I’m can’t lie, compared to most it took me a long time to get into podcasts. I found listening to them at work a little too distracting, and had a tendency to nod off listening to them on the train.
Then along came Project Why Wait and significant periods of time regularly spent in the garage. This time proved perfect for listening to podcasts. Especially on nights the power tools stayed on the shelf.
Today roughly one of every three trips to the garage is spent listening to a podcasts over music. The following ten are my current automotive go-tos.
1. The Smoking Tire
At this point Matt Farah is an automotive celebrity. Like many of his Foxbody Mustang (I love Foxbody Mustangs by the way) and his ‘One Take’ video series were my introduction to Matt.
These days he’s handed off a lot of the One Take responsibilities to focus on podcasting. If I’m not mistaken he has two podcasts, one dedicated to vintage watches and The Smoking Tire which is all about cars and the people who interact with them.
His sense of humor and reach within the community make this one an enjoyable and easy listen.
Recommended entry episode: #322 – Larry Chen – Auto/Motorsports Photographer
Listen on: ShoutEngine, YouTube
2. V2 Lab
Ravi’s been around the social media automotive space a minute now. He’s a freelance photographer out of Florida who’s contributed work to a variety of different automotive publications like Rides Magazine and Honda Tuning.
Additionally he skateboards, and is quite opinionated. You might say we have a few things in common.
Recently he started a podcast that focuses considerably on aftermarket automotive personalities who have managed to harness the power of social media.
One of the youngest podcasts on the list it’s already off to a great start.
Recommended entry episode: Car Shows & Vending – V2lab, Swerv, ILDS, Vossen, & SouthrnFresh
Listen on: Youtube
3. C10Talk
While watching on older episode of Fast and Loud (yeah, yeah) I noticed Aaron kaufman was wearing a C10Talk hat. While painting my kitchen one night, curiosity got the better of me and I tuned in to see what all the fuss was about. I’ve been a listener ever since.
C10Talk is a podcast that, as the name implies is predominantly about C10s. The host Ronnie is a firefighter and C10 lover who’s managed to embed himself in not just the C10 community, but the truck community at large.
He mixes interviews with truck builders, celebrities, and show runners in with technical episodes and show coverage episodes.
He just opened a home studio so I don’t think this one is riding off into the sunset anytime soon.
Recommended entry episode: #92 Stacey David
4. Overcrest
The Overcrest Podcast is the combined audible efforts of automotive journalist Kris Clewell and Jake Solberg. Together they chat about a variety of different automotive topics, in addition to guest interviews.
It is admittedly a bit random, but they snared Adam Corolla for episode 17, and in episode 20 they nabbed previous featured ride owner Mike Olson, aka Tattoo24v. That episode was my entry episode, and while I have not gone through all of the episodes yet I’m making my way.
Recommended entry episode: #20 – #iknowmikeolson
Listen on: Stitcher Radio
5. The Motor Affair
The Motor Affair is run by the automotive journalist duo of Jason Connor and Patrick Stenson. Jason writes for Hooniverse.com and Patrick contributes to anyone that needs a hired gun.
Together they host Motor Affair in California and have covered topics like rally prep, BMW check engine lights and building stuff yourself with Nigel Pietre (Engineered to Slide) which was my entry point.
This is another one that I’m chipping away at, but so far so good.
Recommended entry episode: #20 If You Want Something Build It Yourself With Nigel Petrie
Listen on: Shout Engine
6. Do It For A Living
Do It For a Living is a podcast aimed at unraveling how industry professionals stay successful in the challenging automotive space.
It’s fairly Motorsports focused with guests appearing from Powerstop, Painless Wiring, Forgeline and more.
If you’re trying to figure out how to make cars your nine to five this is a great podcast to listen to.
Recommended entry episode:#118 – Grid Life
Listen On: DoItForALiving.com
7. CarStories
Perhaps the most globally traveled of all the podcasts listed CarStories is a collection of interviews of car racers, enthusiasts,and celebrities from around the world.
Hosted by James McKeone this Podcast is quite a bit different than the rest because it takes place in cars giving it a bit of a different feel.
It also seems like this podcast has some affiliation to the Petersen Automotive Museum which is an absolutely awesome place to go for any enthusiast to spend a few hours.
Recommended entry episode: Matt Farah
Listen On: ShoutEngine
8. Pistonhead
You guys remember the Cummins 4bt drift Miata from a few years ago? It was built in part by Jacob Gettins, host of The Pistonhead Podcast.
This podcast is a bit of a unique one on the list because much of it circles around the sport and culture of drifting.
Though Jacob does have a lot of ties in the Drift community, this is not exclusively a drifting podcast. They touch on tech tips, and perhaps the secondary theme of this post, social media.
Recommended entry episode: #44 Speed Academy
Listen on: ShoutEngine
9. Our Lifestyle
If you’re into Minitrucks, even a little bit, then you’ve heard of Jason Ballard’s podcast, Our Lifestyle. Jason, and ODB, have had a whole host of Minitruckin’ legends on the show and show absolutely zero signs of slowing down.
Each episode follows a bit of a format, a bit of random chatter in the beginning, some intro music (usually hip hop) followed by an interview.
Jason’s podcast also holds the unique distinction of being the very first one I ever appeared on.
Recommended entry episode: #36 – “Triple O.G. Sean Mahaney”
Listen on: Podbean
10. The Bucket Seat Podcast
The Bucket Seat is a local Toronto Podcast run by Trevor Byrne. Trevor is a generalist enthusiast with a wide bredth of automotive knowledge.
He’s managed to wrangle quite a few notable members of the local Toronto automotive community (including yours truly) for interviews. It’s the only podcast on the list where more often than not I know the person being interviewed personally.
He follows a bit of a format for each episode which helps bring consistency and keep the conversation rolling on effortlessly.
Recommended entry episode: Reimagined by Singer
Listen on:ShoutEngine
Those are my ten, and I’ve love to hear yours.
Also let me know what you think of the idea of ten item lists becoming a regular addition to Theme Tuesdays. They take a little longer to do, but if you’re into them I’ll keep on pluggin’
FYI CarStories got shut down, the Petersen pulled out of podcasting. But the guys have re-formed as the No Braking podcast: https://player.fm/series/nobraking
More car podcasts: Cars Yeah! http://www.carsyeah.com which has over 1,000 episodes with 5-days a week interviews with “inspiring automotive enthusiasts” aka everyone in the industry and beyond
The Kibbe and Finnegan Show http://www.themusclecarplace.com/category/kibbe-and-finnegan featuring Mike Finnegan of Roadkill fame, they review episodes of the Dukes of Hazzard along with cult classic movies, all revolving around cars and what the two of them are doing with cars.
Everyday Driver https://www.everydaydriver.com/ focuses on finding your next car, that should be fun to drive. They have a youtube channel and a show on velocity as well. Great car debates.
I didn’t know they pulled out. Hmph. That’s what happens when you’re a slow adopter I guess.
You’re the second person to mention Kibbe and Finnegan I think I’ll give it a go.