What I saw at PRI 19 and what is coming 2020!

This is the 10th year at PRI as DIESEL Motorsports and yes we were more than busy! This year's calm weather along with a great economy has energized the racing industry back again in the Midwest in Indianapolis!

It has been many years in Indy and the crowd was the biggest yet at this location. We had many enthusiasts say they remember to come by our booth, DIESEL Motorsports has been in the same spot for 6 years.

Many diesel enthusiasts came by and picked up info on the 2020 event season along with swag/decals from our great sponsors. The DM girls posed with lots of fans for photos and they also discussed the 2020 season.

I saw many large industry manufacturers now making new products for our diesel HD pickup trucks. As the trucks rise in horsepower and torque many parts require stronger internal parts along with drivetrain parts. A standard diesel pickup truck is now OEM 400 plus horsepower and the trucks are made for pulling or hauling loads.

Maintenance is the top upmost importance on a diesel drivetrain and the products are many with newer fluids being updated for higher heats. This show is for racers/pullers and enthusiasts along with shop owners to view what the manufacturers have to offer them for the motor sport that they favor.

This show is about parts and drivetrains for power and that is why it is heavily attended every year. DIESEL Motorsports even finds regular performance enthusiasts drive diesels and want to learn more about how to get better performance out of their trucks.

The events DIESEL Motorsports has scheduled for 2020 are the same for some longtime show but with a few new venues such as gas classes for HD trucks. NEW events this year in different areas that we had visited years ago and now are returning.

DIESEL Motorsports will be looking for long-term event locations over the next couple of years. This involves the proper track personnel, local support from shops/fans and ease of travel along with proper facilities.

Check out our schedule on our web site or Facebook page and give us a call or message if you want to be part of the shows.

www.DIESELmotorsports.US

https://www.facebook.com/DIESEL-Motorsports-195139160520323/

NO MORE MAGAZINES??? Times change as all things evolve!

BIG NEWS this week as Ten/Source/Discovery publishing announced they will no longer print or publish 19 automotive magazine titles leaving only 3 of their brands. An era has come to an end since they were the largest conglomerate of automotive publishing in the country.

Many of their titles came from smaller publishers who started the magazines, then later sold them to large companies. This evolution started many years ago with many different factors that killed the passion that many of the original publishers vested into what we read for years.

Many of the titles were started by people who loved the sport and employed many editors who knew the sport and journalism. That all changed when the big companies started to buy the titles and it was managed by bean-counters whose only passion was the dollar.

Sure,  modern day electronics was the final blow and I am just as big abuser as anyone since I do everything on my phone, pad and computer. But the final blow was the dollars it takes to produce, fill and sale of the titles. Distribution was a huge problem and many years ago the titles made very little off of newsstand sales. Postal service killed direct subscriptions years ago with again more money being charged for delivery. This was an issue when I worked in publishing back in the 80s.

Next was the paper or lack of which caused shortages and of course higher prices. By then the big companies were starting to take over the titles in the 90s but those were the golden years where the titles made very good money. Before the internet and postal issues after 9/11 along with the bust of 2008 in the market the magazines made very good money.

About 2008 and since then the bean-counters took over and the internet went into full swing with the same coverage with added videos not every month but every day! Tough to compete with instant news, photos, and videos. Yes they claim they are going to media but the passion is gone and this is being managed by bean-counters.

Where are the editors, writers and enthusiasts who originally helped build these titles? Retired, unemployed and many finding other means of work, the number will be large with the dropping of 19 titles! You will see much of the same stories republished from years ago with a few updates. That's right the stories from past issues are the property of the big companies. I have seen a few of my stories republished from 3-5 years ago and they were not even updated.

Who will fill the void? The bean-counter re-published sites?

I think the enthusiasts will see through this pretty quick! What will the companies with products do with their advertising dollars that supported all of these titles? How will they reach their prospect consumers?

I may have some answers that I have been working on for about 3 years since I saw this coming for some while! Reaching the rural market enthusiasts who is still driving and using their vehicles for work, fun and family activities?

See me at PRI booth#1835 Diesel/Truck Motorsports 2020 - still reaching out to enthusiasts through modern technology with old motorsport passion!

What sled pulling classes are running 2020? DIESEL Motorsports

We get asked every year what classes are running for sled pulling?

DIESEL Motorsports (NADM) tried for many years to standardize the classes so trucks could cross state lines to compete at different fairs and state club pulls. One Standard so local shops or clubs did not favor their local pullers and to make a fair ruleset for all.

SFI Techs inspected each truck so it was a fair ruleset for all classes and trucks at NADM events. It worked fairly well until local pulling trucks didn't like not having the advantage. Then everyone started making their own rules for local fairs.

Next the two tractor pulling associations decided to let trucks pull with their own set of rules. Then the trucks got too many and too popular so they decided to change the rules where it cost the trucks too much to compete. Now the ruleset is split into about three different ways depending on what part of the country you live and compete.

And guess what! Fewer pulling trucks because no one could afford the higher cost of class rule change. So the pulling has come full circle back to different rules for different clubs and areas and with fewer trucks at the events.

This can be seen at all levels and states where pulling just 10 years ago was double the size of competitors. Now the trucks were lower power and cheaper to operate back then and that is the largest difference.

DIESEL Motorsports over the last 2 - 3 years has tried to bring Work Stock and Hot Work Stock back to the levels of when it was fun to drive to an event, change tires/or not, and drive back home in the same truck. Without the beginning puller the sport will not grow more for the future, this is why we introduced the lower classes.

Classes (that we know of)

Pro stock - Modified
3.6 SB
3.0 SB
3.0
2.6 SB
2.6
2.5
Hot Work Stock
Work Stock

There is differences even between the classes so check local clubs or pull rules for verification! DIESEL Motorsports has tried to include all classes and rules within our ruleset but it is hard to stay up with all states and clubs because they now all differ.

So what has this history told us over a 15 year period! Everyone wanted trucks to be the top classes but no one wanted to stick together to obtain that goal. Trucks are still number #1 with DIESEL Motorsports because we are not governed by a tractor board but we are expanding to a few tractor and gas classes this year!

So look for future info . . .

SEMA 2019 - what to expect . .

Heading to the SEMA show today so I will be posting the next few days the lifted trucks and special new parts for our pick-up trucks!

As always the trucks produced for SEMA Show will be lifted with special fancy suspension elements along with ridiculous large wheels with little rubber for tires. These look great for show but as many of you know very hard to use on your trucks out here in the real world. It only takes one small chug hole to ruin your day!

The trucks have great pain schemes or wraps on them along with very nice bumpers, winches, steps and lights. All the accessories you can imagine buying for your truck. It is definitely eye bling for your truck.

As far as performance, the truck's drivetrains are pretty much stock unless the truck is older (pre-EPA approved) so most of the hoods are closed. You will see some performance parts displayed and possible motors displayed so you can see the parts.

The custom made vehicles are made just for the SEMA show and none other will compare! Some of these vehicles are unbelievable with many hours of custom fabricating and performance drivetrains.

The SEMA show has become a large car/truck show with vendors inside showing parts and vehicles. If you can get there early or stay till late you can talk to the experts at the booths. During the day is almost impossible because of the crowds stopping to take photos with their phones or just milling around wondering where to go next in the show.

It is the best of the best showing custom built vehicles! Photos coming in the next few days!

SEMA - heading there in November! Is it worth it?

People ask all of the time about going to SEMA every year and is it worth going?

I always tell them if you have never gone and want to see the World's largest automotive car/truck industry show - yes they should!

But! Bring lots of $$$$ because that is a week where the entire city of Las Vegas raises their prices by 3 times. Don't believe me, look up the same hotel the week before for rates. My current hotel is at $89 a night but during SEMA it is $289 a night! Plus tack on $30-50 per night in luxury tax at every hotel, so if you find one for $160 a night add another $30-50 per night.

Uber and/or taxis will charge you $20 to go anywhere plus if you rent a car every body charges for parking, even the hotel you are staying at for the week. Food is expensive everywhere, long gone are the steak dinners for $4.99! Expect to spend $35 for a hamburger and a beer.

Bring really good walking shoes and be prepared to walk a lot in a very crowded show every where! There is a lot to see and you do have to walk many miles to see it. When they say it's only a block or two it is a mile away.

For the good part, you will see the best of the best vehicles at SEMA from weird to the newest hottest cars/trucks on display. The parts that we all look for are displayed at this show. Is it hard to find those parts? Yes, it is hard to find so do your research and look companies up before you get there.

SEMA does have the show categorized in to sections pretty well so if you want different interest you can go to that area. The outside tents are the new companies and it is a smorgasbord of parts and services.

I usually walk 7-9 miles a day and I know where I am going and who I am going to see before I get there. Most of the show vehicles are outside but some are in the booths inside the show.

Don't forget to include some time for the AAPEX show at the Sands Convention Center for hard parts and liquids. Not much on showing vehicles and this is if you are a service garage which does a full service maintenance for vehicles. A great show to walk around for the day.

It is all about business for me since I have gone for so many years but for those who have never gone it is a site to see for the first time. For the auto enthusiast it is eye candy everywhere!

I will post many photos from there this year with reports!

DIESELS - EPA - Rolling Coal - Industry Standards and how we all get along!

As I described last week our diesel industry has gone through yet another transition this past year. It seems with the EPAs budget being cut they have decided to pick from low hanging fruit in order to get fees and monies from a few diesel programmers and shops.

As stated before and from earlier warnings from a few years ago, you can not advertise or market DPF/EGR delete kits. This has been against the law for many years whether we like it or not it is the law. I don't make the laws I'm just reporting what is realistic.

Also as stated before, the DPF delete started years ago by farmers who were catching their fields/trucks on fire when they left the truck running while out in the fields. Doesn't take long to want to fix that problem, I have had many rural dealers tell me they had the choice of removal or not sell large farms numerous trucks.

It has surfaced and is interesting that the two officials who are responsible for the latest intrusions are from Indiana and not California. Also interesting that two large diesel events are held near where they live and one even has their own rap sheet on the State Highway Patrol web site. This has drawn too much attention to unruly kids with smoking diesel trucks.

The majority of the industry relies on brick and mortar business of doing diesel truck maintenance on every day trucks that are used in business and life. 80% of their business is regular maintenance on our trucks and 20% on performance parts for our trucks.

Most new trucks come with near 500 hp drivetrains with low mileage warranties. Most people rely on the dealer for maintenance until the warranty runs out and then seeks better service from our brick and mortar shops.

It is the big 3 OEMs direction is to keep all maintenance at their dealerships. Their efforts involves the government agencies which are funded by the people they search out.

DIESEL Motorsports has had a no smoke street police for many years and has hosted several events a year for enthusiasts to bring their trucks to official licensed tracks for competition. It has been fun for many years and is a lifestyle for many of us across the country.

That has temporarily changed and we all have to be more considerate of other drivers in populated settings by not smoking the truck. We all know how not to do that and to do it! Many of us have pre-DPF trucks that are not included in the regulations but we still must be cognitive of other drivers.

We all want more power and more torque for when we pull trailers and such. It is the American way to change your vehicle, SEMAs new marketing report show that trucks are double the sales of all other vehicles so we are not alone.

What the Big 3 don't get is many our our shops being creative mechanics and engineers has fixed many of their problems regarding the drivetrain be it pumps, injectors, valves, cooling, etc. It was the same way during the 70s and may of those performance parts are now on current OEM vehicles.

They are hurting themselves and the industry by trying to regulate our diesel market. They could learn so much more and apply the improvements to our maintenance diesel vehicles that supply 90% of our services such as street maintenance, goods delivery, transporting parts for industry and garbage removal.

I'm sorry, I have research the electric option enough to know it is not the answer! It is ironic that the very states pushing for electric are having brown-outs and can not even power the homes/businesses much less millions of vehicles and they are cost prohibitive.

So let's try and be aware of other people while driving, do not advertise what is against the law and keep wrenching and try to make a living working on our diesel trucks. See you at our events!

Latest EPA tuner excitement along with CA emissions being dismissed . . .

How does this effect our industry and rural automotive aftermarket?

A little for some who deserved being raided, others very little and IT is ALL political grandstanding for monies!

For those diesel companies or shops who openly advertised DPF and EGR delete that sell large amounts will get raided, it is against the law when stated in such a way. Those shops who continue to do the rolling coal tune is going to get raided since most states, counties and cities have outlawed such displays of vehicle abuse.

DIESEL Motorsports has asked our shops to no longer offer that tune and most have agreed and quit doing these tunes many years ago. Because that tune is a bad tune which clogs injectors, pumps, etc and causes the truck to run poorly. Most shops rely on regular maintenance of diesel vehicles in order to stay in business so not offering this tune did not bother them.

This is why DIESEL Motorsports holds events in rural areas so people can bring their legal offload trailerd diesels into events to compete on private facilities, so we can continue to expand the capabilities of diesels for future improvements.

If you notice the EPA has deemed 2020-23 for future vehicles to not be tuned even for offload for licensed vehicles. All race vehicles have had their vin numbers registered as race for the high end vehicles and trailered to events. Believe me you would not even want to ride one of our trailered diesel trucks on the highways, it would be an unpleasant ride. They are made for competition, short distances and high power runs.

The administration deemed CA emissions as no longer national standards, why? To offset the continued downslide of CA regulations running companies and economy down a rabbit hole which many can not return. That is why MANY automotive companies have moved out of CA to other states.

The lowest cost vehicle has risen by $2500 in 10 years because of emissions so they are seeking less regulations so prices can come back down. How does this help our industry?

Very much so since many millennials can not only afford the cars but many are not even getting their driver's license at 16. Many of us started out in used cars or trucks driving and we had to work on them to keep them running. So much of that business has started to disappear, it still exists in rural areas because rural youth have to drive to work their farms or drive between small towns for jobs.

The big three OEMS has asked for lower emissions so they can build vehicles here in the states again. Tell me how many 20-30 year olds can afford $50,000 plus vehicles? And many of them need two vehicles since both have to work to make ends meet.

Is our past diesel industry evolved and is now in transition? Yes I believe it is . . . more to come next week!