Tag Archives: BangShift News

Listen UP: Alexis DeJoria and Clay Millican Are On The NHRA Insider Podcast This Week!

Sep 23, 20211320 Drag News, 1320 NHRA News, BangShift 1320, BangShift News

Listen UP: Alexis DeJoria and Clay Millican Are On The NHRA Insider Podcast This Week!

Alexis DeJoria and Clay Millican join Brian Lohnes on the NHRA Insider podcast this week to talk about their strong seasons and what it will take to move from being good cars to great cars. Both teams and drivers have made finals in 2021 but neither has closed the deal on the 4th win light of a Sunday afternoon.

Alexis and Clay share great insights into their teams and how the pieces all come together a certain way on those weekends when the round wins stack up. Lohnes talks about Charlotte, what to look for in St Louis and some of the insider stories that you love to hear on this show.

Hit the image below to listen to this episode of the NHRA Insider podcast!

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Photo Blast: More Epic Fords From The 2021 Carlisle Ford Nationals

Jun 23, 2021Apex Event Coverage, Apex Gallery, BangShift APEX, BangShift Galleries, BangShift News, BangShift XL, CAR SHOWS, Car Shows, Event Coverage, Gallery, OTHER, XL Event Coverage, XL Gallery

Photo Blast: More Epic Fords From The 2021 Carlisle Ford Nationals

(Photos by Joe Grippo) –  We have to give big ups to our man Joe Grippo for sending us loads of great images from his personal field of dreams known as the 2021 Carlisle Ford Nationals. The event was sprawling, it was fun, it was packed with stuff to see, and it was in so many ways a great return to “normal” (for the most part). He pounded the ground with his camera and the result is that you have been able to see more of this show at BangShift than anywhere else. We may have nearly come to the end of his photo contributions but we love the fact that it’s just barely summer and huge shows like this are rocking all over the nation.

The spread of stuff to see here is great. From original GT40 race cars to a host of 1970s Mustangs, Mustang II examples, and Pintos, there’s a niche profiled for every Ford lover.

We’re done yapping, here’s the good stuff!

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More N Means More Fun: Hyundai Announces Newest N Performance Model And It Is The Elantra

The OPGI Dads and Grads Sale Is ON – Save Up To 15% On The Parts Pop Needs!

We know you are thinking about what to get your dad for Father’s day or what to give that muscle car loving kid you know who just graduated from school. Stop thinking and start doing by going to the OPGI website and taking part in the Dads and Grads sale! You have about three days to handle this program and there’s nothing more awesome for a hot rodder to get a gift of car stuff.

Maybe there’s a restoration going on that needs some help. Maybe there’s a project that’s almost done and some critical items are all that’s needed to wrap it up. Whatever the scene, this Dads and Grads sale is perfect. Interior parts, engine parts, chassis parts, gifts and apparel, it is all at OPGI.com and this is the kind of car stuff that people want.

If you are super smart you’ll hook them up early with the gift and save money in the process. They are offering up to 15% off loads of popular items. Don’t wait, get on this today!

Hit the image below to be transported to OPGI.com and get to getting cool parts!

Awesomely Weird: This 1970s Chevrolet Parts Film Stars Evel Knievel And Literally Makes No Sense

Apr 24, 2021Apex Video, BangShift APEX, BangShift News, FUNNY STUFF, HISTORIC, MISC, Videos

Awesomely Weird: This 1970s Chevrolet Parts Film Stars Evel Knievel And Literally Makes No Sense

We’re guessing someone lost their job for this one. You are going to watch this 1970s Chevrolet parts film which stars Evel Knivel and makes literally no sense at all. The theme of the film is “conflict” and it is illustrated by a series of scenes where animals eat other animals, black and white movies are shown, and Evel Knievel jumps stuff on his motorcycle, sometimes crashing, sometimes not. Throw in a dose of 1970s Anchoman-level hilarity with a bikini-clad woman, and you have yourself one of the most singular odd things we have ever seen.

Make no mistake, Knievel would never turn down a gig, especially one with Chevrolet that likely was a great payday for reading some cue-cards. The company definitely did not hire him for his suave acting ability because this dude is straight up stiff while narrating the action. By action, we mean the bizarre things we are shown on screen.

Oddly, while Chevrolet parts are mentioned a handful of times there’s barely (if ever) a Chevrolet car shown as a prop in the film. This whole thing is some weirdo theater of the mind that was likely schemed up by an executive’s kid. “Hey Johnson, get my son a job in the media department and let him run wild!”

Obviously, Knievel was majorly famous at this point and his star only grew bigger. Note that he mentions that someday, “I’ll jump a mile….” we all know how that quest ended.

You have to see this one to believe it.

Press play to see the weirdest Chevrolet Parts video ever made, starring Evel Knievel!

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The 2022 Ford Super Duty Updates Get it Right – New Looks, More Tech, Same Big Engine!

Mar 18, 2021BangShift News, BangShift XL, XL Truck News

The 2022 Ford Super Duty Updates Get it Right – New Looks, More Tech, Same Big Engine!

(By Tom Lohnes) – With a refresh for 2020, the Ford Super Duty pickup truck has proven itself a great choice in the field, with its only drawback being tech. Well, for 2022, the Super Duty received what its needs and some more.

Starting out with the small things, the Super Duty receives two new appearance packages. The STX sport appearance package, available on both XLT and Lariat trims, basically color-matches everything that was chrome. This does so on both trims, making them barely distinguishable. Next in the list of updates comes the big one: Sync 4.

With GM utilizing a brilliant system in a smaller screen, and Ram essentially strapping an iPad Pro on to the dashboard of their trucks, Ford has added the option of the new system on the XLT trim, and from there on it is standard. Powertrain changes are at a minimum, the only notable thing is the “Godzilla” 7.3-liter V8 makes 430 horsepower now, up from 428.

So, will this update to the Gargantuan Ford sway you to buy one? The Super Duty not only looks good, performs good, and is built good, but now it can keep up with it’s competitors computer-wise. Pricing for the Super Duty ranges anywhere from $34,000 to $115,000.

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Learn How To Shape Metal With An English Wheel – Metal Shaping For Beginners English Wheel Basics

Jan 17, 2021BangShift News

Learn How To Shape Metal With An English Wheel – Metal Shaping For Beginners English Wheel Basics

I don’t know why, but we car guys always seem to want all the cool tools, even if we don’t know how to use them. An English Wheel, for example, is one of those tools that most hot rodders do NOT have in their garage, but that all the coolest shops seem to have. So whenever any of us see those cool shops, whether in person or on tv, all we want is all the stuff they have. And so English Wheels are something everyone wants even if they don’t work sheet metal or know how to use one. I’ve used one a couple of times, but mastering one puts you in special company.

You can’t become a master if you don’t start as a beginner, so check out this cool video that is a beginner’s guide to using an English Wheel. I’m going to get myself one when I get the new shop done just so I can learn out to use it and not be the guy that just has one in the corner looking cool. Although I do want to pinstripe mine, cause that’s cool and everything looks better with pinstripes.

Check out the video below, and let us know what you think.

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NHRA Insider: An Author, A Racer, and A Look Inside The Biggest Stories of 2021

Jan 06, 20211320 Drag News, 1320 NHRA News, BangShift 1320, BangShift News, RACING & ACTION, Videos

NHRA Insider: An Author, A Racer, and A Look Inside The Biggest Stories of 2021

On this episode of the NHRA Insider Podcast, Elana Scherr the author of “Don Prudhomme, My Life Beyond The 1320” joins host Brian Lohnes to talk about making this amazing book and the inside stories behind the creation of the world.

It’s a fascinating discussion about The Snake and his influence on drag racing and beyond. Tony Pedregon is the second guest on this show. He and Lohnes delve into the biggest stories of the year so far, the crew chief announcements, race schedule announcements, and more. They also talk about Tony’s battle with COVID-19 and his hospitalization. A wide-ranging episode!

Hit the image below to listen to this episode of the NHRA Insider podcast –

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There’s A British Firm Working On An X20 Engine Made Of A Pair Of Two-Liter V10s

Hot Hatch History: This Look Back At The Hot Hatches Of The 1970s Is Great – No, The Golf GTI Was Not First

Dec 31, 2020Apex Video, BangShift APEX, BangShift News, HISTORIC, MISC, RACING & ACTION, Videos

Hot Hatch History: This Look Back At The Hot Hatches Of The 1970s Is Great – No, The Golf GTI Was Not First

The idea of a “hot hatchback” has been part of the automotive landscape from the birth of the Mini-Cooper and this video from the fine folks at Goodwood which outlines the history of the concept and all the foundational models of the 1970s is spectacular. There’s something fun about a fast little hatchback car and buyers have bought millions and millions of them over the years. The Golf GTI is absolutely the most famous hot hatch of the early days but it was not the first one out. Companies like Simca, Renault, and others threw into the concept of the sports minded small car before the Germans definitively defined the genre of car.

We look at the automotive landscape today and so few of what we look at has any sort of sensical relationship to things that were made in the 1970s but the hot hatch backs still have the same DNA they always did and they are better in so many was than they ever were.

As a guy who spent a few years in college racing a hotted up VW Rabbit with my friends in the SCCA, perhaps my opinion is biased to the value and entertainment of these little things but the video below tells a really cool story in a very well laid out, researched, and appealing delivery.

Automotive history is the best history.

Press play below to see this cool video on the history of the hot hatchback!

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The “WTF?!” Files: 100 MPH With Cops On Your Tail And Your Pit Bull Driving The Car!

Dec 28, 2020BangShift News

The “WTF?!” Files: 100 MPH With Cops On Your Tail And Your Pit Bull Driving The Car!

Lakewood, Washington is an, *ahem* interesting place to live. Situated just a hair north of Joint-Base Lewis-McChord, Lakewood has the aura of a “military town”…slightly dangerous, slightly weird, with an almost seemingly endless amount of odd moments occurring that leave troops laughing and cracking jokes and superiors issuing warnings and do-not-patronize orders. Name it…drunk and disorderly conduct, drugs, soldiers showing their ass on Friday and Saturday nights, and that’s before you take in the rest of the town. It’s a fairly common theme in a lot of towns that are close to big military bases…but trust me, after years of living in the area and half a decade living right next to Lakewood, you would think that I would’ve seen and heard just about any and everything that could happen there. But without a doubt, the news coming out of Washington State is stunning, because this is the kind of thing that you’d joke about with your friends after a beer or two, not what you’d expect to see on the 5 o’clock news.

A 51-year-old man is facing a litany of charges, including driving under the influence, reckless driving, hit-and-run and felony eluding after the Washington State Patrol chased him from south of Seattle fifty miles north to Arlington, where officers were able to stop the 1996 Buick he was a passenger in. Fifty miles of Interstate 5 traffic, two hit-and-run crashes in Seattle, and it took spike strips to get the chase to come to an end. And yeah, passenger…I said that right. I’m quoting KOMO 4 (ABC)’s explanation of what was going on verbatim from their story:

“Troopers said the man told them he was teaching his dog how to drive and the pit bull was found in the driver’s seat while the man was steering the driving wheel.”

I….I’m sorry, WHAT. Sir, the world’s going crazy enough without this. Enjoy your padded cell. Meanwhile, somebody get that dog a treat and some lessons at Bondurant. Only two accidents between south Seattle and Arlington while doing 100+ mph is an achievement!

KOMO 4 News story link: High-Speed Chase with a Pit Bull Driving

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Monday Drag Racing Movie: Watch This Awesome Coverage Of The 1972 NHRA World Finals

Merry Christmas From All Of Us At BangShift.com!

A Merry Christmas to you, BangShifters! We hope that you are enjoying the magic that this day brings, whether young or old. Regardless of whether it’s presents, family time, or the time away from your everyday grind, we hope you are making the most out of your day. Enjoy the early-morning volley of noise as the kids go ballistic for the presents, take the time to sip something hot and comforting, and stay cozy and warm. Listen to the classic songs, enjoy the good foods, and reach out to family and friends who you might not see or talk to often.

If you are one of those who work through the holidays, we tip our hats to you…the nurses, the police, the firefighters, and the service members around the world, thank you for putting in the hours, especially in a year like this one. We appreciate the work you do to provide not only for your family, but to your community as a whole.

We are taking a bit of time with our families for the holidays like we usually do this time of year, so we hope you enjoy some of the year-in-review pieces we’ve chosen. We appreciate you stopping by and hope that Santa left something under the tree that scratches that gearhead itch just so, whether it’s some good parts, or some toys that you and the kids both are going to enjoy for some time to come. And please, feel free to share the tales of the loot with us!

On the behalf of Brian Lohnes, Chad Reynolds, Bryan McTaggart, our families, and the contributors who help make BangShift the place that it is, we wish you the best for Christmas this year. Thank you for being here, thank you for your support, and we’re looking forward to making 2021 the year we want it to be!