Saturday, November 30, 2024

xmas is less than a month away



November banners





















Discount Tire has a gimmic that's new to me... checking the age of the spare, and recommending that the customer buy a new one (due to OLD tires not being safe-ish)


 hell, spare tires don't need to be 5 star safety rated, they just need to get you to the nearest tire shop. 

But there's another interesting thing they do that is not new, it's a real old way to drive up business - free air and tire inspection. 

Because if someone needs air in their tires, they probably have a leak, and even if they don't, getting people to stop by so their tire tread can be checked for excessive wear? Well that's just going to get tires flying off the warehouse shelves! 

Anyway, those are pretty good ways to increase profits 


1997 Australia Jeep Grand Cherokee had a commercial where the driver returned home, and didn't drive through a gate, but instead, drove over a rock pile. That's genius for a 4x4 advertisement!



That is the most brilliant advertising concept for proving the product is what you're looking for that I can remember seeing

in '96, there was a Bon Jovi special edition Golf

 

Friday, November 29, 2024

the Phoenix’s last ever run in 2003 at Bonneville, set the current record for the Unlimited Diesel Truck class at 272.685 mph! (With a junkyard find ’47 International K-7 semi !)


R.B. Slagle, who thus became the first trucker to enter the prestigious 200 Club. 


For Speed Week 2003 the streamlining was extensively improved by adding a "wing" at the front and a new long tail to reduce the turbulence at the back, somewhat in the style of "long tail" versions of sports racing cars for Le Mans. The modifications must have been effective, because Carl Heap improved on his record again early in the week (272.685 mph)


 

Skip the first 8 minutes 


Or see this WAY too short video that cuts out the semi truck used as a pusher that was spinning tires like made to make speed 

The Phoenix made its debut pass at Bonneville in 1989, running 158 mph. Eventually, the truck went 188 mph, then 212 mph, then broke 250 mph -- and the streamliner record. 

Carl Heap proved just how far a determined team can come with some effort (and a lot of streamlining). 

The truck now resides in Hastings, Minnesota, at the Stagecoach Diesel Motorsports Museum.


First race above, and 13 years later, the evolved and streamlined last race


https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/slagle-heap-43-international-detroit-diesel-bonneville-race-truck-tribute-page.526065/


I just learned that the WW2 Jeep headlights were hinged, so the soldiers could use them at night to work on the engine

 


1st time I've heard of a car that was stuck on a beach getting unstuck by harnessing a parachute to get the unlimited power of the wind to pull it back to solid ground!

 




bare metal is impressive. Flawless bare metal even more impressive.





It's a mystery to me why they brought their wagons, and pulled them around all day, but, I gotta admire the paint and body work on them!

Nice 2002




it sure gets people to look in your booth when you have a Cord in it (very unusual), but, an electric Cord? Ummmm, don't they know that electric conversions aren't impressive, only original or hot rodded cars are impressive




the photo ( in the upper right corner of this infographic) of the CEO/founder of Simple Green, with his 20 year younger trophy wife (former model from Genova Italy) and her 4 dogs... she founded a non profit dog rescue, in Newport Beach