Murder, motherhood, motors. Whatever it is that you fancy indulging in whilst relaxing at home or on a long road trip, podcasts are often the best companions to pass the time. Despite being around since 2004 (this surprised us too), the last few years and during lockdowns have seen podcasts gain huge popularity and awareness. According to the stats, Apple seems to be where the most podcasts are listened to, with South Korea being the highest adopters of the media form.
Once you’ve found your niche (and trust us, there’s something for everyone in the podcast world), the fun starts – bingeing episodes is very much a thing when it comes to podcasts. Naturally, being surrounded by the automotive world we are drawn to shows about all things with four wheels and an engine. We’ve compiled a list of our most-listened around the office – but be sure to share any great shows you’ve discovered!
1. Behind The Glass
Any fans of travel and the automotive industry should have heard of Sam Fane, aka Seen Through Glass. His stylish and unique approach to content creation has seen him travel all around the world, driving some of the world’s rarest cars and brings the viewers along for the ride. Being involved with so many brands and events has allowed Sam to expand his network of friends and colleagues, and it’s from this that the Behind the Glass podcast was born.
Sam co-presents the immensely popular show with Tony Gravelwood, a well-established and straight talking businessman specialising in premium used cars. His knowledge and understanding of car sales allows him to bring an entirely different perspective to car buying to what Sam brings. Bringing both a customer and a sales element to the conversation means topics are often disagreed on, which always makes for an interesting listen and certainly a few laughs!
Behind the Glass is in fact our most listened podcast from 2021, and if you haven’t yet checked it out – you can do so here!
2. F1: Beyond the Grid
As the name may suggest, this one is for the Formula One fans. But – if you’re not the biggest of F1 fans, do not ignore this podcast. Its narrator and interviewer, Tom Clarkson is a veteran of the paddock (photographed above with Sir Jackie Stewart), who’s laidback but incredibly well thought out questioning technique allows for some fantastic answers from F1’s elite. It’s far more than just about the current Formula One driver roster too, as the podcast drafts in drivers, team principals, stewards, investors and even former F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone himself for a chit chat.
With Netflix bringing Formula One to the masses with the Drive to Survive series, this podcast brings this hectic and often chaotic sport back to a personal level – with conversations around a driver’s mental fitness pre and post race, where team bosses can find their next sponsor, as well as a reflection session from retired drivers. Having listened to almost every episode (there are now over 150!), our favourite has to be the tribute episode to Sir Stirling Moss which featured an interview with him shortly before he passed away. It’s a real tear-jerker!
3. The Collecting Cars Podcast
Expect another great mix of car industry news and general banter on this awesome podcast. Started in 2019 with Top Gear presenter, esteemed car journalist and general menace behind the wheel Chris Harris, the Collecting Cars podcast aims to bring the latest topics from the industry to the masses. Alongside Harris is often the founder of Collecting Cars, Edward Lovett, who brings some truly hilarious one-liners and industry knowledge thanks to his lifelong connection to the motor trade.
As their online auction platform grows exponentially, so too is their podcast, racking up six figure listening numbers despite the infrequent posting! As well as general chat with some fantastic guests, the gems are the in-depth interviews with some of motorsport’s finest characters. Our pick is the John McGuinness interview, a chat that felt like it could have lasted for days, and no one would have stopped them! It’s a gloriously unapologetic but heartfelt look back at the motorcycle legend’s life, we urge you to give it a listen!
4. Past Gas by Donut Media
Enough about the Brits, let’s see how the Americans do it. Podcasts are BIG in the US, with over 55% of people having listened to one at least once before. Like many, Donut Media started on Youtube. The car-focused content production company had brought in its one millionth subscriber on YouTube in 2018, averaging around 15 million views per month. Fast forward to now and the channel has SIX million subscribers, making it one of the most popular automotive channels on YouTube right now!
Once you’ve conquered one social media mountain, you often start looking at the next, and Donut Media did exactly that with the Past Gas podcast. Their aim is to bring some of the craziest stories from all of automotive history, like underground Japanese racing clubs, bitter racing rivalries and how some of your favorite classic cars came to be. The guys are keen to remind you though, it’s about cars, not about farts.
5. The Smoking Tire with Matt Farah
Last but certainly not least, we have The Smoking Tire. Similar to many of its rivals above, the origins of this car-themed channel were from YouTube, where its host Matt Farah with co-host, Zack Klapman aim to bring a no-bullsh*t approach to car reviews and adventures. It clearly works, as the duo have racked up over a million subscribers and branched out into the podcasting world. The duo often sit down with automotive icons, pro drivers, comedians and other friends of the channel to discuss automotive industry news, racing, projects and whatever else comes to mind.
The Smoking Tire Podcast is consistently in the top three in the iTunes Automotive category, and has seen guests such as Jensen Button, Magnus Walker and Larry Chen all grace the microphone and chat cars. It’s a great way to kill an hour or two!
So there’s five of our go-to motoring podcasts. Got a show you can’t get enough of? Let us know in the comments or DM us on our Instagram!
Elliot is our resident tech-lover and petrolhead, who is in charge of spreading AdFeeder to the masses! Having previously worked with brands such as Porsche and BMW, Elliot specialises in content creation and social media.
