On The Road with the Engine Answerman

Winterizing Your Boat

2011-10-14T09:54:00.000-05:00

Fall Street Machine Nationals - Springfield, Missouri - Oct. 1-2

2011-10-06T15:13:00.000-05:00

Hi Y'all,

I got to Springfield on Sunday night and stayed in the Wal-Mart parking lot till Monday evening. When I went into the Wal-Mart to get some groceries and when I came out the Big Blue truck was on the hook of a wrecker that was going to toe it away. Me and my shopping cart made it across the lot in record time to stop them. The wrecker guy was happy as he did not want to pull such a nice truck but said there was a $150 fee for showing up. I talked with the manager of the Wal-Mart and he said they announced it over the intercom but I did not hear it. He ended up taking care of it and I moved to a different location.

The guy that almost towed the Big Blue Truck, me and his kids.

Tammy and me

I moved into the fairground on Thursday and setup for the weekend. Tammy and Paul came in on Friday evening and were a great help for the weekend.

The line for me - a few may have also been there to see Chip Foose as well ;-)

The Magnaflow guys next to me had Chip Foose in to sign autographs on Sunday and there was a long line there all day. When I started up the 104+ mower Chip remembered it from the Hot Rod Power tour and said it sounded great not like a lawn mower.

Two big STA-BIL brand supporters

Paul working up a sweat. He and Tammy helped me tear down in record time - 45 min. (Sorry Kevin and Marcel!)

- I got many comments about it is time to use the STA-BIL brand for storage this winter.

- I told everyone that it would be good to run STA-BIL before they store their unit as it will help clean their system before storage.

- We talked about using STA-BIL year round and many said they were already doing that.

- I had a few guys and girls that said they had never used a stabilizer but was concerned about their fuel and was going to look at using STA-BIL in their motorcycles and lawn mowers.

- A boat owner said he uses STA-BIL in his boat but did not know about the Marine Formula and said he would start using it now.

- Several were interested in the STA-BIL for Diesels and that they would try it in their trucks, mowers, and tractors.

- A customer said he was having a rack and pinion leak so I gave him a bottle of the NO LEAK brand Power steering fluid to try.

- A high performance truck owner said he needed high octane but he can only find 91 octane here in Springfield and will the 104+ Octane Boost brand help with his problem.

- The owner of a jet ski said the START Your Engines! brand would be great to try as the ski has been sitting for a year.

- Some small engine mechanics was also interested in using START Your Engines!

A very nice weekend with a large crowd and a lot of nice cars & truck. A very good show!

Until next time.

Bobby Cleveland - The Engine Answerman

Winterizing your vehicle/equipment for the season

2011-10-03T19:55:00.000-05:00

Hey Y'all,

Check out my tips for storing your vehicles and equipment for the fall/winter seasons.

Until next time!

Bobby Cleveland - The Engine Answerman

4 Wheel Jamboree - Indianapolis, Indiana - Sept. 16-18

2011-09-27T12:39:00.000-05:00

Hi Y'all,

I set up on that Thursday with the weather being nice that day.

It stayed that way all weekend. The 4 wheel drive trucks were plentiful and they paraded in front of the of blue truck all weekend.

Kevin and Marcel were there and they were a big help. Lots of ethanol and diesel questions with us giving out many coupons, decals, and brochures. We loaded up on Saturday night and I pulled out heading for Memphis Tn. For the AutoZone event.

- Many people I spoke with had been told to use the STA-BIL brand because of the problems with ethanol.
- I had a couple of fire fighters ask about using the Marine Formula STA-BIL in all their small equipment at the fire station.
- There were many questions on treating diesels and how to stop algae from growing.

- There were several questions and nice comments on the NO LEAK brands.
- Many said they had used it and the leak just stopped.

- I had some comments on how the 104+ Octane Boost brand worked great for them and that they used it all the time.

- Most said they would try the Start Your Engines! brand when they had a fuel problem and wanted to know where to get it and how much it cost.
- Several said they had seen the advertisement and were very interested in the Start Your Engines!

*** A big thanks to Kevin and Marcel! ***

Please join me the weekend of October 1-2 in Springfield, Missouri for the Street Machine Nationals.

Until next time!

Bobby Cleveland - The Engine Answerman

USLMRA Nationals - Delaware, Ohio - Sept. 3-4

2011-09-21T20:16:00.000-05:00

Hi Y'all,

On that Thursday morning I did a radio interview with Woody and the Wakeup crew in Columbus and on Friday morning we were on the Morning show at the local Columbus FOX station where we got a four minute shot.

We set up on Friday and put up seven blow ups. Kerry Evans brought the biggest shrimp from Mobile, Alabama and we had a shrimp boil on Friday night.

Saturday was very hot and dusty during the day but got much better that night. There was a big crowd for the racing and there was around 90 mower racing. About 20 tractor pullers came in for the Saturday afternoon event. Fox Sports net was there to film the races and they did many interviews with several different racers.

I did three myself - one for the USLMRA STA-BIL series, one for the 104+ world’s fastest mower, and one for Marine Formula and Diesel STA-BIL. The racing was great that night with lots of close racing and the film crew was very excited at what they got. I came in fourth in the BP class and ended up ninth in the point’s series.

The rain came in late Saturday night and the Sunday races got rain out. The banquet on Sunday was great with John Nelson, Charles Powell, and Art Elsner being inducted into the hall of fame. A great weekend as we will get three shows out of it that will air in a few weeks.

Bruce and Kerry as always did a great job getting the National Race in.

Until next time!

Bobby Cleveland - The Engine Answerman

Woodward Dream Cruise - Detroit, Michigan - Aug. 19-20

2011-08-27T11:49:00.000-05:00

Hi Y'all,

I set up on that Thursday with the help of Marcel. We had a great spot in a big lot next to Woodward Ave.

The cruising was going on every evening with the street full of nice hot rods. The parking lot was almost full on Friday with lot of activities going on thru the day on Friday.

Saturday started early with cars rolling in at 7 am. The lot was almost full all day long with cars coming and going. We had lot of interest in our products and many questions on the mowers.

We gave out many coupons, decals, and many registered for the give a way mower. Saturday evening a big storm came in and slow thing down for about 2 hours but everyone stayed around for the activities that evening. Late that evening Marcel and I tore down and I pulled out about 11:00 headed to Ohio. I ended up on the cruise strip with everyone wanting me to do a burnout with the truck. All I could do was blow my horn.

- Most of the comments were about how good is the STA-BIL brands at removing or treating their fuel for ethanol.
- I am getting more and more people saying they use STA-BIL in ever tank with a lot of them using the Marine Formula.
- Several guys said they are using the Marine Formula in their snowmobiles because they had carb problems.
- One said he used the Marine Formula in his car and in his Harley.

- I had several comments on customers using the ISO HEET brand for water removal. I would also tell the guys with ruff running engines to put a bottle in just to make sure to get the water out of their systems.

- I had one customer that had a rear seal leak, and another with a radiator leak. I gave them both a bottle of the NO LEAK brand to try.

- I had a comment about the ALUMASEAL brand helping fix the radiator leak in a tractor and a motor home. He didn’t know that ALUMASEAL was made by the same company that makes STA-BIL. They recognized the ALUMASEAL tube and said it was the best.

- A couple of guys said they used the 104+ Octane Boost brand to stop the pinging in their vehicle.
- Many said they used the 104+ when they can’t find the high octane fuel that they need to keep their engines from knocking.
- Some said they have to use 104+ or any octane boost to keep their cars performing like it use to before ethanol.
- One customer said he buys the 104+ Octane Boost because the fuel is no good and he has to use the 104+ to get the performance he wants.
- I got a couple of comments on how the 104+ made a big difference in their small engine and motorcycles when they had a ruff running engine.

- I had one to say he used the START Your Engines! brand and it worked great.
- Many said they had seen advertisements for the START Your Engines! brand and are going to get some.
- A lawn care guy said he would keep a can with him to save him time and money.
- One wanted a can to try in his motorcycle so I gave him a can and I told him he could find it at WAL-MART or at ACE Hardware.

This was a great event where you got the guys/gals that work on their own cars and know how to take care of them, and with too many cars to count we enjoyed the show.

*** Thanks to Marcel and Joe at the Phoenix Center for all their help ***

Please join me Sept. 2-4 for the United States Lawn Mower Racing Association (USLMRA) Nationals in Delaware, Ohio!

Until next time!

Bobby Cleveland - The Engine Answerman

Syracuse Nationals - Syracuse, New York - July 15-17

2011-07-28T19:56:00.000-05:00

Hi Y'all,

This was a great show with a great location and with nice weather a great crowd.

I parked at the same location as last year which is right at the front gate. There was around 8,000 registered vehicle and all 650 camping spots were sold. The weather was nice and there were big crowds. I got to race my mower on Saturday night where there was several thousand spectators watching. I came in third and everyone was cheering for me as I was the only one that looked like a lawnmower. Marcel was a big help and he got lots of pictures. The main topic was Ethanol and how to treat it. I gave many coupons and sample packs out.

- Got a lot of comments on how good is the STA-BIL brands at removing or treating their fuel for ethanol.

- I got several comments about how the carburetors were getting corrosion even during the season.

- Most of the comments were from customers that had problems and they wanted to know what to use to prevent it from happening again.

- Most say they usually just dump STA-BIL in saying that a little extra was good.

- Many more are saying they use the Marine Formula because the regular STA-BIL was not strong enough.

- I am getting more and more people saying they use STA-BIL in ever tank with most of them using the Marine Formula.

- Several guys said they are using the Marine Formula in their snowmobiles because they had carb problems.

- One said he used the Marine Formula in his car and in his Harley. One said he blew up the engine in his sled because of the ethanol fuel so he started using the Marine Formula and has not hade any problems.

- A couple of guys said they used the 104+ Octane Boost to stop the pinging in their vehicle. Many said they used the 104+ to keep their car from pinging and knocking.

- I had one to say he used the START Your Engines! brand and it worked great.

Thanks to Marcel for your help and the photos.

I'm heading to Colonial Beach, Virginia for the Toyota/Sea Doo Watercross this weekend, y'all! (July 30-31). Hope to see you there. http://www.uwpinc.com/

Until next time!

Bobby Cleveland - The Engine Answerman

4-Wheel Jamboree - Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania - July 8-10

2011-07-15T10:45:00.000-05:00

Hey Y'all!

I flew into Chicago on that Wednesday and drove 11 hours to Bloomsburg, PA. I set up on Thursday and that evening we grilled out with some friends at the venue. Friday started out good but it started raining mid afternoon which slowed the traffic down.

Saturday was beautiful. We had steady traffic all day long with constant questions about gas and diesel additives. Sunday was just as nice with many customers coming by to ask questions. I gave many coupons, decals, and samples out and with all of the kids sitting on the mowers and having their picture taken it was a great show. By the way I did get to judge the bikini contest. Somebody had to do it. On the way to Mikes house in Harleysville, PA there was a wreck on I-80 and we sat on the expressway for one and a half hours and then after that we were getting off the expressway and Mike in the Pypes truck blew his rear brake drum and we had to change his tire. It was a long trip back to his house.

- A snowmobile owner said he has been having problems with the fuel he has in his unit and that he is going to try the Marine Formula or the STA-BIL Ethanol treatment to see if it will help.
- The owner of several big diesel trucks said he was interested in the STA-BIL for Diesels and he needed a case of the gallon size.
- Several said they had heard that the Marine Formula was good and was going to try it in their boats.
- A dealer that sells STA-BIL said he was very interested in the STA-BIL Ethanol treatment so I gave him a catalog.
- A boat owner said he started using the Marine Formula and his boat is running better than it ever had.

- I had a guy that had a water problem and had to have some ISO HEET brand which I gave him 2 bottles. He came back to tell me that the HEET had helped.

- I had a few questions on the AlumAseal brand where they had used it and how well it had worked.

- One customer said he buys the 104+ Octane Boost brand by the case. He said the fuel is no good and he has to use the 104+ to get the performance he wants.

- Lots of interest in the START YOUR ENGINES! brand with many asking how it works and where can they purchase it. One wanted a can to try in his motorcycle and I told him he could find it at WAL-MART.

A very good show with more of the younger crowd there and getting questions on how to maintain their fuel. Many diesel truck owners there and a good mix of questions.

Please join me at the Syracuse Nationals this weekend.

Until next time!

Bobby Cleveland - The Engine Answerman

Nostalgia Days - Zion, Illinois - June 24-25

2011-07-05T16:20:00.000-05:00

Hi Y'all!

There was a great turnout for the Nostalgia Day car show with the streets packed for a mile. Over 500 vehicles were there along with spectator filling the street. Marcel and Tyler were a great help answering questions and giving out literature. I was interviewed on Thursday morning along with George Dukas at the local radio station (Jennifer has a copy) and again on Saturday at the show. There was also a good turnout for the lawnmower races which were Friday and Saturday night. Around a thousand spectators were at the races each night. We even got Tyler out working as a corner flagman. He was a big help and did a nice job at his first lawnmower race. I think I will let him go with me again. We had a good time and with the nice weather there were nice crowds.

- We had questions on the difference between the regular and the Marine Formula STA-BIL brands and we talked about how the fuel is not as good as it used to be.
- Many nice comments on how they are using STA-BIL and have been using it for years.
- There was interest in the new STA-BIL for Ethanol - some didn’t know we had a new formula.
- There was a couple of guys that said they was using the STA-BIL for Diesel and others that didn’t know we had this product but they were going to try it.

- Many said they used the HEET brand and one guy asked with all the Ethanol, why would he us HEET? I told him that the ISO-HEET also had a cleaner in it and it would be the one to use.

- I had some guys ask about the NO LEAK brand for leaks in their transmissions and engine oil leaks.
- Two different guys came by to thank me for the NO LEAK I had given them last year and how good it had worked.

- Several guys came by to purchase the 104+ Octane Boost brand as they needed it to get the performance that they were getting with the new fuel.
- One said he use 104+ in every tank or his car would knock and ping.

- The START YOUR ENGINES! brand was asked about as several guys were having small engine problem and were interested in trying it.

* Thanks to Marcel, Seiko, and Tyler for their help. Also thanks to George Dukas for his hard work to make our visit better *

A nice weekend for Gold Eagle with a nice car show and a great STA-BIL lawnmower race. I came in third in two races.

I'll be in Bloomsburgh, PA for the 4 Wheel Jamboree this coming weekend. If you're in the area, stop by, y'all! CLICK HERE for website

Until next time!

Bobby Cleveland - The Engine Answerman

Hot Rod Power Tour 2011 - June 4-11 (multi-city)

2011-06-15T14:50:00.000-05:00

Hey Y'all!

We set up on that Friday in Cocoa Beach, Florida getting ready for the first day of the tour. Saturday was very warm but we had a nice breeze. The magnets were very popular but as it was our first year doing this lots of the long haulers didn’t know we were had them. As the tour went on more and more would come by to get the magnets. With a guess I think we gave out around 2,500.

Each evening several of the vendors with big rigs decided that I was going to be the lead truck to the next location (sounds like a convoy). They called me the big blue truck - then the smurf truck and ended up calling me poppa smuff. It made driving five hours every evening a lot easier. Sunday was very hot in Valdosta, Georgia but again a great show of cars.

Marcel, me and Kevin

Monday in Montgomery, Alabama was about the same being very hot and bringing back some memories as this location was the track that I had taken my dad to a Super Chevy Show.

Tuesday in Nashville, Tennessee was great as more vendors came to this event and we were parked on top of the hill where there was a nice breeze. I did turn my ankle while unloading and I had to whine just a little bit.

Wednesday in Indianapolis, Indiana was slam packed with thousands of cars inside the Indy speedway. When I was trying to get out I ran thru a hole and bent the apron on my right front bumper and then I had to listen to all of the trash talking of the other drivers. That evening as we were having dinner three of the other drivers (John with Mothers, Bill with Magnaflow, and Steve with Spectra) got together and bought me a CB as they was tired of calling me on the phone.

Thursday in Muskegon, Michigan I had to put on long jeans and long sleeves as it was pretty cool. Sonny and I had breakfast after we set up as we had time because we didn’t have to put the canopy up. Jennifer came in and we had a great day there. It was like working with the air conditioner on.

Friday in Detroit, Michigan was cool with a chance of rain so I put the canopy up and I’m glad we did. There were a couple of showers that day but it did not detour this group as the lot was full of cars and every one happy that they had gone the whole trip. Marcel and Kevin was a big help setting up and tearing down. Without them I couldn’t have gotten every thing done. Also during the show we were all busy answering questions and handing out magnets. Sonny also was very helpful with the booth and tearing down in the evening. Jennifer came in for Thursday and Friday and helped Sonny and I do the shows where it was about 30 degrees cooler than all of the other shows. I did get Chip Foose sitting on the 104+ World's Fastest Mower. It was nice that I didn’t have to drive that evening and was able to relax with some friends. Got up on Saturday morning and drove back to Chicago and Gold Eagle.

The START YOUR ENGINES! brand got a lot of attention with two different guys telling me stories on how they had used it and how well it worked. One said Start Your Engines! saved him a hundred dollars. He said all of this with many customers around to hear it.

*** Thanks to Marcel, Kevin, Sonny, and Jennifer for helping me on the tour! ***

Until next time!

Bobby Cleveland - The Engine Answerman

Bama Coast Cruise - Orange Beach, Alabama – May 19-21

2011-05-26T10:26:00.000-05:00

Hi Y'all,

Tom Bingham and I set up on that Wednesday morning and we had several cars come in that afternoon. Thursday was better with around 250 cars registering.

It was nice days in the 80’s with a nice breeze. Thursday evening we had a hotdog social on the beach which was nice.

On Friday night there was a cruise in at Shuckers which is an oyster bar at the marina. I only ate one dozen. Saturday was much better with a nice crowd and many interested in our products with ethanol being the main topic.

- I had a lot of questions and compliments on the STA-BIL brands.

- Many people were interested in the new STA-BIL Ethanol Treatment product, what it does, and what the difference is.

- A lot of interest in the Diesel Formula, and questions on where to find it.

- Most come by to tell me that they use STA-BIL, to let me know how good it works, and to thank us for a great product.

- We had many comment on how they use the HEET brands and some said they couldn’t have a car up north without having HEET.

- Several said they put HEET in their fuel to help pass emissions.

- Someone asked about a product to help lube his water pump, so we told him about the ALUMASEAL brands and I was asked several times about the radiator stop leak and how well it works.

Many had seen me before with several saying they would see me on the Hot Rod Power tour. Thanks to Tom for the help and taking me out to a nice dinner.

The Hot Rod Power Tour week kicks off on June 4 in Cocoa Beach, Florida. Hope to see y'all there!

Until next time!

Bobby Cleveland - The Engine Answerman