whooped dr. narbando thaddeus bates , joyfully fired up by his adventuresome driving , as his boss but decrepit old chevy nitro thundered forward and left with impossible acceleration , shunted awkwardly through a momentary gap between a sleek nissan thunderbolt and the tiny , mysterious looking , solar-panel shrouded scandinavian earth-car that trailed it , and then streaked past the thunderbolt with speed to spare .