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Steering Through Texas: The Rise of Mini Trucks and JDM Culture · In Wheel Time Podcast

• 0:01
  Speaker 1: Welcome to another In Wheel Time podcast, a 30-minute mini version of the In Wheel Time Car Show that airs live every Saturday morning 8 to 11 am, central.
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: Thanks for joining us on the In Wheel Time Car Talk Show Ahead.
• 0:19
  Speaker 1: Texas Import Society.
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: I like the name.
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: What's legal and what's not in Texas?
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: Uh-oh, mini trucks Question mark.
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: Later, jeff has this week's Motor Minute and I'll have also this week's stories making automotive news headlines.
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: Howdy, along with Mike out of this world, mars.
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: We always need more.
• 0:40
  Speaker 1: Jeff Zekin.
• 0:41
  Speaker 1: I'm Don Armstrong.
• 0:42
  Speaker 1: Thanks so much for joining us on this Saturday for our live broadcast.
• 0:45
  Speaker 1: We've got podcasts throughout the week.
• 0:47
  Speaker 1: We do New one every day.
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: Our live show airs on Saturday morning so you can catch us live Tune in, tune in.
• 0:57
  Speaker 1: If you're not tuning in already, tune in.
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: Well, we have a guest this hour.
• 1:02
  Speaker 1: His name is David McChristian.
• 1:03
  Speaker 1: He's with the Texas Import Society.
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: David, good morning, good morning.
• 1:11
  Speaker 1: Thanks for having us on again.
• 1:12
  Speaker 1: Hey, thank you for joining us.
• 1:14
  Speaker 1: We really appreciate it.
• 1:15
  Speaker 1: So you're a young guy.
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: Mini trucks Is that what we're going to talk about today?
• 1:23
  Speaker 2: Yeah, yes, sir.
• 1:23
  Speaker 2: Last time we talked to you was middle of December.
• 1:26
  Speaker 2: Mini trucks K vehicles were not street legal in Texas and as of April 4th 2024, they are now street legal due to the work that we've done.
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: Way to go, bravo.
• 1:37
  Speaker 2: Got Greg with me.
• 1:37
  Speaker 2: He's got some cool stuff to show you and talk about them.
• 1:40
  Speaker 1: Okay, great.
• 1:46
  Speaker 2: So let's define, for everybody that doesn't know, what a mini truck is.
• 1:48
  Speaker 2: So a mini truck that was kind of.
• 1:49
  Speaker 2: The issue was the definition of what it is, what it means.
• 1:57
  Speaker 2: We specifically wanted to talk about K trucks, that are Japanese mini trucks.
• 1:58
  Speaker 2: So the DMV kind of lumped everything together.
• 2:00
  Speaker 2: Their policy was kind of vague and left a lot of it up to interpretation.
• 2:10
  Speaker 1: Is it just mini trucks?
• 2:10
  Speaker 1: Is it every K vehicle?
• 2:11
  Speaker 1: And that's kind of what we want to clarify.
• 2:12
  Speaker 1: Well, first of all, explain what is K vehicle.
• 2:13
  Speaker 1: What does that mean, K vehicle?
• 2:15
  Speaker 2: So K class vehicles?
• 2:16
  Speaker 2: Greg might have a better definition of it than I do, but it's the class of vehicles in Japan that are regulated by the government.
• 2:21
  Speaker 2: Engine displacement, size, dimensions is all regulated by the government.
• 2:31
  Speaker 1: They're small, they get tax breaks in Japan, so it's just a small class of vehicle that we don't really see here in the United States, so it's not a Chevy.
• 2:35
  Speaker 2: Love.
• 2:36
  Speaker 2: No, I mean they're similar in size.
• 2:39
  Speaker 3: I had a Chevy Love.
• 2:40
  Speaker 1: Did you have a Chevy Love?
• 2:41
  Speaker 1: I had a.
• 2:41
  Speaker 3: Chevy Love four-wheel drive.
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: I had a black one, I remember when the Chevy Loves came out, everybody went wow, I like that, look at how small it is.
• 2:48
  Speaker 1: It moved to Texas in it, did you?
• 2:50
  Speaker 1: Yeah, there you go, A Chevy Love.
• 2:51
  Speaker 1: And I know Ford had the Ranger.
• 2:55
  Speaker 3: It was owned by General.
• 3:01
  Speaker 1: Motors, but it had a Nisuzu motor in it, so okay, so now we've got the definition of it and who?
• 3:07
  Speaker 1: Who's over there on the right hand side of the screen I'm greg.
• 3:11
  Speaker 4: I'm uh in austin, texas.
• 3:12
  Speaker 4: I own atx custom auto.
• 3:14
  Speaker 4: Uh, we specialize in the maintenance um and modification of import vehicles that were never available in the us.
• 3:22
  Speaker 1: So I guess now you've got about 20 vehicles ready to pull into the shop, now that it's all legalized.
• 3:30
  Speaker 4: Oh, we were working on them well before they were fully legalized.
• 3:34
  Speaker 4: It's Texas People still wanted them and they still got them, whether or not.
• 3:38
  Speaker 1: Kind of flying under the radar a bit.
• 3:41
  Speaker 4: Exactly.
• 3:41
  Speaker 4: Now it's no longer the case.
• 3:44
  Speaker 1: There isn't that taboo on well, I have to ask you so.
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: I mean, if you had one and you were driving it on the street, would a police officer know that it wasn't legal?
• 3:52
  Speaker 4: I mean, I wouldn't it depends on the police officer and in my personal um experience, they're more interested in seeing what's up, why you're driving on the wrong side of the vehicle.
• 4:05
  Speaker 4: What is this little truck you're driving that's hauling so much in the back?
• 4:10
  Speaker 3: There is a little shop in Rosenberg, texas I go by it quite often that actually has one of these as a delivery vehicle for their food products.
• 4:20
  Speaker 3: But it just delivers in that neighborhood.
• 4:22
  Speaker 3: It doesn't get on the highway and go 10 miles or anything.
• 4:24
  Speaker 3: It's like within a three mile radius of that shop.
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: Okay, so let's talk about what is available to us here in the United States regarding a K vehicle.
• 4:36
  Speaker 2: David would have a better idea than I do.
• 4:38
  Speaker 4: Okay, so I mean there are different classifications of K vehicles and I actually have quite a few, but the biggest one, obviously the one that was focused on, were mini trucks.
• 4:48
  Speaker 4: K trucks they're made by every major Japanese manufacturer Honda, nissan, subaru, mazda, going on and they all pretty much look the exact same, with a couple of aesthetic differences.
• 5:02
  Speaker 1: Now is this the one that we're showing now.
• 5:03
  Speaker 1: It's like a cab over and then a truck bed in the back.
• 5:06
  Speaker 1: It's the Suzuki.
• 5:08
  Speaker 3: Carry if you can't see it.
• 5:09
  Speaker 4: The traditional K truck and I had two of them is a mid-engined or rear-engined design.
• 5:19
  Speaker 4: Underneath the bed, underneath the bed?
• 5:23
  Speaker 4: Yeah, underneath the bed of the truck.
• 5:25
  Speaker 4: How do you work on the motor if it's underneath the bed, underneath?
• 5:26
  Speaker 1: the bed, yeah, underneath the bed of the truck.
• 5:26
  Speaker 1: How do you work on the motor if it's underneath the bed?
• 5:29
  Speaker 4: carefully.
• 5:29
  Speaker 4: So here is your traditional k truck.
• 5:32
  Speaker 4: Okay, it's a small truck, it's about 10 feet long.
• 5:37
  Speaker 4: You have your engine access panel right there, got it.
• 5:41
  Speaker 4: Anything on the top of it and everything below is very nice and easy to work on.
• 5:48
  Speaker 4: I have one up on the lift as well, doing a full transmission change on it.
• 5:53
  Speaker 1: Now, okay, so what is the one that you just showed us?
• 5:56
  Speaker 1: Who makes that?
• 5:56
  Speaker 4: one.
• 5:57
  Speaker 4: So that one is a Honda Acty, and that's probably the most known name when it comes to K-trucks because there have been tons of uh stories done about them specifically.
• 6:08
  Speaker 4: Can you buy a new one?
• 6:10
  Speaker 4: So that's where it gets into the federal.
• 6:14
  Speaker 4: Yes, you can buy a new one in japan.
• 6:16
  Speaker 4: However, since it has to hit the 25 year mark before we can bring it over to america and import it legally, not really.
• 6:24
  Speaker 1: Gotcha, so I'm not good at math, but I guess we can all do the math.
• 6:30
  Speaker 1: We're looking at about a 1999?
• 6:32
  Speaker 1: .
• 6:33
  Speaker 4: Correct, got.
• 6:34
  Speaker 4: It Is the newest one and that was actually the start of a new generation of a lot of the mini trucks, so a lot of different face styles of the trucks will be starting to poke their heads out as well.
• 6:44
  Speaker 1: See, I would call that a cab over.
• 6:46
  Speaker 1: It's a cab over to me design because you're right up front, actually in front of well, your legs are in front of the front wheels yeah, you're on top of one axle on many okay, gotcha, and so I uh explain to me, if you can, why they would put the engine in the back.
• 7:06
  Speaker 1: Was it for the price point?
• 7:09
  Speaker 4: Why would the price point, but economics, um, in terms of delivery and fuel economy, having the engine right there, it's similar to a front wheel drive car you have the engine and you have the power being transferred directly to the wheels, without the need for a drive shaft or a transfer case things like that.
• 7:27
  Speaker 4: So mechanically, it makes more sense, especially because of the k regulations that david uh had already brought into play.
• 7:34
  Speaker 4: All of these vehicles are limited to a 658 cubic centimeter engine or smaller like a motorcycle engine pretty much yes, so you're so there's no four-wheel drive yeah, they.
• 7:48
  Speaker 4: So there are four-wheel drive ones, but they are less fuel economy so you're more towards uh farm trucks and commercial use you're in austin, where is david at?
• 7:59
  Speaker 1: I'm just north of houston okay I could tell you're a lot closer.
• 8:06
  Speaker 3: So with your shop I mean you're open seven days a week, five days a week it looks like you've got a pretty big space there with a lot of other things going on.
• 8:14
  Speaker 4: Yeah, I'm open pretty much by appointment and it all depends on what the customer needs.
• 8:19
  Speaker 4: It could be seven days a week, it could be, you know, 10 pm on a Friday night that they want to drop off their car, just like this R34 Skyline that just got dropped off yesterday.
• 8:29
  Speaker 3: Oh yeah.
• 8:29
  Speaker 4: Lucky you.
• 8:33
  Speaker 1: So you guys are all about the import stuff?
• 8:35
  Speaker 1: Well, look at his shirt.
• 8:36
  Speaker 3: Did you see his shirt?
• 8:37
  Speaker 3: All things Z JDM.
• 8:39
  Speaker 1: There you go.
• 8:40
  Speaker 1: So I can't buy a new one, so can you facilitate the purchase of one for me?
• 8:48
  Speaker 4: Absolutely.
• 8:48
  Speaker 4: We not only do roll-on, roll-off shipping via normal carriers, we actually bring over containers from Japan with parts in them, because most of these vehicles again were never available in the US.
• 9:00
  Speaker 4: So the ability to get parts.
• 9:03
  Speaker 4: You can't just run to AutoZone and get most of your parts, so we'll bring them in in a container and so we have stock of parts and are able to distribute them for either the at-home mechanic they need the parts, they don't know where to get it, we get it for them or they bring it in.
• 9:18
  Speaker 4: We have them ready to go and we're able to work on it.
• 9:20
  Speaker 1: What's the most popular vehicle in this K-Line that you have.
• 9:25
  Speaker 1: What most popular vehicle in this K line that you?
• 9:27
  Speaker 4: have what's the most popular?
• 9:28
  Speaker 4: What do you do the most of?
• 9:29
  Speaker 4: I would say many trucks are in general I mean, I won't specify a brand on that because there are just so many that come in.
• 9:37
  Speaker 4: The second one down is typically a Honda beat.
• 9:40
  Speaker 4: I've had three of those in already and those are essentially the same engine as the mini truck but in a tiny roadster design okay, greg.
• 9:50
  Speaker 1: How do you know david uh through prison?
• 9:57
  Speaker 4: uh, we actually met during a k truck group and uh have just been working on the advocacy since uh trying to get this passed and, you know, shared similar interests.
• 10:07
  Speaker 1: Interesting.
• 10:08
  Speaker 1: Okay, so do you guys get together for meets and stuff like that?
• 10:12
  Speaker 1: I mean, do you have joint?
• 10:13
  Speaker 1: Got some in Austin, some here in Houston.
• 10:16
  Speaker 2: We haven't got together yet.
• 10:18
  Speaker 2: I've met a ton of people when I started this back in September 23.
• 10:21
  Speaker 2: But we're planning a big K rally in Austin in November of this year.
• 10:26
  Speaker 3: Okay so.
• 10:26
  Speaker 2: I've, but most of the people I've met it's just been through the internet, just people that were in a similar situation, you know, that were having trouble getting title and registration for their truck, and I started this group to help those people.
• 10:35
  Speaker 2: Innocent victims.
• 10:39
  Speaker 3: I've got.
• 10:39
  Speaker 3: I've got some money burning a hole in my pocket and I come to you in Austin and I say I want one of these.
• 10:43
  Speaker 3: Give me an idea of a cost and then how long it would take for me to actually take ownership.
• 10:50
  Speaker 4: So it depends on, again, the model, your budget and the features you want.
• 10:54
  Speaker 4: A lot of the K trucks, as you can imagine, being from Japan didn't come with AC, so that's an added feature.
• 11:00
  Speaker 4: But typically for a basic K truck Honda Acty you're looking at $7,000 to $8,000 out the door and for something what's considered the Porsche of K trucks a supercharged Subaru Sandbar you're looking at probably $12,000 to $13,000 out the door, so affordable these are the affordable hikes.
• 11:22
  Speaker 3: So when you get to the four-wheel drive, I'm thinking beach, you know, running up and down the beach or a retirement community.
• 11:28
  Speaker 3: You don't need four-wheel drive for that.
• 11:31
  Speaker 2: But you're headed there, so we were all good.
• 11:33
  Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, so how long would it take to get one?
• 11:38
  Speaker 4: Typically from the time we find it to the time it gets over here, about two months, Okay.
• 11:44
  Speaker 1: And then, once you get it, do you have to do anything for it?
• 11:46
  Speaker 1: I mean, I mean, is it running, not running?
• 11:50
  Speaker 1: What kind of condition is it in?
• 11:53
  Speaker 4: So I work with a number of specific exporters in Japan, so all the vehicles that we get are 100% running.
• 12:00
  Speaker 4: I, just as a personal thing, I always do a maintenance once it hits this side of the ocean anyway, because it's been traveling on a ship uh, on the water for you know six weeks.
• 12:12
  Speaker 4: At that point there's no reason not to, just in case someone you know, a port worker, decided to go happy fun with your truck all around you know, doing burnouts in the whole test drive around.
• 12:28
  Speaker 4: You know, yeah, doing burnouts in the whole test drive, we'll make sure to swap out the radio with one that picks up american stations.
• 12:32
  Speaker 4: Um, because they do.
• 12:32
  Speaker 4: Japanese have a different frequency band that they work with, so the only overlapping channel you get is, uh, typically 89.5 fm, which in most markets I've found is classical music.
• 12:43
  Speaker 4: So so until you swap out that radio, you're looking at radio silence for a little bit.
• 12:49
  Speaker 1: How did you get into this?
• 12:50
  Speaker 1: Well, let's go to David.
• 12:52
  Speaker 1: David, how did you get into this?
• 12:55
  Speaker 2: So I've always wanted a Pajero Mini, which is an SUV K vehicle.
• 12:59
  Speaker 1: We know, somebody that's got a Pajero yeah.
• 13:03
  Speaker 2: So those are awesome.
• 13:03
  Speaker 2: I've always wanted one Pajero, yeah yeah.
• 13:04
  Speaker 2: So those, those are awesome, I've always wanted one.
• 13:05
  Speaker 2: Um, you know the nineties, uh, k vehicles are kind of like the, you know the, uh, the ones that everybody, the best generation of them, uh, so I looked into that.
• 13:16
  Speaker 2: Those are a little bit more expensive to get than I, you know, got onto the mini trucks and got one of those.
• 13:19
  Speaker 2: So, um, just just wanting something different, wanting something to work on.
• 13:22
  Speaker 2: I used to be into diesel trucks and got married and had kids, so I wanted something a little bit cheaper to work on and tinker with.
• 13:29
  Speaker 1: How funny is that?
• 13:30
  Speaker 1: And how about you, Greg?
• 13:31
  Speaker 1: How did you get into this Same way?
• 13:33
  Speaker 4: Pretty much the same way.
• 13:34
  Speaker 4: I mean, growing up, I always preferred imports.
• 13:38
  Speaker 4: I've been working on cars since I was about nine.
• 13:40
  Speaker 4: The first car I built myself was a Nissan Z car, an 83 280ZX and so ever since then, then it's all been jdm or japanese imports for me nissan, subarus, mostas, things like that.
• 13:52
  Speaker 4: Um, and then I drove my first right hand drive car that wasn't available in r31 skyline and I was like, oh, this is completely different than anything that I've ever been offered here in the states.
• 14:02
  Speaker 4: And since then, uh, it's all.
• 14:04
  Speaker 4: It's all been about the cars that were never available here.
• 14:08
  Speaker 1: I think it was Monty Python that said and now for something completely different.
• 14:17
  Speaker 3: There's a young man near where I live that has a right-hand drive.
• 14:19
  Speaker 3: I'm not sure the car itself.
• 14:21
  Speaker 1: Is it like that, or?
• 14:22
  Speaker 3: is it a truck?
• 14:23
  Speaker 3: No, it's a car.
• 14:24
  Speaker 3: It's probably a JDM, whatever it is.
• 14:25
  Speaker 3: It's like the one behind you, but it's a, it like that.
• 14:25
  Speaker 3: Or is it a truck?
• 14:25
  Speaker 3: No, it's a, it's a car.
• 14:26
  Speaker 3: It's, it's probably a jdm, whatever it is.
• 14:26
  Speaker 1: Um, it's like the one behind you, uh, but it's right hand drive interesting, interesting car um, okay, I'm thinking, I'm thinking this, this matt, uh, big meat that you've got coming up, that's going to be.
• 14:42
  Speaker 1: Is it going to be a nationwide invite, your friends and family kind of event?
• 14:46
  Speaker 2: So the idea behind it was before we got this policy change at the DMV.
• 14:50
  Speaker 2: So now, according to the DMV, they're fully street legal.
• 14:53
  Speaker 2: There was never any legislation passed one way or the other that mentioned these trucks, so it was all regulated by DMV policy.
• 15:00
  Speaker 2: So before the next session in 2025, we wanted to get a group together, get some publicity out, let people know what they are, what we're trying to do, and help get some just hype going out around the 2025 session and getting a bill passed to finally protect these trucks you know, outside of DMV policy, get a state statute passed and have a more concrete assurance that they're not going to flip flop the policy again here in five, six years or whatever it is.
• 15:25
  Speaker 1: Well, I know that our friends the Lilienthals, they live over on the West Coast and they're big into the JDM, the Pajero in particular, and they have modified it and they go camping with it and do all these crazy things with it.
• 15:43
  Speaker 1: Nobody knows what it is.
• 15:44
  Speaker 1: We certainly didn't know.
• 15:46
  Speaker 1: They've kind of schooled us on that.
• 15:48
  Speaker 1: So, there's apparently some underground network of people like yourselves that are really into this, and I am sure, in a city that has, you know, 7 million people like Houston, I would imagine that there's probably quite a following.
• 16:06
  Speaker 2: Yeah, there's a pretty good following all over the country and one of the reasons why we started this group is because, starting in about 2021, there's been a crackdown on JDM vehicles many trucks.
• 16:14
  Speaker 2: More specifically, in Maine, they totally banned any JDM right-hand drive vehicle from road use.
• 16:19
  Speaker 2: They call them off-road vehicles.
• 16:20
  Speaker 2: They don't meet federal motor vehicle safety standards, not eligible for registration and title.
• 16:25
  Speaker 2: That's spread throughout the country, most recently Georgia.
• 16:28
  Speaker 2: They kind of have a vague policy now that pretty much limits any JDM vehicle, any right-hand drive vehicle.
• 16:34
  Speaker 2: Any vehicle that has a short VIN is their metric that they use, which would incorporate or involve most JDM vehicles.
• 16:41
  Speaker 2: So we wanted to get ahead of it in Texas before they started sending people letters in the mail revoking their titles and registration, like they did in Maine and in Georgia.
• 16:48
  Speaker 1: Well, I find it interesting that the government is involved in this.
• 16:51
  Speaker 1: Yet they've got right-hand drive vehicles when they deliver the mail, Yep.
• 16:55
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, that's one of the weird things.
• 16:57
  Speaker 2: It all comes back to the AAMVA, which is the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators, motor Vehicle Administrators.
• 17:02
  Speaker 2: They're a nonprofit organization, non-governmental organization that advises state and local governments, federal governments, on their transportation policy, what vehicles they should allow, what they should write tickets for, and they want to have uniform regulation all throughout the country.
• 17:19
  Speaker 2: So they recommended a ban on these trucks and DMVs across the country are taking their word, putting their word in policy and banning these trucks.
• 17:25
  Speaker 2: Well, that's a bunch of garbage.
• 17:27
  Speaker 1: Who are these jerks.
• 17:30
  Speaker 2: It is interesting you know they get.
• 17:31
  Speaker 2: There's a Norwegian light bulb company that gives them money.
• 17:34
  Speaker 2: So I don't know why a Norwegian light bulb company would have any interest in what vehicles are on roads in Texas.
• 17:38
  Speaker 2: But kind of knowing their motivations, who's behind the group, where their money's coming from, how they spend their money is interesting that they would pick these trucks to pick on.
• 17:48
  Speaker 1: Oh, it's a bunch of old white-haired men like us.
• 17:51
  Speaker 1: They're going.
• 17:52
  Speaker 1: Well, we can't bring that in here.
• 17:54
  Speaker 1: Wally Walrus is all.
• 17:56
  Speaker 1: I can think of, I want one too, I want one too, but you know we're of that generation.
• 18:01
  Speaker 1: It's like, ah, screw you, we're going to go do this anyway, we're going to do it anyways.
• 18:06
  Speaker 2: Yeah yeah, it's under the guise of safety.
• 18:07
  Speaker 2: They say they don't meet federal motor vehicle safety standards and emission requirements, but we're talking about 25-year-old trucks that have federal exemptions for those things, like any other vehicle.
• 18:16
  Speaker 1: It doesn't meet federal safety reg.
• 18:17
  Speaker 1: Okay, tell me that a motorcycle does.
• 18:20
  Speaker 3: What's the top speed on it?
• 18:27
  Speaker 4: Greg on it.
• 18:27
  Speaker 4: Uh, greg might have a better idea.
• 18:29
  Speaker 4: Um, that depends on make and model.
• 18:30
  Speaker 4: Yeah, it very much varies between make and model.
• 18:31
  Speaker 4: Your basic honda acty, two-wheel drive or four-wheel drive, tops out about 55 60 miles an hour not bad your higher end.
• 18:38
  Speaker 3: So you're not even going to make the minimum speed on the beltway that's right.
• 18:42
  Speaker 1: All I can is hey, all these electric people thinking about electric cars, get you one of these.
• 18:48
  Speaker 1: Go back and forth to church, go to the grocery store, pick up the kids at the soccer match.
• 18:55
  Speaker 1: What's the miles per gallon?
• 18:58
  Speaker 4: Varies based on driver realistically 40.
• 19:01
  Speaker 4: 40.
• 19:01
  Speaker 4: Rock heavy foot uses more gas, but your average minimum is about 25 miles a gallon.
• 19:08
  Speaker 4: If you drive nice and slow around a church, you're looking at closer to 30, possibly 35.
• 19:16
  Speaker 3: See, there you go, Beats me out of 19 in my raring truck.
• 19:19
  Speaker 3: Just rejet it.
• 19:20
  Speaker 3: Just put some different jets in there, yeah.
• 19:22
  Speaker 1: Gentlemen, it is an honor and a pleasure to talk to you guys and we want to know more, yep.
• 19:27
  Speaker 1: So it's going to be up to you to stay in touch with us.
• 19:30
  Speaker 1: Keep us posted on what's going on.
• 19:33
  Speaker 1: Greg, you got something new in the garage?
• 19:35
  Speaker 1: Call us, tell us, let's talk about it.
• 19:37
  Speaker 1: And David, I mean dude, we love this.
• 19:43
  Speaker 1: David, we want to be on board, help us.
• 19:47
  Speaker 2: Yeah, we love this, david, we want to be on board, help us.
• 19:48
  Speaker 2: Yeah, probably the next time I'll be in touch with you guys is before the next session in 2025.
• 19:52
  Speaker 2: We got a group of legislators that helped us getting this policy reversed at the DMV.
• 19:55
  Speaker 2: They saw it as kind of an overreach and overregulation by the DMV.
• 19:59
  Speaker 2: So we're going to work with those same legislators to try to get a bill to the governor's desk in 2025.
• 20:05
  Speaker 2: So I'll get on with you guys before our next or maybe the K rally or just before the next session, definitely the rally.
• 20:12
  Speaker 1: Yeah, if you want to drive down to Sugar Land and we can get together for a beer, we'll do that.
• 20:16
  Speaker 3: And we'll all get to back one of those and go to the rally or go to the drive-in.
• 20:20
  Speaker 3: Bring the lawn chairs, yeah.
• 20:21
  Speaker 1: David, greg, great to talk to you guys.
• 20:23
  Speaker 1: Thanks so much for joining us today.
• 20:24
  Speaker 1: Thank you, you bet.
• 20:26
  Speaker 1: Okay, I'm in.
• 20:29
  Speaker 3: Yeah, get Patrick involved in that we talked about going back to the real mini truck.
• 20:34
  Speaker 3: You know the little subcompacts and stuff.
• 20:35
  Speaker 3: That's about as close as you're going to get these days?
• 20:38
  Speaker 1: It certainly is.
• 20:39
  Speaker 1: Hey, you're on the In Wheel Time Car Talk Show.
• 20:41
  Speaker 1: Thanks for riding with us today.
• 20:42
  Speaker 1: We'd love to hear from you.
• 20:43
  Speaker 1: Shoot us an email info at nwheeltimecom.
• 20:45
  Speaker 1: We're going to play some commercials here and we'll be right back, okay, so stay with us.
• 20:50
  Speaker 1: Pro-am Auto Accessories has been serving Houston's auto enthusiasts since 1984, providing world-class products for sports cars, european sedans and American muscle.
• 20:59
  Speaker 1: Pro-am is known as the place to go to find exclusive and hard-to-find parts and accessories.
• 21:06
  Speaker 1: Pro-am is one of the very first distributors in the USA for brands such as Recaro, redline, momo Corbo and Simpson.
• 21:11
  Speaker 1: Located in the heart of Houston's premier retail and service corridor, the Galleria area, pro-am's walk-in storefront includes an 8,000-square-foot warehouse, showroom and installation bays.
• 21:21
  Speaker 1: Pro-am not only sells parts and accessories, but also offers installation and service.
• 21:25
  Speaker 1: Not only sells parts and accessories, but also offers installation and service.
• 21:28
  Speaker 1: Pro-am is now reaching a worldwide audience through Pro-Amcom, taking its local reputation to the rest of the world.
• 21:31
  Speaker 1: At Pro-Am Auto, you'll be dealing with a small group of professionals who truly want to help you with your automotive needs.
• 21:37
  Speaker 1: If you don't see what you're looking for on the website, call and Pro-Am will lend you a hand.
• 21:42
  Speaker 1: Pro-am Auto 6125 Richmond at Greenridge in Houston's Galleria area.
• 21:46
  Speaker 1: Call them at 713-781-7755.
• 21:49
  Speaker 1: Want to feel good about something special?
• 21:51
  Speaker 1: You did for someone special In Real Time and the original Loopy Tortilla group of Tex-Mex restaurants have joined together to help a very worthy cause God's Garage, a Christian-based 501c3 charity.
• 22:05
  Speaker 1: We know there are lots of places and organizations out there where you can donate a car, truck or SUV, but we're asking you, our car enthusiast family, to consider donating to God's Garage.
• 22:16
  Speaker 1: Visit godsgarageorg and learn about its mission, the women that have been helped, how each one is screened and about their Restore.
• 22:25
  Speaker 1: You program.
• 22:26
  Speaker 1: A car donation is an easy way to make a difference in the lives of others.
• 22:30
  Speaker 1: God's Garage needs good operating vehicles but will take all types in working and non-working condition.
• 22:36
  Speaker 1: Make your heart and soul feel good by donating your gently used vehicle and help support single mothers, widows and wives of deployed military at godsgarageorg.
• 22:49
  Speaker 3: Okay, keels and Wheels.
• 22:50
  Speaker 3: 20th annual Keels and Wheels is going to be in Lakewood Yacht Club down in Seabrook, texas.
• 22:57
  Speaker 3: It's coming up in May.
• 22:58
  Speaker 3: It's going to be May 3rd through the May 5th.
• 23:02
  Speaker 3: We've got tickets available online $30 at keels-wheelscom, $40 at the gate, $15 for students or children.
• 23:12
  Speaker 3: Children under 12 are free, but students are $15.
• 23:15
  Speaker 3: Lots going on.
• 23:16
  Speaker 3: We'll be down there Come see us.
• 23:18
  Speaker 1: Thank you, come see us.
• 23:19
  Speaker 1: Come see us.
• 23:19
  Speaker 1: Come see us and save All right.
• 23:22
  Speaker 1: Jeff's got a new feature called the Motor Minute.
• 23:25
  Speaker 3: Yeah, and you know how my favorite racing pastime is F1.
• 23:28
  Speaker 3: And we've been following kind of the Andretti saga with Cadillac and motor building and everything.
• 23:34
  Speaker 3: Well, they're not done.
• 23:36
  Speaker 3: Andretti was given the ax.
• 23:38
  Speaker 3: They said, no, we're not going to do that.
• 23:40
  Speaker 3: And for me the one, you go away for a few years.
• 23:42
  Speaker 3: You got to prove to us that you're able to do this.
• 23:44
  Speaker 3: Well, andretti's not done.
• 23:48
  Speaker 3: They actually bought a new facility in the UK Silverstone.
• 23:50
  Speaker 3: This was last Wednesday, this is reported.
• 23:52
  Speaker 3: Silverstone in the UK, andretti Global formed a new business and it's going to be for the F1 side of it.
• 24:02
  Speaker 3: General Motors is still on board, cadillac is still on board.
• 24:06
  Speaker 3: They're going to have a 48,000 square foot facility in the UK in addition to all the other things they got going on in the US.
• 24:14
  Speaker 3: So Michael Andretti, along with Dan Torres and he's the team president and the JF Thorman he is also involved there's about 80 employees going on.
• 24:24
  Speaker 3: They're going to build up to about 1,000 employees over the next couple of years.
• 24:28
  Speaker 3: Oh my gosh.
• 24:29
  Speaker 3: And they are going for the gold.
• 24:31
  Speaker 3: And I am 100% behind Andretti doing this because I think the Formula One group that's running it needs to go away.
• 24:38
  Speaker 3: You've got Toto Wolff.
• 24:40
  Speaker 3: That's part of the Mercedes and all of the decision-making.
• 24:43
  Speaker 3: His wife, susie Wolff, is part of another organization that they kind of trade information and not supposed to do it.
• 24:49
  Speaker 3: So, susie, what would you call her Big bad wolf?
• 24:51
  Speaker 3: Um, she's part of that and she's actually suing one of the organizations because they want to be more involved.
• 24:58
  Speaker 3: There's a long story behind it, but I'm a hundred percent Andretti.
• 25:02
  Speaker 3: I am team Andretti for this.
• 25:04
  Speaker 3: What are you trying to say, jeff?
• 25:05
  Speaker 3: I want Andretti to win.
• 25:06
  Speaker 3: Yeah absolutely.
• 25:08
  Speaker 1: You know it's funny.
• 25:09
  Speaker 1: I was reading a story this week about NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle Ooh Vance and Heinz team Harley Davidson, you know, pulled out and it's a big mess.
• 25:21
  Speaker 1: And there's all this inside stuff going on behind the scenes with who gets what motor and we're not going to give them this motor, we're going to give this person that motor, all this stuff going on Money talks.
• 25:37
  Speaker 3: That was back in the day of Indy racing and things, where Andretti was involved in that, mario, where he was on a team where they were giving him like the secondhand products to run and he got fed up and said no, he went to him, they switched it and he started becoming a champion.
• 25:54
  Speaker 1: So there's a lot of that in garbage stuff going on yeah, a lot going on there behind the scenes.
• 25:58
  Speaker 1: The In Real Time Car Talk show is available 24-7 through the iHeartRadio app.
• 26:07
  Speaker 1: Just look for In Wheel Time Car Talk.
• 26:08
  Speaker 1: We also video stream our three-hour weekly show on Facebook, youtube and InWheelTimecom, and podcasts are available from your favorite podcast provider In Wheel Time Car Talk show.
• 26:19
  Speaker 1: We're going to wrap things up right after a quick break, so stay with us.
• 26:24
  Speaker 1: The original group of Loopy Tortilla restaurants will have you telling your family and friends just what the original recipes mean when it comes to the best fajitas in Southeast Texas.
• 26:32
  Speaker 1: Founder Stan Holt invites you to visit the original Loopy Tortilla near I-10 and Highway 6.
• 26:36
  Speaker 1: Here's the original house that inspired the design of all the rest and the original charm that helped make Loopy Tortilla the go-to destination for Houston Tex-Mex.
• 26:45
  Speaker 1: Speaking of original, nothing can compete with the original lime pepper marinade that everyone will agree makes Loopy Tortilla award-winning beef fajitas the best anywhere.
• 26:53
  Speaker 1: Loopy Tortilla Katy is another location that gives you the same quality and service Houstonians have come to expect at Loopy's.
• 26:59
  Speaker 1: It's located just off I-10 of the Grand Parkway at Kingsland Boulevard in Katy.
• 27:02
  Speaker 1: Find yourself in Aggieland Head to the Loopy Tortilla in College Station, located just around the corner from Kyle Field.
• 27:12
  Speaker 1: It's a great place to enjoy those famous frozen margaritas before or after the game.
• 27:14
  Speaker 1: Headed east to Louisiana, stop in at the Loopy Tortilla in Beaumont.
• 27:16
  Speaker 1: It twos on I-10.
• 27:17
  Speaker 1: You can't miss it.
• 27:18
  Speaker 1: The original group of Loopy Tortilla restaurants invites you in for the best Tex-Mex anywhere.
• 27:23
  Speaker 1: Gulf Coast Auto Shield is having another Car Social Saturday morning, may 18th, from 8 to 11.
• 27:28
  Speaker 1: It's a car cruise in like no other.
• 27:30
  Speaker 1: Expect Ferraris, lamborghinis, corvettes and the featured brand Porsche Get social at this special cruise.
• 27:37
  Speaker 1: In event.
• 27:37
  Speaker 1: You'll also see Gulf Coast Auto Shield's private workshop and learn about their many products and services.
• 27:42
  Speaker 1: Questions are welcomed.
• 27:43
  Speaker 1: Gulf Coast Auto Shield is easy to get to at 11275 South Sam Houston Tollway, near West Airport Boulevard, just south of the Southwest Freeway.
• 27:52
  Speaker 1: The Car Social featuring Porsche takes place Saturday morning, may 18th, from 8 to 11.
• 27:57
  Speaker 1: Tell your friends and no matter what car you have, bring it and enjoy this rare opportunity to see some of Houston's finest rides In.
• 28:05
  Speaker 1: Wheel Time will bring its car talk show there too.
• 28:07
  Speaker 1: So join us for another Car Social at Gulf Coast Auto Shield Saturday morning, may 18th, 8 to 11, at 11275 South Sam Houston Tollway, just south of the Southwest Freeway.
• 28:17
  Speaker 1: Visit gcautoshieldcom to see the show flyer for more details.
• 28:25
  Speaker 1: Well, that sound means that's the end of the show.
• 28:28
  Speaker 1: What that's it for this week's In-Wheel Time Car Talk Show.
• 28:31
  Speaker 1: Here is your invitation to follow us on Facebook.
• 28:34
  Speaker 1: Give us a like, tell your friends about us and share our stuff, if you would please.
• 28:38
  Speaker 1: We'll keep you posted on all things automotive all week long, including interviews, new car reviews, upcoming events, cruise-ins, racing, manufacturer and car truck and SUV news.
• 28:51
  Speaker 1: We are All Things Automotive, yep.
• 28:55
  Speaker 1: When you're looking for award-winning talk Sunday through Friday, since we're live on Saturdays you can find the In-Wheel Time Car Talk Show 24-7 via the iHeartRadio app, daily 30-minute podcasts available from your favorite streaming provider.
• 29:08
  Speaker 1: We post a new episode every day.
• 29:10
  Speaker 1: And don't forget, as I mentioned, we live stream this show on Facebook, youtube and InRealTimecom every Saturday, 8 to 11 am Central Time.
• 29:19
  Speaker 1: The InRealTime sales, marketing and video technical director is we Always Need More Jeff Zekin For booking agent, video Editor and part-time Manny Petty expert, mike Out of this World, mars and Chief Engineer David Hainesley.
• 29:35
  Speaker 1: I'm Don Armstrong.
• 29:36
  Speaker 1: We hope you join us next week for another exciting, live, award-winning production of the In Real Time Car Talk show, april 20th, 8 to 11 am, on all of our In Wheel Time Car Talk outlets.
• 29:47
  Speaker 1: That's it for this podcast episode of the In Wheel Time Car Show.
• 29:56
  Speaker 1: I'm Don Armstrong, inviting you to join us for our live show every Saturday morning 8 to 11 am.
• 30:02
  Speaker 1: Central on Facebook, youtube, twitch and our InWheelTimecom website.
• 30:08
  Speaker 1: Podcasts are available on Apple Podcasts, spotify, stitcher, iheart Podcast, podcast Addict TuneIn, pandora and Amazon Music.
• 30:16
  Speaker 1: Keep listening and we'll see you soon.