the car cake next weekend so stay tuned for pictures.
I did the wheels already- solid black fondant with grey rims that I painted silver. They look good and they are drying nicely. I measured to be sure they fit into my cake board cut outs for the wheels- so hopefully they will work.
Ugghh! If I had known this cake was going to stress me out so much I wouldn't have booked the gig!

Print out a picture of the car in real size, cut it out and use as a templet, then just start carving the finer details.

I recently did a Mustang convertible, it's in my pics. I added two more pics to show the cake as I was carving it.

With vehicles, it's usually the shape of the car that is the hardest...the details are gravy. Once I get the major shape done, I breathe a sigh of relief (same is true with the tank in my pics).

I did a poured sugar windshield (burnt it a little but I still like it) and poured sugar headlights. The recipe is under "Rock Candy" here on CC.

I also learned to raise up the "body" of the cake so the wheels aren't smashed under or just hanging from the side of the cake. (I did a car once and just "smashed" the wheels next to the car...didn't look good at all!) You can see this in my pics, I just cut some cardboard to fit underneath and covered in foil to get the body off the ground.

i used a couple square pieces of foam core covered in fondant (black) to raise the body of my cake off the ground-the height of the wheels. as for lights, i bought some led lights from princess auto and my husband wired them up for me and attached them to flat batteries (like watch batteries but larger), i ran the wires through the cake before it was buttercreamed with large bubble tea straws, i left the wires hanging through holes cut in the cake board at the bottom, so all i had to do was hook up the batteries to the wires. but alternately-i have found (at party time) led lights that have batteries in them and am looking forward to experimenting with them on my next cake!! HTH

AWhat is the name of the DVD

Ahey can some one help me I heard about debbie browns books and there is a vw beetle in one of her books but i cant find her books in south africa . I need to make a herbie cake for a 3 year old please help

Great info. Thank you all !!!!

AMike also has a sculpted car class on craftsy. Com. Download able course materials and everything. I used it to sculpt a car out of rkt. Also, Liz of artisan cake company has a great free tut on YouTube. Just search sculpted car rice Krispy or similar, it's a green car!