They’re saying follower counts aren’t just statistics—they’re real people who choose to watch. The point is that it’s easy to forget there are humans behind the numbers.
They’re talking about influencers who have millions of followers on Instagram. The hosts are basically asking: if they’re that famous online, why don’t people recognize them in real life?
Michelin is a well-known tire company. They’re also involved in racing and performance, and here they’re even connected to shoe design through the sole.
PPF is a clear film that you stick on your car to protect the paint (and sometimes glass) from road damage. It’s designed to take the hits so the surface underneath stays nicer.
Optically clear means the film doesn’t mess up your vision. On a windshield, the film has to be clear enough that it doesn’t make the road look blurry or warped.
“Aero-y” means the car has a lot of aerodynamic parts that help it stay stuck to the road. That usually makes it feel more stable and grippy when you’re going fast through turns.
Term
screen protection
“Screen protection” means protecting the windshield/glass from rocks, bugs, and road debris. On fast drives, that kind of protection can help prevent annoying chips and cracks.
They’re talking about driving in the Pyrenees, which are twisty mountain roads. The point is that some cars feel faster there because they handle well in corners and tight sections.
A track day is a scheduled event where drivers can use a circuit for timed laps or open sessions, usually with safety rules and instructor guidance. The hosts also discuss what to bring (driving shoes, helmet) and how to prepare for fuel logistics—practical details that matter for first-timers.
A global fuel crisis means there’s less fuel available than usual, so prices can jump and stay unpredictable. That makes driving plans and car choices—like diesel vs petrol—more important.
A diesel car runs on diesel fuel instead of petrol. During fuel shortages or price spikes, diesel can sometimes get affected differently than petrol, so the cost of driving can change.
Fuel has to be delivered by ships, trucks, and pipelines. If shipments stop or slow down, there’s less fuel where people live, and prices usually rise.
A Volkswagen Passat is a regular family car. They’re bringing it up because it can travel a long way before needing fuel, which matters when gas prices are high.
Concept
world oil supply via a particular waterway
Oil often travels by sea along specific shipping routes. If one of those routes changes or becomes less reliable, fuel can become harder to get and more expensive over time.
Diesel fuel is the fuel used by many diesel engines, like in some cars and most trucks. If diesel supply or pricing gets disrupted, it can ripple into lots of other things that rely on it.
Knock-on effects are the “aftershocks” of a problem—one disruption causes other problems elsewhere. The speaker is saying fuel and travel disruptions will spread into other parts of life.
Red diesel is diesel that’s colored so it can be tracked and used for specific purposes. If it’s no longer available or allowed for your use, you may have to buy the normal (more expensive) fuel instead.
Net zero is the idea that we should stop adding more planet-warming gases than we can remove. The point being made here is that oil is used in a lot of everyday stuff, so switching away from it takes time and planning.
Fuel duty is basically a government tax on every liter/gallon you buy. If they lower it, they need to make up the lost money somehow—either by cutting spending or raising taxes elsewhere.
A fuel subsidy is when the government helps pay part of the cost of gas or diesel. That can make fuel cheaper for people and businesses, especially during a fuel-price crisis.
China Southern is an airline brand the speaker switched to for flights during their trip. It’s part of the travel setup for visiting China and doing car-market research, rather than a direct automotive topic.
The hosts are saying electric cars spread faster when there are enough charging stations and when it’s easier for people to use them (like in dense areas). Without that, fewer people buy EVs.
BYD is a car company from China that makes a lot of electric vehicles. The hosts are pointing out that Malaysia’s electric-car options (at least the ones they’re seeing) are mostly Chinese brands like BYD.
They’re saying that if a country’s big business is oil and fuel, people may be less motivated to switch to electric cars. The hosts use Petronas as an example of Malaysia’s oil-focused economy.
Car
Perodua
Perodua is another Malaysian automaker, discussed alongside Proton as a locally owned brand. The segment frames both companies as key players in Malaysia’s domestic car market, especially for smaller, more affordable vehicles.
Car
Proton
Proton is a car brand from Malaysia. It makes cars mainly for Malaysia, and it has some important history involving Lotus that influenced how some Proton cars were developed.
Lotus is a well-known British car company. In this story, Proton bought Lotus, and the hosts connect that to why some Proton cars can have “handling by Lotus.”
They’re saying Malaysia charges big taxes on imported cars. That makes local cars cheaper and imported cars more expensive, so most people end up buying locally made models.
Car
Renault
Renault is a European car brand. They bring it up as an example of a car that gets much more expensive when imported.
Car
Audi
Audi is a European car brand. They mention it as another example of a car that costs a lot more when you’re buying/importing it into Malaysia.
Car
Peugeot
Peugeot is a European car brand. The hosts mention it to show how expensive European cars can be compared with local Malaysian cars.
Car
Mercedes
Mercedes is a European luxury car brand. The hosts mention it to show that imported cars can cost way more than local options.
Car
BMWs
BMW is a luxury car brand. The hosts are saying that in Malaysia, BMWs can get extremely expensive because of import taxes.
They’re saying Malaysia mostly uses right-hand-drive cars. Because of that, it’s harder to import cars from places that use left-hand-drive, so the selection is more limited.
Left-hand drive means the steering wheel is on the left side of the car. It’s the layout most people are used to in countries where you drive on the right side of the road.
They’re saying right-hand drive cars aren’t rare—they’re a big part of the world’s car market. So if you see a steering wheel on the “wrong” side, it usually means you’re looking at a car built for a different country’s road rules.
Topic
filmed cars for UT
They’re talking about filming cars while traveling, to show what’s actually common in that place. It’s basically “see it in the real world” content, not just talking about cars on paper.
Electric cars tend to be much quieter than gas cars, especially in city traffic. That’s why the host says the roads felt almost unnaturally silent until an engine car went by.
Petrol and diesel are two types of fuel used in regular gas-powered cars. Diesel cars often sound and behave a bit differently than petrol cars, and the host is using that difference to describe what traffic should sound like.
Xiaomi is a company most people know for phones and electronics. The interesting part is that they’re also starting to build cars, which shows how EVs aren’t just coming from traditional automakers anymore.
If you live in a big apartment building, you might not have a driveway to plug in your car. In that case, charging usually happens in public places—like charging stations on the street or in shared parking areas. The host is asking how that works in China.
EV stands for electric vehicle. It’s a car that runs on electricity from a battery, not gasoline. The question here is how people charge them if they don’t have a driveway at home.
Concept
home charging vs public charging
This is about whether you charge your electric car at home or out in public. Charging at home is typically easier and faster, while public charging depends on finding a charger when you’re out.
A three-pin plug is just a normal home power outlet. Charging an electric car through it is usually slow, so it can take a long time to add meaningful range.
“Charging time remaining” is the estimate shown by an EV’s charging system for how long it will take to reach the selected charge target. When charging is done on low-power outlets, this estimate can become extremely long, highlighting the difference between slow and fast charging.
The Tesla Model Y is an electric SUV made by Tesla. Instead of using gasoline, it runs on electricity from a battery. People talk about it a lot because it’s a common choice for daily driving.
The Citroën AMI is a tiny electric car made for short, simple trips. It’s designed mainly for city driving. The podcast mentions it in the context of someone getting it insured and using it.
A Tesla Model 3 is an electric car. “Dual motor” usually means it has two electric motors, which helps it drive more confidently and often feel quicker. The “range” you get can change a lot depending on things like how fast you drive and whether you use the air conditioning.
EV range is how far the car can go on one charge. The number you see online is an estimate, but your real range can be higher or lower depending on how you drive and whether you use things like heating or air conditioning.
Term
regulated kind of street charges that we have in London
London has special rules and charges for driving/parking in certain areas. For EV drivers, those rules can change how easy and affordable it is to charge or use the car. The host is saying Tesla offers some discounts that help with that.
“Last mile” just means the short trips you do around town—like commuting and errands. Electric cars can be great for that kind of driving because you’re not constantly doing long-distance travel. The hope is that more small EVs in cities means less noise and a better everyday experience.
In the UK, car number plates change over time. When a new plate starts showing up, it’s a sign that lots of cars are being registered and sold around that period.
“Loads of kit” refers to the amount of standard equipment and convenience/tech features included. In value-focused segments, buyers compare what features you get for the money rather than just performance or brand prestige.
Concept
Buying on finance (monthly payment vs RRP)
They’re saying that when you buy a car with finance, you usually care more about the monthly payment than the full price. That monthly number is what fits into your budget.
Volvo ES90 is a Volvo car that the hosts say is made in China. They’re comparing it to big, comfortable European cars and saying it’s designed to be easy to get in and out of.
They’re talking about how the country of manufacture (China) changes what people expect to pay. The point is that being built in China doesn’t automatically mean the car is bad—it’s more about whether the price feels fair.
The ES90 is a car model name mentioned in the podcast. The conversation suggests it’s connected to Volvo and production in China, but the details aren’t fully explained. Without more information, it’s hard to say exactly what the car is like.
They’re comparing the Volvo’s size to a Mercedes E-Class. It’s a way of saying the Volvo is meant to feel like a big, comfortable car in that same category.
The Tesla Model S is an electric sedan from Tesla. It’s bigger and more upscale than some of Tesla’s other electric models. People bring it up when talking about the different Tesla model sizes and categories.
Term
range in cold vs warm weather
EV range varies with temperature because batteries and power electronics become less efficient in cold weather, and cabin/defrost heating uses energy. That’s why the same car can show different “realistic” range numbers depending on conditions.
A single-motor EV uses one electric motor to move the car. Dual-motor cars use two motors, which can make them feel quicker, but the single-motor version can be simpler and sometimes more efficient.
WLTP is a standardized test that automakers use to estimate how far a car can go on a charge. Your real range can be different because real driving conditions are usually harsher than the test.
Horsepower is basically how strong the motor is. More horsepower usually means the car can accelerate more quickly, though weight and traction also matter.
Primacy 5 Energies are a specific type of tire designed to be efficient and comfortable. On an EV, tires can change how far you can go and how smooth the ride feels.
The BMW 5 Series is BMW’s mid-size luxury sedan. The M5 is the performance version of that same basic platform, so it’s a useful comparison for how different cars feel in real life.
The BMW i5 is BMW’s electric version of the 5 Series. It’s aimed at people who want the comfort and size of a 5 Series, but with an electric powertrain. The host is saying it’s so good that it should be on your shortlist.
22-inch wheels are bigger wheels than most cars come with. They usually use shorter sidewall tires, which can make bumps feel harsher. Here, the host is surprised that the ride still felt great even with 22-inch wheels.
The BMW M5 is BMW’s performance version of the 5 Series. It’s meant to be fast, but it can also be comfortable depending on how the suspension is set up. Here, they’re basically saying the ride felt surprisingly good compared to what they’re used to in their M5.
The BMW X3 is BMW’s compact luxury SUV, and the host mentions switching from their X3 to another EV to compare how ride quality and comfort feel. This is a real-world “what it’s like to live with” comparison rather than a spec-sheet discussion.
Drive modes are buttons or menus that change how the car feels. They can make the car feel more sporty or more comfortable. Here, switching to a softer mode made the ride much better.
When the suspension is set to “firm,” the car feels tighter and less forgiving over bumps. It can feel more controlled, but less comfortable. The host changes it to soften things up and the ride gets noticeably better.
The infotainment system is the car’s screen and controls for things like navigation and music. Even if it looks easy, some features can be hard to find at first. The host is saying you may need a quick tutorial to use everything confidently.
This means the steering wheel can move up/down or in/out using a motor. It helps you set a comfortable driving position without manually adjusting it. The host is saying they didn’t realize it was adjustable at first.
Some cars can use your phone like a key. The phone can also remember your seat and mirror preferences so the car adjusts automatically when you get in.
A drive profile is a saved set of vehicle preferences tied to a driver. In this context it includes comfort settings like seat, steering wheel, and mirror positions, and can also pair with vehicle behavior settings.
A press launch is when car companies invite media to try new cars. The hosts are questioning whether these trips really help people understand the cars.
Car
Volvo
Volvo is a car brand from Sweden. In this story, they’re talking about using a Volvo as a replacement vehicle after another car had trouble.
“Osmo Pocket 3” refers to DJI’s compact handheld camera/gimbal system. It’s popular for smooth, stabilized video when you can’t bring a full camera rig, which is why the host mentions it as an upgrade to filming quality for the factory tour.
A factory tour is when you see how a car is actually made, step by step. It helps explain why some cars cost more, because you can see the work and care that goes into building them.
The BMW M3 is BMW’s high-performance version of the 3 Series. It’s made to be faster and more driver-focused than a regular BMW, and that extra engineering is part of why it costs more. Here, they’re saying the factory video helps people understand what goes into building it.
Topic
GZ3RS spa video
They’re referencing an earlier video they made (the “spa video”) as an example of something that’s been on their mind. It’s mainly about how content performance affects motivation and expectations.
The Bugatti Veyron is a very expensive, high-performance supercar. In this conversation it’s mainly mentioned to show that certain cars can attract massive attention online.
A premium is the extra cost you pay for a better version of a car. The hosts are saying that with an M car, the higher price should come with real upgrades, not just a badge.
A badge is the emblem on the car that tells you what version it is. They’re basically saying the M3 isn’t just a badge swap—there should be real differences underneath.
Term
crated engine
A “crated engine” is an engine that’s delivered as a complete packaged unit. The point here is that they don’t want you to think the M3 is just a normal car with a different engine dropped in—it’s more than that.
“Keeping it on the road” refers to maintenance, repairs, and sometimes restoration to extend a car’s usable life. The hosts frame this as a core part of enthusiast culture—especially when people are worried about a fully electric future.
Petrol engines (gasoline engines) are internal combustion engines that burn fuel to make power. The hosts mention them to emphasize that enthusiasts still care about maintaining and enjoying non-electric cars.
Motor Director is named as the company that distributes the gear. The host is basically saying the items came through a wholesaler, not necessarily directly from the brand.
Term
D30
D3O is a special padding material used in protective jackets and gear. It feels soft most of the time, but when it gets hit hard quickly, it stiffens to help protect you.
This is a Porsche 911 GT3 turned into a convertible. The idea is to keep the “serious performance” GT3 character, but with the roof down so you get more sound and a more dramatic driving experience.
On some convertibles, the body isn’t as rigid as a coupe because there’s no roof. That can let the front structure vibrate a bit, which people describe as “scuttle shake.”
A “wing” is the spoiler on the back that helps push the car down onto the road. That can make it feel more stable when you’re driving fast or cornering.
A speedster is a sporty car concept that’s usually open-top and more about fun and feel than everyday comfort. The hosts are discussing how Porsche could build one using existing performance hardware.
This phrase means the car has a turbo engine, but it only drives one set of wheels (not all four). They’re pointing out that this setup can feel very different from an all-wheel-drive car.
The Porsche Carrera GT is a very rare, high-performance supercar made by Porsche. It’s known for being special and hard to find. The podcast mentions it when talking about what kind of Porsche someone could choose.
Term
arrow kit
An “arrow kit” in this context appears to refer to an aftermarket or styling kit that adds a distinctive visual element to the car. The hosts use it as a way to address how a more affordable Carrera T might still look and feel special.
The hosts predict a wave of “special edition” Porsche 911 variants, framing them as a way Porsche can differentiate products and capture higher margins. This concept matters because limited-run trims can drive demand even when the core model lineup stays similar.
They’re talking about a strategy where a company sells fewer different cars, but charges more for them. The concern is whether that would hurt Porsche’s ability to keep selling the 911, which is their biggest anchor.
The Boxster and Cayman are Porsche’s smaller, mid-engine sports cars. The hosts are discussing rumors that Porsche might change them a lot—possibly even electrify them—while still keeping the 911 around.
A lease is a contract where you pay to use the car for a set period, typically returning it at the end. The hosts mention lease payments as a reason some people can “justify” owning very expensive brands like Ferrari.
The Porsche 911 is Porsche’s most famous sports car. It’s usually the model people point to when they say, “That’s the one you can realistically work toward owning.”
They’re talking about an electric version of the Porsche Cayenne (Porsche’s SUV). The point is that the electric version might not attract as many buyers as the regular one.
The Porsche Macan is a luxury SUV made by Porsche. It’s meant to feel sporty to drive, not just like a regular family car. The podcast mentions it when talking about an electric version of the Macan.
They’re describing a simple business idea: if you charge more, you might sell fewer cars. Whether that’s good or bad depends on how many buyers you still have.
They bring up Ferrari to compare how expensive brands perform. Even if new Ferraris sell well, the used-car market and resale values can still be a challenge.
The used market is what people pay for cars that are already owned. If used prices drop or become easier to find, it can change how desirable a brand feels and what buyers expect to pay later.
They mean that if a brand becomes too common or too expensive in the wrong way, it can hurt how special it feels. Over time, that can reduce demand and resale value.
They’re describing how prices and demand can cool off. Cars that used to be hard to get (and expensive) start showing up more often, so the premium shrinks.
GT3 is Porsche’s hardcore track-focused 911. They’re saying it’s become easier to buy a nearly-new one without paying the same extreme premium as in the past.
They’re talking about affordability based on what it costs per month to finance. If the payment jumps a lot, even people who want the car might decide it’s not worth it.
BMW M4 is the M division’s performance coupe/gran coupe counterpart to the M3, depending on generation. In this segment it’s mentioned alongside the M3 to describe the typical buyer stepping up to a Porsche 911 and feeling the jump in monthly payments.
The Jaguar E-Type is a legendary classic Jaguar sports car. The hosts bring it up because they’re talking about Jaguar’s history and how they think the brand should lean into it.
The Jaguar XJ-S is an older Jaguar sports grand tourer. It’s the kind of car people choose for a classic look and comfortable long-distance driving. The podcast brings it up as part of a discussion about Jaguar model names.
The Jaguar XK120 is an old-school Jaguar sports car that helped build the brand’s reputation. The hosts mention it to show Jaguar has a long, famous history they think they should market better.
The Type 00 is a model name mentioned in the podcast. The hosts are talking about it as part of a set of Jaguar model names and trying to figure out what it means. The transcript doesn’t give enough detail to describe the car itself.
The Jaguar F-Type SVR is the strong, performance-focused version of the F-Type. The point here is that even if you want one, you need a place to service it, and the hosts say the local dealer situation makes that harder.
Owning a car isn’t just buying it—you also need a reliable place to get it serviced. The hosts are saying that if dealerships disappear, it becomes harder (and sometimes more expensive) to keep the car maintained.
LIVE
not as boring as the Venice car scene.
You'd have to be a boat spotter out there, wouldn't you?
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I was waiting to look into a couple of Reavers, yeah, very nice.
Was there any, did Reaver have a studio shoot whilst you were there, or was it?
No, sadly not, no, no, yeah, all right, all right, all right, yes.
Do you know what though, right, I got pat twice, I got pat on the plane,
guy two rows back recognised me on the plane, and then we were walking through
Venice, right by the Grand Canal, and this guy came running up and went,
pet, pet, pet, pet, he said, it's Barry Cat, he said, I've been following you since
two years ago, and out of all of my subscribers, I recognised the name straight away, and I went,
have you guys still got your seven? And he went, well, you know, I've got a cage from seven,
and I went, yeah, yeah, yeah, you were one of my peddler's rides during lockdown,
you've been following me for years. Oh my God, he said, made his day.
That's amazing. Has he ever been like the yellow jack, jacket wearing first commenter thing that
you do? Has he ever been that? No, I don't think he has actually, no, that's, I haven't done a
midweek 180 for about four weeks, actually, that's bad. Anyway, we started the podcast yet?
Yeah, yeah, we definitely, yeah, we started. Confessions about YouTube, but I'm meant to do
a midweek 180 on a Wednesday at six o'clock, and I haven't done one for three or four weeks,
because I've just been too busy. So yeah, anyway, but it was very nice to see him.
I'm sure. Yeah, it's always nice bumping into subscribers in very, very bizarre places,
like that, where you least expect to bump into someone, if you're a car event or good wood or
something. Yeah. But when it's, you're on holiday with your, with your wife in Venice. Yeah. I mean,
it's just. A trace you've said on the plane, when I got recognised on the plane, she went,
all the places I thought we could go and you not get recognised. Venice is one of them,
and you've been recognised on the plane. And then literally about four hours later,
get recognised in the middle of Venice. Anyway, it was lovely. It's always amazing.
And it just, I don't know, it affirms all the work you do. And sometimes I think when you see
view numbers or subscriber numbers, they just become a number and you forget that that there's
a person behind that. And, and there's lots of people out there. And it's, it's, it's so cool to
meet people. Put you where or put us where we are. If it wasn't like having a small city or
like a small city or a large town, though, isn't it? Basically, you actually think about the numbers.
You know, people always say about football stadiums or whatever. But yeah, you guys, I remember
when I hit 25,000 subscribers, I was with staying with a mate in Leicester and he had a season ticket
to Leicester Tigers. And we went to Wellford Road and we sat there and he turned around to me,
went, because I've literally hit that that morning. He went, I just like to say bed, by the way, I said
the capacity of Wellford Road is 25,000 people. So have a look. This is how many subscribers
you've got. And I'm like, wow. Yeah, it's amazing. Yeah, mate, that's so weird, because I went to
last time I went to the rugby with my dad at Twickenham. It would have been seven, eight years
ago now, probably. Yeah. And I can't remember is Twickenham about 40,000 or something. But whatever
it was, I don't think yeah, I was 85. Whatever it was was essentially the number of subscribers I
had at the time. Maybe it was only five or six years ago. Yeah. And and I said that to my dad.
I was like, wow, like, this is crazy. But I guess you said, you know, it's one thing seeing numbers
and stuff. But for us, when we see the numbers, that is the people that follow us. Whereas
people that don't have real subscribers and pay for their followings. A lot of these people that
brands use, they must never get recognized. And I know we've been on a few, how can I not corrupt
it too much, but we've been on a few trips together, where we've been with people that have supposedly
got millions of Instagram followers, millions. And you could be in their home country, Germany,
for example. And not one person during the three days you're with them comes up to them and you're
like, how can you have four million followers? And not one person has come up to you to say hi.
Anyway, let's, let's, let's, let's dig out, dig our way out that hole. Segway Man hasn't been around
for a while because as a Drive Talk podcast, we need to be in a stadium with over 10,000 people
now, wouldn't we? No, we would. Yes. Nearly 10 and a half. It's really, it, it, it, it got up to 10
and then it just slowed right down to forever. And then it's gone, I think a lot, thanks to, to,
to Chris and Baron Rungamble, definitely threw a few our way. But, but yeah, now it's, now it's
up nearly 10 and a half thousand. Does tend to do that. YouTube tends to kind of slow, when it,
when you get into a milestone, it just, whatever your day rate was, it just slows completely. I
remember when I was going to get to a hundred thousand subscribers, I made some comment on,
online about nearly being there and I would be there by the end of the week. I think it was in a
maybe 180 and it took another two weeks. And it was just like, oh, I remember. Yeah. I unsubscribed
when you, when you put that out. I think we put it on to subscribe, didn't we? Yeah, but hey guys,
welcome back to the Drive Talk podcast. We've only been chatting five minutes and haven't said
later on. Powered by Michelin. I think Pat, you need some Michelin merch in the back shop somewhere.
What are you talking about? Oh, he's got a Michelin t-shirt on. I'll do, I'll do.
Come on. Always wearing something Michelin. Hold on. I've got, I've got, I've still got that
t-shirt. It's such a good quality t-shirt. I've probably watched it. I've watched,
Lou's probably watched it 20 times now and it's still just a lovely t-shirt. So a lovely t-shirt.
But can you spot my new bit of Michelin merch in the back? I was about, I was about to say,
like you need to show, I don't think you've shown that on camera. I think we only saw that
maybe in a, in a WhatsApp group or something, but that is, I mean, that wouldn't even fit you or Joe.
Look at that. How cool was that? So this is, for those of you listening, this is a Babala,
I think actually this is a tennis shoe, but Babala and Michelin, so the sole of the shoe
is designed by Michelin. It's got a little Michelin on the, on the sole just there.
Yeah, brilliant. Mate, show us, give us, give us some scale. Show us, take off, have you got
one of your shoes there? Yeah. And what are you, you're like, what UK 11? I'm a 10. Oh my goodness.
That's like Chaco Neal's size. I don't know. I'd love to know. I don't think it's got like,
is there even a size? Yeah. If there was a size, that would be hysterical.
Be like, oh yeah. It's a UK 31 and a half,
which is a Europe, a Europe 72 or a US 32.
So yeah, big feet, big feet. I'm going to put that down. It's probably going to fall off now.
I did notice that obviously before we started. Well, it arrived and I'm like, where,
where am I going to put it? Cause I like to have a few things in the background. So
I thought if I put it there, you'd spot it here. Oh yes. Very cool. So yeah.
So yeah, back on, on an online one, because we've all been lots of busy, traveling.
And we logistically weren't going to get together through a face to face one,
but it's nice to be as lovely weather today. It's nice. It's not raining. I've had PPF fitted
to the windscreen in my car today. Oh, lined up for your, are we allowed to talk about your road
too? Yeah, yeah, yeah. I just said it. My drive tour with GT Tours. Yeah. Eight, nine days going
through pretty much all the way through the Pyrenees, all the way down to Marbella. But I
thought I'd have, I'd, I'd go for windscreen PPF never done it before. You've got PPF on your
windscreen. No, but it is, it is the first thing that gets along with the front end of the car,
isn't it? It gets battered on, on a road tour. How does it work? Is it, is it the same material
as a traditional PPF? Like, or is it more harder? It's not. It's the best way to put it. It's much
thicker and it's, it's almost akin to like a, a phone protector screen. It's a little bit,
it's a little bit less flexible. And the reason you can't put normal PPF on is because you're
looking at it through an angle and you're looking through it. So the glue and the, the actual material
that normal PPF is made of isn't designed to be optically clear. So if you put normal PPF on
a windscreen, it would look, it would look terrible, blurry and horrible. So they designed a
particular film with particular adhesive to make it as optically clear as possible. But it's still
not, it's still, they talk, get my teeth in, distorts a tiny, tiny bit. Mine's still drying.
It takes about 24 hours to dry properly and then it clears up even more. And can you, can you get
like built in like designs on the top, maybe like a big GTS logo? I've got a, I've got a GTS logo
and a Petroped logo on my side. Yeah. Yeah. But yeah, and it's clear. It's not tinted. It's not
like one of those ones that looks like mirror lenses on sunglasses because they're sad. They're
like 5D plates sad. But yeah, I just thought, I looked at the list of cars that we've got on tour
and they're all like quite aero. We've got two GT3, 992 GT3 RSs. We've got two Spider RSs.
We've got a 675 LT McLaren. We've got a 992.2 GT3 and a 296 GTB. So they're all pretty spicy,
aero-y, flick lots of shit out the back of the car type cars.
So I thought I'd best get some screen protection on. So yeah.
I've got the slowest car for that way and I'm in a spider.
It would be epic. I think we've done enough road tours, all of us, that I think it doesn't
necessarily, I think like your car, honestly, and I'm not just saying it because it's your car,
your car is peak road to a car and down a road on it on somewhere like the Pyrenees,
I reckon there isn't necessarily anything that would be much quicker than that car,
just because it's a little bit smaller than say something else that's on the tour.
It's a little bit more nimble. It's narrower. I think there's always, there's a fine balance,
isn't there? Because I've been on tours where there's like full-on supercars like 812,
Superfast and but they're just so wide and so big that although, yeah, they're quicker than
straight line through the tight stuff, they're a bit of a pain. And also they've got that much
more value on them where you'd be thinking twice about certain moves and stuff. So, yeah,
I think, oh, I'm very, I'm very jealous. We've got a track day as well. We've got a
half-day track day, so that should be good. Oh, where are you going to use for the track day?
I knew you're going to ask me that. Bear with me, caller. It's a small, now it's a small,
a small track that you won't have heard of, but it's apparently really, really cool,
really cool. My goodness. So, yeah. Fantastic. So, I'll be taking me, taking me proper driving
shoes and me helmet with me. And are you bringing your own fuel supply or are you going to try and
get to you whilst you're there? Don't. I mean, let's go on a, let's go on a drive tour when
there's a global fuel crisis, shall we? Really great idea that. I don't know because the last,
the last time I was on tour last year in France, fuel was horrifically expensive anyway. We were
often paying more than two euros a litre. So, I don't know. I'm glad I'm not driving a diesel car
because diesel's the one that's been hit badly. Hey, boys. Oh, no. We've got a, well, we can't
ruin what we're doing, but we've got a, what was it, about two and a half thousand miles,
maybe three thousand miles in total in a diesel car challenge thing coming up very soon.
And yeah, that's in three weeks time. So, that's when things are going to be really bad.
Just when it starts to actually run out everywhere and all of it, yeah. No more fuel
shipments. That's when we'll hit the road. But it's okay because there's negotiations taking
place with people who don't know what they're talking about. And there's people very well
informed people making some really good decisions about the kind of, you know,
the issues that weren't actually an issue four weeks ago, but someone decided that
they needed to be and now they are. So, it'll be fine. Yeah. Yeah. I'm sure. I have full faith
in the system. Oh, yeah, me too. I'm just glad I've got the Passat. I could do seven and
15, maybe 800 miles on a tank. So, yeah, I'm good. I'm good for now, but yeah, maybe not
another tank in the future. I think, I mean, without, and this is, I'm definitely not going
to get political here, but it's, I think it's an important point. The situation for world oil supply
has changed in the last four or five weeks forever. It will never be the same again.
I think the way in which fuel comes from that part of the world through that particular waterway
will never be the same again. And I don't think that fuel prices are ever going to have that level
of consistency or confidence ever again. I think it's going forward. I think it's going to be a
really big problem. I think fuel prices are going to generally be pretty high. I think there's going
to be no returning. There's no putting the genie back in the bottle, unfortunately. That is my
view without getting political about it. I think the world of automotive, and actually, the one I
worry about more, automotive is bad. And we were talking about diesel fuel, but jet fuel is the one
that kind of comes out the same stable as diesel fuel, right? And that's going to be a real problem
as well. So I think a lot of travel is going to be massively affected. So flights, and I just think
the world is going to change in the next out of three to six months, I think we're going to see
knock on effects. And it's we're going to have to change the way we do things. I think as well,
with you see what's going on an island at the moment, they're blocking off all of the roads,
the tracks and stuff. So you've got agriculturally, you've got diesel being a problem. As I understand
it, red diesel doesn't really exist anymore. And so you have to just get it the same as everybody
else. Plus onto that, then fertilizer is made from an oil base as well. So, you know, as much as
everything, pretty much everything's made from oil. I mean, that's the soles on that shoe.
Everything. Everything is made from oil. And that's a big in my head. It's that's a big joke
about the whole net zero and get rid of oil and stuff. It's like, you can't just get rid of it
because it's something we use basically for pretty much everything we touch and use in a daily basis.
And, you know, if it's a food and it doesn't contain oil, it's certainly bought in, you know,
they've used oil to get that food to us at the supermarket. Everything is just a big mess. But
it's going to say, I think if you if you wherever you live, I mean, the numbers will be slightly
different. But in the same ballpark in the UK, what is it something like 70 or 80% of what you pay
at the pump is duty. Yeah. Yeah. So so the the weather or not governments are able to and that's
what these protests are about to try and get some of the fuel duty removed. The challenge you've got
with that is that's tax income that would if it was not taken from fuel, would have to be taken
somewhere else unless you make cuts in services and stuff. So it's not as easy as just saying,
I will will scrap fuel duty or will reduce it. If the country was in a better place,
you could do that. And actually, where I just was, which was Malaysia, do have a fuel subsidy
for locals for residents for people that are Malaysian. Now, it's not applicable to people
abroad. So myself as a tourist could not use it. But my partner, now my wife, Alia,
she she could very much use use her fuel subsidy and I think about 20% off of the price.
So the truck up. You can't just drop that in casually into the podcast.
Mr. The Malaysia of fuel subsidies. Oh, I love it. Yeah.
I wasn't sure we're going to even talk about that. But
I didn't know you could. So Pat went to Malaysia and may you please tell all.
Very, very congratulations. Thank you. Yeah, I went to Malaysia, my other half,
my now wife, as I said, our list is from Malaysia. And so went over there,
met the family and managed to get married. So did all the paperwork elements and then we'll have
to get married. Believe me, if you saw the process, you would, you would feel like it was just about
managed to get married. There's more bureaucracy and paperwork over there than you even see in the
UK. I think some of it's for us to blame as well, given we used to be part of the same world
together, Britain and Malaysia. But but no, it's an exciting trip. I talking of the fuel crisis and
the issues across that part of the world where that's being caused. I also had to change my
flights from from Etihad to China Southern as well. So as part of my trip, I got to visit China
and I even got time to actually go into China away from the airport, stay overnight and do
yeah, do a bit of car market research to see how it was like race at cars apparently.
Well, they make a lot of them. They make them for everywhere. There's lots of them in Malaysia
as well. I will say like the market isn't just permeating the UK like they're everywhere in
the world. Malaysia has lots. I mean, they're not as hot on electric yet for sure, but the
electric cars that do exist, they're all from China. They're all MGs or their BYDs.
Is that an infrastructure thing at the moment for Malaysia? I think so. Yeah, but also like
population density thing. I think it's an infrastructure thing, but also remember one
of their largest companies is Petronas and they're an oil company. So much like the Middle East,
I think as a country, they are predisposed to oil and fuels and that way of life.
And also a lot of their economy is based around it. So it's not something I guess they're maybe
governmentally and I don't know this, but likely governmentally, they aren't pushing as hard
unlike our country and others. I imagine when the demand is there, they'll sell lots of electric
cars. But for now, people are very happy going around kind of like Joe and Pete, we've all seen
in France and stuff, you know, people go around in 15, 20 year old cars, local market cars, right?
They're all much cheaper over there and they all mostly still run on petrol or diesel. So
for now, there's no reason to change. Is it Proton? Isn't that a Malaysian car?
Yes, yes. Do they still make them? Absolutely. Perodua. Is that one of the other brands? I
can't remember how you pronounced it, but Perodua and Proton are two Malaysian owned companies.
They make cars. They only started making cars, I believe in like the 80s and early 90s. Obviously,
Proton then famously went and bought Lotus in the late 90s. So after a lease,
S1 is it called? So the original lease, then at least the second generation was made under
Proton ownership. And so actually, if you drive around, Alia's mum has a Proton car that has
handling by Lotus. Now, I don't know what that means, whether that car somehow
pass through Norfolk or not. But yeah, it's got handling by Lotus. So maybe all
those parts are just slightly less reliable, I'm not sure. But they're local car market. Again,
like a lot of Asian countries, they have huge taxes on imports. So a local market car, like the
car I had, which was a Protodua Beza, which had a seating position for traditionally Asian people,
you two would not fit in the car at all whatsoever. I was sitting on top of the car,
always head hitting the ceiling. But that starts at £8,000 equivalent, so like £40,000 ringer.
But then an equivalent European car is more than double. So it's about £20,000 if you wanted to get
a, I don't know, a Peugeot or Renault or a Mercedes or an Audi. And you go up from there,
you know, BMWs are hundreds of thousands of local currency because there's huge amounts of taxes.
And you can't easily import cars either because they are right hand drive in Malaysia.
And so just like the UK, that means that you can only get cars from like Japan.
And that's the last kind of it, isn't it really? There's not huge amounts of countries.
Well, there's 87 countries drive on the right hand side on the...
87, really? Go on, miss them off.
Oh yeah, lucky I'm going to do that. But it's, well, it's got a lot to do with...
Way more than I thought.
It's got a lot to do with empire. So most of Africa for a start drive on the left hand side.
Really? I did not know that.
South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia. Yeah, it's a lot more Japan. It's a lot more than you
think. I don't know what that is in terms of percentage of the globe, you know,
landmass or percentage of the population, but it's a much bigger number because I often get
people go, oh, steering wheel's on the wrong side, drive on the right side.
And you go, well, actually, it's not just us that drives on that side of the car.
I just googled it, 35% of the global car market is right hand drive.
Oh, wow. It's way more than I thought. Way more than I thought.
In my head, it was like a handful. Like, you know, I could kind of think of...
Yeah, yeah. But anyway, the most important thing out of all of this isn't getting married.
It was the fact that I went to China and I stood on street quarters and filmed cars for UT.
And there's a link in the chat. I wish the Shmi in China for the morning, yes.
But I put them in the chat and we'll show them what I talk about this because there was a few
interesting observations. I had a half an hour drive in and out of town in a taxi.
And as much as I don't speak Chinese and the guy did not speak English,
their translations apps are very good. And so we could have a full conversation
about local market cars. And they were very proud of what they were producing, I will say.
First off, the taxi driver was kind of probably, I imagine you're not allowed to use your phone
while you're driving in China, but he did. And he got loads of videos of all these different
cars that he would show me on his phone. Like, we make this and we make that. And there was
luxury cars. There's one called like the S 800. And yeah, it's like a Rolls Royce and it's got
all this crazy technology. And they were very proud that they have lots of cars, obviously
locally, locally produced. And most of them now are electric. Now, just just like the UK,
although in the UK, it's an option, the number plates are different between petrol cars, diesel
cars and electric. So in China, if your number plates green, that's electric. And if your
number plates blue, petrol or diesel, but the whole number plate, not just a little corner bit.
Yeah, I see from the video. You've got no choice. So what you'll notice from these videos, hopefully,
if you get a good cross section of the vehicles, is that not everything with a green number plate
looks like a modern fancy electric car. Some of them are pretty archaic and old,
including like kind of archaic HGV looking things. Clearly they've had electric there for a while.
But there's also a bunch of new stuff as well and a bunch of stuff from out of market, from
from other parts of the world. But I would say the majority of traffic that I saw at least
was electric. And there was one big, and if you have the audio on in those clips,
and it'll be hard to show on the podcast, but there's one overarching feeling and sense that I
got that I think is actually a massive positive. And I didn't really know, I didn't, I wasn't aware
that I would actually pick up on this, but it was incredibly quiet. These main roads you're
seeing in these clips are like three and four lane or three lane each way, so six lanes in total.
And when I was standing there looking at these roads or crossing the road or just generally
being in the center of town, it was the equivalent of the center of London. There was like barely
any noise. It was really like quiet to the point where my brain thought there was something wrong.
I thought my ears hadn't popped from being on the plane the night before. And I was like,
it must be me. And I was like, you know, holding my nose trying to blow my ears out.
So I could hear properly. I was like, it's so jarring. And every time an actual car went
past with an engine in it, it was like, oh, that's really loud. That's actually noticeable. But
side streets up until these main roads, and look, they've got really lovely road surfaces,
which helps a lot as well. I was just going to say, I think, yeah, even that side street
is, but the main road, the top right that I've got where they're at the traffic lights and
come through. I mean, look at that tarmac. You wouldn't get that silver stone. I mean, it's
beautiful. Yeah, but I can't say that all of China is like this. Obviously, this was why I
went to Guangzhou, which is I think the third largest city in China. And I saw a very small,
you know, like a three mile radius from my hotel. I only walked around for four or five hours before
I had to go back to the airport. But only yeah, it was, it was like jarringly quiet. Like it was
so noticeable that it was like one of those like uncanny valley moments. You're like, this
something's not right. And I can't work out what it was. And when I twigged and when I,
when I got to some main roads where there were blue number plate of cars and, you know, like a
lorry went past that was with a petrol or diesel engine, you're like, that's what traffic should
sound like. But 10 seconds earlier and HTV went past on a green number plate. And it was,
yeah, remarkably quiet. But that was kind of my overarching thing. Yeah, loads of cars that we
would recognize and know a bunch of brands we wouldn't. You've got Xiaomi over there as well,
which is the mobile phone manufacturer provider traditionally on technology and electronics.
And they're now building cars. And there's quite a few of those over there. But yeah, weirdly quiet.
What about charging yourself? Because my senses, I've not been to China or Malaysia, for that
matter. But I would imagine lots of people live in kind of high rise buildings and apartments and
stuff. So they're not going to have their own off street parking. So there are lots of like the
street level charging, or just big charging hubs. How do people charge up? Because the big kickback
you get in this country, whenever you do a EV is like, oh, you know, what, that's all right. It's
infrastructure on your own driveway. If not, you can't buy an EV. Well, clearly, if what you're
saying is true, the Chinese are finding a way to do it. So what do they do? I can't say in China,
I noticed any charges. And that might be where I was. And the fact that I wasn't spending extended
amounts of time in like kind of normal environments, I was staying in a touristy area. But I will say
in Malaysia, they've got kind of a cultural element. And then I guess like a pragmatic element. Yeah,
lots of them live in high rises, but much like other places in the world, they have a lot of
real estate. And so they can have massive carparks in those buildings, either underground or above
ground. And so a lot of those just have charges in them. I guess, again, if you want to be progressive
of infrastructure, you can find a way to put those electronics into whether it's on the ground floor
or somewhere else. I know, again, with Malaysia, they have a huge cultural thing of going to malls
and going to shopping centers. Like there's probably 50 shopping centers in Kuala Lumpur.
And every time you go out for a meal, you go to a shopping center, like you basically eat in restaurants
in shopping centers, it's like their cultural hubs. And so those very easily and commercially
will have charges in them. So I guess you're kind of always charging your car, you go to the shops,
you charge a car, you charge a car, it's always like that. I haven't seen many homes in Malaysia
or China to see whether they've got home chargers and stuff. I know it's possible. But yeah, the
high rises and the malls with these big carpark structures, yeah, they just have charges in them.
I think the pricing, my alias friend actually has a BYD in China. It's a C line six or something,
the saloon saloon one. When in that is very nice. She actually doesn't have a charger at home. So
if you want to give the other end of the spectrum, but then she works from home and charges it on
the equivalents of the, well, actually, no, it is a three pin plug in Malaysia. They have three pin
plugs. So she charges on a three pin plug and it takes four days. But she works from home and only
goes out like at the weekends or, you know, of an evening. So she gets away with it, but that is
very much a very small window. I wouldn't recommend anybody unless you have a Citroen Abbey charging
your electric car on a three pin plug. That reminds me the first electric press car I ever had, which
was an e-tron, an Audi e-tron. And I didn't have a charger at home. I remember I used it and then
I got down to like 25% battery. I'll just plug it into my wall socket, it'll be fine. And it came
up with charging time remaining 49 hours or something. Oh my God.
I will say to add on to that just quickly in the electric car thing, if we're to keep that as the
theme. My flatmate just bought a Tesla Model 3. So he's had a driving license for 12 years or whatever
it is, but never actually owned a car. And he got ensured on the AMI last year. I think he finally
realized that having a car is actually a brilliant idea and everybody should. So not being a car
person though, he wanted a Tesla and went through the whole process of finding a used one. And
actually the car is really lovely. It was under £20,000 for a four year old with under 50,000
miles Tesla Model 3 dual motor car. So that's like, was it the long range? But it's got like
over 300 actual miles of range-ish, like depending on aircon usage, et cetera, et cetera.
But he's very happy with that. However, where we are, we have underground parking but no charges.
And so Tesla give you a bit of a discount to go to certain regulated kind of street
charges that we have in London. Plus, of course, you can go to your Tesla charges as well. So
that infrastructure is a bit easier. But there was interesting that China trip was cool. It was
cool to see some, some cars you've never seen before, same in Malaysia. But yeah, the China thing
and whether it is, it's definitely road conditions one, but just the amount of electric cars meant
that, you know, I think London would benefit from a, from what Joe you've always said, you know,
that last mile or that like kind of very localized city driving. If everybody's driving around in
Amis, it'd be way quieter and nicer for sure. Yeah. Yeah. Not even Amis, just small electric cars.
Talking about the whole Chinese car thing, I don't know if you saw the, I think it was announced
last week, the Jku J7 sales figures. Did you see that? Oh, then Jku, Jku have sold
15,700 Jku J7 so far this year. Wow. And just to put that into context, by the way,
I was with Renault a couple of weeks ago and they got, they're really super happy because in the
first 12 months of selling Renault five, they sold 15,000. Is that globally? No, in the UK.
Oh, in the UK. Oh, so both those figures are UK. Wow. Yeah. But, but that was, so what do you think
Renault five, we think one of the most popular cars ever, right? Certainly in the last five years,
they've sold 15,000 in the last year. Jku have sold 15,000 J7s in the first quarter of this year.
Wow. Wow. I mean, at that rate, they would be on track to beat Tesla. I just looked up Tesla 2025,
they had 45,000 cars sold in the UK in 2025. Jku J7s, Ben and Mike is the number plate switch.
They registered 10,000 in March alone. Wow. But you do see him. It's always a good, I think,
when a new plate comes out, that's always a good, for me, it's a good gauge of
how many cars, what a car sales like, you know, like, I think when the 75 plate came out or even
26, but it's just recently came out. I haven't seen that many and I know that sales aren't that high,
but I do see a lot of Jku, the, what's the one James got, the five? Five. James has the five,
yeah, which is pretty electric. I mean, I can't, yeah, they all look the same to me. It's like.
Or as my mate calls them, the Timu Evoke. Yeah, he's not run.
Yeah. But no, you see, yeah, you see so many on the road. Every time I go out, I see some,
even locally. So. And you got to ask why? And the reason why, I think, is the number one,
the pricing is just so competitive. And they're not the best car in the world, but they're not
awful either. And you look at what you get for your money and you get a lot. You know, they've
got loads of kit on them. I've only driven the seven and it wasn't, it was all right. You know,
it just, if you were just a normal family wanting to buy, we've said this a million times on the
podcast, a normal family and you need a family car to do your stuff, especially if you can only
afford one car. Going for something like a plug-in hybrid J7, that money, especially if you're
buying it on finance, you're probably paying like. Yeah, the finances. The finances are a massive
element of this, isn't it? Of course, because as much as people may look at the RRP, it doesn't
actually matter because the second you go in, you need to know how much it is a month. Like,
that's how you, you know, your finances are planned out maybe as a family or as a couple or as an
individual. So, yeah. And you don't, all you choose is the colour. Yeah. It's not an options list.
So, and yeah, I just find, I just saw that number. In fact, it was our mate, Jack Evans. He had a
thing on his, he posted it last week. I'm like, oh my God, that number's nuts. Yeah. Jack's doing,
he's really pushing out some fun reels at the moment, isn't he?
Shout out, Jack. We could do a little segue because we're talking about Chinese cars.
Let's get onto a Chinese car that you and I went to a launch of recently that I only discovered
was a Chinese car after. Hang on. We've reviewed it. Hang on. I go and get married in Malaysia and
Joe Achilles is reviewing Chinese cars. What's happened? Well, I didn't realise it was a Chinese
car until I posted the video. And even I, even I, I, I said something in mind saying that,
that all of these Chinese cars coming to market and yet this one's got, so it was a Volvo.
Yeah. But that's not a Volvo, but. Oh yeah. Yeah. Oh yeah. And it's built and it's made in China.
It's made in China. Even UK market cars, Volvo, they've made in China. No. Well, that ES90,
and I'm guessing that model, all of them are made in China, which, which now looking back,
I mean, it's a brilliant car. We'll get on to talking about it. But now looking at the pricing
of it, it's, it's, it's a lot of, I thought it was relatively good value, but now knowing that
it's built in China, it's like, that's a lot of money when you compare it to the Chinese equivalents,
like two times the money. Yeah, it is. I mean, I don't have to say just because it's built in
China, that wouldn't necessarily mean it's a worser made car. But no, and yeah, compared, I mean,
I had some comments on my video, I'm sure you did too, compared with the Chinese brands like
a BYD or somebody of that ilk, but it is expensive. But compared to BMW or Audi, it's a bargain.
All right, so can you, can you two, what have you run me through? Because I imagine I haven't seen
any of the content. What's the car? What's the price? What is it going to do? Well, it was that
first Volvo, it was my first Volvo drive. I haven't driven a Volvo on the car all full stop.
So it was great to be invited. It was the ES90 rather. So it's like,
it's a saloon, but more of a kind of hatchbacky, fastbacky style. But it's also a little bit crossover
because it's a slightly raised ride height just to kind of make getting in and out easy. It's a
nice looking car. And I've got to say, the interior was lovely. The size of this, is this like model
three, model S, three series, five series, five series. Yeah, five series, model S,
E class, that sort of, that segment. But the passenger room in the back was ridiculous.
No, really? I could wear my Babylon shoes over there and have legs and have legs to scale,
and I'd still fit. Oh my God, that needs to be a new part of your video reviews,
Ben. What's a footwear like? Yeah, how many Babylon shoes is it?
But the rear passenger room was, the floor was quite high, so your feet were quite high and
my knees were quite high, but there was so much leg room. Okay, so fully electric, how much range?
Well, 420 was what was quoted-ish, wasn't it? And I think you're probably
knock a bit off of that. I've still got my stats up on my phone, actually.
Yep. So solid 300's is what you're saying realistically. Yeah, 300's in cold weather,
350 in warmer weather. So it had, so there's three different drive modes. You have a single
motor, which is what we were driving, which is all they've launched at the moment. So that was
333 horsepower and a WLTP of 411 miles. Okay. 0-62 in 6.6 seconds. So it wasn't, it was-
It's not a sporty car then, deliberately. No, it was a big, lovely, the ride quality.
Ah, the ride in it. And mine was on Primacy 5 energies. Oh, mine wasn't.
And how much is this 60,000-pound car? That was 77,000 quid.
Yeah. Yeah, it started at 68. That's the top spec. It was two specs as a plus and an ultra,
and I was in an ultra single motor. So yes. But then they're going to do a dual motor. So that's
going to have 449 horsepower. And that will knock the range, well, actually, the range
goes up a little bit bizarrely. Yeah, it's a bigger battery. It's a bigger battery in that one.
And then the dual performance is 680 horsepower. Oh, wow. In four seconds.
But I don't, I don't understand, I don't think you need that. I actually think,
I think that the single motor one we drove was, would spawn. It was really good.
Yeah. Yeah.
Yeah, Joe, what did you think of it then? So again, you're, you've just, you spend all that time
of your M5, and obviously it's not the performance variant, but as we know, the M5 is much like a
five series internally. What was the, how was it, how nice was it versus a BMW equivalent kind of
modern power? Yeah, miles better than the current five series in pretty much every area. I think
better and bigger interior, just everything nicer plastics. Yeah, I literally, I think I might have
even said, I mean, for a five series customer, if you're buying an i5, you'd be mad not to get
down the Volvo route. And as you know, for me to say that, it's, yeah, but I didn't even have to
say it through grit and teeth. It was just like, oh, I'm sorry, as Pedder's already mentioned,
the biggest standout was the, was the ride quality. I mean, my one was on the optional 22 inch wheels,
and it was on a competitor tire that is not renowned for giving you the best ride in the
world. Yet the ride was incredible, which to me, after living with that M5, and in the UK,
as we all do, you know, it makes a huge difference to the, to living with a car. So I mean, yeah,
I was jumping out of my most recent car was your X3 from BMW, very impressive,
been a kit. And then jumping into that, it was like, oh, that's two really impressive EVs that,
that, you know, but yeah, they're big money. I drove for the first like, I don't know,
40 minutes. I'm driving around thinking the ride in this is unbelievable. And then went into the
drive modes and realized that I had the suspension in firm. So I put it in soft. And it was like,
oh my God, it's really, really good, really good car. So yeah, I didn't even discover that I didn't
discover that there's so many things. I mean, going to these launches, and it was, it was a
brilliant day. And I'll put on a fantastic, the nice venue, the weather was good, everything.
But like, as with so many these launches, and I think Peds more
tuned to do this sort of thing, but you know, you turn up, you've fed a lot of information,
you've then got a handful of hours for the car, I think maximum of three.
And, and, and although the infotainment system was quite user friendly, and there was, you know,
you could navigate your way through a lot of it, there was lots of things that you need someone
to show you the first time. So when you're out on a drive like that, obviously, Ped discovered
and suspect even things like I got in there, and I didn't even know like the door mirrors,
or the steering, the electric steering column adjusts. There was no, there was nothing like,
and I had to ask someone because it's in infotainment system, which sounds over complicated,
but it wasn't. But, but before you knew that, it was like, I don't know, I don't, I give up.
Excuse me, can you help me?
That sounds like a dedicated podcast subject.
Yes, I reckon we should do, because I agree the time you have. But as a car, for me, I think
it was a really great example of a car that if you lived with it, if it was actually your car,
and you had the app on your phone, because you can download, like lots of manufacturers do nowadays,
you can download an app. The app becomes the key to your car. You can have a drive profile on the
app. And that includes things like wing mirror and steering wheel and seat settings. So as soon
as you come near the car, by the time you sat in it, all of those things have moved to your preferred
position anyway. And it would be a much easier thing to live with. I think when you go in,
just review a car for a very short period of time, then, then sometimes those things are a
real pain in the arse. But in the real world, they actually wouldn't be at all. But yeah, we should
direct them. We should definitely have a chat about the whole, the press launches, press launches,
and are they are they actually effective? Be good. Yes. It's nice to see you. I want to be honest.
I'm surprised because you probably forgot what they are. Well, that one wasn't too far for me.
So it was like, it wasn't too much of an inconvenience.
The best one was Brian McMorran. He was drove there in a cherry press card. It broke down
three times on him. He ended up giving up, getting a borrowing of Volvo to go home.
Oh my goodness. That's crazy.
But yeah.
Nice. And so, mate, are we going to, I've got to, I want to have a chat about your M3 making video.
Yes. Because I watched it on the plane. Do you guys have YouTube Premium?
Yeah. No, but I should. Because I had it as part of my mobile phone contract, right? And
it's just a complete game changer. And then my mobile phone contract changed. I renewed it and
Vodafone didn't offer YouTube Premium anymore. They offered Netflix or Spotify or something.
And I'm like, I don't want those. So I thought, I'll be fine. I'll live without YouTube Premium.
I lasted less than a day. But the cool thing about YouTube Premium is you can download stuff
from watch it offline. So when I flew back from Venice, I saw your film in the morning. I went,
do you know what? I'm going to watch that. And I watched the whole thing and it was
fascinating. And I'm sat there going, I think we mentioned it on the last podcast.
Number one is really funny. Tony just looked like a zombie by the end of it.
But he, it just how hard that must have been to film and edit. And the fact he had so much
the audio and stuff was also, you had stuff sync together and different cameras live at the same
time. And you could watch that and not realize that that was shot or made over a period of like
10 hours. And to do that is really, really bloody hard. So well done, mate.
Thank you, buddy. Thank you. Yeah, it was, it was a, I mean, it's not even been live two days.
And it's done so well. And it's continuing to do well, which is nice. Because as we know,
YouTube videos can start good and take it off quickly. But I'm just blown away by the comments
and the positivity around it, including like yourself. And so many, I've had so many messages
about it, which is great. But the, yeah, the day itself, it was, it was a very long day.
And it was nonstop, because the production line doesn't stop for you. The car was moving from
the second I intro'd it as it came behind me into shot to the second I finished talking to
Frank Van Mill. It just never stops, you know, it's always on the move. Apart from at lunch,
they stop for half an hour. But it was just, it was fascinating. It was really, really awesome.
And the filming aspect of it, I didn't know how I was going to film it up until basically the
morning of the filming. I brought Tony along for two reasons. Number one, because he's a friend,
and obviously he sold me a lot of cars, including that one. Number two, because Patrick wasn't
available. But yeah, I kind of, I needed someone there as an extra camera hand, but he was literally
just holding my Osmo action camera, because I thought I'll keep my better camera. I'm sure we
could have filmed it a lot better. But I think when you're up against... You could have done with a
pocket three, mate. You could have done with an Osmo pocket three. Brilliant. I think, I think in
that, in that scenario, yes, it would have been, if I had you there, Ped, with the Osmo, so you
but it was great. It was brilliant. And everyone there was so accommodating. It's so nice and so
lovely. And it was just, I don't know. Yeah, I'm really pleased with how it went on the day. I'm
really pleased with the response that it's had so far. And I just hope, you know, I've had a bit
of feedback from BMW, but yeah, I just hope they're pleased with it as well, because I know
it was a little bit tricky to sort of get it off the ground. Initially, it was like a no, this,
you know, we've had the likes of Top Gear and Evo, whatever, asking us over the years. And
so I kind of had to push through that and really sort of understand why it was a no,
because, you know, in my head, it was like, I'm a very good customer of yours, number one. Number
two, I've got a big BMW audience. Number three, I know this is my dream car. And I can only imagine
10% of what goes into building it. So let's just show this to the world. Let's show it to any future
customers or current customers. Let's do it. And that's why I like the comments so much,
because a lot of those comments are from people that either have got an M car or purchasing an M
car, or even thinking about purchasing an M car. And I think just seeing the love and passion from
the majority of the employees or the amount of work that goes into the car, suddenly,
you start to understand why it has such a big price tag on it, and what goes into it. And the
fact that's all in Germany, you know, is still amazing. So yeah, it was epic. I loved it. And
yeah, I mean, it's like, it comes across. But I mean, for me, I'm so happy because those sometimes
you pitch those types of videos, and you and they don't perform. And they don't perform for some,
for a reason that you don't really understand, you've created a great narrative, a great story,
the videos there. And it just doesn't get the numbers. And it's only happened to me a couple
times, not on the scale of that, in terms of getting permission to do it. But I remember I went away
with an Armed Forces charity, we did a big thing across Morocco, and I just thought it was going
to be awesome. And the video came out and I was really proud of it, but it just didn't get the
numbers at all. And you just feel really bad because there's been an investment in you in
time and money. And you feel like I felt like I didn't deliver back. So I'm so happy it's got the
numbers, mate, it's really, really very cool. Yeah, yeah, no, thanks, man. Yeah, it is. Well,
I think after last year's GZ3RS spa video, for me, that's a great example, actually. Yeah, that's
always, that's always, that was playing on my mind a lot throughout the whole process of this,
because I just did think I thought, well, I'm doing it for a number of reasons, number one,
so I can look back on it and share it with people that are interested in it. But number two, it's
like, wow, there's a lot of time and money and effort that's gone into this. And like you said,
when it does do well, it's just like, oh, thank goodness for that. Not Matt Armstrong, well.
Matt, some of his videos recently. The numbers are just ridiculous.
He bought the Veyron, it got 8 million views in two days. It did 850,000 views in its first hour.
Yeah, and that's what we can see. So you can imagine what the back end is. It must be a million
and a half in the first hour. But I mean, he's just, you know, he went out recently and bought a
house in Miami. Miami, yeah. Fair, I just take my hat off continually to him, because he's just,
he's brilliant. I love watching it. I love his dad and everyone that's involved.
But that favor he's bought, he paid, you know, whatever it was, 950 grand for that. That's a
lot of investment, so you'd hope the videos do well. But I think there's a nice sentiment here,
Joe, with your video, with the M3, and we spoke about it before about just how much more time
that car gets, how much more attention that car gets as an M car. Like you are paying more,
there is a premium, but it is actually reflected. It's not just a badge. It's not just a different
crated engine into the front of it. And you know, it has the same time as lower models.
But also, I think there's a, I don't know, there's something nice about Matt's stuff as well with
the Veyron. It's just a car. Yes, it has a higher value. But like, there's something nice about
seeing the intricacies of the behind the scenes and that cars can be fixable and that, you know,
cars with petrol engines as well, like to keep them on the road, to keep them going. I don't know,
I think in this world of, yeah, being scared of what's next and whether it's going to be all
electric and stuff, it's just nice to see content that is around what we love, but celebrating it,
whether seeing it built for the first time or taking a part and trying to keep it on the road,
trying to keep it going. Yeah, yeah, it's just really cool. I think there's some great car
content out there at the moment. It's very exciting to watch. Yeah, no, I just think, I think it's the
bit, the bit that the people who consume the content, but who don't make the content don't
see is the planning and the pressure and the stress and all that kind of stuff. And I don't,
I don't know if you've seen it, but Sam seems to have glass was on road to success. I listened to
it. In fact, I watched it on the same plane flight. And he was talking about drive the world
when he did the whole drive the world thing. And how that was a complete flop for him until
he got back and then COVID kind of all the videos took off during COVID because people
didn't have anything to watch. But it's the same sort of thing. He planned it and he starts
making the videos and the videos just aren't performing at all. And it's just the worst
feeling in the world. You get this sick feeling, don't you? We get like a 10 of 10 and you're like,
oh, no, there's nothing you can do about it. It's like, what's your next?
Well, my, my, my, in that video, we've just been talking about the factory tour.
It started as a nine of 10. In the first, in the first hour is a nine of 10. And I'm pacing
around the house and lose like, are you okay? I was like, no, and I was showing her. And it's
almost like it's probably similar with you, but I don't know if you show Tracy, but I just showed
her and she could tell straight away if I'm in a good mood or a bad mood. And I just showed
her and she was like, oh, and I was like, yeah, and I haven't had the best. It's not even like
my recent 10 videos have been amazing. Some have done a right, but I was like nine of 10.
And then by the evening, it was like five of 10. She's like, oh, that's better than the next morning.
It was like three of 10. My mood just slowly, but it's, yeah, it's, but that's the kind of video
that will be someone will have put it on a forum somewhere or shared. And, and you know, you get
that. And, and, and who knows, but it is, it is, uh, I always get shouted at. You'll be the same.
I get shouted at on a Monday and a Friday at about quarter past six every week without fail.
It'll be the same in a few hours time because it's Monday today because that's video go live day.
So about quarter past six, it's posting my links to Instagram or Facebook to say I've got a video
live. So I'll get shouted up for doing that. But Tracy knows I have to do it.
And then, uh, on, on a Friday, every other Friday at five is the podcast, which I often kind of
forget to do naughty me, but I'll try and do it. And then for the, about the next hour or two after
that, we're sat in watching the TV. And then, you know, if Trace put pops out to go to the loo or
goes and gets a glass of water in the kitchen or something, I'll just go, grab the phone and
yeah. And she'll come in to go, what are you doing? I'm like, nothing.
And you're just trying to see if he's doing okay. And it's just, it's horrible. You're like,
why is it a one of 10? God's sake. This is just pants. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It's, it's,
the, the, I've thought of this, the, I guess it's the, um, the, the contract that we have
with our audience, isn't it? Sometimes. I mean, when you get a one of 10, when it just goes,
I've not had many, but when you're like, you're like, oh, it's flying.
Yeah. There's nothing better. You get like, you get in dolphins or whatever it is.
I know. It's just, but when it's not, it's sad, but true.
Yeah. It's like, oh, what's going on? Yeah.
Yeah. Can I just, can I just do a cheeky, can I just do a cheeky shout out to RST?
I know. I wonder what that was, mate. Is that your new coloring to outfit?
Is that an RST? Okay. In the back graduate. So let's talk about that.
Yeah. Well, the reason I want to shout them out is they've sent me a lot of gear over the past
few years, which I'm extremely grateful. Well, it's actually a company called Motor Director,
the wholesalers. But, um, but the reason I want to show that it's quite interesting, um, is,
so they, they're using this new material called D30, right? And, and it's, it's essentially,
it's an intelligent, uh, foam. So it's super, super lightweight and, and super like flexible.
So at least there's one thing intelligent in that office then.
Hold up a bit more, Joe. Hold up a bit more. You're holding a bit low. There you go. That's
perfect. Yeah. Yeah. It's a con piece. I was going to say it could also be a large con piece
protector, but, um, but, but I think that's a shot. I think it's a shoulder thing, but,
but essentially it's super, super soft and flexible. But why it's intelligent is if you
were to get a hammer out, or obviously if you were to have an accident and hit the ground
very quickly, it goes, you could probably hit it goes rock hard. Like it goes from being soft
and squidgy like jelly to just out. It goes rock hard. So yeah. Anyway, it's made of custard.
I know, I know something else that goes soft and squidgy to rock hard.
Well, there you go. I just, I just wanted to say, yeah, so a lot of their new clothing have got this,
including my new boots as well. I've got this, uh, this amazing material is more about this than,
than the actual, the, the, the jacket.
Do they do any like a Citroen Ami branded ones? If I eventually have a crash in that,
because there's no airbags or safety features, at least, at least I've got a protective jacket on.
Well, they do an airbag suit. So you could, you could get an airbag jacket from them.
So I want you to wear a full, yeah, your full like race, race overall suit
and drive the Ami around would be the best thing I've ever seen.
Oh my God. Yes, like the stick.
Get my elbow out of the window as I'm turning into a corner. Like I'm, yeah.
Oh my God. Anyway.
Right. Oh, are we coming up with one more car to talk about?
Are we going to talk about that in this one or are we going to save it?
Because it comes out tomorrow.
Oh, I think we've got to talk about it. Haven't we really?
I know, although we did get some, we did get some grief in the last one.
Because there's a, your Spock has sponsored my bloody Porsche.
Because all you talk about is bloody Porsches.
So guess what we're going to talk about now, everyone?
A bloody Porsche.
No, no, Patrick. It's not a Porsche. It's a Porsche.
I wish I had my keys to hand because I show you my Porsche keys, but I can't.
Well, we did get one comment on the most recent podcast where they said to us,
it was the Michelin one when we were talking to Joe B and someone said,
this is basically just a Michelin, Michelin advert or something.
So it was like, I had to explain that we are, we are, we are sponsored by Michelin.
We only exist as a podcast thanks to Michelin supporting us from day one or episode one.
Ped and I are both brand ambassadors for Michelin. We're a Michelin event.
Interviewing someone from Michelin. Talking about tyres, from Michelin.
So, yes. And I have to say, sometimes I think we don't, we don't mention Michelin enough
in a lot of the podcasts because people, hopefully, obviously already know that,
you know, it's sponsored by Michelin. We're very connected to Michelin.
But I don't, it's not like we drown people's ears with Michelin all the time. Like that particular
podcast, yes. And I found it fascinating even listening back, especially the James Bond bit.
But anyway, if you missed that and you want to hear more about Michelin in general, then
check out episode 86, Patrick. 86, not 85, but the thumbnail said the first one.
Yeah, not 85 mark two. But anyway, yeah, let's get back to the Porsche.
You can leave this one, Ped, because it's your dream car.
We mentioned it a couple of weeks ago, actually, because I've been and had
Porsche Reading talking to Anthony and he'd mentioned something about it. But it is happening
tomorrow. All the teasers are out today. But yeah, the GT3 Sport Cabriolet, which is basically a
convertible GT3. Or, I mean, Porsche describing it as the best driver's car ever,
which they do for every new 911 they come out. Because it's got, you know, in the,
oh, in the sunshine, don't make pull faces like that. In the sunny Alps with the roof down,
so you can look up and see the mountains and stuff. So the worst thing about having a roof
when you're in the mountains, you can't look up at them. You've got the roof down, and it's got
you can feel a bit of a scuttle shake. It's lovely.
But yeah, it's a GT3 with no roof. It's got, I think it's got wings and doors are from the ST.
That does look cool. From the photos we've got here, of course, on Michelin tyres as well.
It does, yeah, it does look quite cool. I don't think it's for me, but it's so for me.
Yeah, I'm sure it'd be a bigger experience, and I'm sure that it is.
It's sorry, it's better looking than I thought it was going to be, and I pictured it.
You need a wing. I mean, it's not, no. No, it doesn't. No, you're wrong.
Convertible cars with wings. I just, oh my God, that is, that would be it.
Fishing, fishing. No, I don't like that. That is your dream.
It could have a ducktail. It could have a ducktail. A ducktail would be better,
but I think, again, it just needs to be clean. Nine leavens need to be clean at the back,
unless they, yeah. But I know I could, well, listen, you've got a spider,
but is it going to be, I mean, what's it going to be? 160, what, I mean, 160 grand base?
I know, I reckon they could put these on limited run and make them. 200.
200, I think it would be, can ST or something, if they wanted.
If it doesn't start a 175, I'll be gobsmacked. I think it'll be more, because they were going
to do a speedster. The big question is, will they still do a speedster,
or will this effectively be the speedster? Well, I guess if this is the, are we saying this is,
this is actually like a, we don't know yet, but the underpinnings will be GT3.
And so there is a space for a speedster as an underpinnings of an ST or an RS, right?
If you want to make a different, if it differentiates. Maybe the speedster,
you'd put a GT2 RS and chop the roof off that. So you've got the turbo two-wheel drive,
and then the speeds to body, that would be cool. Yeah.
Yeah. They could always do, I mean, Porsche are the best at making something out of nothing,
right? Like, they have since we have the exact same car made for the last, what,
60 years, and they've just made hundreds of different variants. And here's the latest
one that never existed before. But here's the question then, and I, it's a similar question I
asked in my recent GT3 touring video, is why don't you just buy a Carrera T cabriolet manual,
which you can buy? Oh, yeah. Yeah. I mean, well, it'll be half the price. It'll be half the price,
weren't it? Well, probably. Almost. Yeah. Yeah, certainly. But how would you gain respect
between your fellow peers if you turned up in only a Carrera T? I put an arrow. That's the problem.
Oh, right. There we go.
I think you know this thing. Carrera T with an arrow kit.
I think we're going to see a lot of, and I think we could see this coming even with cars like the
ST. I think over the next year and a half, two years, we're going to see a lot of special edition
911s. Well, because at the moment, dare I say it, it's one of the only ways that Porsche are
actually going to make some money. It's a good point. They've got nothing else to sell or selling,
is that? I was talking to someone last week, and they were saying, they'd kind of heard rumors that
Porsche basically want to reduce the number of cars they make and increase the cost of the cars
that they make to kind of make them a little bit more like Ferrari. And I think that would be a
really bad idea because you think what, you know, let's say they got rid of Boxter and Cayman. So
Boxter and Cayman are going to be electric. They're still not 100% sure what they're going to do
with Boxter and Cayman. But if that disappeared, they'll never get rid of 911. But what's the
entry level cost point into Porsche now? Because for me, Porsche, I love Ferrari. I love McLaren
as two brands, but I can honestly never see myself owning one because I just don't understand how
much money you have to have to be comfortable buying a car at that cost point or having it on
finance. And I'm very lucky. We've got a lovely lifestyle and great income and all those things.
But even I'll look at a Ferrari and go, I don't know how people can justify the month
lease on finance. Porsche as a brand, they're the achievable aspirational brand for me. I think
a normal person can look at a Porsche and go, do you know what, I'd love a 911. And if you work hard
and, you know, things go your way, I think a 911 is an achievable brand or an achievable car. I
think a Boxter or Cayman, brilliant cars, but they are achievable. And I'm going to have to caveat
this before everybody hates me in the comments. I know we're talking about cars that are new,
70, 80, 90, 100,000 pounds. That is a shed load of money when we've got cost of living and fuel
crisis, all that kind of jazz. But if you really put your mind to it and you work hard and you
save money and do all those things, you can achieve a Porsche. And I think if Porsche changed that
to make their cars, I don't know, more expensive and exclusive, I think that would dilute the
brand a little bit. I think it would be a mistake. I don't know how much truth there is to that,
but I wouldn't surprise me on one hand. They've got to do something. They've got to do something,
right? Because you've got Cayenne Electric, which is going to sell, I think we can say
pretty confidently, it's going to sell less for the normal Cayenne. You've got Macan Electric
that's going to sell less and probably already is selling less than normal Macan. So you've got
Boxster, so Boxster Cayman, which was probably selling quite a lot before that ended and that's
not being replaced yet as we understand it. And so all you've got left is 911. And so
we've already seen 911's got what 20 grand base in the last five or six years.
You know, is a base 911 150 grand car? Well, in a world where everything's going up,
it could be, but you're right. It's multiplication, right? Price of car times
amount of customers. If they think they can start at GT3 for a 911 and they sell
5,000 more of those at that price with a larger margin, then they don't need to sell
base 911. And maybe base 911 becomes electric or becomes another offering, but they need to be
careful because I think, yeah, Ferrari, they might be selling plenty of cars, but they're
the used market, which was always strong. The strongest point for Ferrari is actually quite
a difficult place to be right now. And so you don't want to kill your brand in 10 years time to
benefit over the next few years. But that's already happening. Oh, yeah. But that's already
happening with Porsche products, including their GT products, is they're already
starting, that's sliding away and slipping away quickly like GT4s. And even some GT3s,
you can get now like what year or two old at least or under, which never happened,
let's say 10 years ago, but then did happen 15 years ago. So there was, I guess the market
changes, isn't it? But I think Porsche have got to be, they've got to be very careful,
because like you said, if we go back only five or six years, you could buy a base 911 with a
few toys on it for 85 grand brand new, you could buy a really nice Cayman or Boxster for 4550 grand
brand new. So back then, and I know things have changed in five years, but that, you know, back
then it was like, oh, I could actually afford to finance that. And I think a lot of people could
see it that way. Or it was like, I've got, I've had an M3 or an M4 for the past couple of years.
And now I want to go to a 911, it's going to cost me a couple of like 150 pound extra a month or
15 grand more. I can, I can do that. But if they're suddenly up there, I don't think Porsche,
that to me isn't, isn't a Porsche 911 ST, yes, because it's just so special. There's, you know,
so many, that car is almost like a, that is it, that's an elevated 911 into a Ferrari sort of sphere.
But everything else, the base 911, I mean, yeah,
it's like entry level Aston Martin now is a couple of hundred grand.
Oh, that's, yeah. I mean, how's that going for them?
That's it is the perfect example of exactly that happening, isn't it? A vantage was never
affordable, but it was an attainable, achievable goal like a 911 for under a hundred grand.
But it used to be vantage and base 911 used to be the same. And now how much is a base
vantage? Like 160 grand or something? Yeah, it's mad. And it's not going off them, like you said.
So before we sign off this episode, because I noticed we've been gassing on for an hour and 10
minutes, Jaguar, because we mentioned them, obviously deciding a few months ago, nearly a
year ago, probably more than that, with the whole campaign about 00 and getting rid of the old Jaguar
brand and kind of we're going to start afresh. Notice now in their latest reel, which I've just
sent you on Instagram, if you want to watch it, they're now gone, clearly gone. Maybe we should
play on our heritage a little bit here, because they've got five eras of Jaguar starting off with
an XK120, then an E-Type, then it looks like a sovereign or an XJ6 and then an XJS. And then
the Type 00, you're like, what are you playing at? You can't have it both ways. You can't destroy a
brand, both in terms of branding. And I mean, our local Jaguar dealership is a second hand car
shop now, because they just moved out. I was talking to someone, well, I was away, you know,
I'm Andrew from The Fish, we were in Venice together. And I was saying, I've often thought,
do you know what, quite fancy an F-Type SVR, brilliant car. Would I buy an F-Type SVR now?
I'd be like, no, because I wouldn't know where to go and get it serviced or looked after,
because there's no bloody dealership left. So when they start bringing the heritage thing back,
you're like, come on guys, you can't destroy it one minute with the most awful ad campaign ever
devised by marketing kind of, then suddenly go, oh no, maybe we should play on our heritage a little
and can you imagine how much, can you imagine all of what all of this mess has cost? I mean,
they had no money in the first place, they were being obviously supported by the rest of the group.
And then they've gone through all this, you know, bought in so many of these, I can't use the,
I can't say the word, but WA, NKY, to run the campaign and all this. And then and now they've
kind of just, for what? What was it like? What a waste of money? What complete waste of money?
They got hardly any good press, copy nothing. I mean, they got plenty of press, but also what's
happened to that? Where is it? Like, show us. Oh, it's real. And it keeps appearing in, oh,
it was on Sloan Street over there. It's in Paris. Okay, great. But where's the car? Like, I want to
see it. Because to me, it looks like it's the size of a house, and it's never going to work in the
UK ever. And no one's buying one. But anyway, don't get me started about Jaguar. My blood pressure
is rising. Right, deep breath, Joe, deep breath. So I think we should call it a quits there before
Joe has an embolism. Oh, one more thing. Well, not that you can see it now, but I almost chopped
my finger off the other day, the end of my finger off. This is a really weird way to finish
podcasts. I'm trying to find a picture of it. So you can't say, Joe, you cannot show that picture
that you sent me. I'll have to blur it. So no. Oh, what's this? Oh, it's not, the light's not working,
is it? Oh, what did you chop that off with? So I complain a lot to Lou about our knives,
because I really like sharp knives. And so she came back with a new set of knives from John Lewis
last Saturday, actually. And I was so excited. That's like brilliant new new knives. And due
to my complicated diet for breakfast, I usually have chicken and tomatoes and lettuce and it's
quite healthy breakfast to start the day. And I chop it all up. So I've got the chopping board
and it was on last Sunday. And when they were talking away, I get a new knife out and Lou says
to me, be careful, it's really sharp. So I was like, okay, she proceeded to tell me it was really
sharp five times and I'm not exaggerating. Five times, she said. Five times. Five times.
And just after her telling me the fifth time, and me saying, oh my god, this thing goes through
chicken like it's butter, I chopped the side of my finger off. It was so bad that the bit of finger
was rolling around on the chopping board next to the chicken. I mean, it makes me sick to think about
and I went, everything slowed down. You know, like when you've had an accident on a bike before
or things slow down. And so then I've realized what I've done and I look at my finger and it's
already just like gushing out, but the whole the whole thing is covered in blood, but I can't even
see any of my skin. And then I'm under the tap and it's just this blood everywhere. Anyway,
we spent the whole day in an emergency clinic and they couldn't do much with it. They even asked
me if I still had the bit of finger which I'd thrown in the bin because I was worried that Peggy
would eat while we were at the clinic. Anyway, yeah, but thankfully, so what is it, eight days on
and it's fixed up. I had a dressing on it for like four days. But anyway, what's happened?
Oh, mate, yeah, I had to have a bag over it when I was in the shower for the first five days because
it was it was covered. But anyone that's listening, if you if you use new sharp knives, just be careful
because apparently they're really sharp. Although on a serious note, there's, did you know what's
more dangerous than a sharp knife? A dull knife? A blunt one. Yeah.
Oh, I can imagine. Yeah. Well, yes, I can imagine in certain scenarios, but I think in that scenario
for blunt knife. A dull ad using a sharp knife. Yeah. Anyway, anyway, guys, thank you so much
for tuning in. If if you've still got your tea inside and you haven't vomited all over the car,
please join us for the next episode of the Drive Talk podcast in two weeks time. But for now,
thank you for Michelin's support. As always, boys always brilliant to talk. Make sure you follow
us and subscribe because we want to get to more subscribers than 10,000. Is it out? Is it out?
About this episode
The Drive Torque crew kicks off with funny subscriber run-ins (including being recognized in Venice) and a candid chat about how YouTube milestones feel less like numbers and more like real people. From there, it shifts into practical motoring: windscreen PPF for road tours, fuel-price anxiety, and how EV charging works in places like Malaysia and China. They also compare Chinese-market EVs and sales momentum, then dive into Joe Achilles’ BMW M3 factory tour video, plus a Volvo ES90 EV drive impression and Porsche GT3 Sport Cabriolet speculation.
