MuscleCars at the Strip is the biggest event of its kind in the world; a what’s hot, what’s not annual gathering of both modern and classic muscle. Phil Painter of JP Motorsports is the man behind the curtain, and today he joins the guys to talk about the latest trends and most iconic vehicles. “Taking modern technology and putting it into those older bodies and waking those cars up, I think that’s a real bonus to the whole muscle car enthusiast platform.” The trio also debates the top 5 muscle ...
May 02, 2024•42 min
During his 15-year career as a professional race car driver, Cooper MacNeil amassed an impressive array of endurance championship wins, including the 24 Hours of Daytona (2023 GT3 Class), Petit Le Mans (3-time winner), 24 Hours of Sebring (2-time winner), and 24 Hours of Le Mans (multiple podiums). Now retired, recently married, and with a baby on the way, he sat down with Kevin and Willie for a look back at his life in racing (“After 15 years of doing it, I was just mentally, physically, and em...
Apr 30, 2024•41 min
Kyle Tucker is widely acknowledged as a groundbreaker in the development of pro-touring, although he admits that he didn’t quite see it coming. “It was really just good timing and some luck,” he tells Kevin and Willie. “We were just out there being geeky engineers wanting to test our parts, but we were marketing at the same time, and it did a lot for the company in the early days.” The evolution of Detroit Speed from grassroots beginnings to industry juggernaut, on this episode of Two Guys Garag...
Apr 25, 2024•40 min
When you consider the manual way we tuned cars for decades, it’s amazing how far tuning technology has come, and how intimidating tuning a modern vehicle can be. Having the right diagnostic tool that talks to the systems on these cars is critical, requiring something a little better than a code reader; something that gives you an indication where to go, what procedure to tackle next, and can pay for itself quickly. Haresh Gobin of Launch Tech USA joins the podcast to drop some wisdom on the guys...
Apr 23, 2024•36 min
According to Willie, there’s “not a better buddy to show up to your house on a weekend and say, ‘Hey, you wanna do some welding?!’” than the Wizard of Welding himself, Bob Bitzky. Trainer, teacher, professor, product developer; you name it, Bob’s done it. Today he joins the guys to lay down some serious knowledge about welding in general and TIG, chromoly, and aluminum in particular. “If you’re a steel welder and I’m gonna take you over to the aluminum side,” he notes, “I may have to remove your...
Apr 18, 2024•43 min
Kyle Hyatali really knows how to build a hot rod and tee it up nicely. His purview at Vibrant Performance extends across the full life cycle of development, including everything from product design to tech support and marketing. Most recently, he’s been documenting a full customization of his personal ’87 Mazda RX-7 decked out with the full Vibrant catalogue. “We often consider ourselves similar to a Home Depot of car fabrication,” he tells the guys in this week’s podcast. “You could come to us,...
Apr 16, 2024•41 min
Having recently driven the new 2023 Roush Mustang, even diehard Mopar guy Willie B must (grudgingly) give Ford its due. This is music to the ears of both Kevin and today’s guest, Jim Kemp, 28-year veteran of Roush Performance and manager of its Crate Engine Program. As what was once unimaginable becomes possible and modern horsepower wars intensify, “Everybody’s trying to make the meanest, nastiest, just most unbelievable product out there,” notes Kemp. “And I get a front row seat to all of that...
Apr 11, 2024•41 min
From his early days at Chip Foose’s side on Overhaulin’, Kevin witnessed firsthand the art and skill of automotive drawing and designing on paper. Today, Kevin’s self-proclaimed “Favorite French Car Guy” and Design Manager at Ford Performance, Anthony Colard, joins the podcast to discuss the finer points of automotive design. “We don’t live long enough to drive boring cars,” says the man from TheModernRacer.com, citing his one-of-a-kind ’68 Barracuda Fastback build as a prime example. Learn more...
Apr 09, 2024•45 min
Acknowledging that “we’re always learning,” Kevin and Willie embark upon a fond trip down memory lane, citing some major lessons they’ve learned along the way. Like the importance of strapping down whatever it is you’re moving, and why not to use a fire extinguisher on an engine. Or the danger of running nitrous at the wrong temp, and the wisdom of making everything foolproof. “There’s so much strength in the struggle, and typically one of your best means to educate yourself is your last mistake...
Apr 04, 2024•43 min
Dan Millen of Livernois Motorsports is one of those guys that just eats, lives, and breathes motorsports performance, and over the years he’s figured out how to tap every ounce of power these machines can possibly produce. “We’re at the crescendo of high performance and what you can get out of cars; it’s only gonna last a couple of years longer,” notes Willie in his introduction, “and Dan has some real recipes and remedies to get that horsepower.” After all, as Dan freely acknowledges, “The more...
Apr 02, 2024•31 min
Kevin Tetz has been a professional painter, teacher, and well-known TV host for decades. His wealth of knowledge and easygoing delivery style have made him THE go-to guy for novices and DIYers. As he tells Kevin and Willie in today’s episode, “The difference between a painter and a paint gun owner is your ability to get yourself out of trouble,” which is something everyone should both expect and embrace. Don’t be afraid to mess things up, he says, because “experience is the ultimate teacher… jus...
Mar 28, 2024•39 min
Brian Tooley of BTR Racing has been fighting for power and harmonics and everything that goes on in that valve chain for decades, and nobody’s been as aggressive. “There’s lots of smart guys out there that are doing phenomenal work. We are a tiny bit ahead of most of our competitors,” he tells Kevin and Willie, “and have been shockingly successful.” In his fifth appearance on the podcast, Brian leads a revealing deep dive into hydraulic roller camshafts that’s not to be missed. “I can’t believe ...
Mar 26, 2024•41 min
Season 22 of the Two Guys Garage TV show kicks off with Kevin and Willie executing an LS swap on a ‘94 Chevy Old Body Style pickup, complete with EFI from FiTech. VP Mike Wahl joins the guys for a deep dive on how surprisingly simple it is to upgrade to fuel injection, which for a long time was considered hugely intimidating. “We definitely pride ourselves on trying to make the simplicity side of the user end as easy as possible,” notes Mike, as well as affordable. And with 500 new parts numbers...
Mar 21, 2024•42 min
There’s a brave new world of cordless tools that come outfitted with high tech batteries and power cells, brushless motors, and a wide array of cool features for all types of applications. These new developments, new chemistries, and new form factors provide more energy for using tools longer, leading Kevin to observe that “our tools are better than our dad’s tools, by far!” Joey Gamber of DeWalt Tools joins the guys to discuss the evolution of tool and battery technology, and how the company bu...
Mar 19, 2024•42 min
A successful suspension upgrade does not have to break the bank and can be done on just about any ride over the course of a weekend. As Kevin points out, “Sometimes you just need to upgrade a couple of key components, add some stiffness, and wow, the fun factor goes flying!” Kyle Briese of BMR Suspension couldn’t agree more. “You can literally transform a car by just adding a couple simple bolt-on parts,” he tells the guys. “You can take it from boring to being way more exciting to drive just by...
Mar 15, 2024•39 min
Fresh from a chance encounter with Kevin at the recent Rolex 24 at Daytona, Nicole McElroy of Recaro Automotive joins the podcast for an in-depth discussion about butts in seats. Not just aftermarket and racing seats, but OEM seats, commercial vehicle seats, stadium and swivel seats, 8-way power performance seats, and even haptic seats. They all fall under the company’s four pillars: quality, comfort, safety, and innovation. As Nicole tells the guys, “We’re making breakthroughs in things that we...
Mar 12, 2024•42 min
Dave Visner’s life took a hard right turn when he altered his career path from pre-med to engine building, and in the process forever changed both his life and the future of racing. As Kevin says while introducing Dave in this episode, “When you want to win, you call this guy,” especially when it comes to the advantages of billet versus casting. As Dave tells the guys, “The more we learn, we realize how little we used to know.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Mar 07, 2024•39 min
Kevin’s former Overhaulin’ pal-turned-politician Cherielynn Westrich joins the podcast direct from the Iowa State Senate Chamber for a frank conversation about her remarkable career trajectory. From a singer in The Rentals with Maya Rudolph (“If there was a band playing in ’96, we played with them”) to automotive TV (70 Overhaulin’ builds in 15 years) to politics (four years into her initial six-year Senate term) and automotive entrepreneur (manufacturing under-dash hydraulic swaps at MalWood US...
Mar 05, 2024•38 min
Willie set SEMA abuzz back in 2021 with his ’66 Charger build, a handcrafted labor of love he nicknamed “Sick Six Six” that he and his pal Mike Ruth displayed at the Heidts booth. Today the pair reunite to reflect on the project and its impact, while also delving into a host of related aftermarket topics. “It’s fun getting to design new stuff,” says Mike, but “the best part is getting to drive it!” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Feb 29, 2024•42 min
Things are getting serious in the EV performance, racing, and aftermarket spaces, and it’s only a matter of time until they morph in with the OEs. “There’s a large portion of us out there that is trying to fight this tsunami wave of electric power and performance, but I hate to be the bearer of bad news,” notes Willie, “you’re gonna lose!” Kirk Miller and Jake Hawksworth of Hypercraft USA join the podcast from King of the Hammers, where they’re pushing the boundaries of EV with their advance hyb...
Feb 27, 2024•43 min
On today’s episode, Kevin and Willie address how to get the best quality air for the job you’re doing, while saving some big bucks in the process. Mitch Halverson of RapidAir is on hand with key pointers about the right ways – and more importantly, the wrong ones – to plumb air. From home garage kits to large scale manufacturing facilities, find out what you need in terms of fittings, hoses, connectors, and a whole lot more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Feb 22, 2024•35 min
In 1995, “Speedvision was this new discovery,” Kevin says at the top of this week’s podcast. “It was like kind of discovering the Playboy magazine in your buddy’s dad’s closet and going, ‘What is this?’” As the first 24/7 national cable television network devoted solely to cars, bikes, boats, and planes, “It was home for so many of us for so many hours,” adds Willie. Flash forward to today, and the recent relaunch of the storied automotive brand for the streaming era. One of the original network...
Feb 20, 2024•41 min
Mike Copeland was a fixture at GM Performance for 25 years before striking out on his own and eventually purchasing Arrington Performance. As a diehard HEMI guy, he’s currently targeting 2500+ hp as the highly achievable future of hot rodding. Beyond that, he’s at the forefront of a movement to popularize an entirely green form of fuel consumption, telling the guys that “we’re on a path to emission-certify hydrogen as an alternative fuel as a zero-emission approach for virtually any gasoline or ...
Feb 15, 2024•42 min
Terry Fair of Vorshlag Motorsports is well known for swapping an LS engine into a 2015 S550 Mustang GT. “Trigger” can deliver 620 hp to the 200 treadwear-type rear tires on pump gas. A radical combination of engineer, builder, and driver, Terry “is on the forefront of just rippin’ and doing things that you would never believe is possible,” notes Willie, both for customers and himself. For his part, “I got a good crew, we’re making enough parts,” Terry tells the guys. “I’m living the dream, for s...
Feb 13, 2024•40 min
The name “Godzilla” instantly conjures images of the mythological monster who’s wreaked havoc in the minds of moviegoers for multiple generations. Most recently it has also become the moniker of a massive mountain of machinery from the folks at Ford, perhaps the ultimate OE crate engine to date. Brian Wolfe of Willis Performance Enterprises, since retired from Ford, is the godfather of this creation and was critical in its development. Kevin and Willie are beyond excited to pick his brain about ...
Feb 08, 2024•33 min
It’s estimated that roughly 70% of car repairs performed after a warranty expires are done by independent shops. However, if the manufacturers have their way, all this work would be restricted to dealerships, with drivers forced to sacrifice the convenience and affordability their local mechanics now provide. The stakes are high, as is the momentum to prevent this from happening. Ted Hughes of the Auto Care Association joins the podcast to discuss The Repair Act, legislation introduced in Washin...
Feb 06, 2024•36 min
Clint Cannon of ATS Diesel is on a mission to save the world, one diesel truck at a time. Rather than consigning older trucks to the scrap heap, he’s an outspoken proponent of retrofitting them with newer, more efficient parts and pieces to keep them on the road and running better than ever. “He makes everything bulletproof,” says Willie. “He’s one of those guys where, if it’s Clint tested and approved, you know you’re getting a good product.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm...
Feb 02, 2024•44 min
Sterling Bakus is a scholar of 3D printing, having built his very own Lamborghini Aventador that “at least from five feet away, you wouldn’t be able to tell that it wasn’t real.” The internet took notice, as did Kevin and Willie. “For car guys and car enthusiasts and shop owners, this is something you should truly pay attention to,” says Willie. “This is great technology.” And best of all, it won’t bankrupt you. Far from it. For less than the cost of a decent welder, you can purchase a quality p...
Jan 30, 2024•42 min
According to Travis Hill, SVTPerformance.com has been “the go-to place on the internet if you want to know anything about any Ford Performance vehicle,” and he would know: he’s had his finger on the pulse of the entire landscape of Ford Performance-type stuff for well over two decades. As Willie says, “There’s never been a better time to be a car enthusiast, just because of the capability of these platforms and what you’re able to do with them now,” to which Travis adds that this latest Bronco m...
Jan 25, 2024•41 min
“There’s many things in life we want to be just like Willie,” Kevin pronounces at the top of today’s episode, “and this is one of them.” He’s talking about where to build and house our cars, where to put our tools, what our shops and garages look like. And Willie has a set of garages guaranteed to turn any car guy green with envy. But how do you find a house with a great shop or garage? Returning guest Brian McNamara started Gearhead Homes after identifying such a necessity. “I wanted a big gara...
Jan 23, 2024•35 min
