E3 Car Spark Plugs - News

Meet Team E3 Racing Tier 3 Winner Andrew “Bubba” Pollard

May 10, 2012

Team E3 Racing's Andrew "Bubba" Pollard.

Regarded as one of the most successful short tack racers this decade, Andrew “Bubba” Pollard recently was named to Team E3 Racing. A third-generation racer, Pollard literally grew up trackside. His grandfather, Sonny Pollard, built and managed Senoia Speedway, a 3/8-mile dirt oval track today is known as the fastest 3/8 asphalt oval in Georgia. That’s where he, his son and grandson spent their waking hours.

Bubba Pollard’s first racing wins came via local bicycle races he won as a child, piloting a two-wheeled racing bike he built himself. As the year passed, he firmly established himself as a top Legends Cars and Late Models competitor. Between 1999 and 2001, he landed more than 50 Legend Car wins at Senoia Speedway, Watermelon Capital Speedway, Charlotte Motor Speedway and Atlanta Motor Speedway. In 2002, he got behind the wheel of a Pro Late Model and took it to victory lane six times, claiming the Senoia Speedway’s championship in his first year.

Next up, it was the Super Late Models division in the Southern All Stars Series with multiple wins in 2003 and 2004. By 2005, Pollard caught the attention of legendary NASCAR team owner Jack Roush and was cast in Roush Racing’s Discovery Channel reality series “Driver X,” which featured Pollard competing against 25 of the nation’s best drivers for a shot at one of the “Big Three” series.

Pollard since has continued to rack up win after win racing Pro and Super Late Models. Last year, he won a total of 19 races plus the Sunoco Gulf Championship, Miller Lite Series, Viper Series and CRA South titles. He broke a 31-year-old track record at the 44th Annual Snowball Derby at Five Flags Speedway in Florida, nabbed the inaugural Georgia Racing Hall of Fame Driver of the Year award and was voted the Speed51.com Driver of the year by fans nationwide.

We’re thrilled to welcome Pollard to Team E3 Racing. Check our blog for updates on Pollard’s career. And be sure to stock your own ride with a set of E3 car spark plugs, whether you’re gunning for that checkered flag or just trying to get to work on time.

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Meet Team E3 Racing Tier 3 Winner Erik Gehrke

Apr 26, 2012

Team E3 Racing winner Erik Gehrke busts speeders on the roadways, but beats 'em all on the raceways.

Call him the big man in the little car. Erik Gehrke is a three-time MiniCup Car Season champion and a new member of Team E3 Racing.

Whether on the track or on the streets, Gehrke is a force to be reckoned with. By trade, he’s a police officer and hostage negotiator. But there’s no negotiating going on when he’s behind the wheel and on the race track. He’s out to win and he’s proven it by winning three back-to-back championships and dozens of feature races.

Gehrke races a Chevy Impala Minicup car in the American Super Cup Series and also has raced Legends cars and mini sprint cars. But he’s most proud to be part of Lawmen Racing, a motorsports team founded by fellow police officers. Based in Antioch, Illinois, Lawmen Racing is made up almost entirely of current or retired police officers and their families, performing every racing-related task from driving the cars to maintaining the engines to marketing the brand.

When he’s not in his uniform chasing down speeders on the highways or in a race suit being chased by competitors, Gehrke participates in parades, car shows and fundraisers. And he credits E3 racing spark plugs with helping to boost his ride and his career.

“I believe switching to E3 sparkplugs this past season led to the return of my winning ways and my Season Points Championship,” says the fourth-generation police officer.

We’re proud to have one of Illinois’ finest on the Team E3 Racing roster. Check the E3 Spark Plugs blog and Facebook fan page for updates on Gherke’s racing career.

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Meet Team E3 Racing Tier 2 Winner Jesse Grose

Apr 19, 2012

Team E3 Racing's Jesse Grose races in the Florida Karting Championship series.

At 18 years old, Jesse Grose is already a four-year veteran on the competitive kart racing scene. He first hit the tracks at age 14 and today competes in the Florida Karting Championship series with P.D.B. Racing Team America, a sister team to the famed European factory team based in the Netherlands. He’s also a new member of Team E3 Racing.

Grose currently is 9th in points (out of 27) after a strong first-round finish the Florida Karting Championship. He’s got two wins, four top-five finishes and six top six-finishes over the past few years in the series.

Team E3 Racing's Jesse Grose races for the PDB Racing Team America.

Grose also is a regular in the Formula Kart Productions’ Florida Winter Tour and TAG Senior events. He also races street circuit events in Florida, including the Inverness Grand Prix and the Grand Prix of Palm Beach, known as the most prestigious kart race in the Americas. And he aims to launch a career racing cars in the SCCA (Sports Car Club of America) Pro Formula 1000 championship at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia, recognized as one of the world’s best road courses.

“I am very proud to say that I am an E3 Spark Plugs brand ambassador,” says Grose. “I am striving to make a career out of being a professional race car driver … I am on my way! It’ll be a rough ride, so buckle up and watch me GO!”

We’re watching, Jesse. And we’re proud to have you on Team E3 Racing! Watch the E3 Spark Plugs blog and Facebook fan page for news on Grose’s career.

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Congratulations to the Team E3 Racing March Winners!

Apr 16, 2012

Team E3 Racing just got bigger. Announcing our March winners! Congrats to these 18 up and coming racers.

TIER 1 WINNERS (Win $500 cash, 25 E3 Spark Plugs and Official E3 Race Day Gear/Decals):

• Daniel Alvarez: Nineteen-year-old Daniel “The Hammer” Alvarez of Chappells, South Carolina is much more than a hobbyist when it comes to racing. He’s already got a solid start on a well-rounded racing career with a A.A.S. degree in Automotive Technology from Piedmont Technical College and a scholarship to veteran  racer Tony Blanchard’s RACE 1101 program, where he was so successful, the school created a new award in his honor. The X Factor Award will honor students who successfully recognize and brand a unique marketing image.
• Jacob Putman: Our littlest winner yet, Jacob “Camokid” Putman ran his first official Kid Kart race at Old Dominion Speedway in Manassas, Virginia at the tender age of four. Today, at six years old, he’s racked up multiple wins against kids with more years and more experience on him. And he’s part of two racing teams including J&D Outlaw Racing founded with friend Donald Whorton. He starts the 2012 Kid Kart 2 season as a member of the Excel Racing team.
• Daryl Barrett: Daryl Barrett of Gorham, New York’s Asylum Motorsports Group has been involved in every facet of racing since the age of four. He’s been a driver, crewmember, crew chief, engineer and owner and has worked with several successful racing teams over the course of his career, which includes over 250 wins. He races in the Grand-Am and the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) World Challenge series in DP, GT, GS and GTS classes.
• Jeremy Higgins: Nineteen-year-old Jeremy Higgins races dirt track and this year will compete in the AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Twins class and the Expert Singles class on tracks throughout the United States. He races a 2010 Yamaha and graduates college as a powersports technician this spring.
• James Luckett: That’s “Officer Luckett” to you. James Luckett of Romeoville, Illinois is a police officer who participates in exhibition and high school races via Beat the Heat, a nonprofit organization that works to keep kids off the streets. Driving his marked 1980 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme down the drag, Luckett encourages kids to “make the trip to the strip” rather than race illegally on the street.
• John Guthu: De Pere’ Wisconsin’s John  Guthu loves a run on his snowmobile – no snow necessary. He’s entering his eight season in competitive grass drag racing with a new series, the Midstate Grass Drag Circuit. He landed a championship title in his first year of racing and has finished in the top three points every year since in the 600CC non-studded class.

TIER 2 WINNERS (Win 1 Set of up to 8 Plugs and Official E3 Race Day Gear/Decals):

• Brody Goble: Canada’s Brody Goble has been winning on the racetrack since 2005. He’s the  2011 CACC Canada Sports Car Rookie of the Year and a 2012 inductee into the Autosport Dynamics’ ASD Mob program, which recognizes the top emerging drivers in drifting.
• Eric Roberts: Racing isn’t just about the drivers. Eric Roberts is crew chief on a 1979 Chevy Caprice in the Road Warrior class at Punta Gorda Speedway. The Lehigh Acres, Florida resident says he won over a skeptical driver when the team won its first victory after switching to E3 car spark plugs.
• Richard Smith: Souderton, Pennsylvania’s Richard Smith serves as the throttleman for his family’s multi-championship winning Smith Brothers Offshore Racing Team. The team races a 26-foot Joker Powerboat powered by a 500 HP Mercruiser Big Block and a set of E3 racing spark plugs.
• David Pochedly: Painesville, Ohio’s David Pochedly describes himself as a “normal person that believes that E3 Spark Plugs are unbeatable in performance.” He runs them in all his rides, including a 1981 mud truck on 40-inch tires and a worn-out 1998 Dodge Dakota with 230-miles that tops out at 125mph on E3s.
• Daniel Yarbrough: Daniel Yarbrough honed his mechanical skills building mini stock rollers that raced at the Thunder Hill Raceway in his hometown Lawrenceburg, Tennessee. Today, he continues building cars and engines for a living, and uses only E3 Spark Plugs.
• Terry Panciera: Terry Panciera of Bristol, Connecticut is a member of the United States Lawn Mower Racing Association. He’s entering his second season in competitive lawnmower racing on a 1985 Lawn Chief.

TIER 3 WINNERS (Win Official E3 Race Day Gear and Decals):

• Bill Watson
• Ronald Volner
• Jeff Byer
• Frank Speer
• Ben Newburn
• Jerry Manes

Check the E3 Spark Plugs blog and Facebook fan page for updates on all our Team E3 Racing winners.

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Meet Team E3 Racing Tier 2 Winner Alex Prunty

Apr 05, 2012

At age 16, Alex Prunty started his own professional racing team.

Nineteen-year-old Lomira, Washington resident Alex Prunty is a third-generation rice car driver revving up for his fourth competitive season behind the wheel – now as a member of Team E3 Racing. Of course, racing is in his blood. He’s the seventh member of his family to hop into the drivers’ seat since Grandfather Doug Prunty ran his one and only season in 1961.

Grandpa Doug’s career might have been a short one, but it spawned a dynasty, as all five sons, Daniel, Dusty, David, Dennis and Dale eventually began racing careers of their own. Now, grandson Alex is burning up the tracks and making a name for himself with his own racing team, Alex Prunty Racing. It didn’t take long. Prunty raced his first season in 2009 in a donated 1990 Nissan Stanza XE that had been turned into a racecar. Despite a host of engine and electrical issues, Alex and his father, Dan, got the car in running condition and Alex drove it to his first feature win in just his sixth race the nearby Slinger Super Speedway in Slinger, Wisconsin.

Alex would finish his first competitive season with five feature wins in the Slinger Bees division at Slinger and a fifth-place points position. He also ran the Red, White and Blue Series at Wisconsin International Raceway (WIR), capturing two feature wins in the three-race series. The next year, he would lock down the Slinger Super Speedway Slinger Bees Track Championship – the family’s 11th. He finished the 2010 season with six feature wins and four fast qualifier awards at Slinger, plus a feature win at WIR.

Alex Prunty, a Team E3 Racing winner, is a third-generation racer.

Prunty since has moved up to the Super Late Model division thanks to the generous donation of a wrecked car from Pete Wiedmeyer, a longtime family sponsor. Wiedmeyer had originally bought the car from Prunty’s uncle, Dennis, and wrecked in the 2008 Slinger season opener. The car spent the next two years in his shed until it traveled back to the Prunty camp and, like Prunty’s first donated car, was resurrected into a sleek, strong racing machine. In that car, Prunty finished the 2011 season second in point standings and landed the Rookie of the Year title.

Today, Prunty is excited about starting the 2012 stock car racing season, but also spending time off the track and in the classroom at Moraine Park Technical College, where he’s studying Engine Research and Development. No doubt his studies will make him an even tougher competitor to beat on the tracks. E3 Spark Plugs is proud to be helping him do just that this season.

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Florida Woman’s 1964 Mercury Hits 576,000 Miles – That’s a Lot of Spark Plugs!

Apr 04, 2012

Rachel Veitch in her beloved "chariot," a 1964 Mercury Comet Caliente that just hit 576,000 miles. Copyright Rachel Veitch.

They say the average lifespan of a daily-used car tops out at about 150,000 miles but can hit upwards of 200,000 if its owner really minds the maintenance. Judging by those figures, we here at E3 Spark Plugs think 93-year-old Rachel Veitch, whose 1964 Mercury recently hit 576,000 miles, just might be the best car owner ever.

The last time Veitch bought a car, gas cost 39 cents a gallon, Lyndon B. Johnson was POTUS, My Fair Lady swept the Oscars and The Little Old Lady from Pasadena was tearing up the airwaves. It was 1964 when she fell for a cream colored Mercury Comet Caliente that she quickly dubbed her “chariot.”

Apparently, Veitch was nothing like that little old lady:

And everybody’s saying that there’s nobody meaner
Than the little old lady from Pasadena
She drives real fast and she drives real hard
She’s the terror of Colorado Boulevard…

Well, she’s gonna get a ticket now sooner or later
‘Cause she can’t keep her foot off the accelerator…

The guys come to race her from miles around
But she’ll give ‘em a length then she’ll shut ‘em down

Rachel Veitch bought her 1964 Mercury Comet Caliente for $3,289. Today, it's valued at $12,000.

First, Veitch was only 29 when she bought her ’64 Mercury, so she wasn’t a grandmother yet. Plus, we’re guessing Granny’s shiny red Super Stock Dodge didn’t last long, what with all the drag racing and the roadway terrorizing. And while we haven’t met her in person, Veitch seems quite the congenial lady. Her chariot no doubt would say so if steel and wheels could talk. After all, it has served her dutifully for half a century and well over half a million miles. And it’s still going strong.

“I’ve never been a destructive person and I’ve just taken care of everything,” says Veitch. “Except my husbands.” (That’s a whole ‘nother blog.)

Originally bought for $3,289, Veitch’s Mercury today is valued at $12,000. It’s seen 18 batteries, eight mufflers and God only knows how many oil changes and car spark plugs. She’s only parking it now because macular degeneration (age-related loss of vision) has made it unsafe for her to drive. Her beloved chariot next will make an appearance at an antique car show in Wisconsin and Veitch is considering calling up her friend Jay Leno to see if he’s interested in buying it. She appeared on Leno’s The Tonight Show in 2010 and he called her the “Car Lady”. But one thing’s for sure – the chariot won’t stay in the family. When asked if any of her four children, nine grandchildren or 11 great-grandchildren have expressed interest, she snapped back, “It wouldn’t matter if they did, they’re not going to get it. They couldn’t take care of it like I did.”

Perhaps there’s a little bit of Granny in Veitch after all.

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Meet Team E3 Racing Tier 1 Winner Jason Jiovani

Mar 20, 2012

Team E3 Racing's Jason Jiovani has developed a huge following in his home state of Florida.

“Hit the gas and get it sideways,” seems to be a professional motto for Largo, Florida’s Jason Jiovani, one of our first Team E3 Racing Tier 1 winners. Jiovani is in his seventh season in the competitive drifting world and has racked up a mantle full of top 10 finishes. This year, he’ll run the StreetWise Drift in the East Regional US Series and he’s eligible to run the PRO class of Formula D this season. He’s also a Brand Ambassador for NOS Energy Drinks along with friend and fellow racing/drifting competitor Rob Fleming, whom he credits with helping to “revive the heartbeat of drifting in Florida.”

As of press time, Jiovani drives a 1991 Nissan 240SX with a ~400RWHP GM 5.7 LS1 motor running TrickFlow heads and cam combo. Besides competing on the tracks, he also runs all day-to-day aspects of his race team, J1N Racing. These include funding, transport, marketing, partnership management and turning wrenches with help from sponsor All American Street Car Performance. But while he’s a hands-on team owner and racer, he’s quick to credit his team, which includes girlfriend/co-pilot/mechanic’s assistant Hazel, for his success.

Drifting champ Jason Jiovani races and runs all aspects of his J1N Racing team.

When Jiovani’s not behind the wheel, he’s often still on the tracks, volunteering at amateur events as an instructor, course designer and competition judge. On school days, you’ll have to call him “Mr. Jiovani.” And you’ll have to sit still, pay attention and cut it out with the spit-balling right now, young man. Mr. Jiovani supplements his racing career with a substitute teacher gig in Pinellas County schools. While school’s out, he’s a bit more fun, working as a summer camp counselor.

Jiovani’s wrapping up his off-season preparations and is set to hit the tracks with a whole new car look in the next few weeks. That new look will include a loud-and-proud E3 Spark Plugs logo. If you’re a drifting fan, be sure to look for Jiovani on the tracks. And if you’re an up-and coming auto sports competitor, be sure to stock your ride with a set of E3 racing spark plugs for a strong, clean ride and competitive advantage.

Stunt Wars Sliding 2011 – J1Nracing.com from Jason Jiovani on Vimeo.

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E3 Spark Plugs Digs Nissan’s New Batman-Inspired DeltaWing

Mar 16, 2012

Batmobile-inspired Nissan DeltaWing

If you think your eyes are tricking you at this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans, you’re only half wrong. Yes, that was a Batmobile of sorts that you saw whiz by. But you won’t find the Caped Crusader behind the wheel.

Nissan’s new DeltaWing caught E3 Spark Plugs‘ eye on Thursday when it made its public U.S. debut at the 12 Hours of Sebring event at the Sebring International Raceway. With brother Dario, Scots race car driver Marino Franchitti slid behind the wheel of the black, winged #0 and took it for two impressive practice laps. The car had been driven in the U.S. only once before, in a private run in California last week.

“We are here to demonstrate that a race car can consume half the fuel, use half the tires and weigh half as much,” said designer Ben Bowlby, head of a consortium of racing firms and suppliers who helped build the DeltaWing.

Originally designed as a possible alternative to IndyCars (Indy racing passed on it), the DeltaWing boasts a 300 hp, 1.6 liter turbo engine and two front tires that measure four inches wide, as opposed to the typical 14-inche racecar tires. Its rocket shape and low profile, as well as the fact that it’s roughly half the weight of a regular Le Mans race car, give it less aerodynamic drag. The driver’s position near the rear axle creates a rear weigh bias, making the front of the car easier to turn.

The DeltaWing quickly quieted critics who had doubts about whether the narrow tires could produce significant cornering force. Franchitti’s two practice runs went smoothly and the famed racer afterward said he was amazed at the DeltaWing’s easy handling. But the Batmobile-inspired ride still has something to prove before the start of the 24 Hours of Le Mans event in June. It’ll have to pass a crash test, meet all imposed safety standards and demonstrate a minimum level of performance. If all goes well, endurance racer Don Panoz will drive the DeltaWing throughout the race as an unclassified competitor.

Win or not, “By participating in this project, I will be living a dream,” Panoz says.

What do you think? Does the DeltaWing stand a chance in the Le Mans? Is it the next-generation race car? Post your thoughts on the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook fan page.

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E3 Spark Plugs Loves a Happy Ending – Especially When it Involves a Stolen 1965 Mint-Condition Ride

Mar 12, 2012

Scott Evans' 1965 Mustang Shelby Cobra was stolen while he was in Japan, serving in the Marines. Twenty-five years later, he was back behind the wheel of his automotive first love.

We at E3 Spark Plugs are a pretty likeable crew. But if there’s one type of person we just can’t stand it’s a car thief. According to the National Insurance Crime  Bureau’s recently released Hot Wheels Classics report on that American automotive icon, the Ford Mustang, it’s the 2000 model that most attracts a certain scourge of society. The study shows it’s the Mustang model most likely to end up jacked, stripped, VIN-falsified and sold. The classic models get plenty of attention from thieves, too. But now and then, it’s the rightful owners that get the last laugh.

Case in point: Scott Evans and his 1965 Shelby GT350. In 1982, Evans was in the Marines serving his country in Japan when he got some sobering news from his father, who had helped him buy the car in 1971. Evans’ prized ride had been stolen from his childhood home in Havelock, N.C. (Yes, we notice the irony here.)

Evans promised his father, who has since passed away, that he would one day find the car. And he did – A quarter of a century later.

The thieves took Evans’ Shelby to a restoration shop where they altered the VIN plate and sold it to a guy in Long Island, N.Y., who sold it to another gentleman three years later. The second buyer passed away and the Shelby was willed to his son. In 2007, the son and then-current owner got a call from the director of the Shelby American Automobile Club, who had stumbled across records and developed a hunch that the car, now in the family for more than two decades, was stolen.

Evans, of course, was elated to learn that his automotive first love had been found. But getting it back would prove a bit of a hurdle. The car had been taken out of NCIC (National Crime Information Center), the FBI’s online database of criminal information years before and had to be reentered and active in the system before police could take it from its current owners. A bit of sleuthing by the SAAC verified the bogus VIN. But there were a few other telltale signs that only Evans would have recognized – a cracked steering wheel spoke, a homemade rubber bumper he crafted to keep the gas cap from scratching the car’s paint job, and his name written in black in on the top of the transmission.

Evans paid $1,600 for the car in 1971. And while he was under no legal obligation, he did the honorable thing and paid the most recent owner $12,000 to cover the cost of the new engine he’d just had installed. To would-be buyers, Evans’ mint-condition Shelby is estimated to be worth anywhere from $250,000 to upwards of $400,000. But we have serious doubts Evan’s plans to part with the car anytime soon. After all, you just can’t put a price on a first love.

E3 Spark Plugs congratulates Evans on the highly unlikely return of his car, and the team who pulled off the near-impossible to write a 25-year wrong. Check out the short documentary about the reunion below. And if you’ve got a great story about a stolen classic coming home, we want to hear it. Post your stories and pics on the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook fan page.

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E3 Spark Plugs Recommends: Old Hollywood Glam at Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance

Mar 09, 2012

Tom Mix's 1937 supercharged Cord 812 convertible roadster, in which he was killed in a 1940 crash, appears at the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance this weekend.

If you’re in the North Florida area this weekend, E3 Spark Plugs recommends hitting the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance. The 17th annual event starts today and runs through Sunday. On the marquis this year are several gorgeous classics owned by some of Old Hollywood’s most iconic stars.

Among the stars of the 2012 event is Natalie Woods’ Mercedes-Benz 300SL, which has been meticulously restored right down to the hose clamps, the period-correct Becker in-dash radio, and Woods’ owner documents in the glove box. The German roadster bears a traditional factory-approved silver-blue color. But it didn’t always look like it does today.

“She had it painted pink,” says Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance founder and Chairman Bill Warner of Woods’ unconventional color choice. “Pink with a lipstick red leather interior, as if driving a 300SL around Hollywood didn’t attract enough attention.”

Another head-turner on display this year is Ginger Rogers’ 265HP 1929 Model J Dusenberg, the unofficial car of the stars throughout the 1930s. Gary Cooper, Clark Gable and Tyrone Powers drove them, too. But Rogers’ ride was quite unique. It was the first Murphy-bodied Duesenberg and the first from the Pasadena, Calif. custom coach building emporium to have a disappearing convertible top. Though the original is long gone, current owner John Groendyke has carefully replicated the car’s reptile-pattern embossed leather upholstery. If you’re a true film buff, you may recognize Rogers’ Model J from the 1933 film The Gay Divorcee, the second of the Ginger Rogers-Fred Astaire musicals.

Not to miss is a 1937 supercharged Cord 812 convertible roadster with an eerie history. Only 196 were made and this particular one was owned by cowboy film great Tom Mix. Known as the original Hollywood good guy in the white hat, Mix was one of America’s first Western movie stars. In fact, he practically created the Western movie genre single-handedly and was so respected among his peers that he was chosen as a pall bearer at Wyatt Earp’s funeral.

In October of 1940, Mix was driving the Cord along Arizona Route 79 and stopped at the famed Oracle Junction Inn to place a call to his manager. Less than an hour down the road, Mix apparently missed signs that warned of a bridge under repair ahead. He crashed into the construction site and was killed when an aluminum suit case filled with money and securities flew forward from the backseat and hit Mix in the head.

The car remained in its crashed state until it was bought at auction in 2010 and underwent an intensive 18-month frame-off restoration. How does it look now?

“Exactly as it did 15 minutes before the crash,” says owner Bob White. “Our biggest challenge has been determining what it looked like in 1940 and then reproducing those parts because everything had to be handmade.”

Mix’s Cord is one of just three with a rare set of options including an external-mounted spare tire. The other two belonged to actress Barbara Stanwyk and jazz singer Al Jolson.

Also on display at the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance is Rita Hayworth’s Ghia-bodied Cadillac and Roger Miller’s Cobra Daytona Coupe – the one that settled a score for Cobra creator Carroll Shelby against Enzo Ferrari. Just six were hand-constructed for the 1964 and 1965 World Championship racing season, which Shelby nearly won in 1964. Instead, he was out maneuvered by Ferrari, who lobbied to have the final race of the 1964 season cancelled, a move that beat Shelby’s Cobra by default. Shelby’s response: “Next year, Ferrari’s ass is mine.”

Miller drove the car to victory the very next year, unseating Ferrari as the World GT Champion.

Do you plan to attend the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance? Be sure to post your pics on the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook fan page.

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