FRAM, the official filter of the NHRA, and sister company, Prestone Products, will
continue to sponsor Hartman Motorsports, a two-car Top Fuel team owned by Virgil Hartman,
and piloted by the NHRA record-holding husband-and-wife pair, Rhonda Hartman-Smith and
John "Bodie" Smith, for the 2004 season.
"We are excited to have all three of our brands – FRAM, Prestone and Autolite –
represented by the Hartman Motorsports team," said Jeff Bye, Prestone Vice President and
head of the Honeywell Consumer Products Group Motorsports Program. "We are looking forward
to growing our partnership with Hartman Motorsports and building our commitment to the
sport of NHRA drag racing."
The FRAM brand has supported Rhonda Hartman-Smith throughout her driving career and came
onboard as primary sponsor in 2000 for several races. The brand continued the sponsorship
for the first full-time season in 2001 and will remain the primary sponsor through the
2004 season. The Hartman team's relationship with Prestone grew in 2002 with the addition
of the second team Dragster driven by John "Bodie" Smith and sponsored by Prestone
Products. The Prestone car was originally entered into competition to help fill out 16-car
fields at national events, but since then, Smith has quickly become a contender on the
circuit and a regular part of the POWERade Top 10.
"We value the visibility this sponsorship gives FRAM, Prestone, and Autolite. Our core
customers are avid race fans and we enjoy being able to reach out to them through our
affiliation with the Hartman team and the NHRA," comments Bye.
"Both John and I are overjoyed to continue working with our sponsors FRAM, Prestone and
Autolite," said Rhonda Hartman-Smith. "The support from Honeywell Consumer Products Group
brands has allowed us to grow from a team of three crewmembers and one car to the only
two-car Top Fuel team on the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series circuit. Now that the FRAM
and Prestone Top Fuel Dragsters are in the Top 10 points standings, our main focus is to
step up the level of performance on both cars and ensure that they run consistent during
qualifying and eliminations."
The Honeywell Consumer Products Group manufactures and markets FRAM oil, air, transmission
and fuel filters; Prestone antifreeze/coolant and car care products; Autolite spark plugs;
and Holts car care products. Information about FRAM products is available on the web at
www.fram.com, Autolite information is at www.autolite.com and Prestone information is at
www.prestone.com.
Hartman Motorsports is a family owned and operated automotive race team competing in the
Top Fuel category of the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA). Virgil Hartman is the team
Owner/Tuner; daughter Rhonda Hartman-Smith drives the team’s primary car (FRAM Filters Top
Fuel Dragster) and son-in-law John "Bodie" Smith drives the second team car (Prestone
Products Top Fuel Dragster).
