E3 Spark Plugs News

Got your heart set on buying a classic car? E3 Spark Plugs offers tips for finding, buying and maintaining the perfect classic.

It’s the dream of many a gearhead – to own a beautifully restored classic car. If that’s on your list of goals to accomplish this year, you’d better start doing some homework now. There is much to consider when making such an investment (and a classic car purchase really should be seen as an investment). So, E3 Spark Plugs offers its top tips to make sure your classic car dream doesn’t turn into a financial and mechanical nightmare.

First, decide what car you want and how you’ll be using it. Do you want to tool around town daily in that ’66 Mustang or maintain its pristine showroom condition for entry into classic car shows and competitions? If it’s a daily driver, you’ve got a little wiggle room when it comes to whether the parts are all original. But if you’re going for the competition ride, you’ll need to insist upon all original parts in good condition, or expect to spend a lot more money – both on the initial purchase and in continued restoration. Study everything you can get your hands on about the particular make and model you’re eying and talk with members of classic car clubs. Pay attention to common problems that pop up with your desired model. For instance, many European classics are known for electrical glitches.

Once you’ve done some homework, take a look at all the possible scenarios and decide whether you’ve truly got the time, space and finances to make it work. Classic cars can be expensive to restore and maintain. If you’re on a limited budget, don’t blow it all on the purchase or it may end up sitting in your garage for years while you work and wait for the money to fix it up. Of course, if you’ve got time on your hands and some mechanical ability, perhaps money is a bit less of an issue. Or, if you’re loaded with cash but limited on time, a great mechanic and parts pro experienced with classic cars might be your new BFF. But if you’re strapped for both time and cash, your car might end up spending many lonely months and years in the garage. And you just KNOW that your spouse is gonna want to use that space for something else eventually.

Once you’ve decided to go for it and think you’ve found the perfect specimen, you’ll still want to ask a few questions and make a few confirmations before you plop down that stack of bills or write that check. Top priority is to make sure that the VIN number on the car (usually located at the base of the windshield, but may be in the driver’s side door sill or in then engine compartment on older cars) matches the official VIN tag. If not, that could be a red flag that the car has been in a serious wreck, is stolen or is bogus. Even if the numbers match do your own vehicle history report to make sure it hasn’t been stolen and to find out how many previous owners there have been. A few too many names might signify problems that’ll have you looking to unload it before long too. If possible, try to buy a classic car with full service records. And have an appraiser look it over to make sure that the engine, transmission and other vital components are original and that the car hasn’t been wrecked.

Got a great classic car buying success story? E3 Spark Plugs wants to hear it. Post your story and your pics on the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook fan page.

Legendary automotive designer Dean Jeffries gets a little distracted while repainting his first car, a 1947 Mercury convertible. Photo from the Dean Jeffries Collection for Matt Stone's new book, "My First Car."

Everybody remembers their first. Their first car, that is. In fact, not much conjures up sweet nostalgia like retelling a story of the set of wheels that marked the beginning of freedom. That’s why we here at E3 Spark Plugs so enjoyed reading Matt Stone’s My First Car, a 224-page hardbound book packed with 124 photos and stories that’ll make you laugh, cry and reminisce.

There’s probably no other rite of passage that teenagers look forward to more than holding the keys to their first car. In My First Car, Stone retells the automotive initiations of some of the world’s most recognized names. Hollywood actors, automotive industry giants, racing greats and pro athletes share both poignant stories and early photographs of their first rides. Among them is iconic actor and auto collector Steve McQueen, the original King of Cool. McQueen’s first motorized thing he could call his own was an Indian motorcycled outfitted with a sidecar.  But what he coveted was an MT TC. During a Columbus, Ohio stop for his off-Broadway play Time Out for Ginger, McQueen spotted a 1948 MG with a $750 price tag. But this was long before McQueen hit fame, and he had all of $450 in pay and poker winnings with him.

“I put down $450 … and I told the owner I’d send more money from each overnight stop we made,” McQueen tells Stone. “It was finally delivered to me in Chicago. That’s when I asked for a raise and got booted out of the play. So, I jumped into my MG and drove it all the way to New York.”

The love story didn’t last long. McQueen sold his MG after three axles broke and the spokes kept shredding out of the wire wheels. He decided to stick with cycles for a while. Fate at play, perhaps? Otherwise, we might not have that infamous Triumph TR6 Trophy getaway scene from The Great Escape.

Other samplings from My First Car:

• Hugh Hefner’s 1941 Chevy Coupe that “reminds [him] of the car Columbo used to drive” and that died in the middle of the road on the very day that Playboy first hit the stands.
• Andy Warhol’s used Rolls-Royce, in which he collided with a taxi while learning to drive at 56 years old.
• Mario Andretti’s 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air hardtop in bright red with a white top, which the family landed in part because a teenage Andretti convinced his father that the louder pipes helped save gas.
• Sir Sterling Moss’ three-wheeled 1936 Morgan, which he initially drove illegally (just shy of his 16th birthday – the legal driving age in England at the time) and mounted a box on the back for his pet ferret.

Moss is quick to point out the top enduring benefit for a young man with a great ride.

“The great thing about having a car was that you could pick up the crumpet [girls] a lot easier than if you had a bicycle, of course,” he says, though he admits that his first ride was a bit rudimentary. “It was quite useful from that standpoint.”

In all, 67 famous drivers share their stories. No doubt, this book also has prompted many a conversation about readers’ first cars. What’s your first car story? E3 Spark Plugs, makers of the most energy efficient and eco-friendly car spark plugs on the market, want to hear it. Post your story and photo on our Facebook fan page.

E3 Spark Plugs loves a beautiful car, whether it’s an old jalopy with serious restoration potential or a gleaming new sports coupe just off the assembly line. That’s a good thing, because we’re much more likely to score the former than one of these. Behold the world’s current most expensive cars.

1. Bugatti Veyron Super Sports, $2,400,000: Not only is it by far the priciest, it’s also the fastest road car in production. It boasts a 267.856 mph top speed, though it’s electronically limited to a paltry 257.91 mph, what with the tires possibly disintegrating and all. The car debuted at the Pebble Beach Concours de ‘Elegance in August 2010 and Bugatti says they’ll only make 30 of them. So, you’d better call in your credit card number now.

2. Pagani Zonda Clinque Roadster, $1,850,000: Only five of these were made and, alas, all five are spoken for. The Roadster can drop 0-60 in 3.4 seconds and has logged a top speed of 217 mph. Its six-speed sequential gearbox allows for gearshifts taking less than 100 milliseconds.

3. Lamborghini Reventón, $1,600,000: The priciest and most powerful Lamborghini ever built hits 60 mph in just 3.3 seconds and is capable of speeds up to 211 mph. Only 20 were made for the road, with one additional car numbered 0/20 produced for the Lamborghini Museum. It’s named for the fighting bull famous for killing Mexican bullfighter Félix Guzmán. The word reventón is Spanish for “explosion” or “burst,” but also has come to refer to a large party or crazy night on the town. In automotive terms, it means “blowout,” as in a flat tire.

3. Koenigsegg Arera R, $1,600,000: Tying for third place in the money game, the Arera R beats the Reventón in the speed game. It can burn 0-60 in just 2.8 seconds and has hit 260 mph, though it’s electronically capped at 235. If you’re hearing Sammy Hagar’s voice in your head and just don’t think you can drive 235, the company will unlock the speed limit for one occasion – with the proper paperwork, that is. We don’t know just what that paperwork entails, but we’re pretty sure it has something to do with insurance liabilities.

4. McLaren F1, $970,000: the McLaren F1 originally was just a concept car conceived by renowned Formula One race car designer Gordon Murray until he convinced McLaren CEO Ron Dennis to pony up some cash. It’s lighter and has more streamlined structure than most modern rivals despite having an extra seat. The driver’s seat is situated in the front middle, slightly forward of passengers seated to the left and right. Speeds top out at 231 mph with the rev limiter on, and 242.95 with the rev limiter removed.

5. Ferrari Enzo, $670,000: The Enzo is widely considered the most popular supercar ever built, reaching 60 mph in 3.4 seconds and topping out at 217 mph. Named for founder Enzo Ferrari, the car was designed to commemorate the company’s first Formula One title in the new millennium. Because just 400 were built, they’re going for upwards of $1,000,000 at auto auctions.

Sticker-shock notwithstanding, which of these would you most like to drive home stocked with a set of E3 car spark plugs? Tell us about your dream car on the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook fan page.

1954 Ford FX Atmos, a concept car designed for nuclear power and hands-free driving.

On New Year’s Day, TechCrunch.com posted an article that got E3 Spark Plugs thinking about the car of the future, with a little retro-tastic inspiration. The article took a look at the iconic TV cartoon The Jetsons, set in a Space Age utopia in the year 2062 – a century ahead at the time of the show’s first airing in 1962. At question was just how many of the show’s then-futuristic features have become everyday reality.

First, there’s RUDI, George’s Referential Universal Digital Indexer, which looks an awful lot like today’s PC. Remember George seeing and speaking with Jane or his boss, Mr. Spacely of Spacely Space Sprockets, via a monitor? Skype made that a reality. George read the day’s news from a screen in his home – much like our laptop screens. Even the Jetsons’ robot vacuum cleaner came to pass in iRobot’s Roomba vacuum cleaner.

But the one Jetsons’ item we still covet is that groovy ride – the flying family car. It appears Hanna-Barbera took inspiration for the design from the Ford FX-Atmos, which caused quite a stir with its debut at the 1954 Chicago Auto Show. The FX stood for “Future Experimental” and Ford officials touted it as a representation of “one of the many avenues which styling could take into the future.” Like George, the would-be driver of an FX Atmos would sit in the front center of the car and steer it with hand grips. A dash-mounted “radarscape” would help navigate by providing highway and aerial information and a clear dome roof could be lowered on a sunny, breezy day. Two needle-like protrusions from the front fender pods were jokingly referred to as “pedestrian spears” but actually were radio antennae designed to allow for collision-free auto piloting. Alas, since there was no motor, there also were no car spark plugs. Designers and engineers envisioned a car that could harness the power of the atom instead.

Fast-forward to 2012 and we may be a bit closer to a Jetsons-inspired automotive reality than many realize. Later this year, Terrafugia expects to make the first customer delivery of its Transition Roadable Aircraft, a revolutionary integration of the personal car and light-weight aircraft. The Transition can drive on any surface road, then deploy its stowed-away wings and take flight from the nearest airport – no hangar needed. It’s got all the essential automotive crash safety features and there’s even a cargo area for your golf clubs.

While it’s a bit bulky and lacks the groovy vintage vibe of the FX Atmos or the Jetson’s ride, we’ll take one – just as soon as we come up with the $194,000 asking price.

What’s your pick – Would you rather park a Transition or an FX Atmos in your driveway? Leave us a comment on the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook fan page.

New Year's Day is the deadliest on the roadways. E3 Spark Plugs offers tips for staying safe in the hectic Christmas and New Year holiday traffic.

When the sounds of sleigh bells and carolers get rudely interrupted by the sounds of glass shattering and metal crunching, you know your holiday spirit just took a dive. E3 Spark Plugs wants you and yours to enjoy a safe and happy holiday, so we’ve compiled a list of top holiday roadway safety tips.

It’s not exactly a news flash that America’s roadways are more dangerous during the holidays. Christmas parties and New Year’s Eve bashes nearly always involve drinking. Those who get a little too merry too often end up behind the wheel – and in the hospital. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s 10-year Crash Stats study found that New Year’s Day is the deadliest day of the year for speeding-related fatal crashes, followed by Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas. A high percentage of these accidents also involve drunk driving. In fact, 54 percent of all New Year’s Day accident deaths and 38% of Christmas-time car accident deaths are alcohol related, the NHTSA says.

To help keep you and your loved ones safe on the roadways this holiday season, follow these tips:

• If you and your family or friends plan to attend parties where you’ll be drinking, make sure you designate a driver and have a backup plan should your designated driver bail on you. Find the best local taxi services and load their phone numbers into your phone’s contacts list. Some cab services offer free rides to get inebriated passengers home safely.

• If you must drive and want to enjoy a drink, do so sparingly. Drink a glass of water or sparkling water between alcoholic drinks. Sip, don’t chug. And mingle. A lot. After all, you can’t talk and drink at the same time, and who knows who you’ll meet while you mingle.

• When driving, be hyper-aware of other vehicles around yours. Keep the radio volume low and the distracting chatter to a minimum so you can keep your eyes and ears on the road. If another car is having trouble staying in one lane or is driving too fast or too slow, steer clear of it. Even the safest driver can fall victim to a speeding, intoxicated one.

• Before you head out for the holidays – whether going out of state to a family gathering or just across town to a friend’s party – check your brakes and tires. Get a full brake inspection and, if it’s time for new brake pads, change them now. And double check that your tires are properly inflated. Underinflated tires contribute to more than 600 fatalities and 33,000 injuries a year on America’s roadways. Plus, they suck up your gas mileage.

Got more holiday roadway safety tips? Post them on our Facebook fan page. And from all of us here at E3 Spark Plugs, have a fantastic holiday season!

IndyCar has released its official review of the October 16 crash that killed Indianapolis 500 champ Dan Wheldon. The report acknowledged that Wheldon’s head coming into contact with a fence support post was ruled the specific cause of death, in keeping with the October 17 autopsy that concluded blunt force trauma to the head killed the British racer. However, the report added that the exact cause of the accident itself could not be pinpointed.

Late IndyCar racer Dan Wheldon and son.

“While several factors coincided to produce a ‘perfect storm,’ none of them can be singled out as the sole cause of the accident,” investigators concluded. “For this reason, it is impossible to determine with certainty that the result would have been any different if one or more of the factors did not exist.”

Despite two days of safety testing at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway before the start of the 2011 IZOD IndyCar World Championship, drivers knew it would be a potentially dangerous race. The track’s size allowed for a large field of cars running at unusually high speeds, which prohibited the “racing grooves” that typically help channel cars into some type of order. The result was track-side chaos. Drivers couldn’t tell where other drivers were or were headed, so routes to safety were hard to come by.

Gian Paolo Dallara, head of Italian manufacturer Dallara Automobili, recently told Autosprint he doesn’t believe that the 220-mph speeds contributed directly to the crash. Instead, he blames problems with wheel-to-wheel contact.

“If two wheels that rotate in the same direction touch, even at just 50kph [31mph], the car behind shoots up in the air,” Dallara said. “There’s nothing you can do.”

Dallara says that the new 2012 chassis had undergone a redesign aimed at reducing the risks of lifting off from wheel-to-wheel contact even before the 15-car crash that killed Wheldon. And in an ironic twist, it was Wheldon who had helped IndyCar and Dallara test the new chassis, logging upwards of 2,000 miles on it. In honor of the racer, Dallara recently announced it has named the new design the DW12. E3 Spark Plugs supports the new name and Dallara’s efforts toward creating a safer race car.

Meanwhile, race officials have dropped the Las Vegas Motor Speedway from the 2012 IndyCar schedule. Pending continued track testing, the series may return to Vegas in 2013.

E3 Spark Plugs launches a brand new look!

Hey E3 Spark Plugs fans, check out our new look! E3 Spark Plugs is launching a revamped website and social media sites this week. Our updated look is cleaner, more streamlined and easier to navigate. And you’ll find a few new goodies.

New features include:

• A tech support section with a chart designed to help you apply the correct torque to your new spark plugs, information on spark plug gapping, tech tips and videos, a cross-reference guide to help you choose the right spark plugs for your automotive, powersports or lawn and garden engines, plus warranty information;
• A continuously updated video section featuring how-to videos, our commercials and racing highlights;
• A testimonial section where you can see what people are saying about E3 Spark Plugs and add your own comments;
• An events calendar listing all upcoming racing and promotional events featuring or sponsored by E3 Spark Plugs.

“We are excited about our the launch of our newly redesigned website and social media pages,” says Steve Joiner, E3 Spark Plugs’ Vice President of Sales and Marketing “E3 is committed to providing in-depth information about our products and promotional activities. These sites will allow our customers and fans to keep up with all the different programs and events that E3 is involved in all over the country.”

Based in beautiful Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, E3 Spark Plugs developed its patented DiamondFire technology in conjunction with researchers from leading engineering universities. Utilizing a unique, diamond-shaped, edge-to-edge approach, E3 spark plugs are designed to deliver more power, improve fuel efficiency, reduce emissions and extend the life of your engine.

Our new look will launch this week. Are we missing something you’d like to see? Leave us a comment on our blog or on the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook fan page.

1952 Wienermobile

It’s as recognizable an American Icon as Disney’s mouse ears or McDonald’s golden arches. And the Oscar Meyer Wienermobile is wrapping up a year-long birthday celebration. First constructed to promote “Oscar Meyer German Wieners” in 1936, the mack daddy of promotional vehicles turned 75 in 2011. And E3 Spark Plugs wants to send congratulations on 75 wild, wacky and wonderful years.

The first Wienermobile was created by Oscar Mayer’s nephew, Carl G. Mayer and has served as the basic model for all later generations. Each Wienermobile has traveled the country, making stops at major events, museums, car shows, festivals, grand openings, parades, schools, children’s homes and hospitals – anywhere they could spread a little joy and garner a little media attention. World War II gasoline rationing kept the Wienermobile parked for much of the 1940s. But the Rock & Roll era of the 1950s brought five new Wienermobiles that not only looked cool, but also rocked high-fidelity sound systems. You can see two of them at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan and the nearby Greenfield Village’s Wienermobile Café

From 1969 through the 1970s, new Wienermobiles were built on Chevrolet chassis and featured for Thunderbird tail lights. The 1969 model was the first to travel overseas. The year 1988 saw another first – the launch of Oscar Mayer’s Hotdogger program, wherein recent college graduates are hired to drive the 10-frank fleet of Wienermobiles built on converted Chevrolet van chassis, meeting fans and handing out Wienermobile-shaped toy whistles dubbed “Wienerwhistles.”

In 1995, the Wienermobile grew in size to 27 feet long and 11 feet high. More recent versions are teched-out with voice activated GPS navigation, an audio center with a wireless microphone and external speakers, gull wing doors and a horn that plays the Wiener Jingle in 21 different genres, from Cajun to Rap to Bossa Nova.

Today, there are eight active Wienermobiles running America’s highways. And the Hotdogger program is still going strong. If you’re a college student who will be graduating next term, this could be the job of a lifetime. Hotdogger stints last from June to June and you’ll visit college campuses around the country. Upwards of 2,000 students apply each year and only 12 are chosen, so fire off your resume today! And good luck from E3 Spark Plugs!

The Toyota Fun Vii just might be the coolest futuristic concept car we've seen to date.

Well, it can’t fly, it won’t deploy your kids and wife to school or to the mall in their own domed, one-man flying saucer directly from the car’s floor, and it won’t fold up into a stylish little briefcase like George Jetson’s iconic ride. But Toyota’s new Fun-Vii concept car can do just about anything else you’ve imagined that the car of the future would do. We’re just not sure where the spark plugs go.

Unveiled at the Tokyo Motor Show earlier this month the Fun V-ii (which stands for “Vehicle Interactive Internet) is being described as a smartphone on four wheels. And it takes personalization to the extreme. At first glance the car looks a bit like an oversized, curved-out iPod docking station with a smooth black finish and silver accents. But those looks can change with the swish of a fingertip across a smartphone screen. That’s because the car’s exterior surface essentially is a digital interface that can display any color or photo chosen, or even reflect the surroundings as a the car drives down the street.

Inside, a driver and two passengers have more legroom than you’ve ever seen in a compact car. Dashboard displays include a hot little hologram assistant popping out of the digital ethers to help you find a great little coffee shop. And the car’s interior walls feature the same customized visual options as the exterior surface. Want to set a romantic tone for the evening? How about a covering the walls with images of rose petals? Or, bring the outside in by displaying the local scenery on the car’s walls. You’ll feel like you’re cruising in one of James Bond’s invisible cars.

Digital features allow a driver to run an automotive diagnostics test, get a weather forecast, check email, locate friends and talk with the people in the car two lanes over without ever picking up a smartphone or rolling down a window. There’s even an autopilot option so you can Facebook/eat lunch/kiss your girlfriend/call your mom/knit a sweater, etc. and still get to your destination without causing a multi-car pileup on the Interstate.

Too far-fetched to ever become reality? Check out the video and decide for yourself. In the meantime, E3 Spark Plugs wants to know: Which is your all-time favorite TV or movie futuristic ride? And would you rather have this…

Or this?…

Sneak peek of the 2013 Dodge Dart.

The last time you could buy a brand new Dodge Dart was the same year moviegoers were lining up for The Rocky Horror Picture Show, newshounds were following the Watergate trials, Peter Gabriel was still the Genesis frontman and Bob Chandler was tooling away in his garage, creating the first Monster Truck Bigfoot. Until now, that is. Yep – the Dodge Dart is back. But this ain’t your granny’s Slant-Six lead sled.

Next year, Dodge will revive the Dart name for its newest small car, replacing the ailing Caliber. It’s designed is based on the Alfa Romeo Giulietta and will hit the streets with a choice of three engines: the Tigershark 16-valve 2.0-liter, a 16-valve 1.4-liter MultiAir® Intercooled Turbo, and a new Tigershark 16-valve 2.4-liter MultiAir® four-cylinder engine. Dodge marketers are billing the 2013 Dart as a four-door sedan that “redefines performance” and “brings fun back to driving” in the compact car segment.

1960 Dodge Dart. Photo credit: DDCoral / Shutterstock.com

The original Dodge Dart was produced from 1960-1976. Initially, the Dodge suits didn’t like the name and doled out big money to a hotshot marketing firm who came back with a gloriously bad recommendation: the “Dodge Zipp.”

“Um. Nevermind,” the suits said. And the newest Dodge kept its Dart moniker, a nod to the Convair F-106 Delta Dart, at the time a new military aircraft, and the 1960s Space Race craze. The Dart’s GTS muscle version of the late 1960s is the one most revered by fans and romanticized by filmmakers. But the 1970s models’ overuse in TV shows of the era, plus the 1998-2006 That ’70s Show, deemed the collective late-model Dodge Dart “Grandma’s car.”

1971 Dodge Dart Swinger. Photo in public domain, courtesy of Wikipedia.

The world will get its first full look at the new Dodge Dart at the Detroit Auto Show in January. Until then, you can get a glimpse on the Dodge website. But be forewarned that a frustrating teaser is all you’ll see. Thus far, Dodge has released only a series of extreme close-ups of select features. Remember those face-only shots of Marlon Brando’s Col. Kurtz character in Apocalypse Now? Yeah. That’s kinda what you’ll get until January.

So, E3 Spark Plugs fans, which is your favorite Dodge Dart? Will your car buff heart remain loyal to the reverse-finned ’60s models or the angular-edged ’70s Swingers? Or are you waiting with bated breath for the Dart’s new era? Post your thought on the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook fan page. And in the meantime, enjoy this vintage Dodge Dart commercial from 1966 – Join the Dodge Rebellion, baby!