Eighties band The Cars will embark on a summer tour with Hall of Fame inductees Blondie, under the moniker The New Cars. In rebuilding The Cars, they have added a significant upgrade in Todd Rundgren, formerly of Nazz and Utopia. Notwithstanding his solo career and substantial producing exploits, in joining The New Cars, Rundgren will enjoy his brightest spotlight in years. Former Utopia bassist Kasim Sultan and longtime Rundgren associate, drummer Prairie Prince will also accessorize the band. The Rundgren block will be joining original Cars members, guitarist Elliot Easton and keyboard/synth player Greg Hawkes.

Missing from The New Cars will be improbable MTV sex symbol Ric Ocasek and original drummer David Robinson. Ben Orr, a co-founder of The Cars, died in 2000 after losing his bout with cancer. For Cars fans wondering if the new lineup will work without Ocasek, the band put those fears to rest last night with a solid performacne on Leno last night.

In a novel twist, ticket purchasers for The New Cars/Blondie double bill will receive a free album as part of the ticket price. In conjunction with digital music supplier eMusic, both bands will contribute live material and new studio recordings to a downloadable album which can be redeemed with an access code provided with the tickets.