E3 Spark Plugs News

Here’s one for the car buffs and gearheads of the fairer sex. Prada’s Spring 2012 shoe collection is clearly inspired by classic cars of the 1950s. In fact, the company’s website has gone fully ’50s-tastic. But Prada isn’t the only footwear fashion house that found a muse in the garage. And E3 Spark Plugs is loving these revved-up runway looks.

Prada’s line of women’s heels draw from the fun, futuristic feel of the 1950s and 1960s, when the space race was the craze and Hollywood had everyone believing that we’d all be driving bubble-shaped, airborne hover cars powered by atomic energy come the turn of the next millennium. Well, we’re not quite there yet and frankly, we still love the curves and points of those mid-century classic rides. Apparently, Prada does too.

Selections in the high-end collection feature all the recognizable embellishments of the cars of that era, including fins, flames and pointed, rocket-esque taillights. Jane and Judy Jetson would have rocked these babies like nobody’s business. Va va, vroom!

But Prada’s got some very fashionable company. Bryan Oknyansky, a Los Angeles-born shoe designer and architecture buff of Russian descent collaborated with Berlin-based fashion designer Kimberit to create a rather intriguing line of women’s heels. Designs were digitally conceived in the same way that engineers design cars and airplanes, and each shoe is made with automotive-grade metals using drills and heavy duty machinery.

So which would you wear: A pair of Pradas a la your Granddad’s 1959 Cadillac, or Oknyansky’s ultra-mod steel stylings? Check out the gallery below and post your thoughts on the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook fan page.

Team E3 Racing winner Erik Gehrke busts speeders on the roadways, but beats 'em all on the raceways.

Call him the big man in the little car. Erik Gehrke is a three-time MiniCup Car Season champion and a new member of Team E3 Racing.

Whether on the track or on the streets, Gehrke is a force to be reckoned with. By trade, he’s a police officer and hostage negotiator. But there’s no negotiating going on when he’s behind the wheel and on the race track. He’s out to win and he’s proven it by winning three back-to-back championships and dozens of feature races.

Gehrke races a Chevy Impala Minicup car in the American Super Cup Series and also has raced Legends cars and mini sprint cars. But he’s most proud to be part of Lawmen Racing, a motorsports team founded by fellow police officers. Based in Antioch, Illinois, Lawmen Racing is made up almost entirely of current or retired police officers and their families, performing every racing-related task from driving the cars to maintaining the engines to marketing the brand.

When he’s not in his uniform chasing down speeders on the highways or in a race suit being chased by competitors, Gehrke participates in parades, car shows and fundraisers. And he credits E3 racing spark plugs with helping to boost his ride and his career.

“I believe switching to E3 sparkplugs this past season led to the return of my winning ways and my Season Points Championship,” says the fourth-generation police officer.

We’re proud to have one of Illinois’ finest on the Team E3 Racing roster. Check the E3 Spark Plugs blog and Facebook fan page for updates on Gherke’s racing career.

Rust art by Bo Lundvang

Considered the scourge of car buffs in the Salt Belt states, rust is getting a revamped rep, thanks to a Swedish artist. Bo Lundvang apparently has a knack for spotting the beauty in the otherwise offensive. After all, nothing makes a classic car collector cringe like a spot of rust on a vintage beauty. But for Lundvang and his followers, the dreaded tin worm is a welcome creative entity.

Lundvang’s works of art feature smooth sheet metal renditions of some of the world’s favorite automobiles in backgrounds of rusted sheet metal. Pieces are created via a multi-step process that begins with a computerized rendering of the design. The finished image goes to a vinyl cutter that turns a large section of adhesive vinyl into a stencil. Lundvang affixes the stencil to a piece of bare steel, typically measuring three feet long by a foot and half tall. He then applies a proprietary process that speeds oxidation and regulates formation of rust. When the stencil is removed, the smooth, untouched grey steel stunningly contrasts with the textured rust. Lundvang completes each piece with a sealing agent that protects against further oxidation.

An automotive writer by trade, Lundvang creates no more than two pieces each month. And no – you can’t have more details on that closely guarded oxidation process.

“My own little secret,” says Lundvang. He did, however, recently share his inspiration with reporters.

“Cars are what fill my head most of the day, but it’s the shapes that draw my attention, the design,” he said. “A correct curve can really set things off for me. Well, the sound could too, but I can’t fix sound on sheet metal.”

Lundvang’s pre-designed rust art pieces are said to start at $1,500, with commissioned originals costing a bit more. Here’s a sampling of the media comments about the pieces:

• “Rust has become a subject of aesthetic interest in recent years… Bo Lundvang is channeling the trend into an oxidized form of pop art” (Rory Carroll, NY Times)
• “There’s a thin line between patina and outright decay, and artist Bo Lundvang seems to understand that threshold all too well… Too cool” (Autoblog)
• “Turning rusted sheet metal into art? Now that’s dope!” (LifeStyles Defined)

What do you think of Lundvang’s rust art? E3 Spark Plugs wants to know. Post your comments on our Facebook fan page.

Freddie Ford worked the auto show circuit, entertaining crowds throughout the late 1960s.

Apparently, National Robotics Week happens each April. So, E3 Spark Plugs decided to celebrate with a shiny, smiley, chatty blast from the futuristic past. If you were a kid or a car buff back in the 1960s, you may remember Freddie Ford.

Standing nine feet tall and weighing in at 800 pounds, the original Freddie Ford was a talking quasi-robot made from Ford auto parts and designed to entertain crowds on the auto show circuit. A vintage press release notes “a heart made of switches, tapes and relays, skin made of sheet metal and aluminum” and an animated ability to answer a limited series of questions, doling out automotive advice and lobbing a few shameless plugs for the newest Ford models.

“Are those oil pans really your feet?”

“Yes, sir, these are 390 V-8 oil pans from the biggest V-8 that uses only regular gas. And remember….oil changes are only needed every six months or 6,000 miles.”

The original Freddie worked the show circuit for three years until retiring and being replaced with a smaller, more modern version. Freddie II stood just six feet tall and weighed just 500 pounds. But like most kids, he came pre-wired with a little more tech-savvy than dear ol’ Dad. Junior was equipped with a television camera hidden in his nose, allowing him to see his fans, and a chest-embedded Mustang speedometer with an odometer that registered miles as he talked, as well as a Ford stereo AM/FM radio.

The younger Freddie came with a console panel featuring 12 buttons that, when pressed, would prompt Freddie to answer questions in much the same PR-flavored fashion as his predecessor.

“What is meant by, ‘Walk softly and carry a big stick?’”

“The quotation is really, ‘Drive softly and carry a big six.’ You see, a new bigger 250-horsepower six is standard on Torinos, optional on Mustangs for ’70. You drive softly because it is such a smooth, quiet performer. Thrifty, too.”

Granted, neither Freddie, Sr. nor Freddie, Jr. had quite the performance repertoire of Honda’s moonman-esque ASIMO, who pours drinks, boasts his own iPhone app and can bust a creepy animatronic Hokey-Pokey; or of General Motors’ Robonaut, a C-3PO wannabe who last year became the first humanoid robot in space as a member of NASA’s Expedition 27 crew. But what the two Freddie Fords lacked in 21st century technology, they made up for in futuristic charm – a full three decades earlier. In fact, we kinda wish Ford would bring him back for the next major auto show.

Do you remember Freddie Ford? Post your memories on the E3 Spark Plugs’ Facebook fan page.

Team E3 Racing's Jesse Grose races in the Florida Karting Championship series.

At 18 years old, Jesse Grose is already a four-year veteran on the competitive kart racing scene. He first hit the tracks at age 14 and today competes in the Florida Karting Championship series with P.D.B. Racing Team America, a sister team to the famed European factory team based in the Netherlands. He’s also a new member of Team E3 Racing.

Grose currently is 9th in points (out of 27) after a strong first-round finish the Florida Karting Championship. He’s got two wins, four top-five finishes and six top six-finishes over the past few years in the series.

Team E3 Racing's Jesse Grose races for the PDB Racing Team America.

Grose also is a regular in the Formula Kart Productions’ Florida Winter Tour and TAG Senior events. He also races street circuit events in Florida, including the Inverness Grand Prix and the Grand Prix of Palm Beach, known as the most prestigious kart race in the Americas. And he aims to launch a career racing cars in the SCCA (Sports Car Club of America) Pro Formula 1000 championship at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia, recognized as one of the world’s best road courses.

“I am very proud to say that I am an E3 Spark Plugs brand ambassador,” says Grose. “I am striving to make a career out of being a professional race car driver … I am on my way! It’ll be a rough ride, so buckle up and watch me GO!”

We’re watching, Jesse. And we’re proud to have you on Team E3 Racing! Watch the E3 Spark Plugs blog and Facebook fan page for news on Grose’s career.

Kid KJ made history two years ago as the world's youngest Monster Truck driver at just six years old.

If you’ve made any of the stops on the Monster Truck Nationals Tour featuring the E3 Spark Plugs Bigfoot, you might literally have seen the next generation of monster trucking. A few years ago, Kaid Jaret Olson-Weston, a.k.a. Kid KJ, made his historic debut as the world’s youngest Monster Truck Driver, driving his pint-sized Monster Bear truck and wowing the crowds with his seasoned moves despite being just six years old at the time.

Today, at the ripe old age of eight, Olson-Weston leads his own team of drivers dubbed Lil’ Mighty Monsters and made of up of his brother Jake Royce Olson-Weston, 7, driving Sir Crush A Lot, and friend Cassie Berry, 14, driving Demolition Diva. Together, they travel the show circuit performing crowd-pleasing aggressive freestyles over jumps, around tight turns and through obstacles.

Kaid Jaret Olson-Weston has always been a bit of a daredevil, skateboarding at a year old, snow skiing and driving ATVs at two, snowmobiling and dirt biking since three, jet skiing and go karting since four, according to his booker, Uncle Tod Motorsports. But mom Nancy and dad Tod, who also is the team’s manager and crew chief, have always made sure their wild-child brood was safe. Before suiting up and climbing behind the wheel, the three Lil’ Monsters underwent specialized training to learn the driving skills and mechanics for their half-scale monster trucks. The kids wear fire suits and safety helmets and communicate with adults via a driver-to-crew radio system installed in their trucks.

“They’re driving in a controlled environment,” says said Emily Boden, marketing manager for Family Events, the producer of Monster Truck Nationals. “They understand the ins and outs of a truck better than you or I would. They’re very knowledgeable and they do it every weekend, so they get a lot of practice.”

E3 Spark Plugs congratulates Kid KJ and his Lil’ Monsters team and looks forward to watching them take over the Monster Truck scene in the coming years.

Want to take a spin of your own in a racing truck? Enter to win a three-day driving adventure at the E3 Spark Plugs-sponsored Utah Off Road Nationals Presented by Toyota. Among the prizes are rides in racer Jerry Daugherty’s E3 Spark Plugs off-road truck, a Ford Racing GT Mustang and a Baja Challenge car. Enter by visiting the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook fan page and clicking the Off Road Contest tab. Good luck!

Team E3 Racing just got bigger. Announcing our March winners! Congrats to these 18 up and coming racers.

TIER 1 WINNERS (Win $500 cash, 25 E3 Spark Plugs and Official E3 Race Day Gear/Decals):

• Daniel Alvarez: Nineteen-year-old Daniel “The Hammer” Alvarez of Chappells, South Carolina is much more than a hobbyist when it comes to racing. He’s already got a solid start on a well-rounded racing career with a A.A.S. degree in Automotive Technology from Piedmont Technical College and a scholarship to veteran  racer Tony Blanchard’s RACE 1101 program, where he was so successful, the school created a new award in his honor. The X Factor Award will honor students who successfully recognize and brand a unique marketing image.
• Jacob Putman: Our littlest winner yet, Jacob “Camokid” Putman ran his first official Kid Kart race at Old Dominion Speedway in Manassas, Virginia at the tender age of four. Today, at six years old, he’s racked up multiple wins against kids with more years and more experience on him. And he’s part of two racing teams including J&D Outlaw Racing founded with friend Donald Whorton. He starts the 2012 Kid Kart 2 season as a member of the Excel Racing team.
• Daryl Barrett: Daryl Barrett of Gorham, New York’s Asylum Motorsports Group has been involved in every facet of racing since the age of four. He’s been a driver, crewmember, crew chief, engineer and owner and has worked with several successful racing teams over the course of his career, which includes over 250 wins. He races in the Grand-Am and the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) World Challenge series in DP, GT, GS and GTS classes.
• Jeremy Higgins: Nineteen-year-old Jeremy Higgins races dirt track and this year will compete in the AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Twins class and the Expert Singles class on tracks throughout the United States. He races a 2010 Yamaha and graduates college as a powersports technician this spring.
• James Luckett: That’s “Officer Luckett” to you. James Luckett of Romeoville, Illinois is a police officer who participates in exhibition and high school races via Beat the Heat, a nonprofit organization that works to keep kids off the streets. Driving his marked 1980 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme down the drag, Luckett encourages kids to “make the trip to the strip” rather than race illegally on the street.
• John Guthu: De Pere’ Wisconsin’s John  Guthu loves a run on his snowmobile – no snow necessary. He’s entering his eight season in competitive grass drag racing with a new series, the Midstate Grass Drag Circuit. He landed a championship title in his first year of racing and has finished in the top three points every year since in the 600CC non-studded class.

TIER 2 WINNERS (Win 1 Set of up to 8 Plugs and Official E3 Race Day Gear/Decals):

• Brody Goble: Canada’s Brody Goble has been winning on the racetrack since 2005. He’s the  2011 CACC Canada Sports Car Rookie of the Year and a 2012 inductee into the Autosport Dynamics’ ASD Mob program, which recognizes the top emerging drivers in drifting.
• Eric Roberts: Racing isn’t just about the drivers. Eric Roberts is crew chief on a 1979 Chevy Caprice in the Road Warrior class at Punta Gorda Speedway. The Lehigh Acres, Florida resident says he won over a skeptical driver when the team won its first victory after switching to E3 car spark plugs.
• Richard Smith: Souderton, Pennsylvania’s Richard Smith serves as the throttleman for his family’s multi-championship winning Smith Brothers Offshore Racing Team. The team races a 26-foot Joker Powerboat powered by a 500 HP Mercruiser Big Block and a set of E3 racing spark plugs.
• David Pochedly: Painesville, Ohio’s David Pochedly describes himself as a “normal person that believes that E3 Spark Plugs are unbeatable in performance.” He runs them in all his rides, including a 1981 mud truck on 40-inch tires and a worn-out 1998 Dodge Dakota with 230-miles that tops out at 125mph on E3s.
• Daniel Yarbrough: Daniel Yarbrough honed his mechanical skills building mini stock rollers that raced at the Thunder Hill Raceway in his hometown Lawrenceburg, Tennessee. Today, he continues building cars and engines for a living, and uses only E3 Spark Plugs.
• Terry Panciera: Terry Panciera of Bristol, Connecticut is a member of the United States Lawn Mower Racing Association. He’s entering his second season in competitive lawnmower racing on a 1985 Lawn Chief.

TIER 3 WINNERS (Win Official E3 Race Day Gear and Decals):

• Bill Watson
• Ronald Volner
• Jeff Byer
• Frank Speer
• Ben Newburn
• Jerry Manes

Check the E3 Spark Plugs blog and Facebook fan page for updates on all our Team E3 Racing winners.

Competitive tractor puller Tammie Huenink dedicates her efforts in her White Lightning tractor to breast cancer awareness.

After six years serving as secretary for the Outlaw Hot Rod Tractor Pulling Association, Tammie Huenink decided to get out from behind the desk and climb up behind the wheel instead. It proved to be a smart move. In her very first season pulling modified hot rod tractors, she finished the season fourth in the Colorado Truck and Tractor Pullers Association (CTTPA) and fifth in the Outlaws. She enters her next season as a Team E3 Racing Tier 2 winner.

Her first pull was a bit nerve-wracking, says Huenink, who made her track debut in Mitchell, Nebraska driving her father-in-law’s tractor, dubbed Wild Fire.

“I’m not sure who was more nervous him or me,” Huenink recalls. “I was wondering why in the world I had now decided to strap myself into this mechanical contraption on four wheels with 900 horsepower hooked to a sled to go, hopefully, 300 feet down a dirt track. It seemed insane!”

Perhaps, but there was no turning back now. So, Huenink simply focused on her father-in-law’s words of wisdom – “Keep it between the ditches and don’t let up ’til the red flag falls” – and soldiered on. That was all it took to transform Huenink into a bona fide dirt diva.

From there, Huenink formed her official family team, the Dirt Diva Pulling Team. And it is, indeed a family affair. Husband Jason built her a new tractor. Her father, a U.S. Army veteran, chose the name “White Lightning” for the tractor, which bears the 65th Engineer Combat Battalion insignia as well as an R-9 Racing logo, honoring her father-in-law. But most prominent is the “Tough Enough” pink ribbon logo signifying Dirt Diva’s support in the fight against breast cancer in honor of her Huenink’s mother and husband Jason’s grandmother.

The Dirt Diva Pulling Team’s efforts raise funds to help women facing breast cancer cover costs of traveling to their doctors’ appointments and chemotherapy treatments. As one of just a handful of female competitive tractor pullers in the U.S., Huenink does countless media interviews and fan meet-and-greets, allowing her a public platform for carrying out her team’s message. We here at E3 Spark Plugs are proud to help her do just that.

Kyle LeDuc (center) swept the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series season opener this past weekend, with Adrian Cenni and brother Todd LeDuc taking second and third places.

This past weekend marked the season opening of the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series at the Firebird International Speedway in Chandler, Arizona, sponsored in part by E3 Spark Plugs. When the dirt settled, it was Kyle Leduc who took the top podium position, opening the 2012 season in grand style.

Driving for Team Associated, LeDuc came out of the gate throwing blows in Round 1 on Saturday, handily taking the checkered flag and nabbing the N-Fab Fastest Lap award. Adrian Cenni and brother Todd LeDuc took second and third place.

LeDuc continued his merciless on-track rein the next day, snatching up the top qualifying spot and the second row starting spot once an inversion was pulled in Sunday’s Round 2. During the race, he again battled it out with Cenni, at one point eyeballing nothin’ but track dirt out his side window. The podium was a repeat of the day before, with LeDuc loud and proud in first place, Cenni and Todd LeDuc in second and third again. Kyle ended the weekend with a double win and double N-Fab Fastest Lap bragging rights.

Marty Hart, Rob MacCachren and Leduc teammate Robby Woods took the top three spots, respectively, in the Pro-2 class. Team Associated’s Carl Renezeder nabbed the N-Fab Fastest Lap award, but that would be the highlight of his day. Mechanical issues sidelined him afterward.

Twenty-eight trucks took to the track in the Pro-Lite class, setting a record for the class’ largest field to date. Mud flew, metal crunched and smoke billowed. When the chaos cleared and the checkered flag dropped, it was R.J. Anderson, Chris Brandt and Cassie Currie took the podium spots.

Next stop for the LOORRS is the new Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Complex in Lake Elsinore, California April 21-22. E3 Spark Plugs, makers of the patented DiamondFire racing spark plugs, congratulates the season’s first winners and looks forward to the next track battle.

Which would you rather buy: The sleek PAL-V One or the practical Terrafugia Transition?

Terrafugia’s Transition, the world’s first flying plane available to the consumer market, is headed to the New York Auto Show looking to cash in on the as-yet non-pilot market. And another, Holland’s PAL-V One, has logged its first successful flight and is searching for investors.

The PAL-V One took its maiden flight in March and all went smoothly, reports show. It’s a two-seat three-wheeler that’s one part car, one part gyrocopter with a rotor and propeller that can be deployed for flying, then folded away for driving. It typically flies below 4,000 feet, the airspace available for uncontrolled Visual Flight Rules (VFR) traffic. That means pilots/drivers can operate the PAL-V One with no interference from commercial air traffic and won’t be required to submit a flight plan. Speed tops out at just over 110 miles per hour on land and in the air, and it can fly for up to 315 miles depending on the onboard weight. It has short takeoff and landing capability, making it possible to land just about anywhere – no crazy stretch of runway space necessary.

As with seemingly all things Dutch, the PAL-V One sports a sleek, sexy style that makes it look and drive a bit more like a motorcycle than a sedan on the road.

“It is dynamic without being overbearing and delivers elegance rather than extravagance,” the website boasts.

Frankly, we here at E3 Spark Plugs agree. That sexy styling just might give the PAL-V One an edge over Terrafugia’s Transition, which kind of screams “airport shuttle,” style-wise. But you’ll have to wait a while. The PAL-V makers are still looking for investors to help bring it to mass production, while Terrafugia is already taking orders for the Transition, marketing it at a base $279,000 with a variety of equipment options. Plus, with room for your golf clubs and a tablet computer compatible glove box, the Transition wins in the practicality category.

In fact, “We’ve noticed in our order backlog there are actually a fair number of people who are not currently pilots who are putting deposits down to order a Transition,” said Terrafugia’s Richard Dingemanse. Ergo, the New York Auto Show gig.

So, which one would you drop a few hundred grand to buy: The sleek, stylish PAL-V One or the more practical (and near-readily available) Transition? Post your thoughts on the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook fan page. And if you go the New York Auto show this weekend, be sure to post your pics too.