In Wheel Time Podcast: Your Go-To Automotive Talk Show
In Wheel Time Podcast: Your Go-To Automotive Talk ShowOct 23, 2025
Drive What You Build, Or Miss The Point
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Car
Chevy Apache
The Chevy Apache is an old pickup truck made by Chevrolet in the 1950s. It's known for its strong build and classic look, making it a favorite for people who like to restore old vehicles.
A restoration shop is a place where old cars are fixed up to look and work like they did when they were new. This can include repairing the body, engine, and interior of the car.
The Chevrolet Bel Air is a famous car from the 1950s, known for its stylish look and is popular among collectors. The 1955 model is especially loved for its design.
Cruising the Coast is a fun event where car lovers drive their classic and cool cars along the coast, showing them off and enjoying the scenery together.
The 6L80 is a type of automatic transmission that helps cars change gears smoothly. It's known for being efficient and is found in many GM trucks and cars.
The GMC Sierra EV is an electric truck that can do everything a regular truck can, but it runs on electricity instead of gas. It's built for people who need a tough vehicle but also want to help the environment.
The Chevrolet Nova is a smaller car that became popular in the 1960s. The 1966 model is well-liked for its design and performance, making it a favorite among collectors.
Term
$135,000
$135,000 is a lot of money for a car, which means this particular Chevrolet Nova is very special or rare, making it valuable to buyers.
The Lucid Air is a fancy electric car that offers a lot of luxury features and a long driving range on a single charge. It's designed to be a high-end option for those looking for an electric vehicle with style and performance.
The Chevrolet Camaro is a popular sports car that was first made in 1967. It's known for its powerful engines and sporty look, making it a favorite among car enthusiasts.
NASCAR is a type of car racing that happens mostly on circular tracks. It involves specially designed cars that look like regular cars but are built for speed and safety.
The Xfinity Series is a type of NASCAR race that helps new drivers get experience before they race in the main NASCAR events. It's like a training ground for future stars.
Formula One is a type of car racing that features very fast cars on different tracks around the world. It's known for its exciting races and advanced technology.
NHRA stands for National Hot Rod Association, which is an organization that oversees drag racing events where cars race in a straight line to see who is fastest.
Car
Packard Twin Six
The Packard Twin Six is a classic car from 1915 that had a powerful engine made by combining two smaller engines. It was made to compete with very fancy cars like Rolls-Royce.
Car
Rolls-Royce
Rolls-Royce is a famous brand that makes very luxurious cars. They are known for their quality and are often seen as a status symbol.
Car
Pierce-Arrow
Pierce-Arrow was a brand that made very expensive and high-quality cars in the early 1900s. They were known for their luxury and were one of the top competitors of Packard.
The hydromatic transmission is a type of automatic transmission that shifts gears for you, so you don't have to do it manually. It was a big deal when it was first introduced because it made driving more comfortable.
Car
Oldsmobile
Oldsmobile is a car brand that was part of General Motors. They were known for making cars that were often more luxurious and comfortable to drive.
The Chevrolet El Camino is a type of vehicle that looks like a car but has a truck bed. It was designed to offer the utility of a truck while still being stylish like a car.
The Chevrolet Malibu is a car that is designed for everyday driving, offering a comfortable ride and enough space for passengers. It's a good option for people looking for a reliable and affordable vehicle.
The Chevrolet Chevelle is a car that was made by Chevrolet from the 1960s to the 1970s. It was known for being stylish and powerful, making it a favorite among car enthusiasts.
The Honda Civic is a small car that started being sold in America in 1972. It is popular because it is reliable and gets good gas mileage, helping to change how people viewed cars made in Japan.
A tax credit helps you pay less in taxes. For electric car buyers, it means they can get some money back when they file their taxes, making the car cheaper to buy.
The sticker price is the price you see on a car when you look at it in a dealership. It's the amount the manufacturer suggests you pay before any discounts.
The Tesla Model 3 is an electric car that runs on batteries instead of gasoline. It's known for being fast and having a lot of cool technology, making it a popular choice for people who want an eco-friendly vehicle.
Gulf Coast Auto Shield is a business that helps keep your car looking new by protecting its paint and applying special coatings. They have a team of experts who know how to take care of cars.
Paint protection film is a clear layer that you can put on your car to protect it from scratches and damage. It helps keep your car looking good for longer.
Ceramic coating is a special product that you can put on your car's paint to protect it from dirt and scratches. It makes the car shiny and helps keep it looking new for a long time.
LIVE
Welcome to another in-wheel time podcast. Hey, this is your place for all things automotive the award-winning in-wheel time car talk show
Today coming to you from the
Back to the past car show in Houston spring branch neighborhood
Just head another guest from today's big event with a 58 GMC Apache
All right love this Mars has this week in auto history Jeff has the racing calendar
I'll get you caught up on the stories making automotive news headlines howdy along with Mike out of this world Mars
We always need more Jeff Zekin chief engineer David Ainsley joins us today. I'm Don Armstrong glad you could join us
And thank you very much for joining us today and for all of those here at the back to the past car show
This is a judged car show. He's filling up to yep, and let's see
Registration I I guess they're still registering. Well, yeah shows 10 to 2 judging 11 30 to 1 awards at 130
All types of years welcome top 15 awarded people's choice and the sbshs
spring branch high school
Foundation choice award you bet
So just fill it up and there's a lot of nice cars here very nice. Yes very good. It's a very nice little show
We invite you to join us. Well speaking of joining us joining us right now is sonny Bennett
Owns the beautiful 58 Apache blue
Um, and what is it saying on the side of it?
Don't touch it. It don't touch it and Ella paint. Is that what it is?
Ella Ella paint body shop. Is that is that one you own? I own it. I've been involved in it since february of 73
73 you're telling your age now. Yeah, I graduated showing your age too
I graduated here in 72 and I've been in paint body business ever since
over on Ella Boulevard
Ella Boulevard from 67 to 72
I went to work for them in february of 73 and I own it now. You bought it in 79
very nice and
Your specialty is customs and classics and
Not anymore. I built six cars for other people worst time of my life
Why does everybody say that because it's somebody else's car and you really I mean you're in it, but you're not in it
You know, it's not yours when you sign a contract to build a car
You're due X amount of dollars at X amount of time. Yes
It's $60,000 to everybody run out of money and I'm supposed to really negotiate my end of the deal
Yeah, you either go find more money or come get your stuff. Yeah
So what what are you just doing general body work these days paint paint body?
I had a choice build classic cars or fix collision and I have a five star rated shop that
That I fixed collision repair. So in other words, you've lost your hair
Your body shop and business because that's enough to pull your hair out
I have very little experience in that I did work for a Chevrolet dealership many many years ago
And I'll tell you what man that that is that is something that I still don't understand to this day
It's it's intense and it's crazy
Well, you have a choice to make if you're under the paint and body business
You can run the shop or the shop can run you. Yeah, and you've decided to run the shop
I run the shop and the people won't tell me what to do. I ask them to leave. There you go
Um, I want to ask you a question that I
Never actually asked a paint and body guy
So when you give an estimate a damaged estimate for a repair
How do you know that that bracket it's back in the back
That you can't see you know that it's bent, but you can't prove it
But you got to order it and you make the estimate off of that because how are you competitive with other
Body shops by not I mean obviously you've got decades of experience doing this
But how do you know that well the first estimate is an initial estimate anything else above that is a supplement
And as you tear a car apart you're going to find hidden damage
And it's up to you. I am not a member of an insurance company's d.r.p. Program
Whatever that is. It's a insurance company started a direct repair program in 1970
1983
And to be a member of their program you have to sell your heart so indignity out to the insurance companies
Oh, no, and you lose the value and the quality of your shop
Sure
And then they want to tell you how to run your business and yet you work for yourself and you chill use then
You work for you or you work for the insurance companies. I ask insurance companies to leave just pay the bill
But I'm not a member of their program. I repair cars the correct way or I don't repair them at all
Good for you. So obviously you're talking about later model cars
But what if something like that came in like a 58 Chevy Apache came in with a dinged fender that needed some work
Well, there's two different deals. You have a collision shop or you have a restoration shop
The problem with restoration shops are they're a dime a dozen. They watch too much tv
They charge too much money
They're probably not worth what the product you're getting and you have to make a choice
You want to build cars for a living or you want to repair cars for a living
I don't consider myself a car builder. I've redone 24 of these cars of this quality build
And every one of them are still around to this day
But I don't watch tv. I fiddle with cars. I repair them monday through friday
I build them on saturdays and sundays if I don't go to car shows. Are you married men?
Yes, I've been married to my wife for 31 years. We've been together 33
And she's still putting up with you. Well, she does her thing and I do mine. We made the middle
That's it. Well, uh, so let's talk about your 58 Apache over here. You know, you just don't see many of those you see
you see other
Other vehicles like it kind of but 58 is pretty rare
Dual headlights. I think that that's uh, one of the exactly
Four four years ago, you couldn't buy you couldn't give a four headlight truck away
The problem is they run out of two headlight trucks
So I have a high end build 55 Chevrolet Bel Air
And I wanted a matching 55. I was gonna paint and have a matching pair
I couldn't find a decent 55
But I found a decent 58 and I was gonna leave it all original
Well, you can only get flipped off so many times for going 55 miles an hour
And a friend of mine called me and said that I have a motor and a transmission. I have a 2016 Sierra
It's got 4 000 miles on it and you can buy it for $2,800. I said, I'm on my way
And I blew the truck all apart and prior to covid the truck was mocked up. The frame was done
And my wife called me and said they're gonna shut your business down. You won't be able to work
Well, then they ruined me an essential business and I built that truck starting April 4th and finished october 2nd
Wow, I had plenty of time. I had plenty of time. Yeah, nobody but messing with you
On october 2nd, I left the city of Houston with 85 miles on it. I go to cruising the coast every year
And the next morning I woke up with 485 miles on it. So it tells me I'm 400 miles away from Gulfport, Mississippi
That's great. Have you ever been on the hot rod tour of texas?
I've been on the I did the hot rod tour one time. I'm not very good at following the leader
I'm not very good at being told what to do. Got you. So I'll see you at the destination now
There's what kind of transmission you got in there. It's got a 6 l 80
That truck has a six-speed transmission four-wheel disc air condition
21 miles to the gallon
It's a band it's a brand new truck with an old body on it. You got it. Yeah, everything should be every nothing both brand new
wonderful
Uh, where did you find the truck? I bought the truck from a dealership and uh outside of new orleans
A risk guy bought the truck all original and they had the guy that owned the dealership asking to bring the truck up there for a car show
He brought the car up for a car show and left it there
It sat there for about four years and finally they put it on the showroom floor and said sell it
I bought it. Yeah
sweet
Well, obviously with fate played a
Part in that because I mean you just don't run across the truck like that and
it sit around for all those years and
Put it on the not outside sitting around either. It sat on the showroom floor of a dealership for four years
And uh, the problem with you know a paint job covers a lot of mistakes
The truck was wrecked real bad in the B pillar and I had to put a whole cab panel on the truck
It's um, I don't know. That's what I do
Well, you did an absolutely beautiful job. It is now the the, uh
The beige part thereby the window was that the original was it styled that way?
No, the truck was originally green with a white top. Okay. I didn't want a white top
And I didn't want white so when I painted the truck and
They have a turquoise in that air car in that year cars and I didn't want that color turquoise
I wanted a different one. So I have the water based paint system in my shop
And I wanted a color that I could fix if something happened to it
So that's a ppg fleet line color called hotlix turquoise
And I tried to go with you bought it because of the name right
Well, the women loved the color and I wanted to I was going white, but white was too bright. So I went with the beige
And the beige and the logo is the same on the back the cab and on the inside good call
And that's one of the most beautiful trucks a 58 truck. I have ever seen me look on you underneath the hood. Thank you
Yeah, you you're done good. It's what I'm telling you. Well, it just came back from Mississippi for the fifth time
Yeah, I mean we drive them
I tell people all the time if you have a classic car and you don't drive it you trailer you're missing all the fun
Absolutely money. Yeah, I built a corvette one time
I bought it new drove it for 35 000 miles and then I decided I wanted to show it
Well custom paint job, you know did all the pinstriping underneath the body mirrors all of that I did that
Never again would I ever do that? No, I drive my cars
I built 24 cars the first ten had chrome everywhere and I learned a long time ago that you got to clean that stuff
Exactly
And if you break down on the side of the road nobody has the parts for that pulley system
And when you go to replace it you got to buy another whole pulley system
So the last 14 I've done all had factory pulley systems on them
Because you can buy the parts anywhere continental USA, right? And if you drive them, you're going to break down
Yeah, and what what your engine is it? It's a 2016 GMC Sierra
53
Nice nice. It's it's the lt edition
So, I mean again
you kind of
Fell into that the whole thing. Hey man, you want to buy the motor? Yeah
Well, I learned a long time ago. I went through a real nasty divorce and I was broke
And the best time of my life was when I had $10,000 to afford anything I wanted
And if I couldn't afford it in that $10,000 I waited till I got more money
And I didn't buy nothing else till I replaced my $10,000
And that truck is
I said I built 24 cars and every one of them are
Or as good as they get nice and I have people want to buy them all the time
So there's no filler on that one. There's plenty of filler on it
Someone says oh my car doesn't have Bondo, but they're lying to you. Well, yeah
But I mean that's just because even some of the best car builders out there. They skim coat every car they build
So that skim is a filler and if someone says hey, I don't use Bondo. Well, you're gonna have a lumpy car
So how many others do you have in your collection? I have three others right two others right now
I have a 55 Bel Air and I just finished a 66 Nova. Oh, and they're yours mine
60 this is a nova man right there
My first time was a nova when you were talking about the kind of match this one. Well, I have an awful expensive nova
Jack is here with his nova
And why do you say that?
I've got people interested in it and the price is over 135,000. So that's a pretty expensive car. Yeah
And you'll probably get it good stuff in it. It's sold
You sold all I gotta do is get rid of it
Oh, all I had to do is turn it over. I have five people want to buy the car
Wow one backs out. I have one backs out. I got four right behind you
So what what's going to be the day that you sell it?
I mean what's going to be the deciding factor on who you sell it to
My friend has the first dibs and he's not backing out
And I get to enjoy the car because that car is gonna go everywhere that truck and my bel Air goes nice. There you go
Nice. So as I said, the only reason why my friend's getting it is because he he wanted it first and he's got the money
He's got the money
And money talks sometimes
I had a guy off me almost 400,000 for all three of them and I turned him down
There you go. You need to see very nice. Yeah, you need to send that to mr. Morris. Yeah, we'll put that up on our screens
Yeah, absolutely. Very nice. Oh, yeah
I had a 72 it was a hand me down for my mom. Nice. Nice. Good car
Yeah, uh, yeah, it's beautiful. Thank you. Yeah
Well, uh, so what are what are the plans now?
Have you got all the cars finished that you want to finish at the moment when I well the guy that bought the
Nova told me to get all the bugs out of it
I went to the fairfield car show the only car show that they they've had that's been going on for 28 years
And the judges came up said I want everything and they wouldn't would I mind if they passed the trophies around?
I said, I just appreciate the recognition. I don't really need a trophy
And I won best muscle car in the 60s. I won the best of show and a 10 year old gave me $500 first place tries
Well coming back. I blew the motor up in the nova
So I got a new motor as of thursday is going in tomorrow
Nice, then I'm only get rid of the car
But you have fun doing all that
I don't watch tv when I built my 55. I told my wife I was going to build a car that got 21 miles a gallon comfortable and had ac
And she named the car tv time because that's what you get when you don't watch tv
So very nice. I got an awful expensive toy for not watching tv. There you go. Sweet. It's it it is not for sale
That truck is not for sale when I retire. I'm gonna ride around town in that truck
nice
And uh, I'm getting ready to start at 67 Camaro
Wow. Now you're the Camaro guy
I'm the Camaro guy. Well the Camaro's next. Do you have is it Camaro? I already have it. You have it
What what's the story behind it? A friend of mine. He's the chief in the Houston fire department
And he traded a hot tub for it 32 years ago
A hot tub
About $23,000 worth of pro touring chassis
Interior every option that they put on the 68 and 69s and he lost interest
And I wouldn't build it for free. So three years ago before I bought the nova
He said, why don't you buy my car? I said, what car? He told me about the Camaro
Well, I got everything for $15,000. So
I've got a whole lot of parts in a car that I have to build I can sell it for 25,000 or I can sell it for 125,000
Easy decision. Sounds like you like doing the build. I don't watch tv. There's nothing good on tv
When you do finish it put Don is number one on your list. Yeah, he's the number one. Yeah, well put him on it
Yeah, Don just bought a house and so he likes to 69 though. Yeah
A couple years difference. Yeah
Same body style. I got it. I'm good. I'll take a 67 cars are my passion. I love what I do and
You know, we can see that it's awesome
I got a pack with the good lord above that I help people as long as you give me a will to get up every day
There you go. So
That's my life story. Oh, sonny. It's a pleasure to talk to you beautiful truck. It's a pleasure to meet you talk to you
and
It's L. O. Painton body shop
Magnolia, texas
Perfect mac right up there by uh by the renaissance on the backside of the now i'm on the backside of the woodlands
Okay, well
You're in the area come in there. Yeah, that's that's it
We we just did a segment on renaissance festivals for fall road trips. Mr. Mars is going to dress up in chain mail
Sonny, thanks so much again. We appreciate you just ahead. Have a good day as the racing calendar. Mars has this week in auto history and
Uh, we're we're gonna we're gonna make it all happen. So stay with us here on the in wheel time car talk show
You've waited all summer and it's finally here the tailpipes and tacos fall 25 cruise in car show
It's been a while but the popular tailpipes and tacos cruise in returns to the loopy tortilla tex max in katie
Saturday october 18th make any donation to surely skids and get a free breakfast taco
They'll be mimosas and bloody marys too get to the best cruise in of the year tailpipes and tacos car show saturday october
18th 8 to 11 am
Cruise in make a donation of any amount and grab a free loopy tortilla breakfast taco
Tailpipes and tacos only happens at the loopy tortilla tex max in katie
703 west grand parkway at kingsland boulevard just south of the katie freeway
Join the car comradery and your car will automatically compete for one of three chili pepper trophies at no charge
Fall is here and what better way to celebrate than with a free taco at tailpipes and tacos cruise in car show saturday october 18th
8 to 11 am it's the cruise in you won't want to miss loopy tortillas tailpipes and tacos in katie
Time to fire up those engines and pay tribute to the folks who make freedom possible
Bastrop's own heroes in hot rides is rolling in for veterans day weekend friday night downtown cruise saturday
400 of the coolest rides in texas
Proceeds help veterans shelters food pantries and scholarships sponsored by craig's jewelry
November 7th and 8th main street bass drop
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So time now on the in wheel time car talk show for the racing calendar sponsored by texas muscle car club challenge
Jeffrey has that thank you for that
We got nas car the craftsman trucks ran yesterday. They ran at taladega. I watched a little bit of the qualifying
I don't know who won so I don't want to spoil it for you, but they're running yesterday. You got xfinity. They're running today
They're going to be in taladega. Everybody's at diga
So that's going to be at 3 p.m. On the cw network and then we got the nas car the big boys
Well, some of them are
nas car is at taladega. That's a 2 p.m
Sunday tomorrow on nbc
The nobody cares television. There you go. And guess where formula one is at this weekend
Well, they're in austin at circuit of the americas. It is a 59 lapper. They're going to be uh, october 19th
Which is tomorrow
So get on out there get yourself some tickets and have fun out there with those folks
We should have given away some tickets. We should have uh, I've got world series tickets for the astros if anybody needs them
NHRA
The showcase of speed that's going to be october 24th. That's going to be in south georgia motors motorsports park
And then I got a couple of write-ins. We got sled dog racing the iditaroids coming up in march
Registration david is uh, november 28th. That's when registration opens and this is for you, michael
Did you know there are 17 sanction dashhound races in the united states? True? Yes, uh, october november is in texas
We got we got
It's d a s c h o u n d
Uh, october november here in texas and they're all around the country. So a lot of them in florida
Then david you got pigeon racing federations coming up
That's going to be probably in the spring. You remember that from all that in your hair
Yeah, yeah, and then I in poop ice racing
You got cars bikes and wind racing coming up for those northern states and then on the pond where david grew up up in
Up in the u p the u p of michigan. So there you go. You got all that going on. So enjoy your racing
Well, thank you for that jeffrey
Well, it's time now on the in wheel time car talk show for this week in auto history
And we actually had a bit of history
Live in a living color here about 40 minutes ago. Yes
If you missed it, you'll have to check it out on a podcast very nice. All right time now for auto history. Mr.
Mars. All right starting in 1915 packard introduces the twin six and uh
It was really two sixes put together. So they created their v 12 is what it amounted to
And what they were doing this for was to take competitive with the really luxury cars of the time the pierce aro and the rolls Royce
Now this particular one they started out initially with 421 point
424 point one cubic inch with 8800 horsepower 88 horsepower at 2600 rpm
And it became a symbol of prestige and it's really what put packard up there as a premier automaker
Then going up to 1933 the first american drive-in theater opens now and this is cars have become part of the american
People moving around and getting around so it became part of the intimate entertainment culture
Now the first test the guy did in his driveway
He took a nail some screens up to some trees and invited some people to come over and watch it on a small projector
He had just to see how they felt about
Watching movies in their car
So the first one he actually built was in new jersey had room for 400 cars
The screen was a 40 by 50 foot screen and the speakers were on a big tower
By the screen blasting out and so the people in the back had a little trouble hearing
But one thing also I wanted to to add in here was
There was a movie that came out real popular at the drive-ins in 1957
It was I was a teenage werewolf and I sure you john don you remember that one
Michael Landon
was the guy that starred as their werewolf and
One of the little notes there on the screen it says
Special note well calculated to frighten all blondes
Brunettes and red heads into the nearest males protecting arms don still uses that on his business card personal business card
living on to 1940
GM introduces the hydromatic transmission now
This is the first mass produced fully automatic transmission the hydromatic came out first in the osmobile models
To eliminate the manual gear shifting and so kind of move that osmobile more up into the luxury market
And it influenced almost everybody started going to this and they used the basic design to build their own now one thing that was
That helped to promote it 1948 forward deluxe convertible
Ha ha ha grease lightning 1958 chevrolet introduces the El Camino
Now this was a hybrid vehicle kind of the car styling with the truck utility
They marketed it as a pickup with a passenger car grace
And uh got really was a Malibu
With a chabelle. Yeah, yeah
Uh, they're originally back in the then in 1958 59 miles were kind of modest. They're very expensive nowadays
But uh, they became one of the main features of the chevrolet line as they went on through the years
Uh, very popular vehicle
then finally in 1972
The Honda Civic debuts in american now. This is the Honda Civic then
It'll almost fit in the trunk of the current model Honda Civic based on the size
It was built because of the uh early 70s fuel crisis a lot of people bought them
It was well built reshaped america's perception of japanese cars
And it really became part of Honda's global success and their long
Automotive uh staple that they've used around the world
And that is this week in automotive history. Huh
Interesting as I remember when the Honda came and everybody went
Honda they they built motorcycles and built cars
Um
friend of mine
In middle school had a Honda 50 man. I thought that thing was the bomb
Yeah, they were they were fast little bikes
But well, I mean it was better than my homemade homemade
Motorbike that I built on a 20-inch frame. You're a little kid. You got that all that, you know
Horsepower and testosterone. Yeah
Uh with the federal government
7500 tax credit for electric vehicle buyers now dead
Many automakers are digging into their own coffers for big discounts to keep ev inventory moving
Hyundai motors for instance has kicked in 7500 cash incentive on the 2025 ionic five this month
And cut the small crossover sticker price by up to 9800 for 2026
GM and Ford thought they'd found a way to help customers benefit from the tax credit for several more months
But they abruptly backtracked amid political pressure from two republican senators who condemned the workarounds as
nefarious schemes to continue bilking the u.s. Tax pay always always
Both companies said they will offer comparable lease deals on their own dime instead
Crosstown rival Stellantis already had been
Replicating the value of the tax credit which expired september 30th with similarly generous incentives
automakers decision on how to price and market evs now that federal subsidies have disappeared will vary
Reflecting differing views of the segment and their share of it
Several brands including tesla
Chevy and Nissan have introduced lower priced evs to court buyers seeking options
Nearly as affordable as gasoline powered vehicles, which it should have been all along
Why do I have to pay for your ev?
Now i'm not going to pay for your ev or your ev or anybody's ev right?
Well, what do you think the $7500 came from? Oh, absolutely
Thank you
second generation chevy bolt which returns for 2027 starts at less than $30,000 with shipping tesla
Meanwhile, they debuted new versions of its model y crossover and model 3 sedan priced near $40,000
Just wait long enough
I'm telling everybody. All right
Hey, we'd love to hear from you shoot us an email. The address is info at in wheel time.com. We are back after this
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Wrap up your engines as time to roll back in style at the back to the past car show
Join the spring branch senior high school foundation saturday october 18th at cornerstone academy
1916 westview drive in houston classic cars trucks and motorcycles family fun food music and memories
There's something for everyone proceeds benefit local students and programs
Don't miss the shine the chrome and the nostalgia 10 to 2 saturday october 18th back to the past car show
spring branch bears dot com slash car show for more information in wheel time will be there too
That's it for this podcast episode of the in wheel time car show i'm don armstrong inviting you to join us for our live show
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About this episode
A lively discussion unfolds at the Back to the Past car show, featuring guest Sonny Bennett, owner of a stunning 1958 GMC Apache. Sonny shares his journey in the paint and body business, emphasizing the challenges of building custom cars for clients versus personal projects. He discusses the evolution of his Apache, which now boasts modern performance features, and reflects on the joys of driving classic cars. The episode also touches on automotive history and current industry news, making it a rich blend of personal stories and broader automotive insights.
A turquoise 1958 GMC Apache pulled us in with classic lines, then surprised us with a 2016 heartbeat: a 5.3 V8, 6L80, four-wheel discs, cold AC, and the kind of road manners that beg for long miles. With shop owner and builder Sonny Bennett at the mic, we dive into what it takes to craft a true driver from an old truck—why stock-style pulley systems matter, how water-based paint helps with real-world repairs, and why anyone claiming “no filler” is selling you a lumpy fantasy. Sonny’s ethos is simple and sharp: fix it right or don’t touch it, drive what you build, and let the miles be the proof.
We also explore the business side of bodywork: initial estimates versus supplements, the hidden damage no one sees until teardown, and the big reasons Sonny refuses direct repair programs that let insurers dictate methods and margins. His shop serves the car and the customer, not a spreadsheet. That same clarity fuels his personal fleet stories—matching a ’58 when a ’55 was elusive, rebuilding a wrecked cab the right way, and finishing the Apache during the early days of COVID when the shop was deemed essential. The result? A classic that gets 21 mpg and cruises to Gulfport without a hiccup.
The ride continues with a high-dollar Nova that took home top trophies before popping an engine on the return trip, proving that reliability is earned on the road, not on a stage. Then there’s the 1967 Camaro project, acquired with a trove of pro-touring parts and a decades-old backstory involving a hot tub trade. We round it out with our racing calendar—Talladega, F1 in Austin, NHRA dates—and a fast lap through auto history, from Packard’s twin six to the Hydramatic and the El Camino. We close on EV news and incentives fading, with automakers stepping in to keep prices competitive.
If you love honest shop wisdom, restomod ingenuity, and the thrill of cars built to be driven, you’ll feel right at home. Follow and subscribe for more episodes, share this one with a fellow car nut, and drop a review to tell us whether you’d modern-swap or keep it period-correct.
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