Wannabe builders Willie and Kevin welcome National Rod & Custom Car Hall of Famer Tim Strange for a personal tour through his storied career. From farm life to hot rod hero, from owner of Strange Motion to host of TV’s “Search & Restore”, Tim has amassed a prolific and wide-ranging body of work that is the envy of many… not least of all Willie, who recently debuted his first official SEMA build and eagerly awaits Tim’s appraisal of the finished project. But will it measure up?
Steve Johnson of Induction Solutions returns to the podcast to address the question, “Is nitrous the forgotten power adder?” (Spoiler alert: That’s a resounding, “No!”) As Willie is quick to point out, “Bang for buck, you can’t do it more affordably and safer than nitrous nowadays,” to which Kevin adds, “And it’s a heck of a lot of fun!” From the evolution of the I-S Holey Moley nitrous plate system that delivers 625+ hp, to direct port systems and progressive controllers, the guys reveal common hurdles and myths about nitrous and offer these sage words of advice: Beware the internet!
For nearly 60 years Detroit Autorama has hosted one of the most coveted competitions in custom car building, the prestigious Ridler Award. Recently returned from this year’s edition, noted designer Murray Pfaff regales the guys with all there was to see and do, including his very own D Lot – a 7,000 square foot “3-ring circus, portfolio, showcase, and epicenter” featuring a curated display of 9 one-of-a-kind vehicles and a Make-a-Wish Michigan online auction that awarded $40,000 in amazing gearhead prizes.
From science and engineering to technology and design, Bob Bitzky has seen and done everything there is to see and do in the mysterious world of welding. Over the course of his nearly half-century career as a professional welder – including 35+ of them at ESAB – he has become one of the foremost experts at torching molten steel. Kevin and Willie tap into his massive knowledge base for a lesson that will absolutely blow their minds.
Radford Racing School in Chandler, Arizona is the official High Performance Driving School of Dodge//SRT plus a whole lot more. “R-A-D defines the school,” raves Willie. “It’s a playground with four tires,” extols Kevin. With 85 Dodge vehicles on campus – everything from Demons to Hellcats to Vipers – plus Lotus Evora GT and Formula 4 cars – GM Mike Kessler has one of the best jobs in the business. He’s also got amazing stories to share, including the incredible tale of Hellcat Granny that you’ve got to hear to believe!
SVTPerformance.com is THE go-to online forum for anything performance-related in the Ford world. Launched by Travis Hill in late 2000, today it numbers nearly 200,000 members and counting. “It is just a massive community of Ford enthusiasts who share a passion for just going fast,” Hill tells the guys, compelling even lifelong Mopar fan Willie B to take notice. “Make it, break it, build it better; get out there and have some fun!”
Reggie Wynn returns to the podcast for the first time since our inaugural episode and suffice it to say, there’ve been some pretty big developments in turbo tech since then. Turbonetics and Precision Turbo are now making units capable of producing up to 3000 horsepower, and their parent company is the only aftermarket manufacturer offering class-specific turbochargers. “This is the Golden Age of four-digit horsepower,” Kevin excitedly notes. “We are drug addicted with this stuff!”
Believe it or not, there’s another Willie B in the world – his mirrored identical twin, Billy. They’re two chips off the old engine block, each having inherited the car bug gene from their dad. Despite Willie’s well-known affinity for Mopar and Billy’s for GM, the brothers are otherwise symbiotic best friends, competitors, and passionate car guys. Kevin is anything but the third wheel in today’s conversation, chatting with the brothers about all things automotive, including Billy’s new venture in the tuning and dyno business.
Kevin’s buddy of 25 years, Doug DeLong, left the frozen tundra of Detroit for the great outdoors of Colorado, where he founded Well Sorted Automotive to celebrate the wide world of overlanding. As he tells the guys, “Most of what we’re doing is kind of that lifestyle of living the off-grid camp life,” largely by converting vintage trucks for off-roading, adventuring, and camping. Putting modern power in some of these old school platforms and bringing them back to life combines nostalgia with a cool factor that Willie and Kevin absolutely love.
“Horsepower is like a drug; you race somebody and beat ‘em, you can’t wait to race the next guy.” So says John Meaney, the man behind the powerhouse that is Big Stuff 3. A trained engineer and passionate hot rodder, he makes some of the biggest power you’ve ever seen. According to Kevin, “it’s like a whole vehicle management rocket ship computer,” something Willie knows all about firsthand from running the products on his own cars. So, strap in for this one, it’s going to be a very fast ride!
Jake Hawksworth and Jon Miller are at the forefront of what many expect to be an enormous explosion in the motorsports community: electric conversion kits. Electron and proton-produced power, performance and range are the order of the day at Hypercraft, causing die hard traditionalists Willie and Kevin fits wrapping their brains around the sea change now upon them.
At 6’5”, Cooper MacNeil is not your average race car driver. With numerous wins and championships to his credit – ALMS, Ferrari Challenge, Petit Le Mans, 12 Hours of Sebring – he’s run some of the world’s most iconic races, from Daytona to Le Mans. Noting that “you’re pretty much 100% every lap for 24 hours straight” has Willie and Kevin green with envy. “There’s nothing quite like doing 200 miles an hour – legally, that’s the key!”
