Latest / In Wheel Time Podcast / Stellantis Bets On V8 Power While Texas Drive-Ins Still Shine
Transcript
- 0:07Mike Marrs: Welcome to In Wheel Time.
- 0:09Mike Marrs: If you're joining us now on the live stream on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Twitch, or inWheeltime.com, you're part of our new hour Saturday morning from 9 to 10 a.m.
- 0:20Mike Marrs: And we appreciate you joining us.
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- 0:42Mike Marrs: Start over here.
- 0:57Mike Marrs: Welcome to In Wheel Time.
- 0:59Mike Marrs: Want to thank you for joining us this morning.
- 1:03Mike Marrs: Welcome to In Wheel Time.
- 1:06Mike Marrs: Want to thank you for joining us.
- 1:08Mike Marrs: If you're joining us on the live stream, you're joining us during our new hour from 9 to 10 a.m.
- 1:13Mike Marrs: on Saturday mornings.
- 1:15Mike Marrs: And we can still be found on all our other outlets, such as all our podcasts on Apple, Spotify, iHeartRadio, Sirius XM Podcast, all those.
- 1:26Mike Marrs: And if we're not on your favorite podcast provider, let us know and we'll see if we can take care of that for you.
- 1:33Mike Marrs: Now, we did a little shuffling in the last half hour of our program.
- 1:38Mike Marrs: So we're going to have to do a little more shuffling while we're going on now.
- 1:41Mike Marrs: So this half hour, we're going to start off with our automotive history.
- 1:46Mike Marrs: Then we're going to look at the racing card.
- 1:50Mike Marrs: Then we're going to look at some more news.
- 1:52Mike Marrs: And then we've got another feature where we're going to see where the road's going to take us this week.
- 1:59Mike Marrs: So starting off with automotive history.
- 2:03Mike Marrs: This week in automotive history, uh, the week ahead, some of the things that are coming up in the upcoming days that you might be interested in.
- 2:11Mike Marrs: We found them very interesting, and you might want to follow up on them as the dates roll around.
- 2:16Mike Marrs: Coming up here on September the 14th, 1948, Al Moss bought a used MGTC in Southern California.
- 2:26Mike Marrs: And that kind of sounds like a pretty ordinary car purchase, except Moss was about to become one of the most influential names in the American-British sports car movement.
- 2:36Mike Marrs: Now he took the erased the MG, he competed in Jim Connors, and he drove it around Los Angeles.
- 2:41Mike Marrs: So the little sports car got a lot of attention.
- 2:45Mike Marrs: So he was great with that and he was loving every minute of it, except he was very dissatisfied with his local MG dealer.
- 2:53Mike Marrs: Now, this caused him to eventually open his own shop in 1949.
- 2:58Mike Marrs: Now that business became Moss Motors, and it's one of the best known sources for MG and British sports car parts in America.
- 3:08Mike Marrs: Now, this of course has grown into a big corporation since that time, been bought and sold a lot, but that name is one of the legendary names in Southern California for the MGs.
- 3:19Mike Marrs: Then coming up on September the 14th.
- 3:24Mike Marrs: Now, this was the inaugural Talladega 500 in 1969.
- 3:30Mike Marrs: The Dodge Charger Daytona made its NASCAR debut on September the 14th, 1969.
- 3:35Mike Marrs: It was a controversial weekend for several reasons.
- 3:39Mike Marrs: Several other NASCAR top drivers had boycotted the race because there were concerns about tire failures at the brand new, extremely fast track.
- 3:48Mike Marrs: Now that didn't slow down Richard Brickhouse because he took the new aerodynamic Dodge and he put it in Victory Lane.
- 3:56Mike Marrs: The Daytona had a dramatic extended nose and a huge rear wing, and Dodge built 503 of street versions of this vehicle so they could qualify it for the NASCAR competition.
- 4:09Mike Marrs: Now, just a year later, Buddy Baker would drive one beyond a 200 mile per hour at Talladega.
- 4:16Mike Marrs: First time it was that speed was achieved at that track.
- 4:19Mike Marrs: And you'll also kind of think, well, you've seen other ones.
- 4:22Mike Marrs: Plymouth has one as well.
- 4:24Mike Marrs: Same thing.
- 4:24Mike Marrs: They built 500 of them so that they could get it onto the tracks, but it's real easy to tell the difference.
- 4:30Mike Marrs: Still got that same extended nose, still got the big wing, but the Plymouth version has a vinyl top on it.
- 4:40Mike Marrs: Now they did that for some very practical reasons.
- 4:42Mike Marrs: Once it was one, it was very popular.
- 4:44Mike Marrs: They were trying to get on the track, and it was cheaper because where the top would come in weld into the body panels there on the quarters, they had to well they had to smooth out the seams to make it paint worthy.
- 4:57Mike Marrs: Well, put a vinyl top on it, you just weld it up, glue it down, and you're gone.
- 5:02Mike Marrs: So there was a lot of reasons for that, but that's an easy way to tell the difference between the Plymouth Superbird and the Dodge Charger Daytona.
- 5:10Mike Marrs: Then coming up on September the 16th, 1965.
- 5:17Mike Marrs: This is this really blew my mind.
- 5:20Mike Marrs: The Mustang gets its first major update.
- 5:22Mike Marrs: Now the car has only been out a year and a half, it's already getting an update.
- 5:25Mike Marrs: But September the 16th, 1965, marked the beginning of sales for the 1966 Ford Mustang.
- 5:33Mike Marrs: It may not sound like a whole lot of history, but the changes demonstrated just how fast Ford was evolving with a Mustang after such a spectacular debut that it made.
- 5:54Mike Marrs: On the inside of it, there was a five-gauge instrument cluster that had been part of the 1965 GT.
- 6:00Mike Marrs: Well, now this was standard equipment on the 66 Ford Mustang.
- 6:05Mike Marrs: Ford sold nearly 681,000 Mustangs during the extended first model year.
- 6:11Mike Marrs: So that first year and a half, I mean, they were rocking and rolling, throwing them out the factory.
- 6:17Mike Marrs: So the challenge really wasn't creating the interest because there was a lot of interest after it rolled out at the World's Fair in 1964, but it was keeping the factories running so they could keep them out there, so they could keep selling them to keep the phenomenon going.
- 6:31Mike Marrs: This is the what started the Pony Wars and led to the response by several other manufacturers to what this vehicle has done.
- 6:40Mike Marrs: Now, the next thing we've got is on September the 13th, Road Atlanta opens up with a Can Am Thunder event.
- 6:49Mike Marrs: Now, this was in 1970, and it was the first race day at a brand new road course in Georgia.
- 6:55Mike Marrs: It's called Road Atlanta, of course.
- 6:57Mike Marrs: Now, Vic Elford put his car on the pole.
- 7:00Mike Marrs: There were a lot of other people there at that race, Sterling Moss, and they were all there.
- 7:05Mike Marrs: But Tony Dean won the inaugural Can Am race in a Porsche 908 after 75 laps.
- 7:13Mike Marrs: Now, Road Atlanta would go on to host Can Am's Formula 500s, IMSA races, Trans Am, and other major racing series, becoming one of America's best known road racing venues.
- 7:26Mike Marrs: Coming up next, we're going to find that we've got the on September the 18th, this is a day that just this really is terrible.
- 7:34Mike Marrs: The day dieselgate became public September the 18th, 2015, the U.S.
- 7:39Mike Marrs: Environmental Protection Agency announced that Volkswagen and Audi diesel cars had been equipped from the factory with software that allegedly circumvented emissions during testing requirements.
- 7:52Mike Marrs: The EPA noticed that the involved four-cylinder diesel vehicles from 2009 to 2015 model years, the software in those vehicles could recognize when the vehicles were undergoing an emissions test.
- 8:05Mike Marrs: And it would alter the operation of the vehicle so that it would pass.
- 8:10Mike Marrs: So out on the road, the vehicles could produce dramatically higher nitrogen oxide emissions than is actually permitted and still pass the test because of this software.
- 8:20Mike Marrs: Volkswagen would later acknowledge discrepancies involving millions, literally millions of vehicles worldwide.
- 8:26Mike Marrs: What began as an emissions investigation became one of the biggest corporate scandals in modern American history.
- 8:33Mike Marrs: And that's a few of the things that we found interesting on automotive history coming up in the next week.
- 8:40Mike Marrs: So I think next we're going to take a quick look at the racing card.
- 8:47Mike Marrs: Time now for the racing card brought to you by the Texas Muscle Car Club Challenge.
- 8:53Mike Marrs: Now, if you're not familiar with the Texas Muscle Car Club Challenge, go to Facebook.
- 8:57Mike Marrs: You can find them there real easy.
- 8:59Mike Marrs: This is basically a group set up to race by clubs.
- 9:04Mike Marrs: You come out bracket racing your car individually, absolutely one-on-one.
- 9:10Mike Marrs: But the overall day, the club goes together, and there's some club racing, club against club type level on it as well.
- 9:19Mike Marrs: So, and if you're not a member of a car club, if you go out there, you want to run, you fill out your car, get through the tech, they will help you figure out a club that you can join to be part of it.
- 9:30Mike Marrs: You can participate, and then you can also contribute to that club as far as the club standings go.
- 9:36Mike Marrs: So coming up here on uh really close, September the 9th through the 13th, Ferrari Challenge.
- 9:42Mike Marrs: I guess that's this weekend, Road American Elkhardt.
- 9:45Mike Marrs: This is an IMSA event.
- 9:47Mike Marrs: Now, then on September the 12th, you also got a NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts series.
- 9:53Mike Marrs: Now, this is at the Worldwide Technology Raceway in Madison, Illinois.
- 9:58Mike Marrs: Coming down to September the 17th through the 20th, Mustang Challenge, Michelin GT Challenge down at the Virginia International Raceway.
- 10:08Mike Marrs: And September the 17th, NASCAR.
- 10:10Mike Marrs: NASCAR is back in action.
- 10:12Mike Marrs: The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at Bristol Motor Speedwheel, Bristol, Tennessee.
- 10:18Mike Marrs: Then September the 18th through the 20th, NHRA Great Lakes Nationals.
- 10:24Mike Marrs: Now this is going to be at U.S.
- 10:25Mike Marrs: 131 Motorsports Park in Martin, Michigan.
- 10:29Mike Marrs: Then September the 19th, the Bass Pro Shops Night Race.
- 10:32Mike Marrs: Now this should be really interesting.
- 10:34Mike Marrs: It's up at Bristol Motor Speedway, Bristol, Tennessee, NASCAR Cup Series in under the lights.
- 10:40Mike Marrs: You're going down to September the 25-27 NHRA Nationals at the Rock.
- 10:46Mike Marrs: This is Rockingham Dragway in Rockingham, North Carolina.
- 10:49Mike Marrs: Then on September the 26th to 27, NASCAR, Kansas, Speedway Weekend, Kansas Speedway, Kansas City, Kansas, another big NASCAR weekend.
- 11:00Mike Marrs: So that's some of the things that are coming up.
- 11:02Mike Marrs: There's lots of racing action going on, whether you're looking for local dirt track oval, there's some short track asphalt track racing going on, as well as the bigger ones.
- 11:12Mike Marrs: Look around close.
- 11:13Mike Marrs: There's lots of small tracks, drag strips out in the piney woods around here and up in Lufkin.
- 11:19Mike Marrs: I mean, they're it they're all over the place.
- 11:22Mike Marrs: So look for your local racetrack if you're looking for some local action.
- 11:25Mike Marrs: If not, here's some stuff that you can look at.
- 11:27Mike Marrs: Probably get it on TV.
- 11:28Mike Marrs: That's the race card sponsored by the Texas Muscle Car Club Challenge.
- 11:33Mike Marrs: So I've been holding this other story because it's going to take a little bit of time to get through it.
- 11:36Mike Marrs: But I'm I was really looking forward to this.
- 11:39Mike Marrs: So we're going to start this off with the Stellantis Product Blitz mixes affordable practicality high dollars features.
- 11:47Mike Marrs: Now, if you remember, it hasn't really been that long whenever the challengers, the retro style challenger came out, and they started coming out with the Hellcats, you know, the powered 700 plus horsepower engines, and then they got into the demons, and they've just, you know, up up.
- 12:02Mike Marrs: Well, then the new Green Deal came out, things changed, and it just uh all that kind of went south.
- 12:10Mike Marrs: Everybody was going to EV.
- 12:11Mike Marrs: A lot of it was because of government mandates that you got to go to the EV.
- 12:16Mike Marrs: So people were they had to make some changes.
- 12:18Mike Marrs: I mean, it just it's a matter of survival.
- 12:20Mike Marrs: However, Mr.
- 12:22Mike Marrs: Tim Caniscus, who used to be with uh Stillantis and then retired under part when I think it was when he was still with SRT, the last time I had an opportunity to interview him, and now he's back.
- 12:36Mike Marrs: So I see that as some of the things that are coming back.
- 12:39Mike Marrs: If you'll think about it, the Dodge Brother commercials where all the hell cats are out there and the challengers, and everybody's doing donuts and smoky burnouts, the whole performance aspect of it.
- 12:50Mike Marrs: That's what we're talking about here.
- 12:52Mike Marrs: So let me give you some of this.
- 12:53Mike Marrs: So the U.S.
- 12:54Mike Marrs: Delantis showrooms are slated to get 11 new nameplates by 2030 as the automaker funnels$25 billion towards North American products and brands.
- 13:05Mike Marrs: Now, the company plans to double down on those high-powered V8 engines.
- 13:09Mike Marrs: Now they're going to enter five new segments and they're going to launch more affordable vehicles.
- 13:14Mike Marrs: Now it's kind of a broad range there.
- 13:16Mike Marrs: It's aiming to offer nine new nameplates that start at less than$40,000.
- 13:22Mike Marrs: If you think about the average car price now, it's around$50,000.
- 13:24Mike Marrs: That's a big drop down, is where they're going to be.
- 13:27Mike Marrs: Now they're going to introduce two Chrysler models around$25,000.
- 13:32Mike Marrs: We've talked before that Chrysler is just poor, poor Chrysler.
- 13:35Mike Marrs: All they got is a couple of minivans.
- 13:37Mike Marrs: They have just from gone from the top of the brand kind of down to just barely hanging on.
- 13:43Mike Marrs: Well, now they're going to get a little bit of a lifeline, and it'll be real good to see what these two kind of vehicles are going to be at that price range at$25,000.
- 13:51Mike Marrs: I know a lot of people would like to buy that, including some recent college grads that I happen to know.
- 13:56Mike Marrs: Now, these are going to be back to the story.
- 13:58Mike Marrs: This is going to be attractive segments of the market where we are not fully participating today.
- 14:02Mike Marrs: And that is our opportunity to leverage our strong brands and to drive deeper market penetration.
- 14:09Mike Marrs: Now, this is according to this uh CEO Antonio Felosa told investors earlier this year.
- 14:16Mike Marrs: Now, the street and racing technology division uh is coming back with a vengeance.
- 14:23Mike Marrs: Now they're planning on 11 high performance variants that are going to come out of this.
- 14:27Mike Marrs: The list includes two new Dodge models, the GLH Hot Hatch, and a Copperhead Muscle Car, as well as a Burley Jeep and Ram SUVs.
- 14:36Mike Marrs: Got another little story on Ram coming up here after we get through with this one.
- 14:41Mike Marrs: Now, a 777 horsepower off-road version of Ram's 1500 pickup truck, the SRT TRX.
- 14:49Mike Marrs: It went started shipping to dealers over the summer.
- 14:53Mike Marrs: Now we've seen it and we've heard about it.
- 14:54Mike Marrs: It'll be followed by the Rumble B SRT street truck in early 2027.
- 15:00Mike Marrs: Love the name Rumble B.
- 15:01Mike Marrs: Remember the Bumblebees that they used to have?
- 15:03Mike Marrs: Let's take off on that and it's very good.
- 15:06Mike Marrs: Stillannis provided an early look at the upcoming Charger SRT, featuring a massive rear wing at its May Investor Day.
- 15:14Mike Marrs: I didn't get to see it.
- 15:15Mike Marrs: I'll buy more stock.
- 15:17Mike Marrs: Maybe I'll make it next time.
- 15:18Mike Marrs: So Ram is getting into the compact and mid-sized truck segments with the Rampage and the Dakota.
- 15:25Mike Marrs: It's also planning its first SUV since becoming a standalone brand way back in 2009.
- 15:32Mike Marrs: Now, in all this, Jeep is crafting a Wrangler offshoot called the Scrambler.
- 15:38Mike Marrs: Have you ever heard of that before?
- 15:39Mike Marrs: Jeep Scrambler.
- 15:40Mike Marrs: So Chrysler, after being starved for products, again, we mentioned that just barely hanging on, they're finally getting some help in the pipeline.
- 15:48Mike Marrs: It's got a trio of crossovers.
- 15:50Mike Marrs: Instead of just many vans, they're going to have some crossovers.
- 15:53Mike Marrs: Now the additions will allow some affordability and become a prime selling point for the brand.
- 15:58Mike Marrs: The mid-sized Chrysler Airflow will ride on the flexible new STLA one platform.
- 16:05Mike Marrs: The other two, the Arrow and the Arrow Cross, will be badge engineered variants of European Fiat's.
- 16:13Mike Marrs: Okay, that's going to be kind of interesting.
- 16:17Mike Marrs: The Alpha Romeo will get several new crossovers as well in a bid to overcome a decade of struggles to gain traction in America.
- 16:25Mike Marrs: But Fiat will continue to offer just one vehicle under that nameplate.
- 16:30Mike Marrs: It's going to be the Electric 500E.
- 16:33Mike Marrs: Now, these really aren't bad little cars, but again, you've got to look at it's an EVE and where it's at.
- 16:39Mike Marrs: So according to Tim Caniscus, our plan for North America is very simple.
- 16:43Mike Marrs: Get the product right.
- 16:45Mike Marrs: Now, uh, the next part of this story is RAM itself is targeting a 60% growth as it enters three new segments.
- 16:52Mike Marrs: This is part of the same story.
- 16:54Mike Marrs: They're moving into three new segments as part of a major expansion.
- 16:58Mike Marrs: They expect the brand to sales to skyrocket in the coming years because of the new compact and the new mid-size pickups, as well as a three-row SUV.
- 17:11Mike Marrs: So they're really expanding the brand.
- 17:13Mike Marrs: Stalantis is targeting 2013 sales of 825,000 for RAM in North America.
- 17:21Mike Marrs: 825,000.
- 17:23Mike Marrs: Now that's 60% more than last year.
- 17:26Mike Marrs: And the forecast of the brand means that it will surpass Jeep as its top-selling brand in the region.
- 17:33Mike Marrs: Now that's saying a lot.
- 17:35Mike Marrs: So RAM is going after consumers seeking the visceral feel of Hemi Engines with a line of bumblebee muscle street trucks.
- 17:42Mike Marrs: Now they're going to top this with a 777 horsepower SRT.
- 17:48Mike Marrs: This is a variant that's described as the fastest V8 production pickup truck to date.
- 17:53Mike Marrs: Now that's saying a lot.
- 17:55Mike Marrs: According to Tim Coniskus, the Atlanta's head of American brands, today all OEMs offer off-road variants to their trucks.
- 18:02Mike Marrs: Ram will be the first to add a full line of on-road performance muscle trucks.
- 18:08Mike Marrs: Now you get on down the line, they're going to liven up the rest of the SRT variants and the mid-size Dodge Dakota.
- 18:16Mike Marrs: Now, the one I'm really interested in seeing is the compact.
- 18:19Mike Marrs: They don't say a lot about the compact, but they're also talking about the full size 1500 and the Ram Charger, which is a bringback of the old Ram Charger SUV.
- 18:29Mike Marrs: They didn't call it SUV too much then, but it's a new three-row SUV slated to go into production in 2028, and it'll be out with the brand name of Ram Charger.
- 18:39Mike Marrs: And that's kind of uh finishes up the news this week.
- 18:42Mike Marrs: I thought it was real interesting to see where Stenlantis is going, particularly with the Chrysler.
- 18:47Mike Marrs: Poor Chrysler's been hanging out there all by itself so long.
- 18:50Mike Marrs: Good products, great minivans that serve their purpose.
- 18:54Mike Marrs: I love them whenever I need a minivan or I got to haul a bunch of people, but it's not a lot to pick and choose from.
- 19:00Mike Marrs: So hopefully, this is going to do Chrysler really well.
- 19:04Mike Marrs: So, with that, we need to take a quick break.
- 19:07Mike Marrs: We'll be back in 30 seconds with more from In Wheel Time.
- 19:14Mike Marrs: Cars, trucks, SUVs, motorsports, road trips, and the people who make the automotive world interesting.
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- 19:28Mike Marrs: From Texas to the automotive world beyond, in wheel time is your place for automotive talk without the politics or the nonsense.
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- 19:43Mike Marrs: Thank you for staying with us and joining us.
- 19:45Mike Marrs: We hope you are enjoying the show and the new time from 9 to 10 on Saturday morning.
- 19:50Mike Marrs: Or if you're listening on the podcast, we got uh a couple of episodes that'll be coming out this week.
- 19:55Mike Marrs: We've got a little some short features that'll be coming out.
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- 20:00Mike Marrs: And I hope you let us know if you like it or not.
- 20:03Mike Marrs: Time now on in-wheel time to see where the roads can take us.
- 20:07Mike Marrs: Now, down here in Texas, it's still hot, and even as the sun goes down, it gets hot, but it does try and cool off a little bit.
- 20:15Mike Marrs: So, what are you gonna do?
- 20:16Mike Marrs: You know, you're looking for something to do, you'd like to be outside.
- 20:19Mike Marrs: What about a drive-in movie?
- 20:21Mike Marrs: When was the last time you went?
- 20:22Mike Marrs: A lot of people have never been to a drive-in movie, they miss out on all the idea, the fun of seeing how many people you can cram in a car so that you can pay one price for a whole car load, and you get there and you find all your friends.
- 20:35Mike Marrs: Uh, if you've ever seen the movie Greece, they've got a big uh drive-in movie session there, and it's not quite like that.
- 20:43Mike Marrs: It was pretty cool back then.
- 20:45Mike Marrs: And Texas has still got quite a few places you can go and find a drive-in.
- 20:49Mike Marrs: So here are some drive-in theaters that we're putting on our road trip list.
- 20:56Mike Marrs: The Galaxy Drive-In in Innes.
- 20:59Mike Marrs: If size matters, the Galaxy Drive-In in Innes is hard to beat.
- 21:03Mike Marrs: Just off I-45, south of Dallas, the Galaxy has multiple screens showing a mix of current movies and occasional classics.
- 21:11Mike Marrs: So there is usually something for everybody there.
- 21:14Mike Marrs: It's more than just pulling into a parking space and watching a movie.
- 21:17Mike Marrs: There are concessions, but there's plenty of room, and that familiar drive-in feeling of watching the sky get dark while you're waiting on the first feature.
- 21:25Mike Marrs: It's all there.
- 21:27Mike Marrs: For a movie night that can become a road trip, the galaxy is a great place to start.
- 21:34Mike Marrs: Stars and stripes drive in in New Bronzewells.
- 21:38Mike Marrs: Now you can head on down to Wards, New Bronzewell's and you'll find the Stars and Stripes.
- 21:42Mike Marrs: Now, this is another multi screen drive in that leans into the classic 1950s movie night experience.
- 21:48Mike Marrs: There's a retro themed cafe, multiple screens, and plenty of room for families to settle in.
- 21:54Mike Marrs: You can watch from the car, or once things cool off, you can get outside, maybe a lawn.
- 22:00Mike Marrs: Uh enjoy the night air, a blanket on the ground.
- 22:04Mike Marrs: And being in New Bronzeville's means the drive itself can be part of the destination, especially if you turn the movie into an overnight getaway.
- 22:13Mike Marrs: I did have the opportunity to go here.
- 22:14Mike Marrs: I was on the hot rod tour of Texas.
- 22:16Mike Marrs: They made a stop there.
- 22:18Mike Marrs: They had one of the screens reserved, smoky in the bandit was on, a lot of people in costumes.
- 22:23Mike Marrs: The whole parking lot was nothing but hot rods.
- 22:26Mike Marrs: 200 plus, I think, were there that night.
- 22:28Mike Marrs: It was great.
- 22:29Mike Marrs: The ladies were in the lawn chairs.
- 22:31Mike Marrs: A couple of them had some blankets or jackets on because the weather was cool.
- 22:35Mike Marrs: It was great.
- 22:37Mike Marrs: Next, we're going to go out west out to Midland.
- 22:40Mike Marrs: If you want to combine a movie with a little West Texas scenery, put the Big Sky Drive-in near Midland on the list.
- 22:48Mike Marrs: The name is pretty appropriate because the Big West Texas sky becomes part of the show.
- 22:52Mike Marrs: Big Sky is multiple screens and the traditional drive-in setup with movies transmitted to your car radio, not hanging on the window like they used to.
- 23:01Mike Marrs: So that makes it really cool, makes it a lot nicer.
- 23:04Mike Marrs: Sounds better for sure.
- 23:05Mike Marrs: So bring some lawn chairs or a blanket and grab some concessions and want this, watch the sun disappear.
- 23:11Mike Marrs: Sometimes the road trip is as much fun as the destination.
- 23:16Mike Marrs: Up next, we got the Graham Drive-in in Graham.
- 23:20Mike Marrs: The Graham Drive-In in Graham, Texas.
- 23:22Mike Marrs: For something a little more old school, the Graham Drive-in is hard to overlook.
- 23:27Mike Marrs: It opened in 1948, and it is recognized as the oldest continually operating drive-in in Texas.
- 23:33Mike Marrs: It is a single-screen theater, but that's part of the charm.
- 23:36Mike Marrs: This is the kind of place where you can arrive early, you get settled in, grab something from the concession stand, and watch the evening unfold before the movie begins.
- 23:45Mike Marrs: So if you're looking for a destination that feels like stepping back in time, this belongs on the list.
- 23:53Mike Marrs: And then there's the Brazos Drive-In in Granbury, which has been welcoming movie goers since 1952.
- 23:59Mike Marrs: So this is another single-screen theater, but don't let it fool you because that's the whole point here.
- 24:04Mike Marrs: That's part of the experience.
- 24:06Mike Marrs: Go here, you can see a double feature, get some concessions, you're in your own car, and a Texas evening under the sky.
- 24:13Mike Marrs: What more could you ask for?
- 24:16Mike Marrs: Then you add in Granberry's historic downtown in the lake country, and you've got the makings of a pretty good weekend road trip.
- 24:24Mike Marrs: Sometimes slowing down is exactly what a road trip needs.
- 24:28Mike Marrs: Now that's just five of them to start with.
- 24:30Mike Marrs: Now there's plenty of other drive-in theaters across uh Texas.
- 24:35Mike Marrs: There's one up in Amarillo.
- 24:37Mike Marrs: Doc's drive-in is in Buddha, south of Austin.
- 24:40Mike Marrs: The last drive-in picture show is still up in Gatesville.
- 24:43Mike Marrs: The showboat drive-in is in Hockley, and there's there's some more of them out there.
- 24:48Mike Marrs: You just got to check the schedule.
- 24:50Mike Marrs: When you find it, look at the schedule because not all of them are running seven days a week.
- 24:54Mike Marrs: Some of them only on run Wednesday through Sunday or Thursday through Sunday.
- 24:58Mike Marrs: So the next time somebody says there's nothing to do on a hot Texas summer night, you might just have a better answer.
- 25:05Mike Marrs: Find a road, find a drive-in, and see where that road is going to take you.
- 25:10Mike Marrs: I want to thank you again for joining us this Saturday on 9 to 10, our new hours.
- 25:14Mike Marrs: And we're available on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Twitch, and our website nwheeltime.com.
- 25:20Mike Marrs: Now you can also find us if life gets in the way and you can't make it to the Saturday show.
- 25:25Mike Marrs: You can also find us on a podcast.
- 25:27Mike Marrs: Now we our podcast is the same as it's always been.
- 25:30Mike Marrs: It's Apple, Spotify, uh, SiriusXM podcast, iHeartRadio Podcast, Amazon Podcast.
- 25:38Mike Marrs: While you shop at Amazon, you can hear us.
- 25:41Mike Marrs: So be sure and check us out on the podcast if you can't catch us on Saturday.
- 25:45Mike Marrs: I'm Michael Mars, and I want to thank you for listening and thank you for joining us.
- 25:49Mike Marrs: And we will see you next time on In Wheel Time.
- 25:53Mike Marrs: For more than 14 years, In Wheel Time has been talking about the cars, the trucks, the people, and the stories that make the automotive world interesting.
- 26:02Mike Marrs: Now we're taking in-wheel time to the next level.
- 26:06Mike Marrs: New vehicles, automotive news, car reviews, motorsports, industry leaders, and interesting people.
- 26:13Mike Marrs: We're going to take you beyond the driveway and the dealerships with stories from the people who build, race, restore, and actually live the automotive lifestyle.
- 26:23Mike Marrs: And we're hitting the road with driving destinations worth discovering.
- 26:26Mike Marrs: First across Texas and eventually wherever the road can take us.
- 26:31Mike Marrs: Plus, we're going to have some automotive history, features, interviews, and stories that you may have missed.
- 26:38Mike Marrs: It's still in wheel time, but there's a but there's a lot more of it to discover.
- 26:43Mike Marrs: Watch us, listen to us, follow us.
- 26:46Mike Marrs: It's in wheel time.
- 26:48Mike Marrs: Cars, trucks, and the people who love them.