Cruising the Lone Star State: the Hot Rod Tour of Texas!

Hot Rod Tour of Texas 2024

Speaker 1 0:19

Mike Mars here and we are out on the first full day of the Hot Rod Tour of Texas 2024 . Now I got out ahead of everybody this morning so I could get here and kind of get set up and get situated . But as you can see , we're here at the famous Shiner beers since 1901 brewery and the cars are going to be coming in here in a little while . We're going to be parked in here , got a lot of things to set up , some people are going to be taking some tours , there's going to be some food , so it's going to be a few hours here and then it is the Hot Rod Tour of Texas . They're going to load up and we're headed off on another stop . So what we're trying to do is piece together a bunch of snippets from here . We were at the downtown event last night , so we're going to package all of it up together and edit it so that you can kind of get an idea of what the Hot Rod Tour of Texas is all about , give you a little flavor of it . So we're going to do this all day today , all the way through . Tonight , even at the drive-in , we're going to have a special movie of Smokey and the Bandit special showing at the drive-in just for the Hot Rod Tour of Texas . So we're going to be there , get some footage there , we're going to poke it all together and then tomorrow morning from 8 to 11 on our regular program you're going to be able to see quite a bit of the Hot Rod Tour of Texas . Unfortunately tomorrow's Saturday , the second full day , they're moving on going to other places , on up to Fredericksburg , but we can't get all that and package it together for the show tomorrow . So we're going to do last night and all day today and tonight . So we hope you enjoy this view of the Hot Rod Tour of Texas .

Speaker 1 2:04

Hot Rods everywhere . So officially the Hot Rod Tour of Texas has hit Shiner , texas . We are standing outside of the brewery as everybody kind of makes their way in . As you can tell , we've got a lot of different vehicles here . It's pretty impressive to see all these different vehicles lined up . You can hear them as well , a little C10 action going on here . So what they're doing is they're going down to the shipping entrance of the brewery and turning around to kind of get them off the highway a little bit quicker as they pull out into the parking area here at the Shiner Brewery . Now it's a big area they've got set up over here with lots of tents , got some booth vendors are going to be here , going to have a little music going on .

Speaker 1 2:53

Nice square body , that's the kind of truck you drive every day . Ford 69 maybe Got the big meat on the back of it . And here comes the classic hot rod 57 . Chevy Classic flapping . Everybody remembers the Dan Craze . Everybody have Dan . Everybody remembers the band crazy , everybody at band . Now here's the Hendry or the Hemi J . Here's the Hemi J Yeehaw . Here comes a .24 that we talked to last night downtown on the

Speaker 1 3:42

square . Listen to this bad boy . It's a 392 Hemi Lower Mid-peak head . Give it a little listen . Sound effects Hot rods of America United 392 Hemi . Love it Early . Chevy Hellcat . Smart cars , smart cars , camaros . You gotta love it , camaros . This is the Hot Rod Tour of Texas . You run what you

Speaker 1 5:42

brung . The main thing is to get out and cruise and these people are doing the cruising . This guy loves what he's in the middle of , as you can see kind of over in the background how the brewery has set things up . We've got a big tent , got a stage . Actually it looks like there's multiple tents for people to sit under . The cars are coming in and they're going to be parking on the grass . Yeah , this big 18-wheeler doesn't count , but this GTO sure does . Sure does 68 , I

Speaker 1 6:31

believe . So the cars are still streaming into the Shriner Brewery . Again , they're going in to the far entrance so they can kind of get some of the traffic off the road . You can kind of see how it's lined up and goes all the way down to this far entrance , loops back around through the parking lot , coming back around to the area that's designated for parking for the hot rod tour of Texas more early forwards , yeehaw , 55 , how you doing . Another great , classic looking hot rod Mustang . 60 years of Mustang . So it's been a lot of them out here too , celebrating I believe that's a 69 . Cammed up , ah , international Ford .

Speaker 2 7:21

Not an .

Speaker 1 7:21

International , ford International , harvvester my bad . More corvettes , trucks . There's more cars coming in . They've kind of opened up the traffic from the other direction . Now you can see just coming all the way down the hill . They're lined up . So that kind of . You go up that hill and you're kind of going to downtown China . Nice , neat little town , really cool to see you come this way . Be sure to check it out , along with the brewery . And then we're going to look at some more cars coming in here on the hot rod tour of Texas . You birds , chevelle fans , here's a 70 model there of early Cam Camaros coming through . Now Late model Corvette , yeehaw station wagon , and here comes a Prowler of them anymore .

Speaker 1 8:53

Early model cameros are well represented . And again , if you look back up the hill , back up the road , here we can't really get too far up . The line of cars extends all the way up . The line of cars extend all the way up over the hill . Really neat looking to see them lined up that far .

Speaker 1 9:23

I know that on the other side of the hill you're going into downtown Shiner , so the actual downtown is a little bit off to the right , but it's a real scenic drive coming in , particularly whenever you look and see all these cars coming through here . Got a little bit of everything that's here and the whole idea is to get your hot rod out , get your car out and enjoy it . Take a drive with a bunch of friends that you like , and even whole idea is to get your hot rod out , get your car out and enjoy it . Take a drive with a bunch of friends that you like and even if you don't like it , take a drive with a bunch of people that are like-minded . They got hot rods , they like their cars . It's all about enjoying the sport and the fact that a family can do this together . So we're going to change traffic patterns , we're backing up traffic here again , how y'all doing , how y'all doing .

Speaker 2 10:21

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Speaker 2 11:19

Want to feel good about something special you did for someone special In Real Time and the original Loopy Tortilla group of Tex-Mex restaurants have joined together to help a very worthy cause God's Garage , a Christian-based 501c3 charity . We know there are lots of places and organizations out there where you can donate a car , truck or SUV , but we're asking you , our car enthusiast family , to consider donating to God's Garage . Visit GodsGarageorg and learn about its mission , the women that have been helped , how each one is screened and about their Restore you program . A car donation is an easy way to make a difference in the lives of others . God's Garage needs good operating vehicles but will take all types in working and non-working condition . Make your heart and soul feel good by donating your gently used vehicle and help support single mothers , widows and wives of deployed military . At GodsGarageorg Saturday and Sunday , may 4th and 5th , you're invited to enjoy the 28th Annual Keels and Wheels Concours

Hot Rod Tour of Texas

Speaker 2 12:24

d'Elegance .

Speaker 2 12:24

May 4th and 5th you're invited to enjoy the 28th annual Keels and Wheels Concours d'Elegance . See the largest collection of classic cars and boats in the US on display at the beautiful Lakewood Yacht Club in Seabrook , texas . This year's Keels and Wheels features 60 years of Ford Mustangs and Donzie boats . There's plenty of free parking and discount tickets are available online at keels-wheelscom . It's Keels and Wheelsurday and sunday , may 4th and 5th , at the lakewood yacht club in seabrook , and real time will be there too .

Speaker 1 12:47

We'll see you there yes , shiner , texas , rolling out the welcome mat for the hot rod tour of texas . Got beverage trailers set up . People are taking tours . Really nice setting out here underneath the trees with tents . Pavilion that's already part of the place , just adds all to it . There's Jeremy he's still got hair . Got a little bit of everything here Mustangs , camaros , mopars , fords Notice this one here from Virginia .

Speaker 1 13:27

I believe Bobby told me there was 14 states we're gonna have cars here , so plenty of people coming in from out of state , not just the Texas thing . Bang boss , 302 Mustang , don't see how many of them . Particularly out on the road , people are starting to enjoy their lunch . People headed inside the building for the tours . Little bit of everything going on here in Shiner , texas , with a hot rod tour of Texas . Here we are again out at the Shiner Brewery on the Hot Rod Tour of Texas . A lot of things going on out here . We've got people parking over here . Parking over there . There's food , there's tours . There's a tour of a distillery . I didn't even know they had a distillery . People are still lined up to pick up their merch and their registration . The weather is cooperating and with me right now we've got Barrett .

Speaker 3 14:18

Yes , sir .

Speaker 1 14:19

And Barrett has got this really cool 55 Chevy here and he's going to show us all about that . He's over from Edna .

Speaker 3 14:28

He drove it over here from Edna , which isn't too far , I don't think . No , it's about a 45-hour .

Speaker 1 14:34

From here to Edna , it's about a 45-minute hour .

Speaker 3 14:36

It's closer than Corpus Christi that we were talking about Way closer , way closer .

Speaker 1 14:43

So tell us about this classic looking hot rod .

Speaker 3 14:44

You've got a lot of old school hot rod parts on here and it makes it look really cool . Let's start with the engine . So the engine was a pull-out engine of a truck we worked on at the shop . The customer had us pull it out of their truck because it was smoking . Upon putting their new engine in we realized it was actually the transmission that was the issue . So we held on to the core motor for a special project and it just so happens this was it . We've got a few other things . We've got some fender wheel headers . We've got the power booster that was originally on our four-door build . We upgraded that to Hydro Boost so we had this laying on the shelf so we stuck that on here . The transmission was a deal we made with a buddy scrap truck . He wanted the motor , I needed the transmission , so I pulled it out , gave him the motor , I got the transmission , so it worked out for both of us .

Speaker 1 15:38

What a deal .

Speaker 3 15:39

The rear end came out of our original four-door build . We upgraded that rear end and we had some issues with this one so we stuck it on here so we can make the tour . The radiator was given to us by a good friend . Actually yesterday , right before the kickoff party , a good friend , steve Glenn , gave us that radiator so we were able to make this trip . My OE original 55 radiator had sprung a leak so it wasn't going to cut it .

Speaker 1 16:08

So tell me , about this forced induction system . I mean , this is definitely old school .

Speaker 3 16:14

Yes , sir . So it's a B&M 144 forced induction blower , however you will . It is sitting on a custom modified high-rise intake and it's got a custom billet adapter which will pretty much allow anything with a four-barrel carb intake , will accept this blower with the proper modifications to make it plain for the belt system . The fans in the fuel pump were both from my late uncle's 55 Chevy . He passed away . He had given me these parts before he passed and we've had them on the shelf looking for something cool to put them on . So went ahead and ran them on here . Utilize some of these parts we've got laying around . It's got a quick fuel carburetor . It's a turbo 400 transmission . It's got a quick fuel carburetor . It's a turbo 400 transmission , 305 rear gears .

Speaker 1 17:05

I keep coming back to this V&M blower because it just yes , sir . Now you're getting into my age stuff .

Speaker 3 17:10

Yes , sir .

Speaker 1 17:11

But the way it's machined right here and it's made to clear this water .

Speaker 3 17:15

Yes , sir , I mean , that's some . So naturally , when you get these blowers , they usually come with a very short intake which don't allow for much airflow to actually happen past the blower . So that's why this was originally cut out for the water net , because it used to sit right on top of it , but now that we're running this intake it's moved it up .

Speaker 1 17:39

And you've got this plate here as well .

Speaker 3 17:41

Yes , sir , yes sir .

Speaker 1 17:41

So if it was just a standard four-barrel aluminum intake , I guess you would call this a medium rise . Yes , sir , okay , okay , I'm just fascinated because you're getting into stuff that I know a little bit about .

Speaker 3 17:53

As far as the engine , it's pretty much stock from what I can tell . It does have a mild cam in it .

Speaker 3 18:04

You got disc brakes up front , sir , the disc brakes we had purchased for our four-door build , but we didn't realize when we ordered them that they will not work with drop spindles . So we've had those on the shelf just sitting there collecting dust . So we got rid of the drum brakes on here and upgraded to those , just to give us a little bit more stopping . You got to add a little bit better brakes when you're adding more power , true , true .

Speaker 1 18:25

So you've got the drop spindles on it . No , not on this one , not on this one .

Speaker 3 18:29

We ordered those brakes originally from my four-door , but we put drop spindles on that car so we couldn't use them on there , so they're pretty much just collecting dust . We've got the Rang Gear hidden wiper system on it , just to give us some extra clearance for the blower and the distributor . Normally the OEM wiper motor would sit about here , and it's just real big and bulky .

Speaker 3 18:56

So Rang Gear makes a pretty slick system very easy to install . A couple bolts here . It's got a little delete plate . What else ? What else ? What else ? So the tachometer was also from my late uncle's 55 that he had . He gave me that . I've had that thing for probably 10 years trying to find something to stick it in . So all these parts you're getting from these people , from friends , family , parts we've had sitting on the shelf uh , yeah , we named it spare parts and it's literally 90 of the stuff on here is spare parts . We did spend some money where needed . We did put a new painless harness in it . We did put new brake lines on it in the wiper system and things . Yeah , wiper system , necessity stuff yeah tires .

Speaker 3 19:47

I mean , we wanted to go down the road but we wanted to make sure we were going to get to where we were going right and the disc brakes up front are going to help you stop drum brakes on the back I'm sorry , just drum brakes . It's got disc brakes on the back as well , yeah , so disc brakes all around .

Speaker 3 19:59

Yeah , so we had this rear end under my four-door . I took it last year on the 23 Hot Rod Tour of Texas . We couldn't get the correct rear end in time , so I ended up having to tune it and run with the stock rear end on last year's tour . Since then we've upgraded the rear end in my four-door so we had this one just sitting on the shelf , which was actually nice because we had problems with the one that was in the car and we were able to just grab this one and bolt it right in .

Speaker 3 20:27

So we did modify some shock brackets and stuff of that nature .

Speaker 1 20:30

Nice to have the parts and nice to have the place to do it .

Speaker 3 20:32

Yes , sir .

Speaker 1 20:33

So how long have you had this car ?

Speaker 3 20:36

This car . I actually haven't had very long . I've probably had this car for a couple months . We've probably been working on , it Just been real busy with it . We've really probably put in a solid two weeks on this car . That's how long we've spent on it , and not straight time . I mean we worked around . I've got a shop there in Nedness , so we worked around our schedule worked around other customers' vehicles Stuff of that nature just to get her going .

Speaker 1 21:02

Well , the fact that you had a lot of the parts handy instead of having to go chase them helped a lot , I'm sure .

Speaker 3 21:04

Oh , yeah 100% , but we've definitely been getting help and support from everybody , which is super cool . So what's next ?

Speaker 1 21:12

for it . What are you going to do next Drive ?

Speaker 3 21:15

it , enjoy it .

Speaker 1 21:17

What would you like to do with it next ?

Speaker 2 21:26

Man , I would love to paint it , but shiny paint causes stress , you know .

Speaker 3 21:28

Keep it simple and enjoy it .

Speaker 1 21:31

That's the goal . Come back over here in front , let's kind of wrap this up . So yeah , you're right , I like it better over here . So yeah , shiny paint can be a problem , even with the truck that we drive . We've got it wrapped for the show and things , yes , sir , and just constant wear and tear , the rock chips on the paint and you don't match . I mean you get a custom paint . It's hard to match , but try matching some lettering .

Speaker 1 21:59

Oh yeah , and it gets really bad , so you're going to enjoy it . You're going to drive it . That's your son , you got with you .

Speaker 3 22:04

Yes , sir , that's .

Speaker 1 22:07

Axel . When he was talking about out here , he was looking at it and helping us show it off here a few minutes ago . He really enjoys it too . Yes , sir , and I think that's one of the great things about the Hot . It's not so .

Speaker 3 22:19

It's not competitive . Exactly , it's a lot of camaraderie .

Speaker 1 22:23

A lot of fun , a lot of socialization . You bring the kids , you know . You sit out here under one of these umbrellas or the canopy and have lunch with your wife or the kids . It's really a lot of fun out here , yes , sir . So what do you think you got it figured out ? Got it all figured out ? Ooh , he . So what do you think you got it figured out ? Got it all figured out ? Ooh , he's got his own with a blowrunner . That's the way you do it High five .

Speaker 3 22:48

I found the car . Yeah , it's got a blower just like this one .

Speaker 1 22:52

Good job All right , well , thank you again for letting us look at your car here . Hope you all enjoyed the rest of the tour . You going all the way through to New Frederick's Bird .

Speaker 3 22:59

I'm going to try . We're going to do our best

Tex-Mex Restaurants and Car Socials

Speaker 3 23:02

to get there .

Speaker 2 23:02

The original group of Loopy Tortilla restaurants will have you telling your family and friends just what the original recipes mean when it comes to the best fajitas in Southeast Texas . Founder Stan Holt invites you to visit the original Loopy Tortilla near I-10 and Highway 6 . Here's the original house that inspired the design of all the rest and the original charm that helped make Loopy Tortilla the go-to destination for Houston Tex-Mex . Speaking of original , nothing can compete with the original lime pepper marinade . That everyone will agree makes Loopy Tortilla award-winning beef fajitas the best anywhere . Loopy Tortilla Katy is another location that gives you the same quality and service Houstonians have come to expect at Loopy's . It's located just off I-10 and the Grand Parkway . At Kingsland Boulevard in Katy , find yourself an Aggieland Head to the Loopy Tortilla in College Station , located just around the corner from Kyle Field , it's a great place to enjoy those famous frozen margaritas before or after the game . Headed east to Louisiana , stop in at the Loopy Tortilla in Beaumont . It Can't miss it . The original group of Loopy Tortilla restaurants invites you in for the best Tex-Mex anywhere .

Speaker 2 24:04

Gulf Coast Auto Shield is having another Car Social Saturday morning , may 18th , from 8 to 11 . It's a car cruise-in like no other . Expect Ferraris , lamborghinis , corvettes and the featured brand Porsche Get social at this special cruise-in event . You'll also see Gulf Coast Auto Shield's private workshop and learn about their many products and services . Questions are welcomed . Gulf Coast Auto Shield is easy to get to at 11275 South Sam Houston Tollway , near West Airport Boulevard , just south of the Southwest Freeway . The Car Social featuring Porsche takes place Saturday morning , may 18th , from 8 to 11 . Tell your friends and no matter what car you have , bring it and enjoy this rare opportunity to see some of Houston's finest rides In Wheel . Time will bring its car talk show there too , so join us for another Car Social at Gulf Coast Auto Shield Saturday morning , may 18th , 8 to 11 , at 11275 South Sam Houston Tollway , just south of the Southwest Freeway . Visit gcautoshieldcom to see the show flyer for more details .