Latest / In Wheel Time Podcast / Dirt Tracks, Asphalt Dreams: Inside the World of Circle Racing with Rodney Rodriguez

Transcript

Dirt Tracks, Asphalt Dreams: Inside the World of Circle Racing with Rodney Rodriguez · In Wheel Time Podcast

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: The 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.
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: Yep, you've got the In Wheel Time Car Talk Show Coming up.
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: We talk about circle track racing with play-by-play guru Rodney Rodriguez live from the Hill Country.
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: Jeff will answer us some answers, bring us.
• 0:26
  Speaker 2: Jeff Jeff's here.
• 0:27
  Speaker 2: Hey, welcome to In Wheel Time on this Saturday morning.
• 0:30
  Speaker 2: It's a gorgeous day outside.
• 0:32
  Speaker 2: We got Rodney Rodriguez coming up.
• 0:34
  Speaker 2: He's going to talk about some racing and then we're going to get into Don stuff.
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: And that pretty much about does it.
• 0:40
  Speaker 1: So I'm going to step back, turn my microphone off and let the boys handle it from here.
• 0:45
  Speaker 1: Howdy, along with mike, out of this world, mars, we always need jeff zekin.
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: Chief engineer.
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: David ainsley, I am nobody, and glad that you could join us, mr nobody.
• 0:55
  Speaker 1: Uh, joining us, however, right now, right now, from the hill country of central texas.
• 1:01
  Speaker 1: Here he is, rodney rodriguez.
• 1:02
  Speaker 1: I assume that you are at home I am at home.
• 1:06
  Speaker 3: I am at home on a.
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: Saturday morning.
• 1:07
  Speaker 1: So do you have an event tonight?
• 1:11
  Speaker 3: I do not have something tonight, I have to set up for something tomorrow.
• 1:14
  Speaker 3: So I actually do have to work a little bit, but I don't actually go into action until Sunday.
• 1:22
  Speaker 1: He's getting into action.
• 1:27
  Speaker 3: And guess what it is?
• 1:27
  Speaker 3: I have to go do some marketing at a soccer game, guys.
• 1:35
  Speaker 1: Oh shoot me Football, yeah, okay.
• 1:37
  Speaker 1: Well, you just go ahead and do that.
• 1:39
  Speaker 1: I'm going to take a nap on the couch.
• 1:41
  Speaker 1: I'm thrilled, I know you are.
• 1:44
  Speaker 1: So let's talk about circle track racing.
• 1:47
  Speaker 1: Has it started anywhere yet?
• 1:49
  Speaker 3: it has the most local short tracks around the regions.
• 1:52
  Speaker 3: It's so weird, guys.
• 1:53
  Speaker 3: Where it used to be, you had a real finite time with short track racing on the ovals, where it went from april usually up until about labor day.
• 2:00
  Speaker 3: Then it kind of stopped, but now it just takes a little bit of a break in december and you've had dirt tracks and asphalt tracks around the country that have been having events since January and, as a matter of fact, houston Motorsports Park, the oval track, fires off tonight night, number one.
• 2:17
  Speaker 3: So they get rolling.
• 2:19
  Speaker 3: It's nonstop and there's big money races.
• 2:22
  Speaker 3: The big money races used to be at the end of the year.
• 2:24
  Speaker 3: Now the big money races are allstop.
• 2:26
  Speaker 3: And there's big money races.
• 2:27
  Speaker 3: The big money races used to be at the end of the year, now the big money races are all year and people just migrate.
• 2:30
  Speaker 1: It's like a cult to go do these oval track races.
• 2:31
  Speaker 1: How fun, though, don't you have a good time doing it?
• 2:34
  Speaker 3: It is, it's a lot of fun.
• 2:35
  Speaker 3: It's a lot of fun because you get to meet.
• 2:38
  Speaker 3: The cool thing about it is that you see a lot of the people from different regions going to different places.
• 2:43
  Speaker 3: So that's the real cool part for me, where I go to a different region and I run into somebody that lives in my own backyard and I had no idea.
• 2:51
  Speaker 3: And they're 13 years old, yeah, yes, and at the top of their game.
• 2:59
  Speaker 1: When I did the infield reporting for you several years ago over at Houston Motorsports Park, I was shocked with that little boy.
• 3:08
  Speaker 1: I mean, the boy was 13 years old, he didn't even have a driver's license yet and yet he kicked everybody's butt out there in the 3-8 mile asphalt track, whooped up on him, yeah, and it was enlightening.
• 3:20
  Speaker 1: It's so much fun to talk to him.
• 3:23
  Speaker 3: It's gotten to where now you see that so much to where.
• 3:25
  Speaker 3: It is the young.
• 3:26
  Speaker 3: And now it's not just guys, it's the young ladies also that are starting so young and quarter midgets and before you know it they're in a race truck or a dirt track late model or something like that and they're just climbing up the ladder so quick and I feel bad for so many of the more elder, more veteran, as I like to say.
• 3:48
  Speaker 3: The elderly he's trying to be nice fellas the elderly in their 30s, the ones in their 30s where they just don't get the opportunities, because these young kids are coming in and usually have parents with a lot of money and they're able to gobble up and get the big rides.
• 4:05
  Speaker 1: I saw you actually did a couple of races last year yourself.
• 4:11
  Speaker 3: I did and it's very much.
• 4:12
  Speaker 3: Usually I'm like the rodeo clown.
• 4:15
  Speaker 3: It's like when they have an event that they just need somebody to talk about, they're like let's offer him a ride because he'll talk about it.
• 4:23
  Speaker 2: And then you got beat by the 13-year-old.
• 4:24
  Speaker 2: Oh yeah, Are you kidding?
• 4:26
  Speaker 3: Yeah, I got beat by the 13-year-old.
• 4:27
  Speaker 3: I mean, I wasn't even close to that guy.
• 4:29
  Speaker 3: He went by me like I was sitting still.
• 4:31
  Speaker 3: Do you still have a car?
• 4:33
  Speaker 3: I do, yeah, I do, I have a dwarf car.
• 4:36
  Speaker 3: I have a dwarf car now.
• 4:37
  Speaker 3: Oh, here I am again.
• 4:41
  Speaker 3: Here we are talking about stuff that's stored, that we're never going to use.
• 4:44
  Speaker 3: I might turn it into a show car.
• 4:46
  Speaker 3: How about turning it into a street car?
• 4:49
  Speaker 3: That would be pretty cool.
• 4:51
  Speaker 1: That would be very cool and I understand that there are actual kits that you can buy that have the headlights, the brake lights, all the things that you need to put it on the street.
• 5:00
  Speaker 1: I think that that would be an absolute blast.
• 5:03
  Speaker 1: Can you imagine pulling up to the stoplight and you've got some Corvette or some other hot rod car next to?
• 5:10
  Speaker 3: you at the stoplight.
• 5:12
  Speaker 3: The only bad thing about that car is it's so small.
• 5:15
  Speaker 3: I mean, it's tiny.
• 5:16
  Speaker 3: So it's one thing you're confined.
• 5:19
  Speaker 3: I may have put on a pound or two since.
• 5:21
  Speaker 3: I got the last, Maybe, maybe maybe, but you're so low to the ground and it's so little, I think it'd be pretty intimidating.
• 5:27
  Speaker 3: You know with people around you and you know people.
• 5:29
  Speaker 3: People are paying the most attention when they drive out in their daily driver.
• 5:33
  Speaker 3: You know they're, they're, they're on top of things.
• 5:35
  Speaker 3: You know what I mean.
• 5:36
  Speaker 1: So I think that'd be a little scary you'd have to put those bicycle flags on it so everybody could see you yeah.
• 5:43
  Speaker 2: Yeah, that's six-foot flags.
• 5:45
  Speaker 4: Like you, go down to the beach and see.
• 5:48
  Speaker 3: Remember in the movie Grease where the dude had the things on the side of the car that cut the tires off of Danny Zuko's?
• 5:54
  Speaker 4: Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, absolutely.
• 5:58
  Speaker 1: Yeah, the chariot spinners.
• 6:00
  Speaker 1: You see those all the time.
• 6:01
  Speaker 1: Yeah, exactly, all right, so let's talk about short track racing in Texas, of course, as you mentioned tonight Houston Motorsports Park, and what classes do they run out there now?
• 6:15
  Speaker 3: Tonight you'll have the usual what you've seen with modifieds and trucks and there's a, you know, trying to get a steel-bodied stock car class going once again.
• 6:24
  Speaker 3: But what's really thriving out there and this is actually happening at other tracks around the country also, and a lot of it is cost and just affordability and just ease of doing this.
• 6:35
  Speaker 3: I don't know if you guys have ever seen the Legends cars, kind of like the Dwarf car, the little coupes.
• 6:42
  Speaker 3: There's a group there in the Houston area called Texas Independent Racing, led by Jamie Call and a couple of other folks.
• 6:49
  Speaker 3: They actually have a fleet of those and that class, which was pretty much extinct here in Texas a few years back, has blossomed and they're probably going to be pushing about 20 cars per night Wow.
• 7:00
  Speaker 3: So you'll see a lot of legends.
• 7:09
  Speaker 3: And then the Legacy cars which Don.
• 7:10
  Speaker 3: Those were those fiberglass-bodied kind of looked like a cup car, but it's the smaller car when they go around the track.
• 7:15
  Speaker 3: Those have just grown.
• 7:16
  Speaker 3: And this year back to our point about young kids the Bandoleros are coming back, which that's a little bitty race car Bigger than a quarter midget.
• 7:23
  Speaker 3: But the Bandoleros have come back, which that's a little bitty race car Bigger than a quarter midget.
• 7:26
  Speaker 3: But the Bandoleros have come back.
• 7:28
  Speaker 3: It's a sanctioned class, so I think we call them the little cars in this game, where it's like the little cars, the little cars are taking over because modified trucks, all of those have just gotten ridiculously expensive.
• 7:40
  Speaker 3: That's it.
• 7:41
  Speaker 3: That's exactly it.
• 7:42
  Speaker 1: So the cars that you're talking about?
• 7:44
  Speaker 1: These cars have basically sealed engines.
• 7:48
  Speaker 1: Am I correct?
• 7:49
  Speaker 1: Where you know, it's a stock box engine and there are some things that you can do with it, but not very much, and it's basically handling and driver that really dictates who's going to get to the lead on the pack.
• 8:03
  Speaker 3: It is Both with the well, the Bandoleros also, but more with the Legends and the Legacies that I'm talking about.
• 8:09
  Speaker 3: What they do is with that engine.
• 8:11
  Speaker 3: It's a very strict engine program.
• 8:13
  Speaker 3: You can't get in, you can't do different things, you can't start milling heads down and you can't change pistons and this, that and the other.
• 8:19
  Speaker 3: But what both of those cars do afford to your point about the driver part is when it comes to suspension, when it comes to everything on the four corners of the race car and underneath and so forth.
• 8:31
  Speaker 3: It is a full-blown race car, just with smaller parts.
• 8:34
  Speaker 3: So you can, you can go in, you can work on setup, you can change camber, caster, rear end gears, you, you can do all of that.
• 8:41
  Speaker 3: But it does.
• 8:42
  Speaker 3: It really puts it more in the in the driver's hand.
• 8:44
  Speaker 3: And those, those classes right there when it comes to parts and parts changes, is they're more governed when it comes to price.
• 8:50
  Speaker 3: You know, like on a yes, on a big, like on a big car, if you want to go out and buy a set of shocks, it's pretty much a free market.
• 8:57
  Speaker 3: You know you go out and you find the best that you can and you're going to pay the most.
• 9:02
  Speaker 3: This.
• 9:02
  Speaker 3: It's very contained when it comes to price and the product on the track is exceptional.
• 9:06
  Speaker 3: You've got nose-to-tail racing the entire time.
• 9:17
  Speaker 2: Rodney, you talked about it a couple times.
• 9:18
  Speaker 2: You just mentioned the price, the cost of driving up the cost.
• 9:20
  Speaker 2: What does it cost to get into these classes?
• 9:21
  Speaker 2: Anything from the legends to the step up from that, the step up from that.
• 9:22
  Speaker 2: What are the average dollar amounts a team or an owner or a family's got to lay?
• 9:25
  Speaker 3: out On the pavement side when it comes to legends and legacies.
• 9:30
  Speaker 3: You can probably get you one a roller, you know what that doesn't have an engine in it, maybe doesn't have a seat transmission, all that.
• 9:36
  Speaker 3: You can probably get yourself in the game right there from anywhere to six to eight thousand dollars, I would think roughly.
• 9:41
  Speaker 3: And then you know, once you get your parts and pieces in there, probably turnkey somewhere around twelve to fifteen thousand dollars so very affordable, excluding the trailer and whatever other stuff you dragged up to the tires.
• 9:54
  Speaker 3: That's the other part, and that's where we racers are our own worst enemy, and I've been guilty of it in the past, where it's like you have a very affordable car, but you've got to have a cool trailer, you know?
• 10:03
  Speaker 3: Yeah, yes, I can't be towing this on an open trailer.
• 10:07
  Speaker 2: Fire suit with sequins on it?
• 10:09
  Speaker 2: No, I've got glitter on my helmet.
• 10:10
  Speaker 2: I've got glitter on my helmet.
• 10:11
  Speaker 4: Got to have my own bathroom, shower, air conditioning You're only going to be there two hours, but you've got to have all that and you're in the midget class.
• 10:20
  Speaker 3: And then on the dirt side I think I've probably talked about them in the past that you see at a lot of tracks around the region they're called factory stocks and what these are.
• 10:28
  Speaker 3: This is your Monte Carlo.
• 10:29
  Speaker 3: It looks like like a steel bodied stock car like you would see, an old street stock or whatever.
• 10:34
  Speaker 3: And this thing when it was developed, I mean it's got a set of engine rules.
• 10:39
  Speaker 3: Where you're, you know stock GM.
• 10:41
  Speaker 3: I mean everything is stock on these cars.
• 10:44
  Speaker 3: I don't, I don't even know if these cars run headers.
• 10:46
  Speaker 3: I think they're still running, you know, exhaust manifolds and stock stuff like that, but they have open shock rules and and stock stuff like that, but they have open shock rules.
• 10:55
  Speaker 3: And then obviously they're very creative with engines and this class has gone to where you would get one built.
• 11:00
  Speaker 3: You'd get a roller that I keep talking about.
• 11:03
  Speaker 3: You could probably get one built for about $8,000.
• 11:05
  Speaker 3: Now you see them for sale, brand new, state-of-the-art, factory stock roller 20K out the door, and you know kind of the fallback to that as well.
• 11:14
  Speaker 3: But we use pull-off asphalt tires that cost $30 a piece.
• 11:17
  Speaker 3: Well, yeah, but everything else is not.
• 11:22
  Speaker 1: Yeah, exactly.
• 11:22
  Speaker 1: But you know, I go back to when I was raising my daughters and we did the weekend sports the softball, the volleyball, that sort of stuff.
• 11:30
  Speaker 1: Sports the softball, the volleyball, that sort of stuff and especially if you're on some sort of an elite team, a traveling team dude, $20,000 was just a drop in the bucket compared to what we paid for Airplane tickets, hotels, meals, equipment, all of the stuff and the dues that you had to pay the team itself to keep the thing afloat.
• 11:48
  Speaker 1: So it kind of falls in the same category.
• 11:52
  Speaker 3: Yeah, you guys know I've been affiliated with high school sports here in the Austin area for lots of years and I meet parents that send kids off to baseball, football, volleyball camps, baseball camps and it's like we were talking about with car racing, the same thing there.
• 12:09
  Speaker 3: Well, this stuff never stops.
• 12:10
  Speaker 3: These kids are all year long.
• 12:13
  Speaker 3: It's never.
• 12:13
  Speaker 3: It's not like when you signed up for Little League, went and paid $15, they gave you a cap and a shirt and you played for 10 weeks.
• 12:19
  Speaker 3: I mean, this is, it's ongoing, and parents have told me what they spend and I'm like, my goodness, you don't have the next Jose Altuve here on your hands, you know, but that's what they're shooting for.
• 12:32
  Speaker 1: Well, I have to tell you to that end.
• 12:35
  Speaker 1: You know, once you get them off to college doesn't mean that they can afford to go to college.
• 12:40
  Speaker 1: So guess who's paying for that too?
• 12:41
  Speaker 1: And I still am, and I got a 32-year-old daughter.
• 12:47
  Speaker 3: You know we say around our house that we're heavily invested in two universities that our kids no longer go to.
• 12:53
  Speaker 3: We just say that we've been donors.
• 12:57
  Speaker 1: Hey, I did want to mention to you Sorry, Jeff.
• 12:59
  Speaker 1: I did want to mention to you that I saw an ad that World of Outlaws is up in Dallas.
• 13:03
  Speaker 1: Is it this weekend?
• 13:04
  Speaker 3: World of Outlaws is actually in Page.
• 13:06
  Speaker 3: They're out at Cotton Bowl Speedway.
• 13:07
  Speaker 3: They were there last night.
• 13:09
  Speaker 3: David Gravel, I believe, was the winner last night and they race again tonight and they've got one of the Cotton Bowl support classes, they've got a sport mod class.
• 13:19
  Speaker 3: They've got to produce about 20 cars.
• 13:21
  Speaker 3: But World of Outlaws and this is another one.
• 13:23
  Speaker 3: Guys, maybe we'll have to do it another time.
• 13:25
  Speaker 3: I'm sure we're probably getting towards the end here, but the sprint car scene has gotten a little testy right now because you have the world of outlaws and then you have a high limits group, you know that is headed by brad sweet, uh, kyle larson and a couple of other different folks where they've kind of gotten into where high limits is throwing a lot of money into like franchise systems, like the charter system the nascar has yeah, that's a joke yeah, world of outlaws is back.
• 13:50
  Speaker 3: It was really surprising last night there were I say only, there were only 26 cars in page last night and that's pretty low for a World of Outlaws event, and a lot of those competitors were more regional.
• 14:02
  Speaker 3: It wasn't the big heavy, the traveling band show.
• 14:06
  Speaker 1: So what kind of cars are on the asphalt compared to the World of Outlaws?
• 14:12
  Speaker 3: winged sprinters are on the asphalt compared to the world of outlaws wing sprinters.
• 14:15
  Speaker 3: You do see some wing sprint cars on pavement.
• 14:18
  Speaker 3: Up north, I think Winchester Speedway runs those, which is just amazing to watch.
• 14:23
  Speaker 3: Yes, Half-mile high bank racetrack and these guys are just All in the mail brother, oh my goodness.
• 14:31
  Speaker 1: And when they wreck, oh my God, tumbling, it's over the wall and break out the ambulance.
• 14:38
  Speaker 3: It's been teased a couple of times at Houston.
• 14:40
  Speaker 3: There's been a couple of groups that have talked about bringing it.
• 14:42
  Speaker 3: Gina actually had it done, but then the deal fell apart to where it wasn't able to actually happen.
• 14:49
  Speaker 3: But really about the only thing that you see around here is those factory stocks that I was talking about.
• 14:55
  Speaker 3: They gravitate over to the Houston pavement every now and then and the beauty of that is that they can come over with their asphalt pull-offs and they run with the other division that was intended to bring old street stocks kind of out of the woodwork and that one just really hasn't gotten any grip and I think the main problem with trying to tie the two together, I guess would be the way to say it, is that the dirt shows just offer so many big money races on a given weekend I mean whether it's in in this region or up in dfw, even to texarkana, louisiana, mississippi, there's there's always a five thousand dollar to win factory stock dirt race somewhere and those guys will go for that well, I have.
• 15:32
  Speaker 1: I have to tell you that I grew up, obviously, on asphalt, at Old Meyer Speedway, a half-mile banked oval, and so my heart lies with that venue.
• 15:41
  Speaker 1: But I will tell you that I have been to a couple of sprint car, wing sprint car, World of Outlaw races on dirt, and I'll tell you what boy that really cashes my ticket right there.
• 15:55
  Speaker 3: I love that thing I in the in the this year, just in 2025 alone through work, I've had the chance and while I'm wearing the chili bowl shirt this morning, to actually go to the chili bowl for the first time.
• 16:06
  Speaker 3: You know the midget, the midget car race and or midget car extravaganza in tulsa.
• 16:11
  Speaker 3: And then in january I went to the dirt uh at the Dome in St Louis, a big late model race, and I got to tell you I'm taken aback by that.
• 16:18
  Speaker 3: It really, I think kind of the lure for a lot of people when it comes to dirt track racing is it was, don, what pavement was when we back in the day, you know, as younger, you know those people are stars.
• 16:32
  Speaker 3: I mean, those drivers are absolute rock stars.
• 16:37
  Speaker 3: I mean, maybe they're not, you know Joey Logano and this type of thing, but people it's.
• 16:40
  Speaker 3: It's unbelievable to see the uh, the, the fandom that that dirt has in that series of racing, yeah.
• 16:47
  Speaker 1: I'm sure hoping that I can connect with you at some time during the season this year and, uh, come on out to a race that you call.
• 16:55
  Speaker 1: I know I'll thoroughly enjoy your play-by-play on the PA and now on the internet as well.
• 17:00
  Speaker 1: So it's great to talk to you, my friend, and always good to catch up.
• 17:04
  Speaker 1: Let's talk soon and shoot me an email.
• 17:08
  Speaker 1: With your race You're going to be close by and I'm going to join you.
• 17:12
  Speaker 3: Yeah, what I'll do.
• 17:13
  Speaker 3: I'll actually email you guys because I've got some Houston car shows coming up.
• 17:16
  Speaker 3: Maybe we can chop it up at a car show or two and maybe Love that.
• 17:20
  Speaker 3: Yeah, absolutely, we'll get a legend and have.
• 17:23
  Speaker 2: Mike drive it.
• 17:23
  Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, we've been trying to get rid of him for so long now, and that's one way to do it.
• 17:28
  Speaker 1: Rodney, it's great to talk to you, my friend.
• 17:30
  Speaker 1: God bless you, take care of yourself.
• 17:32
  Speaker 3: Have a great weekend.
• 17:33
  Speaker 3: Thank you, Rodney.
• 17:34
  Speaker 1: Just ahead, mr Mars has his review of the 2025 Mitsubishi Outlander.
• 17:38
  Speaker 1: That's a clone car.
• 17:40
  Speaker 1: What?
• 17:40
  Speaker 1: What?
• 17:41
  Speaker 1: I'll tell you about that.
• 17:42
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• 19:45
  Speaker 1: Call them today 832-930-5655 or gcautoshieldcom.
• 19:51
  Speaker 1: In-wheel time hits the road literally when we join the Hot Rod Tour of Texas April 26th, the month away.
• 19:58
  Speaker 1: Check out our link to the website through inwheeltimecom.
• 20:01
  Speaker 1: Thanks for being with us today, and time now for Jeff's car culture two-wheel drive, four-wheel drive or all-wheel drive.
• 20:10
  Speaker 2: Show us what you got.
• 20:10
  Speaker 2: Well, you know, I play with mine all the time.
• 20:13
  Speaker 2: We know that.
• 20:14
  Speaker 2: I know, let me get that going there.
• 20:16
  Speaker 2: There you go, michael, all right, so do you really need it?
• 20:19
  Speaker 2: Foul weather, deep snow, muddy roads they all have drivers craving for more traction, but there's four distinctive drivetrain configurations that we know about now.
• 20:27
  Speaker 1: That are possible on your car.
• 20:28
  Speaker 2: Yes, absolutely.
• 20:29
  Speaker 2: Front-wheel drive, rear-wheel drive, all-wheel drive and four-wheel drive.
• 20:33
  Speaker 2: So by learning how each of these systems work, you can better adjust on your mileage and what you really need for the road.
• 20:41
  Speaker 2: So the front-wheel drive majority of passenger car vehicles on the road today use a front-wheel drive configuration.
• 20:44
  Speaker 2: Engine power is routed to the front wheels.
• 20:48
  Speaker 2: We all know that Front-wheel drive designs are cheaper to manufacture, more space efficient than the rear-wheel drive systems because of the engine configuration with the transmission.
• 20:56
  Speaker 2: It's right up there, right up front.
• 20:58
  Speaker 2: Then you have your rear-wheel drive RWD is what they're calling it.
• 21:02
  Speaker 2: It's commonly found in full-size pickup trucks, old-school trucks and cars.
• 21:06
  Speaker 2: Truck-based SUVs, along with sports cars, high-performance and luxury vehicle sedans also have a rear-wheel drive.
• 21:13
  Speaker 2: So it's a heavy-duty axle suspension components that are designed to handle the large loads.
• 21:19
  Speaker 2: Who doesn't like a large load?
• 21:20
  Speaker 2: All-wheel drive, as the same implies all-wheel drive or AWB, can feed power to each of the corners.
• 21:28
  Speaker 2: Depending on the system and there's a lot of variations and designs for all-wheel drive vehicles depending on your manufacturer that you're buying they can provide maximum forward traction during acceleration.
• 21:38
  Speaker 2: It's especially helpful in sloppy road configurations when driving over moderate or off-road terrain.
• 21:44
  Speaker 2: Got a lot of sloppy road conditions out there.
• 21:47
  Speaker 2: Sophisticated clutch systems, which more of the modern vehicles have nowadays more recently, use the electric motors to allow for precise control over the power sent to each wheel.
• 21:57
  Speaker 2: High-performance vehicles with all-wheel drive often send power to each corner at all times, but can be altered by using the balance control among the wheels, depending on the condition of the drive.
• 22:08
  Speaker 2: So it's commonly used for car-based SUVs, as well as certain cars and minivans for the all-wheel drive systems.
• 22:15
  Speaker 2: Then you get into the four-wheel drive guys.
• 22:18
  Speaker 2: Although four-wheel drive and all-wheel drive are designations that are oftenly interchangeable in advertising and sales literature from your manufacturer, there is a difference.
• 22:28
  Speaker 2: Generally, the four-wheel drive is optimized for severe off-road driving situations, such as climbing over boulders, going through deep water, tackling steep hills with loose gravel and low traction surfaces.
• 22:42
  Speaker 2: So that's the main thing.
• 22:43
  Speaker 2: What do you need for these?
• 22:46
  Speaker 2: Well, for rain and light snow, two-wheel drive will probably work fine, and for most vehicles, front-wheel drive is the preferred setup, likely to be less cost-effective or likely to cost less than the equivalent of an all-wheel drive model.
• 22:58
  Speaker 2: For performance cars, rear-wheel drive is preferred, but all-wheel drive is available and can increase traction.
• 23:04
  Speaker 2: Is all-wheel drive safer?
• 23:06
  Speaker 2: Not necessarily.
• 23:07
  Speaker 2: One of the reasons people buy a traditional sport utility vehicle is for extra security and traction, because you're out there with the family, you might get in that loose gravel situation and so on.
• 23:15
  Speaker 2: So that's part of it.
• 23:17
  Speaker 2: Drivers can be fooled into traveling in quick, slippery conditions with all-wheel drive and four-wheel drive vehicles, only to discover that they're going too fast and trying to keep them from stopping.
• 23:26
  Speaker 2: So be careful.
• 23:28
  Speaker 2: Mileage does have a factor in this.
• 23:30
  Speaker 2: The two-wheel drive I was telling Don earlier I get about 32 miles to the gallon on my vehicle.
• 23:35
  Speaker 2: Four-cylinder turbo, I can flick it into the or check it into the all-wheel drive Gets a little bit less gas mileage.
• 23:42
  Speaker 2: The sport version runs like a little go-kart.
• 23:45
  Speaker 2: I love the feel of it.
• 23:46
  Speaker 2: But you're getting like 25 miles to the gallon.
• 23:48
  Speaker 2: So I play with mine in the car all the time Seeing what mileage I can get.
• 23:52
  Speaker 2: I'll change it at a stoplight or whatever the case.
• 23:54
  Speaker 2: I was playing with it last night on the way home.
• 23:55
  Speaker 2: Kathy said stop playing with it.
• 23:58
  Speaker 2: I said okay.
• 23:59
  Speaker 2: So use your judgment.
• 24:00
  Speaker 2: If you get better gas mileage in the two-wheel drive, go for it.
• 24:02
  Speaker 2: That's what I do.
• 24:03
  Speaker 2: I like the auto mode.
• 24:05
  Speaker 2: Auto mode Auto oh, where it shuts off.
• 24:09
  Speaker 1: No, no, no, no, no, no, no.
• 24:10
  Speaker 1: The drive mode in automatic, because if it senses that it needs four-wheel or all-wheel drive, it'll automatically flick into that mode.
• 24:21
  Speaker 1: Or all-wheel drive it'll automatically flick into that mode, or it can sometimes, on different manufacturers, send power to one wheel or the other.
• 24:29
  Speaker 1: It's automatic, so you don't have to actually manually turn it into all-wheel drive.
• 24:35
  Speaker 1: Four-wheel drive, two-wheel drive.
• 24:35
  Speaker 1: You don't have to do it as an automatic setting.
• 24:37
  Speaker 2: Not all of them do, but if they do, that's where mine are, mine's a little button and it, once you hit the button, it gives you your options of the on.
• 24:45
  Speaker 2: You know this, this, this or this, and I can toggle through it and hit one right now, coming over two-wheel drive.
• 24:50
  Speaker 2: It's, it's, my car is a sporty little car, you know it's.
• 24:54
  Speaker 2: I like it.
• 24:54
  Speaker 2: I really like the car a lot.
• 24:55
  Speaker 1: So my 2001 corvette has got.
• 24:58
  Speaker 1: Obviously it's it's rear wheel drive, but it also has the traction control device and you can turn it on or off or you can have a mixed level with it by holding the button down, and it's more complicated and they had a video on it when they first came out with it, because one of the first cars that you were able to actually control with the button and I was impressed Good deal.
• 25:20
  Speaker 1: Well, there it is.
• 25:21
  Speaker 1: I'm impressed with a lot of things.
• 25:22
  Speaker 1: All right time now for this hour's car review.
• 25:24
  Speaker 1: Mr mars had a chance to drive the nissan rogue, oh no, I'm sorry, the mitsubishi outlander, because yeah, because this car is bad this car right here is actually, uh, underneath the skin of it, nissan Rogue.
• 25:41
  Speaker 1: Just thought you'd like to know.
• 25:42
  Speaker 4: Well, I appreciate that Good to know.
• 25:45
  Speaker 4: So I mean, it's been a long time since I've actually got to drive a Mitsubishi, particularly the Outlander, because this is the bigger SUV vehicle that they have Comes in four trim levels an ES, an and sel and the platinum edition.
• 26:04
  Speaker 4: Now we happen to be driving the sel 2.5 sa wc.
• 26:09
  Speaker 4: Now the as the sa wc stands for the super all wheel control, like we were talking about.
• 26:15
  Speaker 4: It will shift the power from wheel to wheel depending on what you need and where you need to go.
• 26:19
  Speaker 4: So, uh, again, sel is the trim level that we were driving.
• 26:22
  Speaker 4: The government says this is a small suv.
• 26:25
  Speaker 4: I found it a little bit to be bigger.
• 26:26
  Speaker 4: It is a three-row suv, seven passenger, so to me I would not call it small that's the face of it that's the face of it.
• 26:34
  Speaker 4: Looks like several things that are out there on the market.
• 26:36
  Speaker 4: Up front you're going to find led hiding light lighting which is going to have the auto high-low headlights, the fog lights, daytime running lights.
• 26:45
  Speaker 4: Even the license plate light is LED, got heated power side-building mirrors, got a panoramic sunroof on it, a body color spoiler, silver roof rails to kind of give it a little contrast Hands-free lift gate, roll on some nice 20-inch two-tone alloy wheels.
• 27:02
  Speaker 4: And there's no spare.
• 27:04
  Speaker 4: There is a tire repair kit.
• 27:05
  Speaker 4: I'm seeing a list more and more, and I'm not a big fan of that, but you've got to save a little room and weight, I guess.
• 27:11
  Speaker 4: Now you get to the inside of it, you're going to find that you've got semi-aniline seating surfaces.
• 27:17
  Speaker 4: Now the first row is heated and ventilated.
• 27:19
  Speaker 4: The second row is a 40-20-40 folding setup and the outboard two settings, the 40-40, they are also heated Up front.
• 27:27
  Speaker 4: You've got a 12.3-inch display.
• 27:30
  Speaker 4: Now this is a smartphone link display.
• 27:32
  Speaker 4: So you want to do some things in this car.
• 27:38
  Speaker 4: You're going to have to hook your smartphone to it to be able to do it.
• 27:40
  Speaker 4: It's where you're going to have all your audio, your nav, your comfort controls, your apple carplay audio, android, auto wireless charger, and there are also front and rear usb c plugs.
• 27:51
  Speaker 4: Now again, that's a c.
• 27:53
  Speaker 4: They don't use the a's in this car.
• 27:55
  Speaker 4: So if you got in the old school type plugs, you're not going to be able to use them in this.
• 27:59
  Speaker 4: You're going to have to step up.
• 28:01
  Speaker 4: Has a 12.3 inch digital driver display.
• 28:03
  Speaker 4: That's pretty easy to configure to what you want.
• 28:05
  Speaker 4: But it also has a 10.8 inch heads-up display.
• 28:10
  Speaker 4: That in the daytime it's it's a little light, you know.
• 28:13
  Speaker 4: At night it works really well daytime you got to kind of look at it.
• 28:16
  Speaker 4: The designer rear view.
• 28:20
  Speaker 4: It's got a digital rear view mirror and so it's got the rear camera in it and I like that.
• 28:25
  Speaker 4: I'm seeing that more and more because you get a little wider angle view with that camera than you do if you're looking through the mirror.
• 28:30
  Speaker 4: You're looking out the back glass.
• 28:31
  Speaker 4: Now it also had the rear door pull-up sunshades.
• 28:36
  Speaker 4: You don't see that much anymore, but this is the second car this year I've got that had that.
• 28:40
  Speaker 4: It uses a Yamahaaha ultimate sound system, 12 speakers in it instead of some of the other that you hear about.
• 28:46
  Speaker 4: So yamaha is a little little different.
• 28:48
  Speaker 4: Now.
• 28:49
  Speaker 4: The outlander, regardless of what trim you get, has a 2.5 liter four cylinder in it 181 horsepower, 181 pound feet of torque.
• 28:57
  Speaker 4: It has an eight speed automatic cvt is the way they have it listed.
• 29:01
  Speaker 4: It does have paddle shifters on it.
• 29:03
  Speaker 4: You can try and shift it manually, but it's basically a CVT.
• 29:06
  Speaker 4: Tow 2,000 pounds when properly equipped.
• 29:10
  Speaker 4: Epa says you should be looking for about 24 in the city, 30 on the highway, 26 combined.
• 29:14
  Speaker 4: Now I drove this vehicle 222.2 miles and I got 24.2 out of it.
• 29:19
  Speaker 4: I thought it did rather well.
• 29:22
  Speaker 4: It's not bad for a big suv it is, and it probably.
• 29:25
  Speaker 4: I didn't have a chance to tow it like some of the pictures and stuff I've seen of them, but uh, mike could use a little more juice under the hood, but it works fine.
• 29:33
  Speaker 4: Solid driving experience, feels good out on the road, surprisingly quiet.
• 29:37
  Speaker 4: It's very roomy for the passengers in the front and the rear.
• 29:39
  Speaker 4: It does have a third row seat.
• 29:41
  Speaker 4: I would save that, definitely for the littles.
• 29:42
  Speaker 4: Base model price for this vehicle is 29,645.
• 29:47
  Speaker 4: You want to step up to the base?
• 29:49
  Speaker 4: Trim price for the sel is 38,795.
• 29:54
  Speaker 4: Msrp is tested 45,930, which I thought was rather cheap.
• 29:59
  Speaker 4: Now the Honda CR-V is comparable at $30,100.
• 30:03
  Speaker 4: The Mazda CX-V at $28,570.
• 30:07
  Speaker 4: The Nissan Rogue that Don mentioned is $29,230.
• 30:12
  Speaker 4: I also want to point out this is one of those vehicles that comes with a 10-year 100,000-mile warranty on it, and I don't drive them very often, but I'd like to drive this for a long time to see if it'll hold up as well as it drove for the short term.
• 30:24
  Speaker 1: Thank you, sir.
• 30:24
  Speaker 1: In Real Time Car Talk show continues after this quick break.
• 30:27
  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.
• 30:37
  Speaker 1: Pro-am is known as the place to go to find exclusive and hard-to-find parts and accessories.
• 30:40
  Speaker 1: Pro-am is known as the place to go to find exclusive and hard-to-find parts and accessories.
• 30:42
  Speaker 1: Pro-am is one of the very first distributors in the USA for brands such as Recaro, redline, momo Corbo and Simpson.
• 30:48
  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.
• 31:01
  Speaker 1: Pro-am not only sells parts and accessories, but also offers installation and service.
• 31:03
  Speaker 1: Pro-am is now reaching a worldwide audience through Pro-Amcom, taking its local reputation to the rest of the world.
• 31:08
  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.
• 31:14
  Speaker 1: If you don't see what you're looking for on the website, call and Pro-Am will lend you a hand.
• 31:18
  Speaker 1: Pro-am Auto 6125 Richmond at Greenridge in Houston's Galleria area.
• 31:23
  Speaker 1: Call them at 713-781-7755.
• 31:27
  Speaker 5: Mecham Auctions, the world's largest collector car auction company, returns to Houston April 3rd to the 5th at NRG Center.
• 31:36
  Speaker 5: Join us for the fun, fast-paced, high-energy Mecham experience.
• 31:41
  Speaker 5: With 1,000 vehicles up for grabs For avid collectors, first-time buyers and enthusiasts of all ages, there's something for everyone.
• 31:50
  Speaker 5: Bring home your dream car Register to pick and buy spectator tickets now at Mechamcom.
• 31:58
  Speaker 1: That's it for this podcast episode of the In-Wheel Time Car Show.
• 32:01
  Speaker 1: I'm Don Armstrong, inviting you to join us for our live show every Saturday morning on Facebook, youtube, twitch and our InWheelTimecom website.
• 32:11
  Speaker 1: Podcasts are available on Apple Podcasts, spotify, stitcher, iheart Podcast, podcast Addict TuneIn, pandora and Amazon Music.
• 32:20
  Speaker 1: Keep listening and we'll see you soon.