The Shell Pioneering “Live on Stage” Experience had a wealth of automotive knowledge crossing the stage at the 2017 SEMA Show. The aftermarket industry is changing rapidly and the OEMs…
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THE DRIVE with Alan Taylor | Episode #328
It’s been called ‘America’s smallest automobile museum’ and it sits in the middle of the National Mall for one month every year. Created in 2014, Cars at the Capital, organized by the Historic Vehicle Association, attracts approximately 500,000 viewers. A special car with historic value is placed in a gorgeous glass box for passersby to admire as they explore Washington DC. Partnered with the National Vehicle Register and the Library of Congress, Cars at the Capital was created to honor our automotive heritage. Our first interview is with the President of the Historic Vehicle Association, Mark Gessler, who details the event and introduces the 1968 Bullitt Mustang; Steve McQueen famously drove this vehicle 50 years ago in the popular blockbuster, ‘Bullitt‘. Next, we hear from Sean Kiernan, owner of the Bullitt, about the car’s exciting history. Then, since the event is also celebrating the 54th anniversary of the Mustang, we chat with Carl Widmann, Chief Product Engineer for the Ford Mustang, about the rich past of this nostalgic car. After that, Doug Clark and Tabetha Hammer of Hagerty Classic Cars sound off about their efforts to share automotive passion with future generations. Changing lanes, Kevin Marti, Founder of Marti Auto Works, describes how they work with Ford to create the ‘Marti Report‘. Then, Paul Ianuario, Senior Advisor for the Historic Vehicle Association, explains how the glass display box was approved to be in the National Mall. Next, the owner of a 1918 Cadillac US1257X, Marc Lassen, discloses the exciting story of how he obtained this historic vehicle that was Rev. Dr. J.H. Denison’s car in WWI and once chauffeured President Theodore Roosevelt’s daughter-in-law. Lastly, we catch up with Shell’s Nancy Bruner and Mark Henry about their involvement with Cars at the Capital and why it is so important to them. Take a trip down memory lane for this special event broadcast.
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THE DRIVE with Alan Taylor | Episode #309
A wealth of automotive knowledge is very present at the SEMA show every year. The Shell Pioneering Performance “Live on Stage” Experience played host to some of the greats in the industry. We begin the hour with Gale Banks of Banks Power, who has played a large role in military engines for 41 years, and he gives us an inside look on what his company is working on now. Changing lanes, NHRA Top Fuel World Champion, Larry Dixon, tells us that they will be awarding one lucky winner the opportunity to ride in the passenger seat in a recently designed two-seater Top Fuel car. Then, John Hennessey, President of Hennessey Performance, touches on the sweet rides he brought to SEMA, such as the 6×6 VelociRaptor, and the unveiling of the highly anticipated Venom F5. Nancy Bruner, Chief Digital Officer for Shell Lubricants, and Tony Frassetto, Senior Account Manager for Universal Technical Institute (UTI), then jump on stage. They talk with us about their partnership, and Tony shares a little about the school. Then, Barry Meguiar of Meguiar’s, discusses the car hobby history and his busy schedule of jet-setting to car shows all over. J Haynes of Haynes Publishing is up next to share the story of how their company began. After that Rutledge Wood, NASCAR Personality, shares about a project he built with eBay Motors. We end the show with a special announcement from Colin Abraham, President of Shell, Steve Ledbetter, President of Jiffy Lube, Chris Powell, President of Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and Patty Lanning, Vice President of North American Marketing for Shell Oil. Tune in now.