ididit’s annual car show and open house sends summer off in style

 More than 400 vehicles on display at its annual event

After a summer on the road searching for the top builds and builders across the country with the I Did It with ididit Tour, the company celebrated the best in its own backyard Sept. 15 at the annual ididit Car Show & Open House.

An end-of-season tradition since 1991, the event featured facility tours, free NSRA safety checks, music, food and fun, capped off by a car show packed with more than 400 registered vehicles gleaming in the late summer sun. This year’s car show was the first to be open to any year vehicle, adding two new categories for 1988 and newer trucks and 1980 and newer cars.

 

“We want to thank everyone who came out to this year’s ididit Car Show & Open House,” said Stacey Discher of ididit. “Builders use our products every day in some of the coolest classics and customs around, and we love having the chance to welcome customers and enthusiasts to our facility to share in the fun.”

While impressive cars and trucks could be found at every turn, some shone brighter than the rest as judges handed out Best of Show awards in eight categories:

BEST RESTORATION Bob Glaspie Saline, Michigan 1969 Plymouth Road Runner

 

BEST STREET ROD 1948 & OLDER Brent Mitchell Findlay, Ohio 1938 Chevrolet Pickup

 

BEST TRUCK 1948-’66 Tim Sandys Maumee, Ohio 1960 Chevrolet El Camino

BEST TRUCK 1967-’87 Greg Griewahn Adrian, Michigan 1970 Chevrolet C10

BEST TRUCK 1988 & NEWER Brad Murray Adrian, Michigan 1990 Chevrolet Blazer

BEST CAR – 1949-’64 Skip Nagypaul Riga, Michigan 1953 Buick Super

BEST CAR 1965-’79 Bill Marterstich Adrian, Michigan 1969 Chevrolet Camaro

BEST CAR 1980 & NEWER Russell Weid Chelsea, Michigan 2013 Black Chevrolet Corvette

 

New this year was a T-shirt design contest among graphic imaging students at LISD Tech Center in Adrian, Michigan. Grand prize winner Lexi Davis was there to collect a $1,500 scholarship and see her rearview mirror & fuzzy dice design used as the official logo of the event.

A way to thank customers for their support and allow owners one last opportunity to drive and display their hot rods before winter, the ididit Car Show & Open House is held annually rain or shine, and now open to all vehicle makes, models and years.

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BREAK IT DOWN

Quality, innovation on display in ididit’s updated line of collapsible columns.

   

TECUMSEH, MICHIGAN: When quality meets innovation, hot rodders and racers are the winners. Such is the case with steering company ididit’s newly updated line of collapsible columns. Quality comes with the use of Delrin® shear pins that offer improved resistance to fatigue and wear.

Often used in bushings and other components, acetal plastic—commonly known by the brand name Delrin®—is a thermoplastic polymer manufactured by the polymerization of formaldehyde. Innovation comes from a new inner-workings design developed by ididit engineers that features shift tube improvements and additional perforations for double the amount of column collapsibility over previous models.

For drivers of custom cars and racers, it simply means a safer steering column in case of an accident. “ididit is constantly researching ways to improve our products,” according to Peter Hathaway, company engineer.

“The recent upgrades to our collapsible columns mean greater peace of mind for hot rodders and racers should they ever experience a front-end impact.” Hathaway explains that rigorous testing of sample shafts showed the Delrin® pins provided dimensional stability, high toughness and fatigue resistance across a wide temperature range, and withstood exposure to solvents, water, oils and other petroleum products.

After researching, developing and building prototypes using Delrin® pins to replace the steel “roll-pin” style shear pin being used in ididit collapsible columns, the engineering team sent the newly-designed columns to third-party testing company Elements to be evaluated for collapsibility under compression in a displacement versus load scenario.

After testing, the shafts built with Delrin® pins showed no discernible loss due to fatigue cycling, and the shafts built with double Delrin® pins were ultimately selected to replace the current design, as the peak loads required for collapse were deemed safe while still maintaining structural integrity and robustness to withstand the rigors of shipping and installation.

After completing testing, ididit’s engineering team conducted an impact test simulating the testing standards used by the United States (and many other countries around the world). A 75-pound weight was dropped from a height of 15 feet to simulate a torso impacting the steering wheel at 15 miles-per-hour.

After implementing a new double-tube shaft design featuring additional perforations, the column collapsed over 7 inches, a significant difference that increases driver safety, both on the track and on the street.

“We’re excited to immediately offer this upgraded design on our complete line of retrofit collapsible columns, including the Pro-Lite line, as well as tilt shift and floor shift models,” Hathaway added. “Any vehicle that came with a collapsible column from the factory—we build a collapsible column for that application, and now one that’s safer than ever.”

All ididit collapsible columns are now manufactured with Delrin® pins and they utilize the new double-shaft design. ididit’s continued efforts to innovate and design new and better-performing products has again resulted in a superior and safer steering solution for drivers and racers.

ididit announces SEMA 2018 surprise

Custom Chevelle to be in ididit booth – the first-ever SEMA vehicle for the 31-year-old company

 

Mitch Kelly and the team at Kelly and Son are hard at work on a project to remember—one that’s a prime example of the great work grassroots builders produce every day that deserves to be celebrated. This particular 1969 Chevrolet Chevelle is slated to be the first-ever vehicle to appear in ididit’s Hot Rod Alley booth at the 2018 SEMA Show. And, although it’s only the fourth project the Bellflower, California shop has tackled, Kelly knows it needs to be special.

“I’ve been to SEMA a couple of times and to have a car right there down the middle of the show—I know how prestigious it is,” Kelly says. “We’re pretty excited."

Such enthusiasm is typical of passionate builders across the country who turn wrenches not for a paycheck, but because it’s what they love to do. Recognizing their talent and dedication is the idea behind steering company ididit’s inaugural I Did It With ididit Tour, which has been stopping at grassroots races and car events across the country this summer in search of not only the best vehicles, but the up-and-coming builders that are the backbone of the aftermarket industry.

The company’s message is clear: Keep Building.

“The tour is part of our dedication to showcasing grassroots builders who continue to keep building in the face of challenges,” says Ted Keating of ididit. Kelly is the perfect representative of the type of builder the I Did It With ididit Tour was created to celebrate. Having made a name for himself and his shop painting semi-trucks, he’s now adding project cars to his resume. More than halfway through the ididit build, Kelly reveals the Chevelle won’t necessarily reflect the shop’s signature style, forgoing lots of chrome and shine for a more subdued black-and-painted appearance. “The paint job will be flashy,” he reveals, “but we’re not doing any bling on this one.”

That doesn’t mean it won’t make a bold statement, however. The Chevelle has already undergone more than 500 hours of sheet metal work and boasts subtle styling enhancements including 1970 Impala headlight buckets and a custom grille. The goal is for a traditional-yet-enhanced Chevelle look—piloted via a tilt steering column from ididit, of course.

“The car’s been dropped, lowered and tucked,” Kelly notes. “Everything from the back to the front is all flowing. We really like the direction it’s going.”

A plug-and-play Pace Performance 525-ci engine approaching 600 hp, powered by a FiTech induction system, will drive the TREMEC transmission and Currie Enterprises rear end. The Chevelle will roll on American Racing wheels and Toyo Tires. Along with the ididit tilt column, other upgrades will include: Wilwood brakes with hidden master cylinder, Eddie Motorsports hinges, KICKER stereo system, Ron Francis Wiring harness, a custom interior, and bedliner material in place of undercoating. Approaching the Oct. 30 opening of the SEMA Show, Kelly says the build is progressing as planned—if he can keep from messing with it, that is.

“We’re ahead of schedule, but every time I turn around, I’m making something new and hard on myself.” Still, Kelly and the crew recently bolted on the wheels and tires and rolled the base metal car out into the sunshine for an inspection. “We sat there for probably an hour saying, ‘I think I like it,’” he says with a smile.

The hope is that show-goers will, too, when they visit ididit’s SEMA booth #22989.

“We invite everyone at the show to stop by and see the finished product,” Keating says. “We have never had a project car in our booth before, but I know that the team at Kelly and Son are hard at work building a project to remember. You won’t want to miss this one.”

Meanwhile, builders and fans are encouraged to follow the I Did It With ididit tour at @ididitsteering on Instagram and track the #ididitwithididit hashtag on social media for updates, photos and videos. Builders and enthusiasts who make it out to a tour stop should be sure to tag the company, as fans at each event will receive an I Did It With ididit Tour takeaway.

It’s Car Show Time!

Downtown Tecumseh is the place to be again this summer to see the area’s coolest classic vehicles. ididit returns as a sponsor of the 2018 Tecumseh Classic Car & Bike Show Series.

Held the third Thursday of each month from May to September, the event features hot rods, classics and customs on display at the Old National Bank, 205 E. Chicago Blvd., and adjacent downtown parking lot.

“We are proud to once again support our hometown’s Classic Car & Bike Show Series,” said Stacey Discher of ididit. “We have been sponsoring this show since its inception, and we love it! It’s a great way to bring the community together while showing off some sweet rides.”

Special recognition plaques will be awarded each month, and Michigan International Speedway will have its pace car to the May, June and July events. Registration is free, but organizers request participants bring canned goods and non-perishable food items to be distributed by local service clubs.

Show dates are May 17, June 21, July 19, Aug. 16 and Sept. 20. Check-in is 5:30-7 p.m. at Gregory’s Barber Shop, 201 E. Chicago Blvd., and display times are 6-8 p.m. Sponsors include: ididit, Old National Bank, Avery Oil and Basil Boys Restaurant. For more information, please call (517) 424-6555.

Watch the highlights of the 2017 ididit Car Show & Open House, held on September 16, 2017, in our latest YouTube video.