Episode 99: “A deep dive on Driving and Owning EVs with Dr. Karl Bloss from Consumers Energy ”

In this episode, producer Phil Tower plus hosts Al Schwinkendorf and John Puhek welcome Dr. Karl Bloss, Consumers Energy’s Electric Vehicle Education and Outreach Coordinator.

As just about anyone who drives knows by now, electric vehicles have gone from being a rarity to almost commonplace road sight. In fact, Cox Automotive reports that in the second quarter of 2022, electric vehicle sales topped 5.6% of all new car sales. EVs are becoming mainstream. Still, these vehicles are far from standard, the innovation in this world has led to exciting technology jumps across the auto industry. Karl Bloss doesn't just talk about EVs but drives them. He has owned and used EVs for years. Karl told us he made the decision to go EV after spending time in Germany feeling the full cost impact of diesel vehicles. Even in those early days of EV technology (with the lower mileage capabilities), an EV made sense for him and his wallet. And that is even more true today. By the way, the percentage of electric vehicles on Michigan roads is in the single digits. But the percentage is expected to rise to between 15% and 25% by the decade's end.

MI AUTOTALK FUN FACT: According to U.S. Department of Energy data from 2021 — the most recent numbers available — Michigan had 17,500 EVs, out of roughly 8.7 million vehicles registered. That means EVs accounted for about 0.2% of all vehicles in Michigan.

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Online: Consumers Energy PowerMIDrive


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Episode 98: "An inside look at 16th running of Car and Driver's Lightning Lap, with editor-in-chief Tony Quiroga"

In this episode, producer Phil Tower welcomes back Car And Driver editor-in-chief, Tony Quiroga. Tony is an 18-year-veteran Car and Driver editor, writer, car reviewer, and the 19th editor-in-chief for the magazine since its founding in 1955.

In this episode, Tony gives us an insider's look at Car and Driver's 16th running of Lightning Lap, an annual test of performance cars held at Virginia International Raceway (VIR). The 2023 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 recorded the quickest time this year, lapping the 4.1-mile track in just 2 minutes and 38.6 seconds. The full package is available now on the Car and Driver website and in the February/March issue, which is available now everywhere magazines are sold.
Tony told us that VIR is chosen for its length and variety of challenges and that VIR is widely considered to be America’s toughest and most-demanding racetrack. This year’s 16 Lightning Lap entrants were grouped by base price (which includes performance-enhancing options and has been adjusted for inflation), and their best times determined the finishing order. The goal is to boil down each vehicle’s performance to a single number: the lap time.



More Online:
Lightning Lap 2023: The Hottest Cars on America's Toughest Track
https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a42387169/lightning-lap-2023/



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Al, John, and Phil

Sticker price+$5,000 ?: The five new vehicles buyers pay big $$ for with Karl Brauer from iSeeCars(Episode 97)

Bought a new car lately? Today, new cars have priced an average of 8.8 percent above MSRP nationally, even after improving supply chain issues and paying higher interest rates on vehicle loans.

In this episode, producer Phil Tower chats with Karl Brauer, executive analyst for ISeeCars.com.
Locally, a recent iSeeCars study also found that the average new car in the Grand Rapids metro area is priced at nearly 8% or $3,104 above MSRP.
The study analyzed over 12 million new car listings from February 2022 through February 2023, looking at the average list price of new cars and comparing it to MSRP. Karl helped break down the five vehicles with the highest markups over MSRP in the Grand Rapids-Kalamazoo region.
The #1 highest over-sticker vehicle shouldn't surprise you!

Helpful links:


ISeeCars.com Study
Karl’s website Karl On Cars:
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Episode 96: “The Station Wagon Show: Country Squires, Roadmasters, Vista Cruisers, and whatever Clark Griswold drove”

In this episode, producer Phil Tower plus hosts Al Schwinkendorf and John Puhek talk about the much-maligned but now making a comeback station wagon.

We spend the first part of the episode talking about a very rare 1996 Buick Roadmaster that is up for auction on the Hagerty marketplace website.

The 1996 Buick Roadmaster Estate Wagon was basically a Cadillac with a Buick nameplate. It was decked out with a plush cabin, and a massive V8 and it amazingly offered seating for eight thanks to a collapsible rear-facing third seat. And speaking of what's under the hood, this wagon has a 5.7-liter ‘LT1’ V8 which was also found in the C4 Corvette. Buick stopped making this beastly wagon in 1996, marking the last full-size, body-on-frame, rear-wheel drive station wagon produced by an American automaker

It's interesting to note that station wagons reached their sales peak in 1976 when U.S. sales stood at 972,212 and accounted for 10% of all vehicles sold in the U.S. That same year, there were 62 station wagon models available to American car buyers. You read that correctly… 62 different station wagon models!

We also talk about the amazing Ford Country Squire wagon... Another huge, best seller. And believe it or not, there seems to be a resurgence in wagons so to speak, including the diehards to attend the Radwood Festivals around the country.

And this wouldn't be a show about station wagons if we didn't talk about the iconic and lovably ridiculous Griswold Family Truckster wagon. Oh, yes, we went there.

And then Al decided to reminisce about the amazing HearseFest. Yes, it's really a thing and we have the link so you can learn more about it below.

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Online links:
1996 Buick Roadmaster Estate Wagon on Hagerty Marketplace
HearseFest
Radwood
Griswold Family Truckster

Episode 95: “Tricked out Ford Broncos and the women who love and drive them”

In this episode, producer Phil Tower welcomes back one of our favorite guests, automotive writer and reporter, Phoebe Wall-Howard from the Detroit Free Press. (Freep.com )

Phoebe recently wrote a very cool story in the Detroit Free Press about how women love their new Ford Broncos so much that they're “pouring thousands of dollars into their brand-new SUV to make it even better.” Phoebe told Michigan’s AutoTalk that some women trick out the vehicles themselves while others have actually created or grown companies. Much of the “tricking out” of these new Broncos often includes a new paint job, replacing doors, replacing fenders, replacing tires, replacing guard plates under the belly of the vehicle, adding lights, and changing engine guts under the hood.

In her story, Phoebe profiled several women owners of the new Ford Bronco in the common theme throughout the article was how much these women loved this vehicle. As Phoebe writes, ‘Jeep owners who spend their days crawling rocks and snaking through dirt roads or gliding across sandy beaches have been doing this kind of thing forever. But, now, the new Bronco crowd is all in, too.’

More online:
Read the story in the Detroit Free Press.


Ak Motorsports


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Part 2 of 2: Recorded live at the Michigan International Auto Show on Thursday, February 2nd, 2023 at DeVos Place. In the second part of this episode, recorded live from DeVos Place, we were joined by Craig Piersma, Vice President of Marketing and Corporate Communications, with Gentex. Craig shared with us the contributions that Jen tax has made regarding automotive technology and beyond. Zeeland, MI-based Gentex is most notably known for their auto-dimming rearview mirror and has sold hundreds of millions of those units over the years. Hopefully, while you were at the show you also got to check out Gentex’s massive, heavily-modified Chevrolet Silverado Trail Boss (2LT). Sitting high above the truck’s custom Mule Sam roof rack was a DJI Matrice 300 RTK drone for scouting the surrounding terrain. The truck was paired with a companion Vorsheer XOC (Extreme Overland Camper) featuring the same overland theme and matching wrap. It comes loaded with every outdoor adventure necessity, including a heater and air conditioning, propane stove, sink, fridge/freezer, rooftop tent, and more.
We were also joined in this episode by Andrew Redder, a Western Michigan University, engineering student and engineering lead for for the WMU Formula SAE race team. WMU’s Formula SAE is a collegiate competition where students design, manufacture, and build a formula one style racecar. Even more challenging, every year the Society of Automotive Engineers creating all new, nearly 200 page rulebook that Formula SAE cars must adhere to, challenging students’ creativity and innovative abilities.
Online Links of Interest: https://www.gentex.com/
https://wmich.edu/engineer/formula-sae
https://showspan.com/

Episode 93: “Live from The 2023 Michigan International Auto Show Part 1”

In this episode, producer Phil Tower plus hosts Al Schwinkendorf and John Puhek recorded this episode live from the 2023 Michigan International Auto Show at Devos Place in downtown Grand Rapids.

On this episode, we learned from show manager Dawn Baker that this is year #25 for the Michigan International Auto Show where auto manufacturers from around the world showcase their finest traveling displays with new vehicles.

The show is also a perfect place for new car buyers to shop and compare options for everyday vehicles, it is also the first opportunity for West Michigan residents to see many of the most recently released or "soon to be released" models! Presented by the Grand Rapids New Car Dealers Association.
For those who are curious about electric and hybrid vehicles, the show features an all-new Electric Avenue display showcasing an Audi Q4, a Dodge Hornet, a Ford F-150 Lightning Platinum, a Ford Mach-E, a Jeep Wrangler 4xe, a Subaru Solterra, and a beautiful sparkling blue Maserati Grecale Hybrid. And a massive Meijer Freightliner e-Cascadia Electric-powered semi-truck.
We were also joined by Josh Russell, executive director of the Gilmore Car Museum. The Gilmore Car Museum brought 3 cool cars to the show including a 1903 Columbia Electric, a tiny 1980 Comuta-Car, and a near-perfect 1999 Ford Ranger EV.
Later this episode, we spoke with automotive blogger and EV writer James Morin about his experiences with driving several TVs in an ever-changing EV world. Morin has been an automotive blogger for more than 10 years, focusing on electric cars for most of his career. He is also editor-in-chief of The Electric Mitten and has owned several and driven many, many more electric vehicles. Oh, and his first electric vehicle, was a Nissan Leaf.

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Online links:
Michigan International Auto Show
Gilmore Car Museum
Electric Mitten

Episode 92: “An insider’s look at the contenders for Road and Track magazine’s 2023 Performance Car of the Year awards.”

In this episode, producer Phil Tower welcomes Mike Guy editor-in-chief of Road & Track . He was the founder and former editor-in-chief of The Drive. Prior to starting The Drive, Guy was the digital director of Maxim and an articles editor at Details. Mike also served as an editor and feature writer for Rolling Stone.

Mike joined Phil in this episode to talk about the process that Road and Track go through every year to select their annual Performance Car of the Year winner.
And trust us, there will be no surprises about their pick given the car’s sheer power and prowess.
The 2023 Performance Car of the Year is the 10th annual testing and ranking of Road and Track’s favorite new sports cars on the road. Mike reminded us that the typical life cycle of some performance cars is roughly 10 years. As an example, one of this year's performance car of the year contenders, the Lamborghini Huracán, is slated to close out its stellar 10-year run in 2024, For this year's selection of nominees they chose one of the last Huracán variants—the $300,000-plus Tecnica model.
Mike said the entire R&T staff flew in from around the country to gather at Monticello Motor Club in upstate New York.
His team spent a couple of days putting the car through the paces on the race track and then turned their attention to road performance. Mike noted that, unlike Michigan, the roads in upstate New York are pristinely maintained and are great for road testing vehicles that road and track magazine writers write about on a regular basis.

Mike said that ultimately, in choosing performance car of the year, it's not only numbers he and his team of writers are after but a “feeling” as well.
And the winner for R&T’s 2023 Performance Car of the Year… was the Ferrari from Bowling Green, Kentucky. You got that right… the Chevrolet Corvette Z06.

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Road and Track's 2023 Performance Car of the Year.

2023 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 - First Drive Gallery

Episode 91: “And the winners are: a close-up look at the 2023 North American Car, Truck, and Utility Vehicle of the Year Award winners "

In this episode, producer Phil Tower, along with hosts Al Schwinkendorf and John Puhek, welcome back guest, Jeff Gilbert, an automotive reporter for CBS Newsradio and WWJ NewsRadio in Detroit.

Notably, for years, Jeff has served as a juror for the North American Car, Truck, and Utility Vehicle Of The Year Awards. And congratulations are in order for Jeff as we learned that he has been named president of the association for the upcoming year! On January 11th, NACTOY announced the winners for their 2023 North American Car, Truck, and Utility Vehicle of the Year™ (NACTOY) awards during a press conference with the Detroit Area Dealers Association (DADA) and Automotive Press Association. The event was held at M1 Concourse in Pontiac, MI.

On this episode, Jeff shared that the event is one of the most anticipated automotive events of the entire year and is sponsored by the North American Car and Truck of The Year association. at M1 Concourse in Pontiac. After three rounds of independently verified voting stemming from hundreds of hours of test driving, research, and evaluation, the winners were named.

And the winners were... Well, you'll have to hear the episode. No spoiler alerts here!

Jeff told us that this year’s NACTOY awards process began with 47 eligible vehicles, which jurors later narrowed in three rounds of independently verified voting to 26 semifinalists, 9 outstanding finalists, and the 2023 winners. And the analysis process was no cakewalk…NACTOY jurors spent hundreds of hours test driving, researching, and evaluating vehicles on automotive innovation, design, safety, performance, technology, driver satisfaction, user experience, and value to cast the votes that named the 2023 NACTOY award winners.

Online:
The 2023 2023 North American Car, Truck, and Utility Vehicle of the Year Award winners.

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Episode 90: “The latest and greatest high-tech automotive innovation from inside The Consumer Electronics Show"

In this episode, producer Phil Tower, along with hosts Al Schwinkendorf and John Puhek, welcome special guest, Jeff Gilbert. Jeff is a well-respected automotive reporter for CBS Newsradio and WWJ NewsRadio in Detroit. Jeff is also a juror for the North American Car, Truck, and Utility Vehicle Of The Year Awards. Jeff joined us in this episode after his recent tour of the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
CES 2023 was held January 5-8, 2023, and is by far, the most influential tech event in the world — the proving ground for breakthrough technologies and global innovators. CES brings together the world's biggest brands do business and meet new partners, and the sharpest innovators hit the stage. In recent years, the show has been a showplace for the latest in high-tech automotive engineering and everything high-tech regarding the automotive industry, including the latest electric vehicles, automotive, innovations, and much much more. Jeff gave us an inside scoop of the key highlights for this year's massive show. Interesting fun fact: the Consumer Electronics Show is an industry trade show and invite only for the media. Because of that status, there are no public tickets tickets sold.

Learn more online:
Consumer Electronics Show
https://www.ces.tech/

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