Consumer attitudes towards electric vehicles (EVs) are shifting, with a significant drop in consideration among gas car shoppers, as discussed by Dave Thomas from CDK Global. The episode dives into a study revealing that only 10% of gas shoppers are now considering EVs, down from 33%. Factors influencing this decline include perceived lifestyle fit and reliability concerns. The hosts also touch on NASCAR paint schemes, highlighting favorites and discussing the creativity behind them. The conversation wraps up with insights on exhaust repair techniques and the evolving landscape of car buying through eBay.
Hello and welcome to The Truth About Cars podcast! This week we have research on how consumers are thinking about electric vehicles. We also have tips on exhaust repair and thoughts on NASCAR paint schemes.
CDK Global's David Thomas talks about consumers and EVs with us, and TTAC contributor Matthew Guy walks us through exhaust repair. Managing editor Tim Healey and Matthew Guy then go over NASCAR paint schemes.
We thank David and Matthew for their time, and Matt Posky for editing. Most of all, we thank you for listening!
We'll see you next time!
"...this week we discuss how consumers think about electric vehicles. We also discuss NASCAR paint schemes..."
Electric vehicles are cars that run on electricity instead of gasoline. They are better for the environment because they produce less pollution.
Electric vehicles (EVs) are cars that are powered entirely or partially by electricity, using batteries or fuel cells instead of traditional internal combustion engines. They are becoming increasingly popular due to their environmental benefits and advancements in technology.
"...we chat with CDK globals Dave Thomas about shifts in consumer thinking regarding EVs..."
CDK Global is a company that helps car dealerships with technology and services to make buying and selling cars easier.
CDK Global is a company that provides technology solutions for the automotive retail industry, helping dealerships manage their operations and improve customer experiences.
"...that's why you should buy your next ride on ebay. See ebay has got everything from classics to trucks and imports..."
eBay is a website where you can buy and sell many things, including cars. It helps make sure sellers are trustworthy and offers ways to pay for your purchase.
eBay is an online marketplace where people can buy and sell a wide variety of goods, including vehicles. It offers features like verified sellers and financing options to enhance the purchasing experience.
"...you were talking about how you helped your son with some exhaust repair. So that's the stuff we use this week is is the epoxy kind of that you use to repair exhaust. So walk us through what that is and where you can get it."
Epoxy is a strong glue used to fix things, like car parts. When mixed with a hardener, it becomes very tough and can hold up well in hot and bumpy conditions.
Epoxy is a type of adhesive that is commonly used in automotive repairs, including exhaust systems. It consists of a resin and a hardener that, when mixed together, create a strong bond that can withstand high temperatures and vibrations.
"...just a compact economy car just a Hyundai Elantra from back in 2012. So the other day in the last couple of weeks..."
The Hyundai Elantra is a small car that is easy on gas and budget-friendly. The 2012 version is known for being reliable and has a comfortable interior.
The Hyundai Elantra is a compact economy car known for its affordability and fuel efficiency. The 2012 model is part of the fifth generation, which features a more refined design and improved technology compared to earlier models.
"...this stuff that we found just over on eBay Motors is called from the JB Weld brand and most gear heads know what brand yeah yeah right..."
JB Weld is a brand that makes strong glue and repair products, especially for cars. People use it to fix things quickly and easily.
JB Weld is a well-known brand that specializes in epoxy adhesives and repair products, particularly for automotive and industrial applications. Their products are popular among DIY enthusiasts and mechanics for quick and effective repairs.
"...it's literally just called exhaust weld and I've used these wraps before but they were dry and they didn't really do much other than blow away 10 minutes after I put them on..."
Exhaust weld is a special kind of glue used to fix leaks in car exhaust systems. It helps to seal up holes so that exhaust gases don't escape.
Exhaust weld is a type of repair product designed to seal and bond exhaust components. It's often used to fix leaks in exhaust systems temporarily or permanently, depending on the product's formulation.
"...wrapping up of repair on an older vehicle right whose exhaust system seemed just fine until it wasn't..."
The exhaust system helps to remove gases produced by the engine and makes the car quieter. It includes different parts that work together to keep the car running cleanly and safely.
The exhaust system is a series of components that directs exhaust gases away from the engine and reduces harmful emissions. It typically includes parts like the exhaust manifold, catalytic converter, and muffler.
"...the old saying of rust never sleeps is deadly accurate for wide swaths of this continent..."
Rust is what happens to metal when it gets wet and starts to break down. It can make metal parts weak and cause problems if not taken care of.
Rust is a form of corrosion that occurs when iron or its alloys are exposed to moisture and oxygen. It can weaken metal components, making them less safe and functional over time.
"...worst of all wait for hours at the dmv just a chance for the title that air is over for years ebay has been the go-to for gear heads collectors..."
The DMV is a government office where you go to handle things like getting a driver's license or registering your car. It can take a long time to get things done there.
The DMV, or Department of Motor Vehicles, is a government agency responsible for vehicle registration, driver licensing, and maintaining vehicle records. It often involves paperwork and waiting times for services related to vehicle ownership.
"...eligible vehicles purchased on ebay are backed up but up to $100,000 in purchase protection thinking about selling your ride secure purchase being..."
Purchase protection means that if you buy something and it doesn't work out or gets damaged, you can get your money back or help to fix it. It's like a safety net for buyers.
Purchase protection is a service that offers buyers a guarantee against loss or damage when they buy items, including vehicles. It provides financial security, ensuring that if something goes wrong with the purchase, the buyer can receive compensation.
"...the big headline we mentioned last time was a huge drop in consideration among gas shoppers..."
An EV, or electric vehicle, is a car that runs on electricity instead of gasoline. This means it uses batteries to power the motor, making it different from traditional cars that rely on fuel.
EV stands for electric vehicle, which is a type of vehicle that is powered entirely or partially by electricity. This includes fully electric cars as well as hybrids that use both an electric motor and a gasoline engine.
A tax credit is money that the government allows you to subtract from the taxes you owe. For electric vehicles, this can help lower the price you pay when buying one.
A tax credit is a financial incentive provided by the government that reduces the amount of tax owed. In the context of electric vehicles, tax credits are often offered to encourage consumers to purchase EVs by lowering their overall cost.
"...reliability still the first uh the top reason at 32 but yeah this idea of you know this evie just doesn't fit..."
Reliability means how dependable a car is. If a car is reliable, it usually works well and doesn't break down often. This is important for people when they buy a car.
Reliability in the context of vehicles refers to how consistently a car performs well without breaking down or needing repairs. It is a significant factor for consumers when considering which car to purchase.
"...or or second generation vehicles like the Nissan Leaf that just launched so um are there people sort of..."
The Nissan Leaf is a car that runs entirely on electricity instead of gasoline. It's known for being affordable and is a good option for people who want to drive an eco-friendly vehicle. The newer version has better features and can go further on a single charge.
The Nissan Leaf is an all-electric hatchback that has gained popularity for its affordability and practicality in urban environments. As one of the first mass-produced electric vehicles, it has played a significant role in promoting electric mobility and reducing carbon emissions. The second generation of the Leaf offers improved range and technology, making it a relevant topic in discussions about the future of electric vehicles.
"...maybe i can afford this even without the tax credit maybe i can afford this msrp you know tim this..."
MSRP is the price that car makers suggest dealers sell their cars for. It's like a starting price, and you might be able to negotiate a lower price when buying a car.
MSRP stands for Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price, which is the price that the manufacturer recommends a dealer sell a vehicle for. It serves as a starting point for negotiations between the buyer and the dealer.
"...they're really good at saying what 250 miles of range means to you in this town and what you can do with it right..."
Range is how far an electric car can go before it needs to be recharged. It's important to know this so you can plan your trips without running out of battery.
In the context of electric vehicles (EVs), 'range' refers to the distance a vehicle can travel on a single charge. Understanding range is crucial for potential EV buyers as it affects usability and convenience.
"...that you can fast charge in 30 minutes or less and that if you don't have a..."
Fast charging means you can recharge an electric car's battery much quicker than usual. This is helpful when you're in a hurry and need to get back on the road quickly.
Fast charging refers to the ability to recharge an electric vehicle's battery at a significantly higher rate than standard charging. This allows drivers to quickly gain a substantial amount of range in a short period, often within 30 minutes or less.
"...dealers who to sell and service EVs had to buy forklifts you know to because that's how you move a battery around..."
A forklift is a big machine that can lift heavy things. In electric cars, they use forklifts to move the heavy batteries when they need to be taken out or replaced.
A forklift is a powered industrial truck used to lift and move materials over short distances. In the context of electric vehicles, forklifts are often necessary for handling heavy batteries during servicing or replacement due to their weight.
"...d now a Nissan Leafs got 300 right this new this new BMW that's going to come out which i really think is..."
The BMW New Class is a new line of cars that BMW is creating, focusing on electric models that still offer a fun driving experience. This means they want to make cars that are good for the environment but also enjoyable to drive. It's an exciting development for fans of the brand and electric cars.
The BMW New Class refers to a new generation of vehicles that BMW is developing, aiming to combine electric powertrains with the brand's signature performance and luxury. This initiative marks a significant shift for BMW as it embraces electrification while maintaining the driving dynamics that enthusiasts expect. The New Class is anticipated to play a crucial role in BMW's strategy to compete in the growing electric vehicle market.
"...at a price only 5% 6% over a gas X3 it should be you know it's going to meet that need..."
The BMW X3 is a luxury SUV that offers a comfortable ride and good performance. It's a popular choice for those looking for a stylish and practical vehicle.
The BMW X3 is a compact luxury SUV that combines performance with practicality. It is known for its driving dynamics and premium features, making it a popular choice in its segment.
"so in according to camry anything like that you're going to have 300 miles of range minimum probably closer to 350 on gas and that's plenty..."
The Toyota Camry is a popular car that many people drive. It can go about 300 to 350 miles before needing to refuel, which is good for long trips.
The Toyota Camry is a midsize sedan known for its reliability, comfort, and fuel efficiency. It typically offers a range of around 300 to 350 miles on a full tank, making it a practical choice for everyday driving.
"it was only the mustangs the v8s and the camaros and stuff like that where i was seeing less than 250..."
The Ford Mustang is a fast car that many people love. However, it doesn't go as far on a tank of gas as some other cars because it uses more fuel.
The Ford Mustang is a classic American muscle car known for its powerful performance and sporty design. However, V8 variants often have lower fuel efficiency, resulting in a shorter range compared to more economical vehicles.
"it was only the mustangs the v8s and the camaros and stuff like that where i was seeing less than 250..."
The Chevrolet Camaro is a sporty car that is known for being fast. Like the Mustang, it doesn't go as far on a tank of gas because it uses a lot of fuel.
The Chevrolet Camaro is another iconic American muscle car that emphasizes performance and style. Similar to the Mustang, its V8 models tend to consume more fuel, leading to a reduced driving range.
"...red bull always looks good right as track house racing there in the 88 red bull always looks good doesn't matter what they're into..."
Red Bull is a brand of energy drink that sponsors many race cars and teams. You often see their logo on cars during races, and they are known for their exciting marketing and events.
Red Bull is an energy drink brand that is heavily involved in motorsports, particularly Formula 1 and NASCAR. Their branding is often featured on race cars, making them a recognizable presence in the racing world.
"...when you looked at uh the car on the track it stood out right that tide ride I think arguably for this old timer um darrow all trip was probably the person who brought that hey we're not that old to life right you're not that old I'm the same age I'm getting there I'm..."
NASCAR is a type of car racing that takes place on tracks, usually shaped like ovals. The cars used in NASCAR are based on regular cars but are specially built for racing.
NASCAR stands for the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, and it is a popular motorsport organization in the United States known for its stock car racing events. The races feature cars that are modified versions of production vehicles, and they are often held on oval tracks.
"...when dw was running that on the 17 anyone the Daytona 500 and it just looked so so good..."
The Daytona 500 is a famous car race in the United States. It's a big event where many cars compete on a track in Daytona, Florida, and it's part of a series called NASCAR.
The Daytona 500 is one of the most prestigious races in NASCAR, held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Florida. It's often referred to as 'The Great American Race' and is the season opener for the NASCAR Cup Series.
"...the british racing green uh josh perry car with the lotus look I thought was good looking..."
British Racing Green is a dark green color that many British race cars are painted. It's a classic color that represents British motorsport.
British Racing Green is a color traditionally associated with British motorsport. It is a deep green color that has become iconic in the automotive world, especially for British car manufacturers like Aston Martin and Jaguar.
"...I'm with you on the valveline um stuff and I go way back to my youth with alan..."
Valvoline is a brand that makes motor oil and other products for cars. It's popular in racing and is known for helping engines run smoothly.
Valvoline is a well-known brand of motor oil and automotive lubricants. It has a long history in motorsports and is recognized for its high-performance products used in various racing applications.
"...they got a top 10 finish with justin auger and in last year's day..."
Justin Allgaier is a race car driver who competes in NASCAR. He has driven different cars and is known for his skills on the track.
Justin Allgaier is a professional stock car racing driver who competes in NASCAR. He has driven various cars throughout his career, including those for JR Motorsports, and is known for his performances in the Xfinity Series.
"...i also really wanted to mention too that the uh again i'll get in a little bit of trouble with some of my family but the Napa car that chase elliot ran earlier this year that was all gold the anniversary for Napa that did look pretty good..."
The Napa car is a race car that has Napa Auto Parts as a sponsor. It often has special paint designs, like a gold one for their anniversary, to make it stand out during races.
The Napa car refers to a race car sponsored by Napa Auto Parts, often featuring distinctive paint schemes to celebrate anniversaries or special events. In this case, it was a gold anniversary paint scheme for Napa.
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Hello and welcome to the truth about cars podcast. I am Tim Ealy the managing editor and this week
we discuss how consumers think about electric vehicles. We also discuss NASCAR paint schemes
and more. We chat with CDK globals Dave Thomas about shifts in consumer thinking regarding
EVs. T-Tech contributor Matthew Guy and I discuss NASCAR paint schemes and for our stuff we use
segment we discuss exhaust repair. But first buying a car should feel secure start to finish that's
why you should buy your next ride on ebay. See ebay has got everything from classics to trucks and
imports. Now with secure purchase sellers and titles are verified and financing delivery and
insurance options are built right in. Plus eligible vehicle purchases are backed by up to a hundred
thousand dollars in protection. So buy your next car in ebay. Things people love. Secure purchase
is powered by Carmo dealer services LLC in ebay subsidiary. Here on the truth about cars podcast
we're always talking about the stuff that we use in our homes in our homes excuse me and in and on
our cars and as almost just about every single time we do this we have t-tech contributor Matthew
Guy with us. Matthew how are you doing today? Hi not too bad Tim how are you doing? I'm doing
well just getting ready for the end of the year and with that you were talking about how you helped
your son with some exhaust repair. So that's the stuff we use this week is is the epoxy kind of
that you use to repair exhaust. So walk us through what that is and where you can get it. Yeah of
course and that was oftentimes you know I mean you've had cars that that needed a bit of repair
in the past right. I mean there's almost all of us start our automotive careers with something
that's 10 years old and has a few miles on it right and that's exactly what this type of car is
Yeah exactly exactly yeah absolutely and these types of repairs they don't cost very much
but they still keep you on the road and that's kind of the point we're trying to limp this car
along until until the inspection runs out in in June. So if we get another six months out of it
we'll be doing all right and just a compact economy car just a Hyundai Elantra from back in 2012.
So the other day in the last couple of weeks and stuff the exhaust has been getting a bit
louder. Haven't been noticing much smell or anything I mean with exhaust you want to make
sure you fix that right away if you're smelling it even if you're not. You don't want that leaking
carbon monoxide in here cockpit either. Exactly right so if you do have if it does start sounding
a bit loud try to get this repaired on as fast as you can. So rather than digging into it with
welding and new metal and things like that we tried we decided to try out some of these
exhaust repair kits that you can get and as a joke I was telling them about you know all the
times in the past when you'd get an old pop can and you'd you know screw it on with some hose clamps
just as a very temporary thing just to get home right you know all those different types of repairs
and we tried one this time there's a few different types of these wraps and WRAPS you know it's
almost like if you're trying to wrap up a you know a a cut on your arm or if you've have
some sort of injury right I mean just trying to wrap it up with a bit of gauze and this stuff
that we found just over on eBay Motors is called from the JB Weld brand and most gear heads know
what brand yeah yeah right and I didn't know they dug into this type of stuff but it's literally
just called exhaust weld and I've used these wraps before but they were dry and they didn't
really do much other than blow away 10 minutes after I put them on but this one comes in a plastic
package a foil package I should say with plastic around it and the instructions say to kind of
knead it around almost like almost like Play-Doh right if you as you're trying to activate it in
the foil in the foil wrap just before you use it and that is supposed to activate this this this
plaster like product this liquid that's in there along with the wrap and sure enough right comes
with gloves and everything right so wear gloves and whatever and then you open up the package
and there's a bit of gauze in there and after you activate it it has all kinds of you know white
goop on it almost like it's plaster itself and then you just wrap it around the the impacted part
of the exhaust it's rated for many thousands of degrees and it does it it produced decent results
right I mean you follow the instructions wrap it up as tight as you can let it cure for a couple
hours if the car is off or you can run the car for about 20 minutes and it cures that way as well
with heat and we had great results with it I mean it's not perfect by any stretch it's still a little
bit loud but it's not the you know demolition derby car type of noise that we had this time last
week so just quite literally wrapping up of repair on an older vehicle right whose exhaust system
seemed just fine until it wasn't so this I do recommend I just picked it up on you can pick
these things up on ebay motors and jb weld is a brand that I trust and have for years but for
different reasons right for sticking stuff together instead of fixing an exhaust while I was interested
to find this glad to find this and you know the old saying of rust never sleeps is deadly accurate
for wide swaths of this continent so recommended very much are there any safety concerns well it
says to use gloves while you're working with this product and I can understand why because the plaster
does get pretty sticky pretty quick right so just use the plastic use the rubber gloves that come
with it in the in the kit and other than you know the typical safety concerns of getting under your
car making sure that you're safe in that regard that's about it it's pretty easy to work with and
I was very pleased with the results cool anything else we should know nothing I can think of um you
know just making sure I think to go for the jb weld product that's here that is kind of like a
plastic cast a bit wet that needs to cure instead of just going for the dry example that just pretty
much blew away a couple of minutes after I installed it so I do I do like it and do recommend it cool
excellent so with that we'll go ahead and wrap our stuff we use segment here on this week's
truth about cars podcast thanks Matthew thank you
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cars podcast we have dav thomas from cdk global he's the director of content marketing he's with
us to go a little bit deeper into what we touched upon the last time dav was on the show which was
evie adoption of the evie market dav how are you doing today doing great tim thanks for having me
yeah thanks for coming back out so last time we chatted we discussed at least a little bit of
some evie uh marketing issues and and why people are or are not buying evies and now what we're
talking about you did a study that went a little deeper into this so the last time we chatted you
sort of hit the overview now you've gone deeper over at cdk uh can you first kind of walk us
through what this study showed you and then we'll go from there yeah you got it so um this is a
study we've put out annually for a couple of years now and it's a gauge interest on evie consideration
across all car car shoppers so not just people interested in car and evies themselves but what
is someone shopping for a gas car think about evies when you know if they're shopping for a gas car
today when might they consider an evie um and then we looked at hybrid and plug-in hybrid too so
you know there's over 1300 shoppers of all four segments um and i don't know many places that
kind of look at it that way a lot kind of either look at the evie person or or just broad consideration
these these are in market shoppers and and and actively looking at cars and why they're going
to choose evie or not and so you know the big headline we mentioned last time was
a huge drop in consideration among gas shoppers um it was last year one and three would consider an
evie and now it's one out of ten and that's that's a big drop and so we kind of dive into that a
little bit of why why that might have happened um and then there's some other ideas out there that we
don't we don't put to print but um you know so so there's that big headline um and then that
those very few gas shoppers that are considering it are looking further out into the future like
than any other shopper like maybe they'll get an evie in 10 years yeah okay so i know we talked
about this a little bit last time too but just remind me if the change in the tax evie tax credit
excuse me the evie tax credit going away had anything to do with it um not really no um
and when you talk to evie uh shoppers themselves um you know this was this was a survey kind of
overlapped uh while it was still in existence so when it went away um and so there was it was a
good mix of of feedback um so no incentives are way down the list of reasons people consider the evie
and are shopping for one uh and that's one of the reasons we see um and we can talk about some of
this other stuff later we see the future of evie's not being as dire as a lot of people suggest uh
because they think without that incentive you know that's what was driving everything and
that's not really true it might have driven that last gasp and rush at the end you know clearly
that was an impact but when you talk to people who want an evie it's not going to move the needle
forum if it was not there yeah okay so um without going too deep into stuff that we
covered last time or maybe you can go deeper on that stuff depending on what what you found but
why are gas shoppers holding back what's holding what is holding them back can you explain yeah
for sure um so uh there's a few things but uh when you ask them why um you know
there's a couple of of um you know things you ask is like was it the reliability of evie's
was it the cost of ownership um was it the uh not trusting the technology and there's one
that we asked that's all the biggest spike and and it was do evie's fit your lifestyle
and that went from 18 saying that was the reason they weren't considering last year
to 28 the biggest jump we saw 10 percentage points out of all the reasons um reliability
still the first uh the top reason at 32 but yeah this idea of you know this evie just doesn't fit
for how i live i either you know tow a lot of stuff i live in a really um cold climate maybe
you know there's things like that but we're not quite sure of why that would have changed so much
in a year you know to put into a research document i think anecdotally anyone that's
existed in in this country that last year knows that there is far more negative mentions of evie's
out there in the world in the past year than there were the year before so whether it's coming
from um political or media or wherever it's coming from it's there and so i you know when i think of
those underlying reasons not not that came through in the research but that has to be one of the one
of the things that move the needle that much and um the the other thing is that these gas
shoppers have astronomically different expectations of evie's and they want evie's to if they're
gonna consider one they want it to be like well basically an evie that doesn't exist right they
want it to have 450 miles of range and they want it to be cheap so and we know and those of us who
live in this world and you test evie's all the time you know those two things don't go together
very often low prices so um so that that's that's what's going on it is this um and we go into the
myths like the um we did this last year we did it again like you know do you understand you know
which car do you think costs the most to maintain or or ensure or or purchase and and value over time
and a lot of um folks still think maintenance is more expensive on an evie which is one of their
you know number one reasons are great right why you know the pro of an evie is that the maintenance
is lower but these shoppers that aren't evie shoppers don't believe it um and some of some of them are
correct right they they are more expensive right uh in general um they are more expensive oftentimes
to ensure um and things like that but um the repairs and maintenance was was pretty surprising to see
you know again um shoppers think those are a detriment to evie's when they really aren't
yeah and so one thing you said you saw was um people say evie's with their lifestyle better so
among those who are saying that have they become exposed to so the thing about evie's at least
for what i've seen and again this is anecdotal but the biggest difference in evie's that i've seen
over the past year um range has gone up in a lot of vehicles or or max range is a little more
accessible and evie's still are not cheap in terms of sticker price but they are coming there are a
few more affordable ones and some of the more affordable ones had uh redesigns or or second
generation vehicles like the Nissan Leaf that just launched so um are there people sort of maybe
who were skeptical before all sudden saying hey you know what charging is still a pain but maybe
i can get a charge for my house or there's a wallgreens with one nearby but they're like you
know maybe maybe the range is is enough that i don't have to worry about it anymore or maybe
i can afford this even without the tax credit maybe i can afford this msrp you know tim this
is why like it's a great question because this is why we do the research because what you just said
would make all the sense of the world but when you talk to the the gas shoppers this year nope
they have less understanding of all of those things so they they you know we tracked like do you
know how much it costs to charge an evie that dropped from 60 to 43 percent you know do you know
that you can fast charge in 30 minutes you know in general that dropped 16 percentage points less
than a third know that um do you know any you know where any charging networks are around you where you
live that dropped almost in half um so yeah it's it's um it's the opposite and and i really i presented
to a media group i don't know if you were there in october but um i really do think a lot of that
is from the narrative of you know that's just this negative narrative to evs that was kind of pushed
and it influenced that right it's just oh well if all these other people are saying that i must be
wrong the person was probably right so um it's a it's a really you know i wouldn't call it bizarre
necessarily it when you think of everything that's happened in the past year it makes a little bit
of sense but it just shows like how much a car shopper can be swayed um when things like that
change and and federal guidelines change and you know people they respect offer different
points of view um they're they're mindset and they're thinking around this technology change
okay yeah yeah so one thing you mentioned is politics has probably pushed put maybe maybe
change some things among gas shoppers but i'm also curious why haven't autumn and this goes back
geez uh to the original Chevy vault really why haven't automakers who have invested interest in
selling these vehicles done a better job of training consumers and i'm sure the dealer network can
sometimes be a problem because sometimes dealers are more interested in selling cars and that
is supposed to learning about them but why are automakers and their commercials pushing this
more and i've not seen again a zenith dodle but i've not seen a ton of when i see a commercial
for an ev and i see commercials for evs here and there but when i see a commercial for a
fully electric vehicle i don't see a ton of oems touting range touting lower maintenance cost
overall um that sort of thing the all the things that would point to an advantage of having an ev
yeah um it's it's disquieting in a way that you know you can look at some automakers i mean for
just made a major announcement of how much shifting this this huge amount of money uh at a cost to
them you know twenty point five billion or whatever it was yeah um i don't think they spent a couple
million on what you were just talking about right like i mean if they did i'm sure they could they
could come and tell me but um that that type of you know education i'm not the first person to
say it's needed and missing i think that's probably come up from every ev um i won't call
myself an expert but when you look talk to the ev experts it education is up there and that's why
that event that the chicago dealers put together this um chicago drives electric is purely educational
because they understand you have to experience it you have to get a little more um education like
knowledge about these vehicles because they're just different than what you're used to and an
average consumer so tim like we live this industry right the average consumer lives
their life and and their industry which is predominantly not automotive related out if
you don't live in michigan for example like you probably do not think about the automotive industry
one iota um out there so um you know things that we take for granted like that thirty
thirty minutes to charge might be new to a lot of people um the folks that are like
into evs like you know the shoppers that are first you know first to try some new technology
those first movers sure they they dig into into youtube and we have some data on how youtube is
the number one source for ev um knowledge for for people that are interested in buying them
they'll do that but for the person that's like am i gonna get a hybrid you know or am i gonna
or should i just make the leap to ev they're the ones um that i think are are really in
need of that that education and i don't think it's a lot of education like this isn't sitting in a
college lecture hall and and being spoken to this is getting to a dealership seeing the vehicle in
person like understanding that it's not a you know they're not scary you know they're usually pretty
nice um they have lots of cool screens and technology and all these kinds of cool things
that everyone wants in their other cars so you know and then and then having someone explain
and the dealers are really good at this um and this is something we we've uh kind of
hope they would do and we've talked about it they're really good at saying what 250 miles of range
means to you in this town and what you can do with it right so they understand like they can tell
you where the local chargers are they can tell you um you know we're in chicago and what 250
miles of range from here can you know we'll get to milwaukee and back you're not going to have a
problem if you're sitting in i gosh i went to a bull's game last night i sat and traveled for an
hour and a half to go 20 miles that's the perfect place for an ev to to be right yeah absolutely
absolutely and the worst place for a gas car to be so under so dealers understand their local
communities it's a little harder for the automakers to get to that level but i gosh someone did um do
a really great job of of talking about their range versus how many towns you could go to
shoot i saw it recently but it was it was all over the country like you can get from la to here
you can get from that wasn't keo was it phoenix to there you can get from dallas to there it was
really smart i forget which one it was but it's really clever but it's something we've been
saying we've been saying this for 10 years um but that's that's what the consumer needs to know
um that's why yeah you know and dealers work at that um community level and um like if you're in
the in the burbs of chicago you know and you're and maybe you've got a bmwe v shoppers like you
know you can get to lake geneva without a problem you know you can put this in in real lake geneva
is a nice little community like lake town and wisconsin that people like to vacation do so
you can put these things into perspective for your shopper they'll instantly understand um you
know i was i i did a trip to um i didn't take an ev because it was sub zero but i still called the
hotel i was like if i decide to bring an ev do you have a charger and it was not a nice hotel
just a regular you know ampton in or whatever it was and they had two chargers um you know in the
back and no one was using them so you know there's there's all those things that a dealer can say
look you know if you're if you travel a lot you know make sure that the hotel has a charger you
and all of them know like i call that a hotel they're like yep um so yeah all those things
that the dealer can put and help put in perspective i think is is is really helpful um and you know
for your audience which is is not in the automotive retail world like like cdk is where we deal with
dealers all the time that's that's our audience our primary audience um the dealers do want to
sell evs there is no they want to sell cars no matter they want to sell anything they can sure
if it's on their lot they want to sell it they're not trying to dissuade people what they're doing
is trying to ask what's your lifestyle right so if you tell them you know i i do 500 mile trips
all the time and you know i need to turn around quickly or you know i i'm very impatient you know
my wife would never do an ev road trip because she couldn't handle waiting for 30 minutes like she
just wouldn't and that's a personal thing not a technology thing right so you have to do those
assessments dealers call them an assessment right like what does this shop like how does this shopper
live because they don't want to give you know sell them something that might not fit their lifestyle
and to be honest um and so i think when people think oh or say that the dealer is dissuading
them from an ev i think they're saying you might not really fit with it um and so that does happen
but um they will sell them and i tell you i heard recently from a dealer in colorado is listening
to a different podcast and colorado is the biggest market share percentage of evs in the country
even though it's not volume but market share i think it's at 30 percent and he's like i sell
lots of evs people want them they come asking for them they love them i mean it's it's it's different
in every area and a dealer in wisconsin might not feel the same way and they're and they're
in the lifestyle in wisconsin might be very different than in colorado no i was just gonna
say they both like to ski but besides that yeah no i was gonna say i think it just it is just
weird to me that and you're you're absolutely right the automakers don't need to educate consumers
a lot all their consumers really need to know is that range anxiety is much less of an issue than
it was before that most evs have enough juice even in cold weather to uh unless they're going on a
long road trip to at least give them a few days in between charges and then they just need to know
need to know that you can fast charge in 30 minutes or less and that if you don't have a
charger at home you can find one fairly easily i think that's all consumers really need to learn
really need to learn and they also need to learn that that maintenance is less uh because there's
fewer moving parts that can break on an ev and then i also think the the myth of the battery
dying before a warranty and being a huge expense that probably needs to be debunked a little bit
so i don't think it's been as bad as people expected um yeah that's being i just saw something
this morning trying to debunk that a little bit with how how few um batteries have actually been
replaced over the past 10 years you know because usually like that 10 year number they keep talking
about um and they're dealers who to sell and service EVs had to buy forklifts you know to
because that's how you move a battery around um you know when it when it comes out from underneath
the vehicle you need an actual forklift which is not something a typical dealer has maybe they
sell fleet vehicles or something like that but so they had to invest in forklifts and
they say i've never used one because i've never had a car come in that needed a battery change
so yeah i think that battery myth is it needs to be uh dispelled like just like the fire like
they catch on fire that's a total myth right like they you know it's they're very infrequently um
they're catching on fire uh but especially i mean gas cars catch on fire quite frequently
absolutely yeah yeah so i wanted to ask you switching gears slightly um about in the study
you've you mentioned how EV buyers stand out so can you walk us through through that part of the
study yeah so the interesting thing is that because we're surveying everybody um you gotta
see the differences really stand out on the EV side and and and what their lifestyle is is like
and and some of the stuff we covered this year was a little more specific to
the trends going on especially around incentives which i'll talk about but the thing that always
blows my mind whether they're shopping for an EV or we do another study on owners and ownership of
EVs they drive a lot so the range idea of being stopping people from driving a lot in general
EV drivers and shoppers drive more than their gas counterparts they more say they drive 15,000 miles
or more a year far more say they drive 20,000 miles a year um which is a lot i just can't
you know i like i love to drive i can't imagine doing 20,000 miles i've never done them any miles
in a year uh yeah even when i was commuting to work on my own car yeah and the daily commute
is longer for EV um shoppers so um that's one thing that i think if you if you explain that to
the non EVs like no they drive more than you and they're fine right so i think that's that's one
way of of kind of breaking down those those myths um a really interesting change because
it's something i've said for a long time you know obviously a huge benefit of an EV is being able
to charge it at home with your with the electricity rates that you have in your home which are far
less than using a charging network out in the world right and so then and so that's you know we
in previous years we've seen a lot of EV shoppers and intenders saying yeah i'm going to put in a
charging station almost nine out of ten last year and that fell to 79% this year so they're
they seem a little more comfortable again with that range idea of i can get by without it
and it's similar where the number of um of shoppers aren't going to have a second car
it's almost they're going to totally rely on the EV which is the other thing i have always
said is an EV is a perfect second car um i think i don't have that number right in front of you
but i think that's about 30% now um we're we're going solo with that EV so those things are really
examples of EVs are coming kind of coming out of this restrictive zone right like you have to treat
them you know with kid gloves right so that the people that are buying them and and owning them
and experiencing it like no i i i get along just fine um with this EV um so so i think those things
are really interesting the the non we we ask non homeowners uh you know how do they how are
they going to do it and far fewer um said they're going to rely on public charging networks even
though that's number one it's 67 uh 22 they're going to charge at their workplace so a lot of
people have returned to office um they got a commute as we just said EVs are perfect commuting
cars and they said hey if my workplace has one i'm there five days a week or four days a week
and i got all this range i'm going to be pretty good um so that that's really great to see as
well that because we know the multi unit dwellings um are an issue of not having easy access to
charging we've talked about a few times yeah and one of those buildings right so um and and so if
you're in that that situation they're looking for well how can i make this work and the workplace
is is growing as that answer so it's kind of interesting in my mind this whole return to
office trend is has a side effect on the EV side yeah i can see that i know i know a few EV owners who
charge at work is just simpler uh don't have to spend the money on a at-home charger or
or that sort of thing and like you said if you're in the office three to five days a week that's
enough and i've noticed since again anecdotal as well but i've noticed testing EVs and i don't
always put a ton of miles on test cars just because of where i live everything is close i put enough
miles on cars to get a review right but i don't live in the suburbs so sometimes to go to a certain
to go to my gym or a grocery store just a shorter drive then it would be if i live in the suburbs
but maybe maybe in the burbs i'd be going two or three miles here i'm going half a mile but
what i've noticed is when i first started testing EVs however many years ago i always felt a little
bit of range anxiety even when there was plenty of range and even when i knew i could charge nearby
even when um i knew i was only going to put 100 miles in a car or whatever it is i thought well
you know 100 miles isn't going to isn't going to cause any issues and it should leave the fleet
with enough miles to get to the next journalist or to get the car back to their garage but i've
noticed i've become more sanguine over the years i've had less and less worry about it i've been
less and less worried about oh shoot i need to make sure this thing gets charged and part of
the reason is and again a little bit specific to where i live and and to the fact that uh i'm not
going mileage wise super far i might be sitting in traffic for 20 minutes but i'm only going a
mile um you know when i get in an EV sometimes they're not fully charged anymore when they're
dropped off they're close 95 percent or 90 percent 85 percent and sometimes especially in in warmer
weather when it's not too hot or when it's not too cold i go about my life my life for a week i
run errands i go to the grocery store a couple times go to the gym every day whatever and maybe
go down maybe go to the suburbs once once or twice or go downtown and back which is a few
miles each way and then i i look at it and like i don't need to i don't need to charge this vehicle
i have enough range that the fleet doesn't need doesn't need it to go to the next journalist or
the next or back to the garage they've got plenty of miles remaining yeah and so i think i'm trying
to say in so many words is that as time goes on range anxiety it's basically like with gas cars
and with gas cars i've got a i've got a rule that at a certain point i will refill them with gas
before i return typically three typically if we use three quarters of a tank i'm getting to the
same point with evs where it's like i don't have to charge them and i used to charge almost every
ev and now it's like so i guess what i'm trying to say is there's also that too that people have
come i think have realized how far 300 miles really is in a week or two weeks and maybe
don't need to charge at home because they can go 300 miles and charge it if not their office
and maybe Walgreens or whatever yeah again you're you're spot on and in our owners our last ownership
study that was clearly evident where the number of owners who plugged in every night dropped
and instead they're plugging in every two or three nights and they own a home i mean they
owned their home and charger and they were still deciding to to wait like they didn't need it
which which was a pretty significant change and i agree i believe that's because the technology
in the newer models is putting on that 250 miles of range is like i won't call it an average because
i don't have all the averages put in front of me but that's kind of table stakes now is 250
where you know three or four years ago you know you're looking at 200 250 would be really good
now a Nissan Leafs got 300 right this new this new BMW that's going to come out which i really
think is going to be you know a tremendous impact on on the entire segment is going to have 400 miles
of range at a price not too high above a gas BMW X3 so i think it's about a 5% 6% price difference
and you're getting you know i can't wait to drive one myself but everything i read about it is is
kind of you know everyone is just kind of falling over themselves to say it's great
but even if it's just mediocre to drive and it's got 400 miles of range at a price only 5%
6% over a gas X3 it should be you know it's going to meet that need of any of those shoppers even
if they go on decent road trips pretty frequently you said table safe for 250 mile 100 mile excuse
me 250 miles of range yeah i think that is so without i will give you some time for the last
question here so i'll make this quick but when i was coming up in this industry 15 years ago
i always felt that the minimum range on a gas car to be comfortable should be 300 maybe 250
and i all right to me most vehicles except for trucks and sports cars were over 250
and usually over 300 so in according to camry anything like that you're going to have 300 miles
of range minimum probably closer to 350 on gas and that's plenty right it was only the mustangs
the v8s and the camaros and stuff like that where i was seeing less than 250 and of course
sledfoot behavior plays a part in that but um there was the performance cars that suck a lot
of gas because they're v8 engines so i so i think 250 when when you think of 250 as kind of the
minimum for a gas car yeah you put it there with evs i think that makes a lot of sense and
it makes it really matches up well so i wanted just to add that and then we have about five
minutes left i want i want you to go ahead and anything we haven't talked about on this study
that you want to highlight especially if we didn't talk about it the previous time that you were on
the show yeah i think it's that it's one of the last parts of the of the paper and i think it's
the question that everyone has right now you know are the are evs sales going to fall off a cliff
you know next year with with the removal of incentives like they have the past couple of months
you know after the incentive ended and all that pulled up demand you know was no longer there
um and i think that one of the most interesting stats and we've we've done this question a lot
about leasing versus purchasing an ev in the past uh ever since i first you know encountered an ev
i always thought leasing was a really great idea because if you're unsure about the technology
you're not locked in but every study we've done since we started doing ev studies has shown
ev owners and and and tenders want to purchase it they don't want to lease it and so again this
year you know we asked that question again 83 1 to purchase rather than lease right that's
that's a lot um and and a lot of luxury buyers lease anyway and so my guess is that's the other
17 percent but because of the incentives existed and we're like we wanted to clarify
if you got an awesome lease deal because of the federal incentives would you change your mind
and 77 percent said yeah i changed my mind so that was what was happening at the end of
the incentives and the last year and the lease loophole and why the lease numbers were so high
because we knew those deals were just astronomically great and an ev shopper sees an
astronomically great deal they're generally pretty practical people they're going to take it so
knowing that they prefer to purchase and that lease loophole is gone i'm not too worried about losing
masses of ev buyers because that incentive is gone most people buying these vehicles can't
you know they're buying a vehicle that doesn't you know doesn't didn't live up to the tax credit
anyway they could only get the lease loophole right they either made too much the car was too
expensive etc one made in america um so you know that was still a limited number that could get it
if they wanted an ev they're gonna buy it and they're gonna buy it buy it purchase it not lease it so
i don't i think that's one of the key findings in terms of the future of how we'll be okay i think
all the the ev results from the people that want to buy an ev are pretty positive on the future of
evs like we mentioned being happier with you know they're they're right in that 250 300 range that's
what they want not the unrealistic ranges from the gas shoppers so a lot of these things have really
lined up and i think the only thing that's going and we have great new models coming to market
i think that which which will help um and so i think the big question will just be the overall
economy and consumer sentiment right do you think do you feel comfortable buying any car um
yes a big part of it too yeah so but i expect it um i don't expect it to fall in half i don't
expect it to you know you know i don't expect it to be great but it's gonna i'm gonna hover under
10 again um you know eight nine ten it's not going to be three or four percent it's just not um you
know california is one of the biggest car markets in the world uh you know texas and florida are the
the states of the two and three in terms of ev volume um and those are states that you wouldn't
you know they're not green focused states they just have people that you know they have a lot of
people so yeah but they they buy i mean uh even though they're they're market shares and as high
it's huge volumes so um so yeah i think i think in these um 10 12 maybe let's say half the states
in the united states evs are going to do really well and then in the rest it's going to be a
struggle and it's going to be very geographic driven and we we'll have some more stuff on geography
next year um but geography is a big part and i think it'll it'll help with with sales next year
yeah let me stop you there because we're just about out of time and we will have you on next
year to talk about that i i really actually i think we could have a whole episode on the
or whole segment on the geography of this so uh dave thank you so much for your time you've
been with dav thomas from cdk global he is the director of content marketing there
dave thank you so much for hopping on the t-pack podcast this week yeah thank you for having me
every week even in the off season also known as the silly season and we have t-tech contributor
matthew guy with us today as we do just about every single time matthew how you doing today
yeah i doing pretty good fun to talk about you know some different subjects uh within nascar
during the off season yeah yeah and we're at the middle of the off season right about now so i um
i was thinking about nascar over the weekend i was watching uh nfl football and it's kind of like
yeah sometimes you know i'd be watching nascar right now but we're obviously in the middle of
the off season there is there's no racing uh i was gonna say the garages are quiet but they're
probably not the garages are probably pretty busy getting ready for next season um i would imagine
there are some people taking some time off but i would have also imagined that with daytona just
a month and a half away there there's already some work being done in some cars and speaking of
daytona that was a perfect segue into what we're gonna talk about today so we're not gonna preview
daytona we're not there yet we still have a few weeks to go but um what we are going to talk about
is paint schemes and the reason why daytona matters is because sometimes and i can't recall
top i had the last really big one but occasionally you get an interesting paint scheme at daytona
or a new paint scheme for the whole season though driver and team are working on and so it's a fun
silly season topic to talk about paint schemes we discussed it we've discussed it in the past i think
last off season we did an episode on this uh or segment on this and we also talked about it
a bit earlier this year with the uh dollington race because dollington was known for a bunch of
specials excuse me let's try this again in english a bunch of special paint schemes so that five times
fast but um the reason we're bringing it back is because it's something that's an evergreen
topic every every off season as drivers change teams and teams change looks sponsors change
and teams change sponsors it's also just fun you know we have a little bit of fun with paint schemes
we'll try to be too redundant we'll try not to talk about darlington too much because i'm sure
some of you remember that conversation but um we're gonna have we're just gonna we're just gonna
talk about our favorite paint schemes in 2025 i don't think either matthew rye has seen any new
ones yet for 2026 um so we're kind of just gonna kind of go back over 2025 and uh we'll we'll touch
on it a little bit should we see some new stuff in the future but for now we're gonna go over 2025
so matthew i haven't even brought you in yet so matthew how you doing today
doing all right man sorry about that sorry about leaving you hanging there
it's no worries man if there's there's the only time i've ever left hanging in 2026 coming up
would be all right i think yeah but life in general right yeah for sure so uh let's let's let you start
then um since you were kind of hanging out let's let you start with the paint schemes that you
really caught your eye whether it was best worst interesting uh in 2025 any paint schemes that you
were like man that's really cool that's really ugly that's really neat uh that shows uh not history
whatever yeah absolutely and i mean i'm always you know just a student of the sport and i mean
big fan back in the back in the 90s and so valve with mark martin being my favorite driver so any
valveline scheme always stands out every year and it just looks good it doesn't matter what the car
is or who the driver is and even what uh sort of racing i mean there are lots of other different
racing series out there in which valveline is a part and the just always seems to look good so
i really liked um the five had some um interesting paint schemes this year um val val always does
always does always does yeah and hendrick does such a really good job um with the five car
in particular i think valveline is on board for at least three races per year through 2029
so that's um we're going to see a lot more of these paint schemes the scheme for 2025 um had a
lot more red in it the valveline scheme for 2025 a lot more red in it than the one it did for 2024
which i like a little bit better just because it's a little bit more traditional and i'm an old guy
um but they put a little bit of effort into it it wasn't like they just
hit the switch and changed up a few colors for uh year to year so they weren't lazy with it which
is what i i did appreciate for sure um but there's a lot more red in it like the the entire hood was
red um which you know doesn't make the valveline logo itself stand out quite as much um so that's
why i did like the 2024 just a little bit better but anytime i see valveline on the track always
gives me a smile so i like that one i like the five um there were some other um really good ones i
know we talked about the darlington throwback um earlier this year as as part of the podcast
but there were some really really good ones you know like the number four no gregson uh was
shouting out um juniors actually first start um way back in 1996 and that would have been the 31 car
way back then so no gregson and four with his sponsor just tried to do a call back to that
i liked a little bit um the five car again um they tried to do something with hendrickcars.com
that kind of looked like terry labonte's um one of his tony the tiger cars yeah i love this cars
growing up looks so good right looks so good and castrol always looks good um for that one it wasn't
really a throwback but just the way that that car looked on track it was kind of black and
gold which i always like i don't know if it's a 70s thing or what but i do like it and it kind of
looked like a motor oil was splashing around on the bottom of the car right um which most drivers
you don't want to see right right motor oil splashing around that means your engine's puked um
but no but with the um this this uh this scheme it looked really good it just looked like it had
the gold splashing around kind of on the rocker panels and up a little bit by the wheels so i
thought that looked pretty good that was back in darlington and i thought that one looked pretty
neat um but there were some other really good ones some of the best schemes um the nine car
had one that was um part of a contest it was still napa still the main main um still the main sponsor
and that was you i don't remember which one that was which race that was i should say but
anyways but the nine car ran one that was kind of like drawn and it was from a from a contest and
i'd like that um from a different perspective because it gets more people into the sport and
if you get kids looking at the sport and design and race cars and things like that you got a really
good chance of you know making fans pretty early in someone's life so i think that i i like that
approach for that reason you know um and i like that paint scheme for that reason
but there were a couple other ones red bull always looks good right as track house racing there in
the 88 red bull always looks good doesn't matter what they're into and i really liked when mike
and mcdowell ran the 71 with the tide colors um for spire motorsports early around in 2025
and just because it's so good looking those colors and they just throw back to when nascar
you knew when you looked at uh the car on the track it stood out right that tide ride i think
arguably for this old timer um darrow all trip was probably the person who brought that
hey we're not that old to life right you're not that old i'm the same age i'm getting there i'm
getting there but when uh but when dw was running that on the 17 anyone the Daytona 500 and it just
looked so so good so anytime i see a tide car uh back on track it always makes me green and so that
was mike mcdowell's 71 car from early around this year at spire motorsports so i don't know
anything that anything that you've got that you liked better better than that yeah so i've got a
few i i i don't want to talk about too much we covered it at Daytona at darlington but the
british racing green uh josh perry car with the lotus look i thought was good looking uh i've
said this before in the podcast i won't belabor the point but i've always loved when joe lugano
runs red wheels uh he didn't run him too often this year i don't think but when he has the
yellow contrast the yellow and red of his paint scheme contrasting with the the red wheels always
looks good i'm with you on the valveline um stuff and i go way back to my youth with alan
sir junior and indy car on that so it's not just nascar i also have it's in my parents garage i need
to fix it up um i'm too big to fit in it anymore but i can maybe take the the body panel off but
i have a go kart that i've had since i was five or six years old that has the al fiberglass
uh indy car shape that the alan sir junior paint job from from then uh it's a kid it's
meant for kids i it's it's a kids go kart it's not super fast and but maybe if you took the if you
could find a way to make the body panel removable an adult could drive it and then put the body
panel back on but um so i have that uh that so there's always personal bias there and i'm
speaking of personal bias at the chicago street race it was a one-off or just that race michael
mcdowell ran my alma mater de paul university he ran at a paul paint scheme uh and i thought it
looked really good it it could have it could have gone bad it's it's not an easy paint scheme to
translate the basketball team's logo uh our school de paul didn't have doesn't have football but they
are but they do men's and women's basketball and the women's team is actually typically competitive
the men's team used to be has not been for the past 20 years or so but um anyway that that logo
i didn't think would translate really well into a car and it did uh so for those who have google
nearby google michael mcdowell de paul nascar it looked really good uh the chicago street race
and 2024 somebody also ran chicago white socks chicago cubs cars i think an xfinity
during the chicago street race those looked good but those are also 2024 so they won't count too
much for this discussion um yeah i i i also i'm with you on shane van gesberg and except
for me it's when he does it's when he's doing the weather tech as opposed to the red bull
okay kind of a more simplistic paint job um you know some of you some excuse me some weeks he
runs that weather tech kind of the red white and blue i don't love the hood it's with a big w looks
weird um and again in sight personal connection i actually passed by weather tech's headquarters
fairly often so it's kind of funny just kind of coincidence but uh ugly cars not a huge fan of
the ziggler automotive i um and karson hosevar it just doesn't nothing against the dealer group it
just doesn't kind of gel i think they should maybe be a little more creative with it um i'm going
through jski.com right now looking at their paint schemes and most of them are nascar.com
i love how the the the 24 that william byron ran he ran different versions with the flames
one more with the jeff gordon car from the 90s and one more silver so really like that an ugly one
is ross chastain ran that wendy's frosty with the psychedelic colors i think that was that was
kind of i'm not ugly ugly but not great i also think the 2311 tyler retic with jordan's logo
and the pink and purple flames didn't totally work for me um yeah i'm looking at the red bull car now
of of biggiesburg and i think out of the weather tech i think i like a little bit better and then
the mcdowell running the tide like you said that's a cool throwback i've always um i have personal
connections to car quests so i can't get too into this but the napa scheme does even though it's
competitors to the company it always does look pretty good on on chase elliott's car i'm just
going through all the different cars from here looking at them as we talk i i yeah i'm trying
to think of i was gonna i had a train of thought and i lost it oh it was the richard petty keeping
the 43 alive um you know eric jones it's still those stp red red and blues and it's it's different
of course it's modernized but it still keeps that overall look and i i i really hope as long as there's
a nascar cup series that there's always a richer petty and jeff gordon jeff gordon look to the
24 and 43 uh no matter who's driving no matter who owns the cars no matter what happens to the
legendary drivers um i always hope i would love to see that as well with with earnhardt i don't
think we've ever really seen that with the three since he passed if we have and i'm and i'm not
remembering then feel free to correct me uh we've we haven't really seen much with the eight since
dale jr uh hung it up and i haven't seen i would love to see you mentioned valine look with um
larcen i and larcen also had the tony the tiger car like you said i i would also uh love to see
and maybe not every race but i would love to see someone bring back the valine look with mark martin
or i don't remember what his number was up top my head i think he was two rusty wallace i wouldn't mind
seeing um the two occasionally you know it's currently austin syndrake's car i haven't seen
anything from austin syndrake as long as he's been the two nodding towards drusty wallace and
it doesn't have to be every week it it doesn't have to be and i don't know if there's rules with the
miller genuine trash sponsorship i i don't know if there's rules about racing uh alcohol and
tobacco in front of children i know that's why winston cup is no longer in the name of the cup
series so i there may be some rules there but um yeah i would love to see some nods to the guys from
the 90s uh i'd love to see chase uh shout out his dad once once in a while too i don't know if he
ever has if he has i've missed it and i can't remember bill's number i've talked about i think
he was also nine but yeah um i i would love to see chase shout out his father as well that would
be cool and i know that there was one i'm goodness might have been the 44 someone anyways with the
wah wah the you know truck stuff um did sort of a call back to win the nine uh when they ran
the course colors uh when he was running for harry meling and that looked really good so
again i understand chase motton forge his own path um but there are a lot of connections there right
yeah and i do think some of there's a lot of overlap with the fan base too i feel yeah i mean
if you're our age you're old enough to remember bill racing and you're still and we're not old
you know but i'm pretty smart kids and and then um kyle or not kyle chase i once with kyle or so
i was thinking i had his car in front of me uh and then chase you know chase uh obviously has
been around for some time now and it's like yeah i get what you're saying you know he wants to
forge his own path i would love to see some more shout outs to bill um especially since they share
a number yeah and you know i get it every driver wants to shout out show his own path sponsors
have i'm sure there's all sorts of sponsor restrictions and again there might be some
alcohol tobacco rules that i'm not aware of you know what but why is uh why wouldn't austin dillon
once in a while do the black the the black and the white and red of dale um and he i guess in that
case that you may be some concerns about being insensitive to to his death and obviously had
that not happened dale would still probably be alive he wouldn't be particularly super old he'd be
i don't know he was i think in his 40s when he passed so he'd be in the 60s but uh maybe his
70s but uh i don't i don't remember his exact age when he passed but uh actually he was older than
that he was in his 50s i think when he died so um my point being if he hadn't you know there might be
some uh sensitivity yeah he was 50 when he died so he'd be right around his he'd be in the 70s now
but he um there may be some sensitivity to his to his death but you know it's also a way to honor
him i think too so i wouldn't i wouldn't be surprised or upset if dillon ran the three it is
actually kind of funny to me that the only real throwback numbers we see right now are the 24
and that's not every race obviously but a lot of races and we see a little bit of um
maybe obviously i mentioned the 43 nodding to petty and once in a while we see uh christopher bell
nodded tony stewart but i don't think i've seen him too often not too often no and building on the
urnhart um building some branches on that tree um in terms of paint schemes i mean we've seen the
eight show up in late models again um specifically with budweiser sponsorship because there were all
kinds of different uh trademark and all kinds of disputes going on there um behind the scenes
and that's been well documented as to why that's been happening so it's kind of cool to see that
maybe i hope we'll see some more of that this year coming forward like with that particular font
of the eight that jr ran for years um but the number 40 car that jrm put in um and drove to
pretty good success i feel i mean they got a top 10 finish with justin auger and in last year's day
tone of 500 and they're coming back for 2026 um that traveler whiskey car it looked so good i don't
know normally um quote unquote beige colored car i wouldn't yeah i have it right in front of me now
it looked like it almost looks like a whiskey bottle in a way it really does and then you had that
sort of um um bright camo orange for lack of a better term just around the bit of the headlights
and around the rocker panels and then kind of a camo sort of pattern on the roof and along the
rocker panels i just felt that was a great looking car and i can only imagine how many
die casts they sold with that i mean there's of course there's the um junior effect which is
gonna make it super popular anyways but the fact that it was a very attractive looking car um i
actually went out and bought a bottle of the whiskey and i still got it right oh okay you know
just just because of it definitely know how it is i've partaken whiskey once in a while
for real right and it just looks so good i've remembered i'm junior i think uh
hmm i don't remember who was there if it was his wife or his sister they were talking about this
effort because they're both very involved right yeah um in in all of these and all of these aspects
of of of racing and they won whoever was was saying that you know junior we were surprised right
there we were we were surprised that you know you you just let some of this in terms of dealing
with the minutiae of it right like the car number and things like that that's not a small deal but
you know the the number 40 was was chosen for a reason because of traveler's whiskey um
and they were saying that you know what is kind of cool that you let that happen right instead of
just trying to um you know make sure be involved in every little every little decision because
you know juniors a smart business person and so are the people with whom he surrounded himself
right and his family and and some other people so it's kind of cool that they let that um percolate
and develop as naturally as these things can develop and it sure turned out to be a good
looking hot rod so excited to see maybe there's a picture right there i haven't seen yet of the 2026
car but i would wager that it's going to look pretty similar yeah yeah i think we can't wait
till day for Daytona because well that's when we'll see some new paint schemes that we have not seen
yet um i wanted to correct myself too i guess alcohol is not an issue because i forgot that
rush justin typically runs a bushlight so and if you mentioned obviously travelers whiskey so
i can't see why why um why there wouldn't be an mgm gd sponsorship mill genuine draft on a rusty
wall's car or a Budweiser look going to so other than the fact maybe the sponsor doesn't want to pay
the money you know but um there's no i don't think there's any rules saying that you can't have alcohol
sponsoring a car so so that i was wrong in that and i i think it would i i got the whole idea of
Winston tobacco which can't sponsor a cup anymore i think yeah i think that threw me out because i
believe you can't have cigarettes i'm but i think you can't have alcohol i'm not quite sure in that
but uh i also really have a few minutes left i did want to mention too that the uh again i'll
get in a little bit of trouble with some of my family but the Napa car that chase elliot ran earlier
this year that was all gold the anniversary for Napa that did look pretty good blue nine gold paint
scheme um i also really liked the kyle arson all black hundred cars wooden zack brown band
and i do like some of zack brown's music so a little bit of a bias there i suppose but
zack brown was playing at the spear in las vegas uh and black and gold paint scheme black being uh
the main color with gold gold gold lettering and gold numbers um the only thing i didn't like about
that is it's it throws you the only thing i didn't like about that paint scheme is when any anytime
that any driver does a temporary paint scheme where it's completely different colors than their normal
car uh it can throw you off for a little while watching the race because you forget you so you
so you're so used to associating larson to being a red white and blue car that when he's in a black
and gold you have to remember oh he's different different today if just kind of remember his
number you know when you're watching on tv um you just remember you have to remember the five
that's what you have to kind of but once you're a couple laps into the race you usually get used
to it and it's not that big a deal so but that excuse me that car looked good um there's some
really good ones over in the xfinity series in 2020 yeah i noticed that i was gonna say that we
we don't have a ton of time to cover them but um there was one it was a kodak car i have in front
of me the four parker redslap uh looked really good because it i i know kodak is i don't even know if
there's someone how they're doing business wise uh with all the fact that photography has changed
and it's all digital now and no one's developing film anymore but but this car and it doesn't say
kodak on it it says visual pack but it looks like kodak it has that yellow with the kind of the blue
purple and red kind of rainbow-ish um look so i'm not sure if it was actually kodak or not it says
dr teal's powered by magnesium so i don't really know what that is i have to google it but it had
a kodak look to it that's what caught my eye yeah and and that's another great example of cars from
the 90s that were just so visually stunning on the track yeah Ernie Irvin and the kodak that's
who i associate with kodak car yeah yeah and i think that might have been that may have been a
because dr teal's has nothing to do with photography at all so same thing with uh in the
Xfinity series just um oh i don't remember who the driver was but there was there was a throwback
to the 28 because they run the 28 in that in that series um i don't there's no there's no 28 in
cop right now um but they run the 28 in in the Xfinity series and that team ran a scheme that
reminiscent of davie allison um and that sort of look of car work where they had where they had
the haveline had the texaco car and that one had um if i remember it correctly had more like neon
yellow um with the 28 kind of with a different font than what i associate with davie um because i
keep thinking about like um 91 92 that era of davie yes like when he was driving that thunderbird
where it had the yellow haveline on the side and the red 28 um on the door so that's i would love to
see something like that uh come back either as throwback or maybe like you said as something just
one week you know every now and then do something uh do something of that do something of that nature
i'm scrolling through and i'm on askhard.com here by the way shout out jaysky um thank you for making
jaysky does a good job of that oh such a good site um but i'm on scrolling through
nascar.com here now and i forgot that daniel swarr has did something along with uh waffles
some sort of waffle brand oh that's cool yeah it's such a trip looking at it the 99 cars is
like a waffle print all over the car and almost looks like maple syrup right being poured down
over the top of the car and it's sometimes those fun things just really work yeah some ones that
really don't like you said there's just the colors are off or yeah some of the purples and
pinks and i have no problem with pastels or colors like that it's not like it's girly or anything
but some of them work really well and some don't and when you when you have bright colors it's it's
a gamble uh basic solid colors at least to my eye tend to generally look good no matter what shade or
how they're you know how they're juxtaposed against another color on the car the the the
brighter the purples the pinks the the lighter shade reds any any kind of candy color sometimes
they work really well like bubble Wallace had a had one this year that worked pretty well
it was kind of purple and the front and blue like a lighter shade blue towards the back
but then some of them don't work very well at all um and sometimes it's because you
have all the sponsor logos in the cars too they might work okay if they didn't have logos but
yeah so i think you have to just kind of take that into account um and we'll have that conversation
Matthew we're just about out of time is there anything else you want to add we only have about
a minute left just one more thing i know that i mean think what you want about holstera's driving
style but every now and then when the chili's car would come out it looks great and the car did
look good it did look good and then extending from that um his driver's suit right would look like
just a pair of jeans and work shirt right along with the chili's logo so that was kind of cool when
they um mix up the driving suit so that it looks like normal clothes or something else other than
just a driving suit that's kind of cool too excellent all right we i wish we had more time
because we could talk about this um a lot maybe we'll do another segment on it before the year
starts but anyway Matthew thank you so much for your time much appreciated we're going to go ahead
and wrap our NASCAR segment on this week's truth about cars podcast thank you Matthew thanks for
having me on that's all for today is the truth about cars podcast i'm tim healy the managing
editor and you can find us wherever you do your podcast you can also find us online at ttac.com
for the truth about cars all spelled out dot com we thank dave thomas and Matthew for their time
and we also thank matt poskey for editing most of all we thank you for listening we'll see you next time
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