Why Now May Be a Good Time For YouTube To Take On Top Gear and The Grand Tour DaveJustDave Follow Jun 7, 2018 · 5 min read

There’s no denying that there exists a proven formula for a successful automotive show — combine a trio of hosts rife with great chemistry, a dash of slapstick comedy (replete with double entendre), and a plethora of zany ideas involving automobiles. It’s a recipe that has shown itself capable of reaching beyond it’s primary demographic and bringing in viewers who don’t even meet the typical “car guy” or “car gal” profile. For any doubters, just witness the runaway success of BBC’s Top Gear — which was dubbed as one of the most popular factual TV shows of all time — and Amazon’s The Grand Tour (which some say borrows heavily from the show that started it all).

After Top Gear front man Jeremy Clarkson’s unfortunate ouster following a bout of fisticuffs with a fellow producer in 2015, many thought it was the death knell of the show. It wasn’t until Clarkson and his compatriots — to the delight of fans — went over to Amazon and the BBC recruited some new talent in the form of Matt LeBlanc that everyone realized the only thing better than one automotive program was two automotive programs. Amazon had done the smart thing and stuck as close to the formula as possible — with the money they were putting on the table, they couldn’t afford to take too many risks.

Three years later, both shows are enshrouded in uncertainty. After the disastrous transition involving Chris Evans (no, not Captain America), many heaved a sigh of relief when affable Yank LeBlanc settled into domestic harmony with fellow costars Rory Reid and former YouTube driving ace Chris Harris. However, just when Top Gear seemed couched to launch a second golden age, this past week Matt LeBlanc announced that after the next series, he would be leaving the show.

The Grand Tour isn’t faring much better. The show’s contract with Amazon runs out after a purported three series, and there have been rumors and April Fools leaks that it may not be renewed. The cast have even postulated in prior years that they didn’t see themselves doing this sort of thing forever.

Perhaps now is an opportune time for YouTube to strike with a car show of it’s own. After all, the streaming giant has been seeking to bolster it’s own stable of original content to compete with the likes of Netflix or Amazon. What if YouTube was already sitting on the makings of such a show, and has the potential of making it for pennies on the dollar compared to the BBC and Amazon offerings?

The crux of this idea centers around three unlikely characters (and characters they are) — Doug DeMuro, Tyler Hoover (of Hoovie’s Garage infamy), and Freddy “Tavarish” Hernandez. Between them, these three YouTubers have over 2.5 million subscribers, an existing rapport with one another, and a grassroots connection with millenials in ways that Matt LeBlanc and Clarkson & Company can only dream of. They’re funny, they’re entertaining, and most importantly, they probably have nothing better to do.

To say that Doug DeMuro reviews cars is an understatement. He has a penchant for exposing every minute, borderline pedantic detail in the cars he reviews, all performed with the same flawless, deadpan delivery. Rather than exclusively reviewing whatever is new and popular, DeMuro reaches across the pantheon of automotive greats and reviews all sorts of cars that have an interesting angle — running the gamut from the brand new 840hp Dodge Demon to the Mercedes Metris, a minivan he has dubbed “the worst Minivan ever made”. He borrows cars from willing viewers, has his way with them for a few hours, and manages to kiss and tell.

Where DeMuro merely dates every car that comes across his path, Tyler “Hoovie” Hoover is a practitioner of automotive polygamy, taking every single one home to meet mom and live in his giant barn (hence Hoovie’s Garage). Hoover routinely scours the US for the cheapest specimen of a given car (a process I would call “courting”), making a deal with the seller (aka the betrothal), and then drives it cross country back home with only the vaguest of assurances as to the road-worthiness of said vehicle (the consummation). This unique angle allows Hoover to experience every intimate detail that isn’t possible with a thirty minute test drive.

If Doug is Mr. One-Night-Stand and Tyler is the serial monogamist, then Tavarish is the the guy that looks into your eyes, finds out what’s broken deep down in your soul and then dismembers you so that he can reanimate you with parts from thirteen other people — except with cars. Out of the three, he is the wrench and he can be seen in his residential garage (which incidentally is kitted out with a lift and air tools) fixing bargain basement used supercars at a fraction of the cost of sending them to a professional. Where normal people would run at the sight of a $64,000 non-functional Lamborghini Gallardo with an aftermarket twin turbo kit and fire damage, Tavarish looks past the hot mess and sees the dime lurking beneath.

The beauty of such a proposition is that it would allow YouTube to grab a share of the pie at a fraction of the cost while at the same time generating some much needed exclusive content. They already own the distribution network. Audiences wouldn’t expect the enormous production values that come with the other two shows. Most importantly, YouTube wouldn’t be paying for expensive celebrities that merely “dabble with cars” or have been known to “own a few fast cars”. Rather, they can prop up these three guys that eat, live, and breathe cars— which make them ideal candidates for making something transformative.

Which is not to say there aren’t plenty of other great potential hosts in YouTube’s stable if any or all of these three don’t strike your fancy. Other notables include David “ThatDudeInBlue” Patterson whose super personable presentation style has garnered him over 850,000 subscribers, Cleetus McFarland with his homegrown American heartland twin-turbo v8 charm and nearly 780,000 subscribers, Chris “B-Is-For-Build” who has to date built a veritable fleet of project cars and over 360,000 subscribers, and up-and-coming Arizonian Sarah-N-Tuned who shows us women can wrench and succumb to debilitating automotive addiction with the best of them.

The point I’m trying to make is that this isn’t the time to play it safe and make a Top Gear or Grand Tour clone. Rather it’s time to inject new blood into the genre and take a revolutionary step. Hold to the primary tenets of the formula that work, and change everything else.

Taking a page from the Grand Tour, the show can travel across the country (or even the world) but rather than the expense of transporting a massive tent, producers could rent smaller, more intimate venues. Perhaps they could involve enthusiasts at every stop of the tour and find ways to work selected viewer’s rides into each episode. Maybe some episodes can be set in a game show format. With the amount of potential and creativity YouTube is sitting on, the possibilities are endless.

What do you think? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.