You've met VehicleNanny in a recent member feature. He's an auto enthusiast and blogger, and he's kindly given us permission to share some of his blogs with Rusto Garage members!
Today, we're sharing @VehicleNanny's Favorite Car Review Channels.
Not all car reviewers are created equal. You can go to YouTube and find hundreds of channels that provide vehicle reviews, but the vast majority are bad. The bad examples have herky-jerky camera work and presentations that seem like late-night infomercials.
This is really unfortunate. Somewhere along the way these reviewers got the idea they need to be outlandish in order to get your attention. Maybe there is a following for them, but luckily there are a number of really good channels on YouTube.
As you might expect, the new car inventory listing sites like Edmunds.com, KBB and AutoTrader have some really nicely produced segments. Those are fine, but can be really dry. Obviously, I am leading up to a happy medium that I think you may enjoy watching.
Listed below are the YouTube creators that I keep going to for my vehicle reviews. These all have common traits–steady camera work, balanced enthusiasm and great content that includes lifestyle applications to the vehicles they review.
Alex on Autos
This channel is less artistic than the channels above, but not at the risk of losing a professional look and presentation. This is the place to go if you want more details about the vehicle specs sprinkled in with the lifestyle application.
Alex does a really nice job of grading key aspects of a vehicle, and his charts and graphics do a great job of communicating key differences between competing vehicles.
Everyday Driver
I shared information about the two hosts from Everyday Driver in my Podcast Favorites article last August. Paul Schmucker and Todd Deeken are the hosts of the Everyday Driver Car Debate podcast. This is where they help the listener find the perfect car that meets their needs.
The YouTube channels they host get into the actual test and evaluation of the cars. They have two channels for this purpose. See descriptions on both below:
Everyday Driver
Todd and Paul place a focus on finding the right car that suits your needs. They feel driving should be enjoyable and the right tool for the job should also be fun to drive.
They place a high value on their video production quality. This is truly a “car as lifestyle” program with many test drives taking place in beautiful locations.
Everyday Driver Test Drive
The Test Drive channel is separate from the main channel; however, like the original Everyday Driver they strive for real world impressions over stats. It is almost like you are in the passenger seat next to them.
The combination of their podcast and the YouTube videos are my weekly go-to favorites.
GT: Garage Talk
I got to know the GT: Garage Talk team a couple of years ago when I was invited on to their podcast (se related article below). At the time, Cory and Matt were just getting started, and were doing interviews with notable personalities in the enthusiast community.
Over the past year, Matt moved on to another project and Cory devoted his efforts to growing the channel full time (he quit his day job!). Cory will review new press vehicles from the OEMs as well as dealer inventory units. Some of these cars are from the early 2000s, so it is fun to hear his impressions on things like a 2003 Ford Thunderbird or 2004 Chevrolet SSR.
In addition to his detailed vehicle reviews, Cory also runs a separate “Family Review” with his wife, Holli. In those videos, Cory gets Holli’s impressions of a vehicle he just reviewed. I find the Family Reviews to be more insightful and fun as Holli is not a car nut. She is not interested in the vehicle specs, just her overall impression of the car. Hers is an honest, unbiased look at today’s cars.
I think the Family Review makes the channel unique, and think you will too!
Pickup Truck Plus SUV Talk
I found this channel about a year ago, and find myself going back to it often because of the topics covered by the host, Tim Esterdahl. It is almost unfair to call this a review channel, as Tim also covers industry news and shares his experiences with towing and other truck culture .
Tim is joined often by another automotive journalist, Jill Ciminillo, who lives in Chicago (Tim lives in Nebraska). They are total opposites who bring a nicely balanced view to all of their topics.
Raiti’s Rides
This is an excellent car review channel hosted by Joe Raiti. Joe has a deep automotive background and is an experienced high school teacher. His reviews are a real education.
Joe’s reviews have a consistent format, which is great for comparing similar vehicles in a segment. He has good energy and sprinkles food humor into his reviews, often noting how many Twinkies or Twizzlers fit into a storage pocket. His “zonks” given to missing or unnecessary features are effective pointers.
I added this channel in July 2021, and still watch every one of Joe’s reviews today.
SavageGeese
Much like Everyday Driver, Mark at SavageGeese places a high value on production quality to tell the story of his vehicle impressions. By his own admission, his channel has “videos covering technology, life, cars, and trucks. We set out to go far beneath the surface of tech and engineering, with a quality over quantity approach.”
Mark has a very dry wit. I mean VERY DRY, bordering on sarcastic. He keeps it all in check, and I find his honesty and independent approach very refreshing.
His co-host, Jack, is younger than Mark and they often spar about the importance of vehicle features. This back and forth debate makes for entertaining content!
I continually explore other channels, so will add (or delete) channels to give you my best recommendations at the time. My patience for some of the other channels’ style has put them in the “warmup circle” for now.
@VehicleNanny also provides ongoing support of automotive programs designed to inspire and educate young car enthusiasts through the sale of items in his merch store - if you're interested, check it out here.
We'd like to hear from other members about favorite YouTube channels and podcasts - join us in the comments. Thanks for sharing your content with us @VehicleNanny!
