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Ridetech Awes SEMA Attendees With 1933 Ford

Jan 25, 2014

The Ridetech 1933 Ford has seen its share of success, winning several events during the 2012 and 2013 seasons

Those in the business of building hot rods are likely familiar with Ridetech, and rightfully so. The Jasper, Indiana based company specializes in the manufacture of high-performance suspension systems.

The company takes pride in the fact a vast majority of their components are researched, developed and manufactured on site. These capabilities lend to "complete control over every aspect of design, quality and delivery."

Although suspension is their game, the Ridetech crew is talented in many other aspects of building rods. In fact, they have been assembling project cars for the past 17 years.

When asked how he originally got interested in these mechanical undertakings, business owner Bret Voelkel said, "Always been a gear-head. And having the talent to do what we do at Ridetech allows us to build some of the coolest cars out there. Just keeps me going."

Voelkel recently embarked upon a journey to Nevada, where he would dazzle the attendees of SEMA 2013 with a vehicle that epitomized design and performance. The car had already proven its capabilities numerous times prior to rolling to a stop at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

The Ridetech 1933 Ford's portfolio of achievements dated back to 2012. One would suspect Voelkel and his crew glimmered with pride after a win at the Optima Ultimate Street Car Invitational Brake Stop Competition. The hot rod was also victorious at the 2012 Goodguys Pro Series, and the Goodguys Street Rod Series.

The project car saw its share of success in 2013 as well. It earned a checkered flag at the Optima Face Off at Road America Brake Stop Competition, and a victory at the 2013 Optima Face Off at Road America.

With such an impressive track record, it's only fitting that this ride receives a variety of media coverage. The 1933 Ford graced the cover of the July 2013 issue of Hot Rod Magazine, a feat dreamed of by all builders and car owners. The publication also dedicated a 10-page article pertaining to the Ridetech project.

Although Ridetech is noted for producing high-performance suspension systems, the Ridetech 1933 Ford is a great example of the crew’s ability to build a hot rod from stem to stern

The car received it's much-deserved television airtime, as it was featured on five Optima Street Car TV shows.

The Ridetech 1933 Ford project was a result of dedication and perseverance. In fact, the team dedicated a staggering excess of 6,000-hours into the build. Beginning with a Factory Five kit, the Ridetech crew began working their magic, in the process, executing a few new ideas.

And as one would suspect, Ridetech manufactured parts were well represented during the assembly of the muscle car. This rig was destined to sport a suspension system, unsurpassed.

They opted to go with a "wishbone" design for the rear suspension. "Two bottom Links and a single "A" arm in the top, to control both lateral and axial rotation" provided the car with stability, predictability and speedy response.

Using the original pivot points, the crew fabricated and installed new control arms. They went with a Woodard rack and pinion front steering system, lending to greater handleability. With intentions of a means to set the car up more accurately in various conditions, the builders modified the spring rate drastically and bolted on front and back swaybars.

Although specializing in high-performance suspension systems, Ridetech had no intentions of stopping with a great ride and maneuverability. It was time to focus on the drive train.

Dropping an aluminum block, Ford, 427 small block engine, equipped with a Holley EFI fuel system, under the hood, lent to 580 horses of raw power. A three-inch exhaust system would ensure minimal resistance.

Acutely aware of the importance of maintenance, it was essential to take all precautions to ensure the engine remained contaminant free. That in mind, they turned to Spectre Performance for their filtering needs.

Bolting a magnesium NASCAR 4-speed to the back of the block, they could focus on other aspects of the drive train without concern of a subpar transmission. Installing a Winters quick-change rear end, they moved on to the braking system.

Lurking behind Forgeline wheels, 14" baer brakes provided impressive stopability. With other aspects of safety also in mind, the 1933 Ford was equipped with a full stainless roll cage, fuel-safe fuel cell and an onboard fire suppression system.

The Ridetech team also had the opportunity to showcase their fabrication skills with a plethora of aluminum fasteners, handles, latches and trim work on the body's exterior. They played a huge role in the modification of the interior as well, as it is completely hand-formed, double-wall, aluminum shielded.

Brett Voelkel and his talented crew at Ridetech turned the first wrench on the 1933 Ford project in January of 2010. Due to a vision, and countless hours of hard work and perseverance, the project is still paying dividends, and is yet turning heads today.

One might ponder why a man and his team would embark upon such a demanding project. However, building enthusiasts like Brett Voelkel and his crew might beg to differ. When asked the most enjoyable aspect of the project, the business owner suggested the brightest moment was hearing it run for the first time, and ensured it's first jaunt around the track ran a close second.

With SEMA 2013 behind him, one has to wonder what Voelkel has in store for the upcoming year. However, one can rest assured he and his crew will be well represented when the next event rolls around. "We will always be very active with the SEMA show," he ensured. "Either with company or customer cars."

Browse all Spectre automotive products by category at SpectrePerformance.com. While you are there use the Products by Vehicle Search to find Spectre performance products specifically made for your vehicle. To find a Spectre dealer near you use the Spectre Dealer Locator.

Spectre Has You Covered with Multi-size Flange Clamp-on Cone Air Filters

Jan 23, 2014

Spectre's multi-flange air filters include two insert adapters to allow the filters to clamp on to 3", 3.5" or 4" tubing

Every engine that runs by internal combustion of fuel requires air to operate, and the more efficiently that clean air flows to the engine to burn fuels like gasoline and diesel, the better your engine performs. That's information you can find in the first chapter of any Engine Maintenance for Dummies manual, yet air filters continue to be one of the most neglected parts of an engine, even though air filters are an easily replaceable component of the air intake system.

Spectre's multi-flange clamp on air filter are available in various sizes, heights and colors

Spectre Performance, with our universal clamp-on air filters, is doing our best to buck that needlessly, unproductive trend.

Whether you are looking for the perfect clamp-on air filter to finish your vehicle's air intake, or a more cost effective replacement to the one you have, or if you need a filter for your generator or pump's air intake - we have you covered.

Spectre's multi-size flange, clamp-on air filters are specifically designed with inserts, so they provide you the flexibility to use them for 3", 3.5" and 4" flanges. These round, tapered cone style replacement air filters are pre-oiled at the factory, so they're ready to install. They have an inverted air filter top for a larger filter surface area resulting in higher air flow potential and a longer service life. Spectre's precisely prepared air filters feature a highly efficient, synthetic filter media, with select number of filter design options available in a choice of red, blue, black and white media.

Spectre's Multi-Flange Clamp-on Cone Filters
Part Number	Flange I.D.	Base O.D.	Top O.D.	Height	Media Color
8161	3", 3.5", 4"	6.0"	4.75"	2.5"	Black
8162	3", 3.5", 4"	6.0"	4.75"	2.5"	Red
8166	3", 3.5", 4"	6.0"	4.75"	2.5"	Blue
8168	3", 3.5", 4"	6.0"	4.75"	2.5"	White
8131	3", 3.5", 4"	6.0"	4.75"	6.7"	Black
8132	3", 3.5", 4"	6.0"	4.75"	6.7"	Red
8136	3", 3.5", 4"	6.0"	4.75"	6.7"	Blue
8138	3", 3.5", 4"	6.0"	4.75"	6.7"	White
9731	3", 3.5", 4"	6.0"	4.75"	9.5"	Black
9732	3", 3.5", 4"	6.0"	4.75"	9.5"	Red
9736	3", 3.5", 4"	6.0"	4.75"	9.5"	Blue
9738	3", 3.5", 4"	6.0"	4.75"	9.5"	White

Browse all Spectre automotive products by category at SpectrePerformance.com. While you are there use the Products by Vehicle Search to find Spectre performance products specifically made for your vehicle. To find a Spectre dealer near you use the Spectre Dealer Locator.

James Shipka Discusses His One Lap Camaro, Winning OLOA and Attending OUSCI and SEMA

Dec 31, 2013

James Shipka and his Spectre Performance equipped Camaro has won the One Lap of America event all four times he's competed in it

"Lots can happen over the course of eight days and 3500 miles," shared James Shipka, driver and co-owner of the Spectre Performance sponsored One Lap Camaro. And by lots he means, everything and anything can, and will happen. From a failed wheel bearing on the way to Daytona, to a co-driver receiving bad news about a family member and making the difficult decision to pull-out suddenly in Denver. Shipka is talking about the herculean, automotive endurance event, with the marked rock n' roll, in-your-face edge called - The 2013 Tire Rack One Lap of America. This year was the 30th running of Brock Yates' extreme challenge for driving enthusiasts.

"Possibly the coolest thing about the OLOA is its combination of history and the unique field of competitors who attend," says Shipka. "This is one of the only events anywhere where a 'nobody' like me, can be on the track competing with a reigning Rolex GT Champion. The event has no rules, anyone can participate, and that makes it truly unique."

In the early, up-the-establishment '70's, Yates, the senior editor of Car and Driver Magazine, created the now infamous Cannonball Sea-to-Shining-Sea Memorial Trophy Dash to prove that well-trained drivers, under the proper conditions, can indeed safely negotiate the American highways at speeds a tad in excess of the posted limit. The event highlights many of America's fastest street-legal cars in a flat-out, no-holds-barred race from New York City, to Redondo Beach, California, forever immortalized in the movie Cannonball Run. Car and Driver reports that to date only one team has ever crashed, which neatly supports Yates's contention.

James Shipka first became a Spectre customer when he was a 17-year-old hot-rodder

"I've run the OLOA four times, and have won the Vintage American Class (for 1989 and older domestic cars) four times, with three different co-drivers (once with David Pozzi, twice with co-owner Mary Pozzi and once with Carl Casanova)," remarked Shipka. "My best overall finish was this May, with 21st Overall out of a field of 75 plus cars." My highlights would include running at some unbelievable tracks, like the Rolex Course at Daytona and Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama."

The 2013 OLOA challenged the teams to compete and complete in 20 timed competitions, including 172 hours of skid-pad, autocross, dragstrip, and racetrack events during the nearly 3,500 mile highway journey. Think of it as an eight-day decathlon-lite for driving aficionados.

"When I was building the Camaro it was back in the 'early days' of the Pro-Touring movement. Lots of very cool cars were being built but there was no venue or events to run in (this is pre-dating the Optima Ultimate Street Car Invitational days, before Goodguys incorporated Autocross events, and before the ASCS and USCS existed). Claims were being made that these cars were cutting edge and that they were capable of competing with the best of the best, etc. but there was no yardstick for comparison. I looked at a few possible venues to prove that these modern muscle cars were capable, and the one that stuck out the most was the OLOA," Shipka explains as to why he first entered the event.

An intermitted power-steering issue caused Shipka to come up short at the 2013 OUSCI event

"It's probably one of the most difficult 'amateur' events in North America. I was familiar with the event through magazine article but had no firsthand knowledge (not the greatest foundation to build a "purpose built" car on). My personal influences in building the car came from Mark Steilow (who has run the OLOA several times) and RJ Gottlieb (who set several records in the Silver State Classic Challenge). More than anything I wanted to prove that a 60's muscle car could be competitive." And to that end Shipka says he's been a loyal customer and supporter of Spectre Performance ever since his car was first under construction about eight years ago.

"Technically, like a lot of younger hot-rodders at the time, I was a customer of Spectre when I was 17 and working on my first car, and using their hose covering products. I installed a Spectre filter on the One Lap car just before the very first Optima Ultimate Street Car Invitational in 2008 and have been a huge supporter of theirs ever since."

James Shipka runs a custom built Spectre air Intake on his famed Camaro

"Today I have a Spectre Extraflow Air Cleaner, along with a custom built Spectre air intake. Currently we have one of the new reusable Pure Power billet oil filters on the car."

With his 2013 invitation, Shipka has in fact now competed in five Optima Ultimate Street Car Invitational's in all. "Unfortunately for us we broke the power steering rack during the first round of the event, the RideTech Street Challenge Autocross. We were able to still put together a decent finish," says Shipka, "but with intermittent power steering we were never able to lay down that one solid run."

The team gave it their best shot at fixing the steering before the Road Course portion of the event, but to no avail. The persistent steering issue continued to plague Shipka throughout the remainder of the event.

"OUSCI is an awesome event and although we had a legitimate opportunity for what should have been our best ever finish this year, it wasn't meant to be," said Shipka. "It's always an honor to be invited and I had hoped to represent Spectre better, but the reality of our hobby is that 'stuff happens' despite our best efforts to the contrary. We'll just dust ourselves off and try to get the car ready for the first event being hosted by the new Ultimate Street Car Association this March at Laguna Seca."

The well-traveled One Lap Camaro continues to hold its own regardless of where it appears

Regardless of the venue, the One Lap Camaro continues to turn heads at wherever event it makes an appearance, as the 2013 Las Vegas SEMA show once again proved.

"This was our fourth time at SEMA with the car, and as always, it was a great week," Shipka adds. "SEMA is like no other event in the world and to be invited to represent a great company like Spectre is always an honor. As anyone who has done SEMA can attest, the preparation and work to attend is mind-boggling, and this year was no different. Only two weeks before the show the car wasn't even running, and we were replacing parts while the car was in the trailer, on the way to the show. I was concerned with how the car would present itself, given we have five years of hard use behind us now. But I was thrilled that the car more than held its own. It was another great experience."

Browse all Spectre automotive products by category at SpectrePerformance.com. While you are there use the Products by Vehicle Search to find Spectre performance products specifically made for your vehicle. To find a Spectre dealer near you use the Spectre Dealer Locator.

Spectre Accucharge Air Filter Service Kit for all Spectre HPR Air Filters

Dec 27, 2013

Spectre's AccuCharge® Air Filter Cleaning Kit with a Spectre Air Filter

Have you ever noticed how your car just seems to run a little better after you clean it? Of course that's just a pleasant illusion. Washing off the road grime on the outside doesn't actually make your car noticeably more aerodynamic and slippery through the air. But a clean, shiny car does look newer and fresher, and that's certainly worth a few imaginary mphs.

AccuCharge® Air Filter Cleaning Kit for Spectre Air Filters

Now with a new Spectre Accucharge Air Filter Service Kit (HPR4820), which is designed specifically for the cleaning and care of all Spectre HPR™ (oiled synthetic) air filters, you can clean under the hood and rediscover some actual, tangible lost performance. Your car needs to breathe freely in order to perform at its peak. When your air filter gets clogged with dirt and dust your engine isn't getting all the oxygen it needs to maximize the explosive force that powers it.

With a Spectre Accucharge Air Filter Service Kit, it takes less effort and time than washing the outside of your car, to insure that your Spectre air filter is always running at top performance. It's recommend that you inspect your air filter during regularly scheduled manufacturers' maintenance intervals, or every 7,000 miles. Your driving conditions of course play a key factor. If you live in a particularly dusty or harsh environment, then it's recommend that you service your filter more frequently.With a Spectre HPR4820 kit, that becomes amazingly constructive and simple task.

The kit comes complete with a 12 fluid ounce bottle of cleaner and an 8 fluid ounce bottle of oil, and the spray top bottles make application effortless. Plus, with the easy to follow instructions, keeping the air flowing and getting the most out of your Spectre air filter becomes a snap.

Browse all Spectre automotive products by category at SpectrePerformance.com. While you are there use the Products by Vehicle Search to find Spectre performance products specifically made for your vehicle. To find a Spectre dealer near you use the Spectre Dealer Locator.

Spectre Performance Excels at the Sixth Annual Optima Ultimate Street Car Invitational

Dec 19, 2013

Spectre Performance first jumped into the OUSCI in 2009 and their reputation for success has continued to grow over the years

Pure power, performance and exhilaration - that's what the Sixth Annual Optima Ultimate Street Car Invitational delivered in heaping helpings to the largest crowd the event has seen to date. A packed field of 58 of the optimum muscle cars on the planet, setting blistering lap times and generating astonishing finishes, made for the most memorable display of competition in OUSCI Invitational franchise history.

The OUSCI first came on the scene in 2008, as a means to bring the cars showcased at SEMA in Las Vegas to a venue where they could compete in various track style events, and to make a statement that they were more than mere trailer queens and poser show cars. Throughout the year, a total of nine qualifying events were run, each testing both driver skill and vehicle performance. A select group of competitors was chosen at the end of each event to participate in the 2013 OUSCI, which took place in Pahrump, Nevada on November 9th.

The sixth annual event combined five challenges that thoroughly tested every aspect of each competitor's performance. This year a 1965 Corvette owned by Brian Hobaugh took home the title of "Ultimate Street Car." Hobaugh drove to top finishes in the Ridetech Street Challenge and Autocross, as well as the Wilwood Disc Brakes Speed Stop Challenge. The victorious vette ran a custom Spectre air intake system. And Hobaugh's car was not the exception in the field, as six of the top-10 finishers featuring Spectre performance products.

Spectre's key markets are the muscle car, hot rod, and overall performance markets

"As a vendor/sponsor, Spectre jumped in to OUSCI in 2009, as the sponsor of the Design/Build Challenge (known today as the Performance Design Challenge)," commented Spectre Brand Manager, Mike Morrow. "In 2010, Spectre again signed on in the same Design/Build Challenge sponsor role, only this time we brought out our own 1970 mid-engine LS7 powered El Camino as an entry in the competition as well. Having spent over a year and half with the Spectre Performance truck and trailer traveling the country and participating in many of the different OUSCI qualifying events and Good Guys Autocross events, we'd formed many relationships and began to gather a pretty good following within the pro-touring and muscle car community. And that year we were the intake and filter system of choice on about eight vehicles."

By 2011 Spectre had become embedded into the pro-touring community and they essentially had product, stickers and support from just over half of the competitors. Although they were officially only spectators for the next two years, they nevertheless continued their relationships with many of the competitors through the qualifiers, and prior to the event they had worked with many of them to design and build custom intake systems.

At the beginning of this year Morrow sat down to compare notes. "OUSCI became a project that I asked to take on for Spectre, as an effort to elevate our presence, and to get as much coverage as we could," Morrow explains.

"Reaching out to many of the competitors prior to the event, we were able to put together a list of 17 cars that had Spectre products/decals competing in the event. Recognizing that media coverage and exposure on TV was key, having the Spectre truck and trailers along with a car representing the brand was, in my mind, crucial as well. At the end of the day we were able to get coverage for what we hope will be the final cut on five TV interviews, with the brand being highlighted, and with several photo shoot opportunities for upcoming magazine and online coverage."

"The key to this type of event is the relationships built over time with many of the participants, promoters, media and other manufacturers," Morrow adds. Spectre's primary markets have been the muscle car and hot rod niches, and playing an active role over the years actually made my job relatively easy this year."

Browse all Spectre automotive products by category at SpectrePerformance.com. While you are there use the Products by Vehicle Search to find Spectre performance products specifically made for your vehicle. To find a Spectre dealer near you use the Spectre Dealer Locator.