Let's discuss Airaid performance parts. Airaid started as an air intake manufacturer that used third party filters. Eventually, Airaid engineers decided that they could manufacture better air filters than those offered by thier suppliers. What they came up with was a performance air filter, sold under the Airaid name, that is made up of multiple gauze layers, an epoxy coated wire mesh, and a layer of material called Synthaflow. Synthaflow is a material designed by Airiad that is capable of removing more particles and water than any other performance air filter. The seal on the cool air dam, the boots on the tube, and the seal on the filter are all made from polyurethane instead of rubber like most other filters. Polyurethane can tolerate all chemicals common to any vehicle.

The classic Airaid intake comes with a modular intake tube and Synthaflow filter. In most cases, using a classic intake requires relocation of the air intake box. An Airaid cool air dam (CAD) system brings the coldest air possible to the engine. Cold air helps remove waste heat from the engine, is more dense, and can consequently deliver more cumbustion-fueling oxygen per cubic inch. The Quick Fit kit replaces the top of the air box with a cool air dam while leaving the bottom half of the air box in place. The Quick Fit kit is exactly as it's name implies -easy to install.

The Airaid modular intake tube (MIT) by itself flows up to 400cfm more air than a factory tube. The tube is constructed of cross-linked high density polyethylene.

The Airaid throttle body spacer (TBS) is designed to atomize the fuel/air mixture as it enters the combustion chamber. The “helix bore” of the PowerAid throttle body spacer accomplishes this by spinning incoming air as it passes through the throttle body. The PowerAid throttle body spacer was designed to enhance midrange power, torque, and fuel efficiency; It also helps to get rid of that initial mushy pedal, giving you more throttle response at take off. Airaid also offers PowerAid throttle body spacers with PowerPorts. Specifically located to allow for the use of nitrous oxide or instrumentation sensors, PowerPorts are an all-new option to PowerAid units.

Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house.... Yeah right, like you’re asleep. Santa is on the way and there is no sleep in sight. I remember being little and stressing out because we didn't have a chimney. How is Santa supposed to bring me any presents if he can't get in? My dad always told me that Santa had a key to our house. That got me to thinking. I wonder if Santa has a key to everyone's house. Turns out that Santa can get in no matter where you live. Even if you live in a hut on the beach. This guy is coming for a visit. Here are a few of the ways Santa can get it.

1) Chimney - Please make sure that the fire is out. Santa does not like a burnt back side.

2) Front Door - He will have a key or leave the door unlocked.

3) Window - Leave a window open and Santa will climb on in.

4) Magic - He only uses this when there are no other options.

There are still several things that I don't understand about Santa and how he gets everything done in one night. Leave it to a very intelligent friend of mine to help me with that. As a result of gradual rotation of the earth at around 24,000 MPH. Santa has one hour per time zone to distribute toys. Not to mention Rudolph's lead hoof and ability to, as we say in the south, fly low. I also wondered how you never seem to hear Santa when he lands. Well  his sleigh and reindeer never touch down. Similar to helicopter you might see on your favorite episode of A-Team. Santa gets really close and steps off with the goods. Now we have Santa in our house and wait a minute. What did we leave him to eat? Most people leave out cookies and milk. Santa gets tired of the same old thing and that's where things get interesting. At the Dub Ranch, Santa gets a salad and a Coke. Although I've heard that he likes carrots, wine, and all the left overs in the fridge. Awesome!! It's Christmas. You wake up and see presents and notice that not only are the cookies gone but Santa's hand writing looks ridiculously like moms. No matter, you have presents. Dive in.

Hope everyone has a Merry Christmas.!!!

Here I am checking out accessories on a Ford Truck accessories site. Browsing... WAM. There's a snow plow. Personally, I think that this is the coolest thing you could possibly buy if you live in an area that has massive amounts of snow. Here in Tennessee it might snow once a year if you're lucky. Agri-Cover made a 7'x18" anodized aluminum blade coupled with tough 1" rubber cutting edges on either side for you to play in the snow. Yes, you're actually supposed to use it for work but who said shoveling the driveway couldn't be fun?

To begin plowing, all you need to do is remove the pin, lift the blade one end at a time and lower it over the push frame and replace the pin. AWESOME!!! Now you're ready to plow. Wait a minute... I know what you're thinking. What if I hit something? Well, the plow floats on the push frame allowing it to slide up and down with the grade of the terrain . The thick rubber cutting edge moves snow yet leaves your driveway intact. When you're done playing with your new toy, simply reverse what you did when you started.

Now to the meat of our snow plow feast -how to install it. Every kit comes with a mount kit (front receiver hitch), push frame, and plow blade. Simply mount the front receiver hitch to the front of your vehicle, slide the push frame into the front hitch and secure the push frame with the hitch pin. Once you have secured the push frame you are ready to attach the plow. Lift one end of the blade at a time onto the holders and secure with snap pins. Installation takes between 30 minutes and one hour depending on your technical skill and specific front hitch.

Last week we started this voyage across the mandrel bent sea of exhaust systems. Here we go with part 2. Upgrading your vehicle's exhaust system is a good way to increase horsepower, acquire more ventilation, and release torque that has been held hostage by your engine -not to mention that the sound of your vehicle will go from a squall to a roar in no time. The larger mandrel bent tubing and low restriction mufflers make a great difference for your vehicle.

Alright, now we can't forget about "Big Brother" and all his restrictions. The government doesn't fancy the idea of you bypassing smog control equipment and they have no problems with telling you about it. I can see it now; you've just completed installation of your new system and off you go to get the car registered. Not a good idea. Most major cities require you to get "Smogged" before you can drive your car on their "turf". So there you are at the testing facility, the emissions test has just completed and they notify you that you have failed. They inform you that it will be necessary for you to re-install all smog control equipment before your vehicle can pass the inspection. This is why most exhaust manufacturers make systems that keep all OEM smog equipment in place.  

When buying an exhaust system, one of the first questions will be about gas mileage or horsepower. The performance gain is different for every application but the average is approximately 10%. These systems will also increase fuel efficiency. In Part 1 of this tip, I mentioned that "The exhaust systems only purpose in life is to remove gas from the engine to a place more convenient." This simple process allows the engine to run cooler and perform better. A better performing engine will use less gas and increase your fuel economy under normal driving conditions.

Several exhaust systems are designed to be completely bolt-on. Bolt-on means that factory mounting locations are used for installation and all hardware is included. Actually, I believe the only things not included are the hand tools and a cold beverage of your choice. 

Exhaust manufactures make their systems out of several different grades of steel. The best type is aircraft quality T-304 stainless steel. This grade of stainless steel will allow the exhaust system to last throughout the life of your vehicle. Aluminized steel systems work well but are more susceptible to rust. This rust will make your exhaust fall apart over time. Don't get me wrong, an aluminized steel exhaust system can still be a good purchase but don't expect to get any extra miles out of it.

Fun Fact: A possum does nothing for an exhaust system. I have a 1984 Monte Carlo that at one time was my daily driver. I hit a possum going about 60 MPH and... -lets just say those rusty old pipes never stood a chance. The car then sounded like a lawn mower on steroids.

This week’s tip is all about exhaust systems. An exhaust system is actually just a mix of pipes and mufflers. The exhaust system's only purpose in life is to remove spent gas from the engine to a place more convenient. Exhaust systems are available in several configurations. Cat-back, turbo-back, and axle-back are the most common aftermarket exhaust system configurations.

These systems are available with single and dual tip applications. Vehicles with smaller engines do not require dual piping on their exhaust systems. Dual pipes offer more ventilation for vehicles with larger engines but, for a standard four cylinder engine, would be for cosmetics only. That doesn’t mean that vehicle owners shouldn’t install a dual exhaust, it just means that the dummy pipe on a four cylinder dual exhaust system would be... well, Dumb. The secondary pipe won’t do a thing for vehicle performance. OK, Hot rod. So, it may look fast but if you wanted horsepower then you should have bought a car designed for horsepower. Fast looking tips are a lot less expensive than a dual exhaust system. If you're just after looks, then tips are the way to go.

Raise your hand if you have ever wondered “What is the difference between cat, turbo, and axle-back exhaust systems?” Good job. Now put down your hand before you start drawing attention to yourself.

Cat-back exhaust systems go from the catalytic converter to the rear (or side in some cases) of the vehicle. This system leaves all of the emissions control equipment in place but allows you to change the piping and muffler.

Axle-back exhaust systems are an alternative to a cat-back system. An axle-back system replaces the section of piping from the rear axle, to the rear of the vehicle. This set up is perfect for your Ford Fiesta. It’s actually the only type available for some cars because the bulk of the piping is welded to the catalytic converter. The turbo-back system is only available for vehicles equipped with turbo systems.

The turbo-back system will include every pipe from the turbo to the tip. This will not include the catalytic converter. The factory converter will be retained for use on the new system.

Check back for part 2 of this tip...

This week I’m going slightly off the beaten path. Okay, so I am actually going to miss it by a mile. I've decided, however, that this week we need to discuss how to reheat leftovers in honor of Thanksgiving. I know that at the Wallace Ranch, we get down on the leftovers as much as the meal. I mean, who doesn’t love a turkey sandwich at 11 PM on Thanksgiving night? Not necessarily, because you actually need it, but it just sounds so good.  

Let’s start with the centerpiece of our meal. You have two hours from the oven to the fridge for the turkey. Why? Because I said so.  No, seriously. You have two hours before bacteria arrive on the bird and wreak havoc on your stomach.  But once you have made it to the fridge with the turkey, you are good for 3-4 days. If you have a lot of turkey left, you may want to freeze it. I generally never have that problem because my food is lucky to make it past my face on the first round. You can actually do a lot with turkey. Things like casseroles, salads, chili, sandwiches, and turkey pie. Hungry? Well wait. There’s more!

There are several things you can do with all the other goodies. My favorite part is the fried potato cakes that you can have for breakfast from the leftover mashed potatoes. Yes, yes, I said fried. Because in the South we fry everything. Then of course there are all the other things that you made that are good right out of the microwave. Stuffing and gravy are great the next day but you have to be careful that the gravy is heated to a rolling boil before you eat it. Stuffing and gravy can be kept for 1-2 days before it has the potential to kill you.

Desserts are a different story altogether. I know most of them never had a chance to see the light of the following day. But for the most part, you don’t have to do anything with them unless they have dairy products in them, such as cream cheese or whipped topping.  The rest of the desserts can be left out for the scavengers to eat at will.

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving, and may your leftovers make your tongue slap your brains out.

This was our first real venture into the realm of portable, digital music. Although cassette tapes dominated the recordable media industry for much of the 80's and early 90's, the CD was actually introduced in 1982, with the specific purpose of recording and playing back digital audio. First introduced in Asia , it was highly received and wildly successful and was soon introduced to other markets. Considered the 'Big Bang' of audio recording, the CD offered several advantages over the audio tape discussed in last week's blog. The biggest advantage, being ease of playback.

The audio CD user could now 'scroll through' the songs they liked the most, repeat the song they liked indefinitely, shuffle songs for random playback, even program a play-list of specific songs they wished to hear exclusively. But the convenience didn't stop there; eventually multiple disk changers were released that offered the option to scroll through 6, 8, even 10 disks and sometimes more. Although, this incredible technology did not come without it's problems either. For one, the CD is just as prone to damage as the cassette was, if not more so. Left out in the hostile environment of a vehicle, Compact Discs were subject to damage from direct sunlight, liquid spills and more importantly, scratches. A deep scratch across the disk's surface or a series of smaller ones usually spelled death for reliable and accurate playback.

Leading into next week's blog, I'll attempt to give some layman's terms on just how a CD works. A compact disk is about 1.2mm thick and is constructed from polycarbonate plastic. The actual data that is stored on the CD is not embedded in the plastic, rather, it is etched in Super Pure Aluminum and although rarely used, gold. When I say 'etched', I'm referring to very, very small pits written in the aluminum which contain data. A CD player has an optical eye which casts a laser into these pits, which in turn, reads the data. After the player's software has interpreted the material, it will then play the music written on the CD! A bit complicated, I know. But the take-away here is that the data read is digital code as opposed the magnetic resonance we saw on the Cassette Tape.

Here's a fun fact: When designing the original compact disc, engineers set a goal of 74 minutes for a reason; They wanted a single CD to be able to contain a complete rendition of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony.

So I was looking around to see what I was going to write about this week.  Now, I knew Ford was bringing back the GT500, but I didn't think it would be this cool!    I remember watching that movie Gone in 60 Seconds, and that was the first time that I actually saw the classic Ford Mustang Shelby GT500.  Talk about one hot car!!  Every time I watch that movie, I get chill bumps just seeing that thing.  With its beautiful body lines, not mention that powerful engine under the hood.  That is a real muscle classic muscle car.

Back to the new Shelby GT500, I was reading a review of the car, and the guy who wrote it had very interesting points about the car.  I find it hilarious that some people are paying $10,000 above sticker cost for one of these things.  I admit it's a beautiful vehicle but I wouldn't pay $43,000 for it.  Let me break this down for ya'll.  What are you actually paying for in this vehicle?  I know what you’re paying for, and most people out there would agree with me, that it is the 500HP engine and the Shelby name on the back.  This is not a luxury car by no means, it is straight power and muscle to the wheels. 

500HP is nice, but would I actually have the chance to use it on the open road?  All you readers ask yourself that question.

I'm Out...

The definition of a hitch is: a device attached to the chassis of a vehicle for towing. Put that together with the definition of a critter: any living creature, wild or domestic and you get Hitch Critters. Hitch Critters is a combination of making something that is useful ,but at the same being humorous as well. These critters are available in 5 different models and require a wire trailer tow harness for animation.. The first one is a flopping bass for all you fishermen and fisherwomen out there. This bass when plugged into your trailer tow lights comes to life flip flopping back and forth with the eyes lighting up acting like brake lights. The next one they offer is a buck deer. This Don't-Shoot-Deer flips its legs up and down and a bulls-eye painted on its belly lights up when you hit the brakes. The next three are new this year and are a dog, horse and hog. The dog is affectionately named Bad Dog and shakes like an alcoholic needing another drink when the brakes are hit. His collar also lights up for added safety. The next one on the list is a horse, titled Whoa! Horsey. This horse throws up a stop sign that lights up when the brakes are hit. Last and not least is the famous Wheelie Hog for all you Hog lovers out there. This portly pig has his shirt off going for a Sunday ride through the countryside. When the brakes are hit, he pulls a wheelie and the headlight is lit up to let those behind you know you are stopping.

These critters will add some safety to your vehicle along with some looks that can go either way. Hitch Critters are also 100% Redneck tested and approved and would make a great Christmas gift for anyone who loves to laugh.

This week I was thinking about what I would write and somehow the topic of history came to mind. No, I will not be speaking of Toby again this week, he is dead to me now. But where to start? Surely I cannot surmise the history of the automotive world in just a few paragraphs, much less do I even contain that much knowledge about it. Maybe...as Gerwin suggested...a ramble will suffice.

The history and heritage of cars has become a part of American life. They like our family and friends are there from day one. Transporting us to school and work, tagging along for first dates, vacations, job interviews, successes and failures. Every once in awhile a certain model or brand strikes our attention and earns our respect. Either through its daft feats of speeding victory, amazing curves that make everyone look even though they've seen it a hundred times before, or the ability to put up with the kind of neglect and abuse that would make Marilyn Manson sniffle, and yet keep on ticking.
Therefore we attach ourselves to these cars, they reflect what we desire in our lifestyles and personalities. We develop a sense of respect for there accomplishments, and give credit were credit is due.

Most of all, we remember. We remember that old beat up Monty Carlo that drank oil and had leprosy, but it got us where we had to go for a long time. We remember that old El Camino we worked on all summer that was so ugly. But when fall time came and the work was done she sure would tear a hole in the wind. We remember that 10 or even 20 year old foreign car that was falling apart at the edges but refused to give up and die no matter how hard we tired to kill it. These are the things that make us fall in love in with our cars. This is how car companies earn our business and trust.

Like in our love lives, through trial and error we discover what cars are right for us and which ones only bring us head aches. But oddly enough, once that car works its way into our heart, they do seem to become a member of the family. Go ahead, prove me wrong. Go through your grandmother's picture book and see if you can't find one or two in the background. Maybe a summertime shot where the family Impala is getting a bath. Or that old Ford pickup granddad had, sitting out in the drive way during winter. Holding snow on the hood just so you could make some snowballs and keep something between you and your brother. Ah ha, I thought you might find one.