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The Torque Wrench Broke And So Did The Warranty · In Wheel Time Podcast

• 0:04
  Don Armstrong: All right, time now for Jeff's Car Culture.
• 0:06
  Don Armstrong: Tool brands that the mechanics choose over Snap-on.
• 0:10
  Jeff Dziekan: There you go.
• 0:10
  Jeff Dziekan: But uh just because Snap-on is the top brand used in the field doesn't mean that it's the only one.
• 0:15
  Jeff Dziekan: There are several other companies that manufacture premium tools that have plenty of professional mechanics using them in their garage.
• 0:23
  Jeff Dziekan: There are multiple reasons why people choose or recommend different names over Snap-on, including brand loyalty, accessibility, personal preferences, and another big reason is that uh just filling out the budget, uh filling out your toolkit too expensive, some cases depending on the tool itself.
• 0:39
  Jeff Dziekan: So here we go.
• 0:40
  Jeff Dziekan: One of the tools we have is uh Sunex.
• 0:42
  Jeff Dziekan: These tools have been around for 50 years, and the American brand has built a strong reputation for its itself in the automotive and repair industry.
• 0:50
  Jeff Dziekan: The company makes all kinds of mechanics tools, hand tools, shop tools, hydraulic presses, simple socket sets, and useful things and fittings.
• 0:58
  Jeff Dziekan: Sun X also makes air tools, lifting equipment, some stores gear stuff, and uh they even make knives.
• 1:03
  Jeff Dziekan: For a professional grade brand, Suntech's tools are modestly priced, they're widely available.
• 1:08
  Jeff Dziekan: Mechanics can easily order many of these things, products online and from different retailers.
• 1:14
  Jeff Dziekan: That's Sun X.
• 1:15
  Jeff Dziekan: That's correct.
• 1:16
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh the next one is Gear Wrench.
• 1:19
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh one word.
• 1:20
  Jeff Dziekan: Many different gear wrench tools, products, and mechanics can use every day.
• 1:24
  Jeff Dziekan: When mechanics list their favorite tools, many of them list gear wrench.
• 1:27
  Jeff Dziekan: Technician Garage, which is a company, built a starter mechanics toolkit, included many of the brand's products, including most of the socket sets, uh, saying that the gear wrench quality, pricing, and warranty and availability are big points in its favor.
• 1:41
  Jeff Dziekan: Other tools from the selected brand uh for the mechanic sets include uh flex head ratchets, mini combination sets, a whole myriad, right down to oil change wrenches and things of that nature for your super serp serpentine belt.
• 1:54
  Jeff Dziekan: So they have a vast variety of that as well.
• 1:56
  Jeff Dziekan: The next one, we all know this one as well, uh Mac tools.
• 2:00
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh these tools are owned by uh Stanley Black and Decker.
• 2:05
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh other brands are offered under the same name, umbrella like Craftsman and DeWalt, uh which are also good brands there as well.
• 2:11
  Jeff Dziekan: Also Chinese made, by the way.
• 2:13
  Jeff Dziekan: Very good.
• 2:13
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh professional mechanics also recommend Mac tools for similar reasons.
• 2:17
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh they at least one of them calling out it might be overpriced for some mechanics, but they use Mac tools specifically for their host cutters, radiator clamps, uh, radiator lines, calipers, pistons, and things of that nature for uh different specifics on that repair.
• 2:33
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh the next one we've got, Michael, is called Tekton.
• 2:36
  Jeff Dziekan: Tecton Tools is a family-owned business based in Michigan that's appreciated by many mechanics because of its provides plenty of detail about where each products are made, uh certain specifications about the materials they use in those tools as well.
• 2:50
  Jeff Dziekan: The company focuses on hand tools, making ratchets, wrenches, screwdriver sockets, and many more things that you use on a daily basis.
• 2:57
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh these tools, uh more notable brand uh than anything is an acceptable warranty.
• 3:03
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh the users claim that the professional mechanics saying the Tekton tool products are are easily replaceable thanks to their lifetime warranties.
• 3:11
  Jeff Dziekan: And the last one we've got is called Gray Tools.
• 3:13
  Jeff Dziekan: Mechanics emphasize the durability of gray tools also by adding that they still use their grandfather's gray wrenches from the 60s.
• 3:20
  Jeff Dziekan: I can attest to that.
• 3:22
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh which uh continue to work like they're just came off the uh box, right out of the box in the in the store.
• 3:28
  Jeff Dziekan: They strongly recommend the brand, though concede that it they can be expensive for some of the products.
• 3:33
  Jeff Dziekan: Others note that the high quality of gray tools, while others are less enthusiastic about the brand.
• 3:38
  Jeff Dziekan: All of these that we're talking about, they are options for you.
• 3:41
  Jeff Dziekan: If you don't want to uh spend a whole lot of money and you want a quality tool, check some of these out so they'll you can mix and match as well.
• 3:48
  Jeff Dziekan: So very good stuff to look at.
• 3:51
  Don Armstrong: So um Craftsman used to be sold at Sears, American Made and all that.
• 3:57
  Don Armstrong: You got a torque wrench?
• 3:58
  Don Armstrong: They ticked me off so bad that uh I swore I would every chance I get would put them down.
• 4:06
  Don Armstrong: Because you know, they were sold with an unlimited forever lifetime warranty.
• 4:12
  Don Armstrong: They lied.
• 4:13
  Don Armstrong: They did.
• 4:14
  Don Armstrong: And uh good luck in getting your forever lifetime warranty fulfilled if you have a problem with one of the tools, like for instance, a torque wrench, which I did.
• 4:25
  Don Armstrong: It was a you know a hundred dollar torque wrench back in the day, and uh it wouldn't lock on.
• 4:30
  Don Armstrong: And so they're out of business.
• 4:35
  Don Armstrong: Somebody else bought the name and uh it's now Chinese and don't buy them ever.
• 4:39
  Jeff Dziekan: Well, there's my brother-in-law was on a ship in the Navy for uh a long, long time.
• 4:43
  Jeff Dziekan: They couldn't go, they couldn't take their tools into certain ports because of where they were made.
• 4:47
  Jeff Dziekan: It was a religious thing because of Japan, you know, Chinese, Japanese, uh Israeli, and things like that.
• 4:52
  Jeff Dziekan: But depending on what port they went into, they couldn't use certain tools.
• 4:54
  Don Armstrong: So at the dealership we had the Cornwell man that came by uh every other week, I think.
• 5:00
  Don Armstrong: So I bought my stuff from him.
• 5:02
  Don Armstrong: A dwell meter, uh a timing light, and those things they were expensive at the time, but quality stuff.
• 5:09
  Don Armstrong: I still have them and they still work.
• 5:11
  Jeff Dziekan: And and like I said, I've got I've got hammers, I've got wrenches and things from my dad.
• 5:15
  Don Armstrong: Yeah.
• 5:15
  Jeff Dziekan: From you know, like back in the 60s, they hand me down because they're just that quality of a tool.
• 5:19
  Jeff Dziekan: And they're not craftsmen or they're not snap-on.
• 5:21
  Jeff Dziekan: They're one of these other brands.
• 5:24
  Don Armstrong: Uh Mr.
• 5:25
  Don Armstrong: Mars.
• 5:30
  Don Armstrong: Driving destinations, Mr.
• 5:32
  Don Armstrong: Mars.
• 5:33
  Don Armstrong: Let me take it, Mike.
• 5:34
  Don Armstrong: Yeah, buddy, yeah.
• 5:35
  Don Armstrong: Jeff, if you would.
• 5:36
  Don Armstrong: And the subject uh today is going to be seven national hot rod events to put on your calendar.
• 5:43
  Don Armstrong: Hopefully the summer.
• 5:45
  Mike Marrs: Yeah, exactly.
• 5:46
  Mike Marrs: Now they start pretty quick, but the idea is these are all over the country.
• 5:49
  Mike Marrs: And if you want to make one of these that's not necessarily in your region, you might want to have to plan a little bit to get it in there.
• 5:56
  Mike Marrs: So we're going to start with the Good Guys Del Mar Nationals.
• 6:00
  Mike Marrs: Now, this is in Southern California.
• 6:02
  Mike Marrs: Now, the good guys do have several events across the country, but this kind of starts it off, and it's in California, and it's important because they have a big turnout of Southern California cars, you know, the whole car culture that's down there and the weather.
• 6:17
  Mike Marrs: So it's a great place.
• 6:18
  Mike Marrs: They do a lot of cruising, there's a lot of showing, but you just it's not really a formal show, but apparently it's a pretty informal show, and it's someplace to plan if you want to go to California for a car show.
• 6:29
  Mike Marrs: Then the next one we're going to look at coming up in April is the Pigeon Forge Spring Rod Run.
• 6:35
  Mike Marrs: Now, of course, this is in Tennessee, and you're going to get thousands of classic cars and street rods and customs coming in, and the whole town becomes this rolling car show.
• 6:44
  Mike Marrs: I've seen a lot of pictures of it.
• 6:46
  Mike Marrs: I've never made it up there.
• 6:47
  Mike Marrs: Uh to cruise the parkway to check out some of the vendor um places, the swap meet.
• 6:53
  Mike Marrs: It's just there's a whole lot of stuff.
• 6:55
  Don Armstrong: It's coming there in three weeks.
• 6:56
  Don Armstrong: Yeah.
• 6:57
  Mike Marrs: Three weeks, yes.
• 6:58
  Mike Marrs: It's coming up pretty quick.
• 6:59
  Mike Marrs: Then uh from there, and the next one would be the Hot Rod Tour of Texas.
• 7:04
  Mike Marrs: I picked this because I like it, and and it's intentionally a smaller event so that it can be a little more um personalized, I guess you would call it.
• 7:12
  Don Armstrong: Yeah, but it's considered 300 cars a smaller event.
• 7:16
  Mike Marrs: Well, compared to these other ones where you're talking thousand plus cars, it's it's a pretty big deal.
• 7:21
  Mike Marrs: So uh, but it is uh it's really about driving and cruising with a lot of people that you know or or that you've met, and it's that car camaraderie as you go through the event for three days.
• 7:32
  Mike Marrs: And uh it's great fun.
• 7:33
  Mike Marrs: We've been a couple of times and uh love it to death.
• 7:36
  Mike Marrs: Then the next one coming up in June 8th through the 12th is one you've probably heard a little bit more about the Hot Rod Power Tour.
• 7:43
  Mike Marrs: Now, this the power tour, it's kind of part road trip and it's kind of a national gathering because there's thousands of vehicles, and you travel across multiple states with each each stop, actually, it becomes its own event because there's so many vehicles there, uh, and they move into the cities with the smoke muscle cars and customs and classics, and it's just uh uh a big rolling car show, if you will.
• 8:07
  Mike Marrs: Now, the next one is back to the good guys, and I picked this one because it's different.
• 8:12
  Mike Marrs: This is a good guys summit racing nationals July the 10th through the 12th, and it's often called the big one because it's one of the largest muscle and hot rod gatherings in the country.
• 8:22
  Mike Marrs: It's at the Ohio Expo Center, they bring in 6,000 plus cars, including classic muscle street machines, lost in the crowd.
• 8:32
  Mike Marrs: Absolutely, but this one they they do more, uh they get more things going on.
• 8:36
  Mike Marrs: They do autocross, they got the swap meets, and of course they do major awards like the street machine of the year that they have out under the good guy branding thing.
• 8:46
  Mike Marrs: And uh, so it's a really big deal, and that would be the I guess what you would call the keystone event of them for the good guys.
• 8:53
  Mike Marrs: Now, the sixth one that we have is the NSRA Street Rod Nationals.
• 8:57
  Mike Marrs: This is August 6th through 9th.
• 8:59
  Mike Marrs: Now, this is very specific.
• 9:01
  Mike Marrs: Um, it is the crown jewel of the NSRA calendar, and it runs up, it's in Louisville.
• 9:08
  Mike Marrs: They have over 10,000 cars.
• 9:10
  Mike Marrs: Now, this is part show, part reunion, they got a parts marketplace, and it's really got uh a lot of vehicles to do a lot of things.
• 9:19
  Mike Marrs: A lot of cars are driven, there's a lot of opportunities to drive them and share stories with a lot of the other people that are there.
• 9:25
  Mike Marrs: Now, the um Woodward Dream Cruise is one that I've always liked.
• 9:32
  Mike Marrs: I've always wanted to go.
• 9:33
  Mike Marrs: We've talked about a lot of times, trying to figure out a way to get up there.
• 9:35
  Mike Marrs: August the 15th, this is the third Saturday day of August, which traditionally is when it happens, and it's considered America's largest one-day automotive celebration.
• 9:45
  Mike Marrs: Historic Woodward Avenue becomes a rolling museum of horsepower and heritage with all the manufacturers having setting up displays on the sidelines.
• 9:53
  Mike Marrs: And from what I'm told, you can't see it all in a day.
• 9:57
  Mike Marrs: There's multiple cities across there.
• 9:58
  Mike Marrs: I think Jeff's got some information about how that all began in 1995.
• 10:03
  Mike Marrs: It was just a fundraiser, and it's really become the soul of the motor city car culture.
• 10:08
  Jeff Dziekan: It is a big event, and it's it's more of a sponsorship thing where you've got maybe this five city blocks are are by Ford, or the next three city blocks are by whatever vendor, uh, some of the sports drink things.
• 10:20
  Jeff Dziekan: It's all it's a big circus.
• 10:22
  Jeff Dziekan: Yes, you do need more than just a day.
• 10:24
  Jeff Dziekan: It actually starts like about a week ahead of time and then it kind of trickles off after that.
• 10:28
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh it's a huge event.
• 10:30
  Jeff Dziekan: Um I got a friend of mine, uh Todd Sheldon, grew up with him.
• 10:33
  Jeff Dziekan: He's actually going back to Detroit, lives in Colorado, going back to Detroit for this event, possibly, and he was telling me I need to meet him there.
• 10:40
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh, but we'll we'll see what happens.
• 10:42
  Jeff Dziekan: But uh it's it's fun, it looks like a fun thing to do.
• 10:45
  Mike Marrs: Oh, I think it would be great.
• 10:46
  Mike Marrs: I was on Woodward Avenue once.
• 10:48
  Mike Marrs: I was a passenger in a mini, a little mini club car, and uh we were dreaming about what it would be like to be there.
• 10:56
  Mike Marrs: Actually, got into a drag race with another mini down Woodward Avenue, and we thought it was cool.
• 11:01
  Mike Marrs: But anyway, that's some things that you can look at for the rest of the year to kind of make some plans if you really want to get out and about and go to some of these big events.
• 11:08
  Jeff Dziekan: All right, sir, some of the all right.
• 11:16
  Don Armstrong: Uh time now for this hour's car review.
• 11:17
  Don Armstrong: I had a chance to drive the 2026 Chevy Equinox EV.
• 11:23
  Don Armstrong: Available trim levels, the LT1, the LT2, and the RS.
• 11:28
  Don Armstrong: I had the RS.
• 11:30
  Don Armstrong: This is considered a small SUV, but boy, I'll tell you what, that's precedent to say small.
• 11:36
  Don Armstrong: Anyway, five seats in this, including the driver, all new in 2024.
• 11:41
  Don Armstrong: So uh all new design, it really does look sharp.
• 11:44
  Don Armstrong: Sharp looking exterior design with slit lighting up front.
• 11:49
  Don Armstrong: Uh RS had a blacked-out Faux grille.
• 11:53
  Don Armstrong: Well, it doesn't need a grill because it's electric, you know.
• 11:56
  Don Armstrong: Big 21-inch wheels, sharp rear hatch with sunshade over the back glass.
• 12:01
  Don Armstrong: What I liked about it, it gets high marks for styling, I think.
• 12:04
  Don Armstrong: What could use improvement?
• 12:06
  Don Armstrong: Not a fan of two-tone paint.
• 12:08
  Don Armstrong: That's an option that you can get.
• 12:12
  Don Armstrong: When do we go back to two-tone paint?
• 12:14
  Don Armstrong: Let's go back to two wood panel.
• 12:16
  Don Armstrong: Well, yeah, real wood.
• 12:19
  Don Armstrong: Um, ours did not have the two-tone, I'm glad to report.
• 12:23
  Don Armstrong: Um, I've seen, especially the blue one with the white top.
• 12:26
  Don Armstrong: All I can think of is the old Houston Police Department paint scheme.
• 12:31
  Don Armstrong: Uh, interior highlights, color options, enhance the interior bling on this RS.
• 12:37
  Don Armstrong: Um layered two screens are unique and are good.
• 12:43
  Don Armstrong: Um column shift is great.
• 12:45
  Don Armstrong: I loved it, and it opens up the center console for other stuff.
• 12:50
  Don Armstrong: Infotainment controls work great and are easy to understand.
• 12:54
  Don Armstrong: Cargo trunk room, well, adequate for most, I would say, for a small SUV.
• 12:59
  Don Armstrong: What I liked the Evotex seating surfaces.
• 13:03
  Don Armstrong: It seems they seem industrial in black, but you can get some highlights in different colors that really makes it pop.
• 13:11
  Don Armstrong: Evotex.
• 13:12
  Don Armstrong: That's one of those kind of like uh name one of those old school plastic things that they came up with.
• 13:23
  Don Armstrong: Plastic seats.
• 13:24
  Don Armstrong: Oh, yeah.
• 13:24
  Don Armstrong: But they came up with names for them.
• 13:26
  Don Armstrong: It was always very interesting in the names that they like pleather.
• 13:31
  Don Armstrong: Yeah, this is Evotex.
• 13:32
  Don Armstrong: We could use improvement, nothing.
• 13:34
  Don Armstrong: Uh drivetrain.
• 13:35
  Don Armstrong: Uh electric motor works great.
• 13:38
  Don Armstrong: Two motor options give 300 horsepower and 355 pound feet of torque.
• 13:45
  Don Armstrong: Horsepower, 0 to 67.8 seconds, adequate for most.
• 13:49
  Don Armstrong: Not a rocket ship by any means.
• 13:51
  Don Armstrong: Direct drive, transmission, obviously, the electric motors connected to the wheels.
• 13:56
  Don Armstrong: Uh tow rating, 1500 pounds.
• 13:58
  Don Armstrong: Not a lot, but what do you need?
• 13:59
  Don Armstrong: This is uh electric EV SUV.
• 14:02
  Don Armstrong: So 117 miles per gallon city is what it's rated.
• 14:06
  Don Armstrong: It's called MPGE.
• 14:09
  Don Armstrong: Uh highway is 100 miles combined, 31 kilowatts per 100 miles.
• 14:16
  Don Armstrong: You do the math.
• 14:18
  Don Armstrong: I've tried, I failed.
• 14:20
  Don Armstrong: I got 2.9 kilowatt hours over 387.6 miles.
• 14:25
  Don Armstrong: Do you get that?
• 14:26
  Don Armstrong: Um EPA rated at 319 mile range.
• 14:30
  Don Armstrong: What I liked, front or all-wheel drive is available.
• 14:34
  Don Armstrong: It's nice to have the option.
• 14:36
  Don Armstrong: One-range version would be a nice improvement, I think, in a bigger battery.
• 14:40
  Don Armstrong: Um, what I liked about it, riding handling, nice and smooth.
• 14:45
  Don Armstrong: What could use improvement?
• 14:46
  Don Armstrong: Steering wheel mounting controls were a little confusing.
• 14:50
  Don Armstrong: They team seem to have uh uh all of the manufacturers have a pension for putting things on the steering wheel that you're not quite sure what they are until you hit the button.
• 15:00
  Don Armstrong: Yeah.
• 15:01
  Don Armstrong: And your viewing has probably got the same thing.
• 15:03
  Don Armstrong: I'll tell you a story when you're done with your review.
• 15:04
  Don Armstrong: Okay.
• 15:06
  Don Armstrong: Um so there's that.
• 15:08
  Don Armstrong: A base trim price, 44.2.
• 15:10
  Don Armstrong: Price is tested, 52,945.
• 15:13
  Don Armstrong: You can get in this thing for as little as$35,100.
• 15:17
  Don Armstrong: Good luck in trying to find one of those.
• 15:19
  Don Armstrong: Competitors, the Mustang Mach E for$37,795.
• 15:23
  Don Armstrong: Hyundai Ionic 5 starts at$35,000, and the Tesla Model Y starts at$39,990 miles.
• 15:33
  Don Armstrong: Wow, I'm sorry, miles.
• 15:35
  Don Armstrong: Dollars.
• 15:36
  Don Armstrong: Dollars, thank you.
• 15:37
  Don Armstrong: I'm looking at uh other things.
• 15:38
  Don Armstrong: I know I was doing that earlier.
• 15:40
  Don Armstrong: Uh next week I'll review the Kia Carnival.
• 15:43
  Don Armstrong: Don't laugh, don't make fun.
• 15:44
  Don Armstrong: It's a nice vehicle.