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Balloons To Backorders - How Helium Messes With Cars · In Wheel Time Podcast

• 0:06
  Don Armstrong: It's the award-winning in-wheel time car talk show just ahead.
• 0:10
  Don Armstrong: Our story of the week.
• 0:13
  Don Armstrong: Later, Jeff has the racing calendar, Mars has this week in auto history, and I'll have the stories making automotive news headlines.
• 0:20
  Don Armstrong: Howdy, along with Mike out of this world, Mars.
• 0:22
  Don Armstrong: There he is over there in front of the yellow car.
• 0:24
  Don Armstrong: Uh my good friend Jeff Zeken, David Ainsley is with us as well.
• 0:29
  Don Armstrong: I'm Don Armstrong.
• 0:30
  Don Armstrong: Glad that you could join us here.
• 0:32
  Don Armstrong: So Mars doesn't know about this.
• 0:35
  Don Armstrong: I I came up with this this morning, Mike, because you know it just drew my attention.
• 0:40
  Don Armstrong: Do you did did you ever have a place over there called Party City?
• 0:47
  Mike Marrs: Yes.
• 0:48
  Don Armstrong: Okay.
• 0:48
  Don Armstrong: I think they're all gone now.
• 0:50
  Don Armstrong: I think they went out of business.
• 0:51
  Don Armstrong: You do have an HEB over there.
• 0:53
  Mike Marrs: Yes.
• 0:54
  Don Armstrong: And over in the floral department, do they do they do helium balloons?
• 0:59
  Mike Marrs: Yes, sir, they do.
• 1:00
  Don Armstrong: Okay.
• 1:01
  Don Armstrong: Well, helium is the subject of our story of the week today.
• 1:08
  Don Armstrong: And I had no clue.
• 1:10
  Don Armstrong: And it drew my attention because helium, are you kidding?
• 1:14
  Don Armstrong: We used to, you know, suck the helium out of the balloon and that.
• 1:19
  Don Armstrong: And had fun with it.
• 1:22
  Don Armstrong: Well, as it turns out, the global supply of helium is facing threats from the conflict in Iran, a warning sign for semiconductor manufacturers making chips for vehicles.
• 1:34
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh oh.
• 1:34
  Don Armstrong: I had no clue that it was involved in making chips.
• 1:38
  Don Armstrong: So here's the story: some of the largest chipmakers have only six months' worth of helium in the pipeline, raising concerns about another global semiconductor shortage a few years after the industry recovered from the pandemic era constraints.
• 1:53
  Don Armstrong: And you we all remember that.
• 1:54
  Don Armstrong: Helium is a byproduct of natural gas production and is used to manufacture semiconductors that are key for advanced driver assistance systems and hardware for electric vehicles.
• 2:09
  Don Armstrong: Did you know that?
• 2:10
  Jeff Dziekan: Did not.
• 2:11
  Don Armstrong: Okay.
• 2:12
  Don Armstrong: Analysts caution that a manufacturing meltdown is unlikely at this point, potentially skirting the worst of the semiconductor shortage that curtailed vehicle production starting in 2021.
• 2:25
  Don Armstrong: But as with other automotive industry component supply chains, the Iran war threatens to throw off a delicate balance if the conflict continues.
• 2:35
  Don Armstrong: About 30% of the global helium supply comes from Qatar, or some people call it Qatar, which is wrong, which is home to the world's largest liquefied natural gas plant.
• 2:47
  Don Armstrong: No clue, did you?
• 2:49
  unknown: No.
• 2:49
  Don Armstrong: You could think that that would be here.
• 2:51
  Don Armstrong: Iranian missile attacks struck that facility in March, causing significant damage, according to Cutter's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
• 2:59
  Don Armstrong: The constriction in the global helium supply is the latest challenge for semiconductor manufacturers already dealing with a significant hit from the Trump administration's tariffs and a shortage in dynamic random access memory, a chip ingredient that is in high demand from the artificial intelligence boom.
• 3:20
  Don Armstrong: Suppliers also have felt the squeeze from automakers consolidating vehicle architecture, which is shrinking the amount of hardware needed throughout the vehicle.
• 3:32
  Don Armstrong: Chips that are used for ATIS, infotainment, and EVs are manufactured in semiconductor fabrication plants or fabs that depend on helium for manufacturing.
• 3:49
  Don Armstrong: Part of the procedure involves machines that print circuit patterns on silicon wafers.
• 3:56
  Don Armstrong: The machines use extreme ultraviolet light to draw tiny details on the wafer.
• 4:02
  Don Armstrong: If anything unwanted is caught in this process, such as dust or water vapor, the light does not reach the silicon.
• 4:11
  Don Armstrong: Semiconductor manufacturers use helium to purge contaminants and allow fine detailed printing onto the silicon wafer.
• 4:20
  Don Armstrong: Helium also is used to cool the backside of the wafer.
• 4:24
  Don Armstrong: In general, companies cannot stockpile helium.
• 4:27
  Don Armstrong: Helium is shipped as a liquid and then vaporized and used as a gas.
• 4:32
  Don Armstrong: Liquid helium boils at about minus 452 degrees Fahrenheit, the coldest boiling point on earth.
• 4:41
  Don Armstrong: Even the best containers accidentally boil off helium.
• 4:46
  Don Armstrong: I didn't know anything about this.
• 4:48
  Don Armstrong: Using typical insulation technology, a tanker filled with liquid helium that sits in a warehouse for six months will end up empty.
• 4:58
  Don Armstrong: Most commercial containers can store for 40 to 48 days before the volume of helium that boils off becomes unacceptable.
• 5:05
  Don Armstrong: Reuters reported March 31st that Samsung Electronics and S.K.
• 5:08
  Don Armstrong: Heinox, which supply roughly two-thirds of the world's chips, can access four to six months of helium inventory through their supply.
• 5:18
  Don Armstrong: The U.S.
• 5:19
  Don Armstrong: is the largest helium producer in the world, but not all of that product is semiconductor grade.
• 5:26
  Don Armstrong: Exxon's mobile, ExxonMobil's Shoot Creek facility in Wyoming produces semiconductor grade helium, but its capacity is constrained by container and longistics infrastructure.
• 5:38
  Don Armstrong: Helium market has seen shortages before.
• 5:40
  Don Armstrong: Most recently, uh Russian, uh American, Qatari, and Algerian facilities hiked prices in 2022 to 23.
• 5:48
  Don Armstrong: Analysts at T.D.
• 5:49
  Don Armstrong: Cowan said in April 5th research note that those past shortages may have lowered the industry's resilience on helium.
• 5:58
  Don Armstrong: I'm sorry, reliance on helium.
• 6:00
  Don Armstrong: Some fabs have developed recycling systems and scrapped unnecessary helium usage.
• 6:06
  Don Armstrong: So they're trying to save it.
• 6:08
  Don Armstrong: But uh anyway, I just thought it was a fascinating story.
• 6:12
  Don Armstrong: I had no clue that helium was used to cleanse basically the air when they're making semiconductors.
• 6:19
  Don Armstrong: Yeah, Mike's got a question, I think.
• 6:20
  Mike Marrs: Well, that uh and and my question is uh I find that fascinating because I always wondered why the phone company used hydrogen to pressurize the lines under the ground to keep the water out, basically is what it amounted to, why we didn't use helium.
• 6:36
  Mike Marrs: And now I'm wondering why they don't use hydrogen since it's a dry air and it doesn't have that that displacement issue.
• 6:43
  Mike Marrs: You know, we would buy tanks of hydrogen to use.
• 6:46
  Jeff Dziekan: Well, nitrogen is the same same dry air.
• 6:48
  Jeff Dziekan: Nitrogen's a bigger molecule than than oxygen, because that's why they put it in tires, so it doesn't get moisture.
• 6:55
  Jeff Dziekan: And so helium is not a ret not a recoverable gas.
• 6:59
  Jeff Dziekan: Once you use it, it's gone.
• 7:00
  Jeff Dziekan: It's gone.
• 7:01
  Jeff Dziekan: Yeah, yeah.
• 7:01
  Mike Marrs: Yeah, apparently, apparently you can't wait too long to use it.
• 7:04
  Mike Marrs: Yeah.
• 7:05
  Don Armstrong: Right.
• 7:05
  Don Armstrong: It boils off.
• 7:06
  Don Armstrong: It boils off.
• 7:07
  Don Armstrong: Itself, yeah.
• 7:08
  Don Armstrong: Hey, what a business to get into.
• 7:10
  Don Armstrong: Hey, let's get into the helium business.
• 7:12
  Don Armstrong: And you're fighting the clock.
• 7:15
  Jeff Dziekan: Oh, it's empty, you gotta buy some more.
• 7:17
  Don Armstrong: Yeah.
• 7:17
  Don Armstrong: Or make some more.
• 7:18
  Don Armstrong: Yeah.
• 7:18
  Don Armstrong: Well, I didn't know that you're I did not know that it was a byproduct of natural gas.
• 7:27
  Don Armstrong: Petroleum gas.
• 7:29
  Don Armstrong: Yeah.
• 7:30
  Don Armstrong: So I just thought that it was interesting.
• 7:32
  Don Armstrong: Uh yeah.
• 7:33
  Don Armstrong: Um, that uh it's used in manufacturing silicone chips, which in turn, with all of this whole upswell of using these chips for artificial intelligence, it's competitive now with auto industry because they're all trying to get that into cars.
• 7:51
  Don Armstrong: And uh anyway, it's a component that I had no clue about.
• 7:56
  Mike Marrs: Not it doesn't help that I ran shooting rockets at it either.
• 7:59
  Don Armstrong: Well, there's that, yeah.
• 8:02
  Don Armstrong: And but that that's only a portion of the supply chain, but still it's an important one because they don't make a whole lot of it.
• 8:10
  Don Armstrong: And what they do make is uh for us up there at the Exxon facility in Wyoming.
• 8:15
  Don Armstrong: I was uh I was amazed.
• 8:18
  Don Armstrong: You know, it you start to think about the petroleum industry, and somebody asked me or asked the question in general terms about well, why are we so worried and concerned about the oil supply?
• 8:33
  Don Armstrong: Oil is involved in almost everything that we have, this pair of glasses made it's plastic, made from oil ultimately.
• 8:46
  Don Armstrong: Um makeup, oil.
• 8:50
  Don Armstrong: It is truly amazing.
• 8:52
  Don Armstrong: All of the things that come from the oil producers.
• 8:55
  Jeff Dziekan: You got pretty lubed last night.
• 8:57
  Don Armstrong: We did.
• 8:58
  Don Armstrong: I think I think there's that too.
• 9:00
  Don Armstrong: That was courtesy of Mexico.
• 9:02
  Mike Marrs: Ah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
• 9:03
  Mike Marrs: Well, everybody contributes in their own way.
• 9:06
  Don Armstrong: That's right.
• 9:07
  Don Armstrong: And I have nothing against Mexico at all.
• 9:10
  Jeff Dziekan: Not at all.
• 9:10
  Don Armstrong: Uh, it's a shame that they don't have more of that agave uh further north, up here in Texas.
• 9:17
  Don Armstrong: 12-ounce allotments.
• 9:18
  Don Armstrong: There you go.
• 9:19
  Don Armstrong: 12 ounce.
• 9:20
  Don Armstrong: There's that.
• 9:23
  Don Armstrong: And Mr.
• 9:24
  Don Armstrong: Mars is quite familiar with the oil industry.
• 9:26
  Don Armstrong: Uh there's wherever there where he is, yeah.
• 9:28
  Don Armstrong: Uh in the Golden Triangle, um, it's a huge employer for a lot of people over there.
• 9:35
  Mike Marrs: Yeah, and I think at one time the Golden Triangle, this area around here, pumped out like 24% of the nation's gasoline from oil, plus all the other byproducts that come with it.
• 9:46
  Mike Marrs: And now we've got two large LNG places that are just cranking up and starting to service the ships that are coming in to load.
• 9:53
  Mike Marrs: So I'm gonna ask about that helium aspect since if it comes from LNG, then maybe they're I would like to know if they're doing that out there.
• 10:02
  Don Armstrong: Yeah.
• 10:03
  Don Armstrong: Yeah, no, uh, there's there's there's no telling.
• 10:05
  Don Armstrong: You know, we really haven't heard about West Texas crude, although it is one of those uh price tags.
• 10:11
  Don Armstrong: There's two different price tags, and one of them is West Texas uh the sweet oil, as it were.
• 10:17
  Don Armstrong: Um and uh it it is a very for me convoluted and complicated industry that I really don't know anything about.
• 10:27
  Don Armstrong: I all I know is is that uh the price that I pay at the pump is about three dollars and sixty cents these days per gallon.
• 10:34
  Jeff Dziekan: Yeah, I got uh a good five cents off a gallon this past week when I used my Kruger points.
• 10:39
  Jeff Dziekan: Yeah, I paid$3.48 or something like that.
• 10:41
  Mike Marrs: Filled up the truck the other day, got to$92.
• 10:44
  unknown: Wow.
• 10:45
  Mike Marrs: I haven't quite busted a hundred yet for a tank, but did it get close?
• 10:49
  Don Armstrong: Did it shut off at the No, no, it had more you could have put more in it.
• 10:55
  Mike Marrs: Yes, yes.
• 10:56
  Mike Marrs: Well, I say that.
• 10:57
  Mike Marrs: No, the tank shut it off.
• 10:58
  Mike Marrs: You know, the pump wasn't restricted.
• 11:01
  Don Armstrong: I got you.
• 11:02
  Don Armstrong: Yeah.
• 11:03
  Don Armstrong: Um well thank goodness we don't have that.
• 11:05
  Don Armstrong: All I can flash back on is the OPEC oil embargo, that nightmare, that happened in about 1975, I think.
• 11:16
  Jeff Dziekan: Yep, 74, 75.
• 11:17
  Jeff Dziekan: And that's how carpools were invented too.
• 11:19
  Jeff Dziekan: Yeah, back then.
• 11:20
  Don Armstrong: That was uh that was that was pretty awful.
• 11:22
  Don Armstrong: Remember you can't.
• 11:23
  Mike Marrs: And not to get not to get too far off base, but you know, that was a little bit more understandable.
• 11:28
  Mike Marrs: They quit selling oil to us, so it cut the supply.
• 11:31
  Mike Marrs: We had no thing that's going on now.
• 11:34
  Mike Marrs: It's just people market it, they're saying, Oh, you know, you still got 100% of your oil, but we're gonna run the price up because somebody else doesn't.
• 11:43
  unknown: Yeah.
• 11:44
  Don Armstrong: Yeah, I don't I don't quite fully understand all of that.
• 11:47
  Don Armstrong: Maybe uh maybe soon we can get us an oil guy on here that can explain it in simple terms because I'm a simple kind of guy.
• 11:55
  Jeff Dziekan: There you go.
• 11:56
  Don Armstrong: There you go.
• 11:57
  Don Armstrong: Just pick up the phone and make a local phone call, Mr.
• 11:59
  Don Armstrong: Bars.
• 12:00
  Don Armstrong: Call Sarah.
• 12:02
  Don Armstrong: Sarah?
• 12:03
  Don Armstrong: Sarah, give me give me the diner.
• 12:05
  Mike Marrs: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
• 12:06
  Mike Marrs: I need to talk to the judge.
• 12:08
  Don Armstrong: Yeah, whatever.
• 12:10
  Mike Marrs: All right.
• 12:11
  Don Armstrong: Well, uh, we've got other things coming up.
• 12:14
  Don Armstrong: Um Mr.
• 12:15
  Don Armstrong: Mars is going to have this week in auto history, and I'm gonna have some headlines.
• 12:18
  Don Armstrong: And Jeff may have a surprise or two.
• 12:20
  Jeff Dziekan: I got a racing counter.
• 12:21
  Don Armstrong: Yeah, yeah.
• 12:21
  Don Armstrong: Okay.
• 12:22
  Don Armstrong: So it's all coming up.
• 12:23
  Don Armstrong: Hey, uh, just ahead, uh, we've got all of that and more here on the In-Wheel Time Car Talk Show.
• 12:29
  Don Armstrong: We're back after these commercial breaks.
• 12:33
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• 12:42
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• 13:20
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• 13:22
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• 13:24
  Don Armstrong: The ingredients always fresh.
• 13:26
  Don Armstrong: Loopy tortilla is pretty good.
• 13:33
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• 13:38
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• 13:43
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• 13:53
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• 13:59
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• 14:03
  Don Armstrong: Back at the same place for our live show, 10 to noon Central Time.
• 14:06
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• 14:10
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• 14:16
  unknown: Yep.
• 14:17
  Don Armstrong: Any time.
• 14:18
  Don Armstrong: Time now for the racing calendar, sponsored by the Texas Muscle Car Club Challenge.
• 14:23
  Jeff Dziekan: Thank you for that.
• 14:24
  Jeff Dziekan: Hey, listen, uh, we got NASCAR coming up in Kansas.
• 14:27
  Jeff Dziekan: Both the uh uh Big Cup Boys, the the trucks are off, so you got just the cars running this weekend in Kansas.
• 14:34
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh they're gonna be running tomorrow and today.
• 14:38
  Jeff Dziekan: Then Talladega's the next week for them.
• 14:40
  Jeff Dziekan: But uh John was saying that their uh practice was rained out or qualifying was rained out up in Kansas, so we'll see what happens there.
• 14:46
  Jeff Dziekan: Then you got Indy.
• 14:47
  Jeff Dziekan: Indy is at Long Beach this weekend.
• 14:49
  Jeff Dziekan: I did watch a little bit of the qualifying.
• 14:50
  Jeff Dziekan: That's pretty cool.
• 14:51
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh very excited about the Indy coming up.
• 14:53
  Jeff Dziekan: And of course, they're prepping for what the uh Indy 500.
• 14:58
  Jeff Dziekan: Okay, so we've got uh the Formula One Saudi Arabian Grand Prix is postponed because of the conflict over in the conflict area.
• 15:06
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh the conflicted area.
• 15:09
  Jeff Dziekan: And it's very conflicting.
• 15:10
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh NHRA, they're off.
• 15:12
  Jeff Dziekan: They're gonna be uh April 24th through the 26th.
• 15:14
  Jeff Dziekan: They're gonna be at the four wide, which is really you know okay, I guess.
• 15:17
  Jeff Dziekan: I'm not really a big fan of the four wide, but they're gonna be at Z Max Drive.
• 15:20
  Jeff Dziekan: Not either.
• 15:21
  Jeff Dziekan: Who is Concord, North Carolina?
• 15:24
  Jeff Dziekan: Um, I don't think the drivers like it either.
• 15:26
  Jeff Dziekan: Like uh hard staging and and all that other good stuff.
• 15:28
  Jeff Dziekan: So and then, of course, the last one we've got, you got your favorite, the lawnmower racing event.
• 15:33
  Jeff Dziekan: You're it's going to be at the lawn Lone Star Mower Racing Association regular racing season is in Madisonville, Texas.
• 15:40
  Jeff Dziekan: That is today.
• 15:41
  Jeff Dziekan: Yeah, it's today.
• 15:42
  Jeff Dziekan: And then you got a let's race up there.
• 15:44
  Jeff Dziekan: Norco Horse Week Lawn Mower Racing in Norwick, Norco, California.
• 15:50
  Jeff Dziekan: Maybe that's over by uh Jack, it could be over there.
• 15:53
  Jeff Dziekan: And then you got OK Mower Racing at the WRD uh M-O-W-T-O-MOTOR Speedway.
• 16:03
  Jeff Dziekan: Aye, they're in uh Claremore, Oklahoma, and then we got some stuff coming up at the end of the month in your lawnmower guide.
• 16:09
  Jeff Dziekan: So tune in, don't be late.
• 16:11
  Jeff Dziekan: Lawnmower racing.
• 16:13
  Jeff Dziekan: I did my lawn this past week and it looks awesome.
• 16:16
  Jeff Dziekan: Did you race through it?
• 16:17
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh I'm kind of a slow, slow cutter.
• 16:22
  Don Armstrong: Mars, um, I I I might have uh messed you up over there.
• 16:27
  Don Armstrong: Did I mess it up?
• 16:28
  Don Armstrong: Mess me up.
• 16:29
  Don Armstrong: Okay, well, uh you were just sitting there doing nothing, and I thought since Jeff was talking, I'd be waiting.
• 16:35
  Don Armstrong: You were listening.
• 16:36
  Mike Marrs: Yes.
• 16:37
  Don Armstrong: Okay.
• 16:38
  Don Armstrong: Well, can you can you put yourself back up there?
• 16:42
  Mike Marrs: I'm sure I can.
• 16:44
  Don Armstrong: I'm sure you can too.
• 16:45
  Mike Marrs: All right.
• 16:46
  Don Armstrong: Because while you're doing that, I thought, there you go, see.
• 16:49
  Don Armstrong: Uh I thought that, you know, maybe now we could do the Mike Mars This Week in Auto History.
• 16:55
  Mike Marrs: Sure, sure, sure.
• 16:57
  Mike Marrs: I got it.
• 16:58
  Mike Marrs: Very good.
• 16:59
  Mike Marrs: So we're gonna start with there were a few things I found really interesting this week in auto history, but we're gonna start with April the 13th, beginning of the week.
• 17:06
  Mike Marrs: Now, in 1865, a major milestone was reached by Pontiac.
• 17:12
  Mike Marrs: Now, they did start, Pontiac Create was created in 1926, so by this time they had 10 millionth vehicle rolled off the assembly line.
• 17:21
  Mike Marrs: Now, this vehicle happened to be a 1965 Catalina.
• 17:25
  Mike Marrs: Now, Pontiac was very popular uh because of their their performance, their styling.
• 17:30
  Mike Marrs: The American buyers just liked it.
• 17:32
  Mike Marrs: That's a good looking car, they is yeah, very nice.
• 17:34
  Mike Marrs: Yeah, absolutely.
• 17:36
  Mike Marrs: So, of course, GM decided in their infinite influence, decided to kill Pontiac off, and the last one rolled off in 2010.
• 17:45
  Mike Marrs: Now moving up in the week, April the 16th, back in 1908.
• 17:50
  Mike Marrs: The very first car that was sold by the Oakland Motor Car Company.
• 17:54
  Mike Marrs: Never even heard of the Oakland Motor Car Company.
• 17:57
  Mike Marrs: Took place April 16th, 1908.
• 17:59
  Mike Marrs: And this was a brand that became very recognizable very quick.
• 18:03
  Mike Marrs: It was started by Edward Murphy, and uh they were considered very solid, reliable cars, and of course, that meant General Motors needed to buy them up.
• 18:13
  Mike Marrs: And by 1920s, GM introduced Pontiac, and it was so popular that they did away with the Oakland Motor Car Company by 1931.
• 18:24
  Mike Marrs: Now, moving up to April 16th, 2003, to get away from the conventional SUV designs, which many people are concerned why.
• 18:32
  Mike Marrs: The Honda Element went on sale.
• 18:35
  Mike Marrs: Now, this was considered a fresh take on practicality, and it was the lifestyle-focused vehicle, you know, because of the engineering and the accessories that came along with it.
• 18:45
  Don Armstrong: And the ugly unpainted fenders.
• 18:47
  Don Armstrong: That was all part of it.
• 18:49
  Mike Marrs: It was built on a Honda CR platform.
• 18:51
  Mike Marrs: It was boxy, modular design that was supposed to appeal to the new generation that was adventurous and more outdoorsy.
• 18:59
  Mike Marrs: At the suicide doors, a washable interior, and it was aimed at the active young buyers.
• 19:06
  Mike Marrs: And uh over time, some people still like it.
• 19:10
  Jeff Dziekan: They all got older and they'd stop buying them.
• 19:12
  Jeff Dziekan: They make a few.
• 19:31
  Don Armstrong: Yeah, two 10,000 uh CFM carburetors sitting on top of it.
• 19:35
  Don Armstrong: And why and while you're at it, put some zoomy headers out the fenders.
• 19:38
  Jeff Dziekan: And uh and a fake nitrous tank in the back.
• 19:40
  Mike Marrs: Yeah, put them through the fenders like they do on the moving up to April the 17th.
• 19:46
  Mike Marrs: Now, we've talked about this before.
• 19:48
  Mike Marrs: Mustang made its debut at the New York World's Fair.
• 19:51
  Mike Marrs: Now, this was really cool.
• 19:53
  Mike Marrs: It was a big deal, but I did not realize that the same day they were doing this at the World's Fair, that they had all their dealers throw them up for sale the same day.
• 20:04
  Mike Marrs: They literally reportedly took 22,000 orders on that very same day that that vehicle was rolled out at the World's Fair.
• 20:11
  Mike Marrs: They reportedly sold 400,000 of these cars in the very first year it was out there.
• 20:17
  Mike Marrs: Wow.
• 20:17
  Mike Marrs: And it it really made a big change in the way people looked at how to do uh the mass market for these vehicles, particularly the pony cars, which led to a lot more cars coming into that segment.
• 20:28
  Mike Marrs: And then they recalled every one of them.
• 20:33
  Mike Marrs: So April the 17th, 1970, Apollo 13 astronauts actually returned safely from uh their little trip.
• 20:40
  Mike Marrs: But and the reason this comes in is because of the mass amount of engineering and materials that they used to make this uh mission happen.
• 20:50
  Mike Marrs: A lot of it flowed very quickly into the automotive segment in in the way it was lightweight construction, the electronics, and how the system redundancies found their ways into the cars because it demonstrated that all this technology could work.
• 21:04
  Mike Marrs: So uh it was really applicable to a lot of things, but it definitely impacted the automotive industry.
• 21:11
  Mike Marrs: And that was just a few of the things we found this week interesting in automotive history.
• 21:16
  Don Armstrong: I love the Pontiac stories.
• 21:17
  Don Armstrong: Yeah, yeah, and I remember when those Pontiacs came out, my dad was a Buick guy, but uh there was a guy that he worked with, and he uh managed to have a new Pontiac all the time.
• 21:30
  Don Armstrong: And he had the Pontiac Grand Prix, that that car that you showed there earlier, and I just thought that was the cat's meow.
• 21:40
  Don Armstrong: Good looking body, had lots of power, a luxurious interior, but it wasn't up there at the Cadillac level, it was in the sportier, cool level.
• 21:50
  Jeff Dziekan: I saw one uh recently that was restored, and there are very, very few around to actually get parts for, and there's not a part a lot of parts left, not even the the new in stock.
• 22:00
  Jeff Dziekan: Box type stuff.
• 22:01
  Jeff Dziekan: Um eight lug wheel.
• 22:02
  Jeff Dziekan: That was cool.
• 22:03
  Jeff Dziekan: Yes.
• 22:06
  Don Armstrong: That was very uh unique.
• 22:08
  Don Armstrong: Very good stuff.
• 22:08
  Don Armstrong: Yeah.
• 22:09
  Don Armstrong: Good stuff.
• 22:11
  Don Armstrong: Well, thank you for that, Mr.
• 22:12
  Don Armstrong: Morris.
• 22:14
  Don Armstrong: Are you still with us?
• 22:16
  Mike Marrs: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
• 22:17
  Mike Marrs: No, I was just thinking, I remember when my dad bought one.
• 22:20
  Mike Marrs: This is years ago, of course.
• 22:22
  Mike Marrs: He was haggling, haggling, haggling with a used car lot to buy this bright white Pontiac.
• 22:27
  Mike Marrs: I don't remember exactly which one it was, but it had the fins and stuff on it.
• 22:30
  Mike Marrs: And he was so proud.
• 22:31
  Mike Marrs: And you know, we got it all loaded up.
• 22:33
  Mike Marrs: He had to get home, so he had to go to work the next day.
• 22:36
  Mike Marrs: And we ran out of gas on the way home in the new car.
• 22:40
  Mike Marrs: I remember that forever.
• 22:42
  Mike Marrs: He was so mad that he didn't think he was still.
• 22:45
  Don Armstrong: Do you remember back in the day?
• 22:47
  Don Armstrong: Um, the dealer gave you like a quarter of a tank of gas, and you oh, thank you so much.
• 22:54
  Don Armstrong: And then somebody got the bright idea, we'll give you a full tank of gas.
• 22:58
  Don Armstrong: You buy today.
• 22:59
  Don Armstrong: Yeah.
• 23:00
  Don Armstrong: And that then uh the quarter tank ended abruptly.
• 23:03
  Jeff Dziekan: Yeah, but a full tank of gas back then was like six bucks.
• 23:07
  Jeff Dziekan: At the most.
• 23:08
  Jeff Dziekan: Yeah.
• 23:09
  Don Armstrong: I remember gas wars where it was uh like you know twenty-five cents a gallon.
• 23:14
  Don Armstrong: You go through your couch to get gas money.
• 23:16
  Mike Marrs: Yeah, we actually got down to 19 cents for about two weeks one time.
• 23:20
  Don Armstrong: By the way, and I'm not trying to put you on the spot here.
• 23:23
  Don Armstrong: Uh I was asking Jeff, I said, what is meant by the Golden Triangle?
• 23:29
  Don Armstrong: Do you know Mars?
• 23:30
  Mike Marrs: Yes.
• 23:30
  Mike Marrs: So Beaumont, Port Arthur, and Orange, Triangle, if you look at it on the map, and that's where all the refineries, Texaco's largest refinery was here, Chevron, Gulf, all that stuff because of the refineries, uh, in that area is the reason it's called the Golden Triangle.
• 23:48
  Mike Marrs: Again, twin one time it was almost 24% of the nation's gasoline came from the Golden Triangle.
• 23:54
  Don Armstrong: I just read it was it all started with Spindletop over there 1901.
• 23:59
  Don Armstrong: And there's a spindle uh yeah, the Spindletop Museum, which is an interesting place.
• 24:04
  Don Armstrong: If you ever have some time, stop in there and check that out.
• 24:07
  Jeff Dziekan: Just a little bit of uh history.
• 24:08
  Don Armstrong: I got some uh interesting notes here uh regarding new vehicle electric vehicle registrations fell 37 percent in February from a year earlier, pushing share below five percent across the board as the loss of tax incentives continued to ripple across the U.S.
• 24:25
  Don Armstrong: light vehicle market.
• 24:26
  Don Armstrong: But while some automakers canceled EV nameplates as sales cooled, others pushed ahead, including Toyota with its best-selling BZ crossover.
• 24:35
  Don Armstrong: EV registrations totaled 56,000 in February, and their share of the light vehicle market dipped to 4.8 percent from 7.2 a year earlier.
• 24:44
  Don Armstrong: That data does not include hybrids.
• 24:47
  Don Armstrong: Without the federal tax credit that expired September 30th, the EV market better reflects organic demand now for new vehicle consumers that are kind of slowly warming up to the idea of an electric.
• 25:01
  Mike Marrs: I wonder how it's doing around the rest of the world.
• 25:04
  Mike Marrs: We don't know how to do that.
• 25:05
  Don Armstrong: Well, apparently in in Europe it it's it's pretty big.
• 25:08
  Don Armstrong: But remember it's it's different because they've got the infrastructure apparently, plus it's not that far to go from Germany to France.
• 25:18
  Jeff Dziekan: True.
• 25:18
  Jeff Dziekan: You know, yeah, so there's that.
• 25:20
  Jeff Dziekan: And the roads are smaller.
• 25:21
  Jeff Dziekan: There's not a lot of narrow in the yeah, and on the inner city sides.
• 25:27
  Don Armstrong: So there's all of that.
• 25:30
  Don Armstrong: And um let's see, I don't want to get bogged down here and lose track of time.
• 25:35
  Don Armstrong: Carol Shelby will remain a part of Ford Motor Company's engineering campus, despite a plan released by the automaker showing the legendary designer's name being removed from two streets near its new headquarters.
• 25:48
  Don Armstrong: I said that story last week.
• 25:50
  Don Armstrong: Renaming the two segments of Carol Shelby Way as Raptor Way and Navigator Avenue was under consideration but not finalized, Ford said in an April 10th statement, apologizing for a miscommunication.
• 26:02
  Don Armstrong: Carol Shelby Way is not changing, Ford said.
• 26:05
  Don Armstrong: The statement corrected information released April 9th by Ford Land, the automaker's real estate arm, saying Carol Shelby Way West and Carol Shelby Way East were among four streets changing in May.
• 26:18
  Don Armstrong: Well, they didn't talk to the big boss up the way, and they went, nah, not happening.
• 26:24
  Mike Marrs: They didn't get permission.
• 26:26
  Don Armstrong: Correct.
• 26:26
  Jeff Dziekan: And uh so they're there'll be a little something in your last check.
• 26:30
  Jeff Dziekan: They're gonna they're gonna fix it.
• 26:32
  Don Armstrong: Okay, the N-Wheel Time Car Talk Show continues right after this quick break.
• 26:36
  Don Armstrong: Your car is a direct reflection of you, so don't be satisfied with color fade or a dingy dull appearance.
• 26:42
  Don Armstrong: Get rid of those terrible automated car wash scratches.
• 26:45
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• 26:48
  Don Armstrong: John Gray and his team of detailing experts can help your cars finish without a full repaint.
• 26:53
  Don Armstrong: Searching for real experts in window tent or windshield protection, Gulf Coast Auto Shield.
• 26:58
  Don Armstrong: Dash cams, radar detectors, Gulf Coast Auto Shield.
• 27:02
  Don Armstrong: Got a new car?
• 27:03
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• 27:05
  Don Armstrong: If you don't know which of the multitude of protection products to go with, John Gray will give you an honest opinion and won't sell you something you don't need.
• 27:12
  Don Armstrong: John will help you understand the many options and pricing right on the spot.
• 27:16
  Don Armstrong: He's your guy to have your ride looking its best and protected too.
• 27:20
  Don Armstrong: See this state-of-the-art shop yourself, free tours anytime.
• 27:22
  Don Armstrong: Gulf Coast Auto Shield is easy to get to, located just south of the Southwest Freeway on the Sam Houston Parkway.
• 27:28
  Don Armstrong: Gulf Coast Auto Shield, full service luxury car care today and online at gcautoshield.com.
• 27:36
  Don Armstrong: Gift giving should be meaningful, and we have an idea.
• 27:39
  Don Armstrong: A hand-painted custom illustration of your car from one of the nation's leading artists.
• 27:43
  Don Armstrong: Now you can get one or a car show poster customized for you, a friend, or a loved one.
• 27:48
  Don Armstrong: Bill Sites will be happy to guide you through the process.
• 27:51
  Don Armstrong: No matter what the day, birthday, anniversary, or any day, an autographics custom illustration adds an extra touch of class to any home.
• 27:58
  Don Armstrong: Call Bill today, 832-922-0963.
• 28:02
  Don Armstrong: That's 832-922-0963.
• 28:08
  Don Armstrong: Well, guess what?
• 28:09
  Don Armstrong: That sound says.
• 28:10
  Don Armstrong: It's time to say goodbye.
• 28:12
  Don Armstrong: That's all for this week's In Wheel Time Car Talk Show.
• 28:15
  Don Armstrong: Be sure to check us out online at Inwheeltime.com.
• 28:18
  Don Armstrong: We're always looking for new, informative, and great automotive things to bring to our global audience.
• 28:23
  Don Armstrong: If you've got an idea, an event, road trip, or tall tale you'd like us to feature, let us know.
• 28:28
  Don Armstrong: Our email is info at inwheeltime.com.
• 28:33
  Don Armstrong: Hey, when you're searching for award-winning Car Talk, you can find the InWheel Time Car Talk Show 24-7 on the InWheel Time app and website.
• 28:40
  Don Armstrong: Grab a podcast from your favorite podcast store, video stream or live show every Saturday, 10 to noon on Facebook, YouTube, and InWheelTime.com.
• 28:50
  Don Armstrong: The InWheel Time Video Coordinator is We Need More Jeff Zeke.
• 28:54
  Don Armstrong: For booking agent and video editor, Michael Out of This World Mars, and Chief Engineer David Ainsley.
• 29:02
  Don Armstrong: I'm Dot Armstrong.
• 29:04
  Don Armstrong: Thanks to our weekly show contributors, Jeff Heitzman and George Skelton.
• 29:08
  Don Armstrong: We hope you'll join us again next week for from our Dual City Studios, 10 to noon Central Time.
• 29:13
  Don Armstrong: Have a great weekend.
• 29:14
  Don Armstrong: Stay safe out there.
• 29:15
  Don Armstrong: Watch the weather tonight.
• 29:17
  Don Armstrong: So long for now.
• 29:22
  Don Armstrong: That's it for this podcast episode of the In Wheel Time Car Show.
• 29:25
  Don Armstrong: I'm Don Armstrong, inviting you to join us for our live show every Saturday morning on Facebook, YouTube, Twitch, and our InWheeltime.com website.
• 29:35
  Don Armstrong: Podcasts are available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, iHeartPodcast, Podcast Addict, TuneIn, Pandora, and Amazon Music.
• 29:44
  Don Armstrong: Keep listening, and we'll see you soon.