E3 Spark Plugs News

The late Allen Swift with the 1928 Rolls-Royce Piccadilly P1 Roadster now on permanent display at the Lyman & Merrie Wood Museum of Springfield History.

In 2005, one Allen Swift passed away at the impressive age of 102. But the centenarian left behind something that will keep his memory alive for generations, particularly in his hometown Springfield, Mass. And we here are E3 Spark Plugs are grateful.

Not long before his death, Swift was officially recognized as the oldest living person to have owned a car from new. That car was a 1928 Rolls-Royce Piccadilly P1 Roadster given to him by his father to celebrate his graduation. The green-over-green soft-top convertible was young Swift’s pride and joy, and remained so throughout his lifetime. But it didn’t stay locked away in a garage like many classic cars.

Instead, Swift drove his head-turning roadster regularly, all the while maintaining it meticulously. His fastidious efforts included a complete body-off restoration and engine rebuild in 1988. By 2005, the car’s analog odometer had logged more than 170,000 miles and Swift was honored with Rolls-Royce Motor Cars’ coveted Spirit of Ecstasy award for his length of ownership.

The late Swift continues to care for his beloved ride even posthumously. Before his death, he donated the car to the Lyman & Merrie Wood Museum of Springfield History – a proper place considering the town and Rolls-Royce have a shared history. Between 1920 and 1931, the British automaker built nearly 3,000 vehicles in Springfield in an effort to establish a U.S. plant. Swift also left the museum a $1 million gift to create a new exhibition to care for his roadster and tell the story of Springfield’s Rolls-Royce manufacturing stint. Today, you cans see Swift’s prized ride on permanent display as part of the museum’s Transportation Collection.

The new Corvette C7 Sting Ray debuted at the 2013 North American International Auto Show to mixed reviews.

The North American International Auto Show‘s public show is still days away underway and already making headlines, particularly with Chevrolet’s unveiling of the 2014 Corvette – something we here at E3 Spark Plugs have been anxiously awaiting. The debut marks a new era for the Corvette C7 with the model’s first design overhaul in almost a decade. But not everyone is impressed.

The big reveal happened at Sunday night’s Press Preview at Detroit’s Russell Industrial Center, a factory-turned-nightclub for the evening. Before pulling back the curtain, company execs announced that the new C7 would carry the Stingray name, a nod to the iconic ride’s early 1960s heritage. It boasts a 450 horsepower engine and 450 pound-feet of torque, and is 90 pounds lighter than its predecessor, the C6, thanks to carbon fiber used on even the base trim level. Designers went all out on the interior, which is getting rave reviews. But many purists are calling foul on the boxier tail lights similar to the Camaro’s that replace the model’s trademark rounded tail lights.

“Many individuals are concerned about the rear square lights,” says one longtime Corvette fan. “My concern would be how to differentiate the tail lights from other GM cars. The tail lights should be different so that anyone looking at the car will know it is a Corvette.”

“It’s a bigger departure from the C6 to the C7 than I think it was from the C5 to the C6,” countered another. “It has a more exotic look, a more sexy look. They’re trying to get a lot of young people involved, and I think this is the car to do it.”

In any case, General Motors company suits are depending on the Stingray’s sleek new design to help pump new life into the sports car market and reverse the recent sales slump. America’s longest running sports car saw sales drop to a half-century low – 13,164 in 2011. Meanwhile, while the sports car market as a whole saw sales drop 41 percent from its pre-recession high.

The C7 Stingray is expected to deliver a fuel economy of 18 mpg in the city, 29 mpg on the highway. Pricing has yet to be announced, but industry insiders predict the base model will start around $49,600.

What do you think? Love it? Hate it? Post your thoughts on the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook fan page.

Introducing the new VW Beetle Convertible. Love it? Or would you sooner drive a a classic Bug?

The 2013 Beetle Convertible will make its American debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show late next month. But the company just gave us all a sneak peek with photos released today.

The new Beetle Convertible is the third generation of the VW ragtop, following the type 15 from 1949 and the 2003 model. This go-round, designers opted for a sportier silhouette with a flatter roofline and a more upright windshield. The ragtop roof stows fully in just 10 seconds and lays completely flat, making for clear rear visibility. And the car has an automatic rollover support system with two computer-actuated bars behind the rear seat that pop up in just four milliseconds in the event of a collision.

Under the hood, buyers can opt for one of three engines: A a 2.5-liter five-cylinder good for 170 horsepower and 177 pound-feet of torque and paired with a six-speed automatic transmission; A 2.0-liter, turbocharged four-cylinder with 200 hp and 207 lb-ft of torque that can be mated to either a six-speed manual or a six-speed dual-clutch gearbox; and a 2.0 turbo-diesel four-cylinder good for 140 hp and 236 lb-ft of torque that can be bolted to a six-speed manual or six-speed DSG.

Despite its dubious beginnings as an Adolf Hitler-ordered “people’s car” designed by none other than Ferdinand Porsche in the 1930s, the Volkswagen Beetle has enjoyed icon status and maintained much of its familiar shape over the decades. Film appearances have included Disney’s The Love Bug, Woody Allen’s Sleeper, Death Race 2000 (1974) and the 1984 TV series The Transformers.

So what do you think, E3 Spark Plugs fans? Do you love the new VW Beetle convertible or would you still opt for one of the classics?

“Esquire” just named the 2013 Cadillac ATS its 2012 Car of the Year. Do you agree?

So Esquire Magazine, the grandfather of metrosexual men’s manuals, just released its annual list of the American driver’s top rides. And the 2012 Esquire Car of the Year winner is (drumroll…) the 2013 Cadillac ATS.

“It is perhaps the single most important thing Detroit has built in years, and it is one hell of a car to boot,” the magazine says.

The car definitely is a risk for the company, which has thus-far faltered a bit with its small car attempts. The 2013 ATS is Cadillac’s first true compact sedan and is designed to go head-to-head with BMW. In fact, it’s been touted as being a sport sedan similar to the BMW 328i. It’s got a lighter chassis that lends itself to better acceleration and handling; an electric assist speed-sensitive steering rack designed to save fuel by eliminating the traditional hydraulic pump; three engines to choose from including a  direct-injection 3.6-liter V6; and six-speed transmissions on all ATS variants, the favorite being the Hydra-Matic 6L45 torque-converter automatic with tap-shift control.

Options include the performance-tuned Rear-Wheel Drive or the all-weather capable All-Wheel Drive; race-inspired Brembo front brakes featuring a patent-pending brake-coasting process for an incredibly consistent performance on any surface; and CUE (Cadillac User Experience), an in-dash tablet-like system featuring several industry-first technologies to combine vehicle controls, entertainment, safety, navigation and communication all into one touch-screen system. All that for a base price of $33,990.

So what do you think? Did Esquire make the right choice? Or do you have a different Car of the Year pick? Post your thoughts on the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook Fan Page.

Team E3 Racing's Andrew "Bubba" Pollard.

Regarded as one of the most successful short tack racers this decade, Andrew “Bubba” Pollard recently was named to Team E3 Racing. A third-generation racer, Pollard literally grew up trackside. His grandfather, Sonny Pollard, built and managed Senoia Speedway, a 3/8-mile dirt oval track today is known as the fastest 3/8 asphalt oval in Georgia. That’s where he, his son and grandson spent their waking hours.

Bubba Pollard’s first racing wins came via local bicycle races he won as a child, piloting a two-wheeled racing bike he built himself. As the year passed, he firmly established himself as a top Legends Cars and Late Models competitor. Between 1999 and 2001, he landed more than 50 Legend Car wins at Senoia Speedway, Watermelon Capital Speedway, Charlotte Motor Speedway and Atlanta Motor Speedway. In 2002, he got behind the wheel of a Pro Late Model and took it to victory lane six times, claiming the Senoia Speedway’s championship in his first year.

Next up, it was the Super Late Models division in the Southern All Stars Series with multiple wins in 2003 and 2004. By 2005, Pollard caught the attention of legendary NASCAR team owner Jack Roush and was cast in Roush Racing’s Discovery Channel reality series “Driver X,” which featured Pollard competing against 25 of the nation’s best drivers for a shot at one of the “Big Three” series.

Pollard since has continued to rack up win after win racing Pro and Super Late Models. Last year, he won a total of 19 races plus the Sunoco Gulf Championship, Miller Lite Series, Viper Series and CRA South titles. He broke a 31-year-old track record at the 44th Annual Snowball Derby at Five Flags Speedway in Florida, nabbed the inaugural Georgia Racing Hall of Fame Driver of the Year award and was voted the Speed51.com Driver of the year by fans nationwide.

We’re thrilled to welcome Pollard to Team E3 Racing. Check our blog for updates on Pollard’s career. And be sure to stock your own ride with a set of E3 car spark plugs, whether you’re gunning for that checkered flag or just trying to get to work on time.

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.

Rachel Veitch in her beloved "chariot," a 1964 Mercury Comet Caliente that just hit 576,000 miles. Copyright Rachel Veitch.

They say the average lifespan of a daily-used car tops out at about 150,000 miles but can hit upwards of 200,000 if its owner really minds the maintenance. Judging by those figures, we here at E3 Spark Plugs think 93-year-old Rachel Veitch, whose 1964 Mercury recently hit 576,000 miles, just might be the best car owner ever.

The last time Veitch bought a car, gas cost 39 cents a gallon, Lyndon B. Johnson was POTUS, My Fair Lady swept the Oscars and The Little Old Lady from Pasadena was tearing up the airwaves. It was 1964 when she fell for a cream colored Mercury Comet Caliente that she quickly dubbed her “chariot.”

Apparently, Veitch was nothing like that little old lady:

And everybody’s saying that there’s nobody meaner
Than the little old lady from Pasadena
She drives real fast and she drives real hard
She’s the terror of Colorado Boulevard…

Well, she’s gonna get a ticket now sooner or later
‘Cause she can’t keep her foot off the accelerator…

The guys come to race her from miles around
But she’ll give ‘em a length then she’ll shut ‘em down

Rachel Veitch bought her 1964 Mercury Comet Caliente for $3,289. Today, it's valued at $12,000.

First, Veitch was only 29 when she bought her ’64 Mercury, so she wasn’t a grandmother yet. Plus, we’re guessing Granny’s shiny red Super Stock Dodge didn’t last long, what with all the drag racing and the roadway terrorizing. And while we haven’t met her in person, Veitch seems quite the congenial lady. Her chariot no doubt would say so if steel and wheels could talk. After all, it has served her dutifully for half a century and well over half a million miles. And it’s still going strong.

“I’ve never been a destructive person and I’ve just taken care of everything,” says Veitch. “Except my husbands.” (That’s a whole ‘nother blog.)

Originally bought for $3,289, Veitch’s Mercury today is valued at $12,000. It’s seen 18 batteries, eight mufflers and God only knows how many oil changes and car spark plugs. She’s only parking it now because macular degeneration (age-related loss of vision) has made it unsafe for her to drive. Her beloved chariot next will make an appearance at an antique car show in Wisconsin and Veitch is considering calling up her friend Jay Leno to see if he’s interested in buying it. She appeared on Leno’s The Tonight Show in 2010 and he called her the “Car Lady”. But one thing’s for sure – the chariot won’t stay in the family. When asked if any of her four children, nine grandchildren or 11 great-grandchildren have expressed interest, she snapped back, “It wouldn’t matter if they did, they’re not going to get it. They couldn’t take care of it like I did.”

Perhaps there’s a little bit of Granny in Veitch after all.

"Where the Boys Are" became a massive box office hit and made spring break a mainstream cultural phenomenon.

The spring break season is well underway and college students are headed to the beaches in hoards. The kids these days, they think this annual collegiate-sponsored week of academic and social wantonness has always been around. Truth is, it came to be in the late 1950s and its wild popularity was ultimately inspired by a Michigan State University student with a candy apple red convertible.

It was the writings of an MSU English professor and novelist, and a subsequent now-classic film that helped launched this American cultural phenomenon into the international mainstream. Glendon Swarthout, PhD was teaching an honors English class in 1958 when he overheard a student – the kid with the red convertible sports car – talking up a planned trip to Fort Lauderdale, Florida over the university’s spring break. Intrigued, Swarthout, a colorful character who fancied himself a reincarnation of Ernest Hemingway complete with the mustache, began asking his students about their plans for the week. Lo and behold, a group of students invited him to join them and he gladly accepted.

His week immersed in the bikinied and swim trunked coed scene proved an eye-opening experience that gave Swarthout unprecedented insight – and a great book idea. By this time, the professor and novelist had already seen two of his writings turned into films. His novel, They Came to Cordura (1958) became a film of the same name starring Gary Cooper and Rita Hayworth.  His short story A Horse for Mrs. Custer had hit the silver screen as Seventh Calvary (1956) starring Randolph Scott and Barbara Hale. His next novel, Where the Boys Are, would become a New York Times best seller and the subsequent movie of the same name starring crooner cutie Connie Francis the defining cinematic touchstone of a generation.

To fully understand why, you’ll have to read the book, in which main character Merritt and her friends set out to enjoy a week of heady fun, all the while wary of the goings-on in the world around them – namely, the Cold War, nuclear bombs and sexual experimentation. As with most screenplays adapted from novels, the film version of Where the Boys Are is a cleaned up, less controversial, commercial product, but it became a record-breaking box office hit.

Literary controversy and commercial film cheesiness aside, what we here at E3 Spark Plugs love about Where the Boys Are is the abundance of vintage rides that get some screen time, mostly 1940s and 1950s convertibles and what appears to be a 1930s-era S&S 12-column funeral coach. Heck, you could fit a dozen of your dearest friends in some of those roomy rides. So which would you pick for a spring break excursion? Post your picks and pics on the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook fan page.

Team E3 Racing's Jason Jiovani has developed a huge following in his home state of Florida.

“Hit the gas and get it sideways,” seems to be a professional motto for Largo, Florida’s Jason Jiovani, one of our first Team E3 Racing Tier 1 winners. Jiovani is in his seventh season in the competitive drifting world and has racked up a mantle full of top 10 finishes. This year, he’ll run the StreetWise Drift in the East Regional US Series and he’s eligible to run the PRO class of Formula D this season. He’s also a Brand Ambassador for NOS Energy Drinks along with friend and fellow racing/drifting competitor Rob Fleming, whom he credits with helping to “revive the heartbeat of drifting in Florida.”

As of press time, Jiovani drives a 1991 Nissan 240SX with a ~400RWHP GM 5.7 LS1 motor running TrickFlow heads and cam combo. Besides competing on the tracks, he also runs all day-to-day aspects of his race team, J1N Racing. These include funding, transport, marketing, partnership management and turning wrenches with help from sponsor All American Street Car Performance. But while he’s a hands-on team owner and racer, he’s quick to credit his team, which includes girlfriend/co-pilot/mechanic’s assistant Hazel, for his success.

Drifting champ Jason Jiovani races and runs all aspects of his J1N Racing team.

When Jiovani’s not behind the wheel, he’s often still on the tracks, volunteering at amateur events as an instructor, course designer and competition judge. On school days, you’ll have to call him “Mr. Jiovani.” And you’ll have to sit still, pay attention and cut it out with the spit-balling right now, young man. Mr. Jiovani supplements his racing career with a substitute teacher gig in Pinellas County schools. While school’s out, he’s a bit more fun, working as a summer camp counselor.

Jiovani’s wrapping up his off-season preparations and is set to hit the tracks with a whole new car look in the next few weeks. That new look will include a loud-and-proud E3 Spark Plugs logo. If you’re a drifting fan, be sure to look for Jiovani on the tracks. And if you’re an up-and coming auto sports competitor, be sure to stock your ride with a set of E3 racing spark plugs for a strong, clean ride and competitive advantage.

Stunt Wars Sliding 2011 – J1Nracing.com from Jason Jiovani on Vimeo.

Scott Evans' 1965 Mustang Shelby Cobra was stolen while he was in Japan, serving in the Marines. Twenty-five years later, he was back behind the wheel of his automotive first love.

We at E3 Spark Plugs are a pretty likeable crew. But if there’s one type of person we just can’t stand it’s a car thief. According to the National Insurance Crime  Bureau’s recently released Hot Wheels Classics report on that American automotive icon, the Ford Mustang, it’s the 2000 model that most attracts a certain scourge of society. The study shows it’s the Mustang model most likely to end up jacked, stripped, VIN-falsified and sold. The classic models get plenty of attention from thieves, too. But now and then, it’s the rightful owners that get the last laugh.

Case in point: Scott Evans and his 1965 Shelby GT350. In 1982, Evans was in the Marines serving his country in Japan when he got some sobering news from his father, who had helped him buy the car in 1971. Evans’ prized ride had been stolen from his childhood home in Havelock, N.C. (Yes, we notice the irony here.)

Evans promised his father, who has since passed away, that he would one day find the car. And he did – A quarter of a century later.

The thieves took Evans’ Shelby to a restoration shop where they altered the VIN plate and sold it to a guy in Long Island, N.Y., who sold it to another gentleman three years later. The second buyer passed away and the Shelby was willed to his son. In 2007, the son and then-current owner got a call from the director of the Shelby American Automobile Club, who had stumbled across records and developed a hunch that the car, now in the family for more than two decades, was stolen.

Evans, of course, was elated to learn that his automotive first love had been found. But getting it back would prove a bit of a hurdle. The car had been taken out of NCIC (National Crime Information Center), the FBI’s online database of criminal information years before and had to be reentered and active in the system before police could take it from its current owners. A bit of sleuthing by the SAAC verified the bogus VIN. But there were a few other telltale signs that only Evans would have recognized – a cracked steering wheel spoke, a homemade rubber bumper he crafted to keep the gas cap from scratching the car’s paint job, and his name written in black in on the top of the transmission.

Evans paid $1,600 for the car in 1971. And while he was under no legal obligation, he did the honorable thing and paid the most recent owner $12,000 to cover the cost of the new engine he’d just had installed. To would-be buyers, Evans’ mint-condition Shelby is estimated to be worth anywhere from $250,000 to upwards of $400,000. But we have serious doubts Evan’s plans to part with the car anytime soon. After all, you just can’t put a price on a first love.

E3 Spark Plugs congratulates Evans on the highly unlikely return of his car, and the team who pulled off the near-impossible to write a 25-year wrong. Check out the short documentary about the reunion below. And if you’ve got a great story about a stolen classic coming home, we want to hear it. Post your stories and pics on the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook fan page.