The Ford Transit Custom is a work van made for carrying people or cargo. It’s designed to be practical for daily use. The podcast mentions it while comparing vans and their weight.
In the podcast, “Milano” is mentioned in connection with “Milano alloys,” which are a type of wheel design. The speaker is trying to remember the name of those wheels. It’s not really about how the car drives in this moment—more about the parts and names.
Concept
completely untested
“Completely untested” implies the car hadn’t been proven reliable or road-ready before the trip. That raises the odds of discovering issues only after you’re already committed to driving.
A misfire is when the engine doesn’t burn the fuel correctly in one or more cylinders. That can make the car run rough, lose power, or feel like it’s not running right.
The Citroën BX is an older compact car. It’s known for being a bit unusual compared with typical cars. The podcast mentions it in a funny story about driving it with something in the car while traveling.
Drifting is when a driver intentionally makes the car slide sideways while still steering it. It usually means the tires are working hard and wearing out faster.
The BMW M5 is BMW’s super-fast, performance version of the 5 Series. It’s the kind of car that can feel intimidating because it accelerates and corners with a lot more force than a normal car.
A “donut” is a controlled skid where the car rotates around while mostly staying in roughly the same spot, usually on a powered rear axle or with enough traction breakaway. The “donut bit” refers to the section of the track where the host was doing repeated donuts.
A handbrake turn is when you pull the handbrake to make the car rotate quickly, like turning around in a tight space. It usually makes the rear wheels slide and can be rough on tires.
A turbocharger uses the car’s exhaust to spin a fan that pushes more air into the engine. More air usually means more power, but it needs the engine to be set up correctly.
A hydro handbrake is a special handbrake that uses hydraulics to quickly grab the rear brakes. Drifters use it to help the car start sliding more easily and consistently.
They’re planning the car build around a hill climb event happening on August 22nd. That kind of event affects what the car needs to do well.
Term
higher mileage
“Higher mileage” means the car has been driven a lot. Usually that means more wear, and you may need more maintenance sooner than on a lower-mileage car.
The Ferrari FF is a high-end Ferrari car meant for long-distance driving. It’s designed to be very fast, and it uses all-wheel drive for better grip. The podcast mentions it because someone thinks it would be amazing to own.
The BMW 3 Series is a smaller BMW car that’s designed to be both practical and fun to drive. People often modify them because there are lots of parts and options. The podcast mentions it because someone wants to change the engine on one.
The Mini Classic is a small, classic-style car. People often modify them because they’re compact and have a strong community around parts and upgrades. The podcast mentions it because someone wants to do an engine swap on one.
The Alfa Romeo 156 GTA is a sporty version of the Alfa 156. They’re talking about possibly getting rid of it, even though they really like it, because they want to move toward a different kind of car.
Concept
FF
“FF” means the engine is in the front and the drive wheels are also in the front. That changes how the car feels and how it grips the road compared with cars where the back wheels drive.
A sport wagon is basically a station wagon that’s aimed at people who want a bit more driving character. They’re saying they’d rather have that kind of body style than a regular sedan.
The Honda Civic is a popular small car made by Honda. It’s known for being practical and commonly seen on the road. The podcast mentions it because someone used Civic parts to make a handmade sign for an event.
Apple CarPlay lets you connect your iPhone to your car. It shows certain phone apps on the car’s screen so you can use navigation and music more safely.
Motor oil is what keeps the engine’s moving parts from grinding against each other. Changing it regularly helps the engine run smoothly and last longer.
A “major service” is a bigger maintenance job than just changing oil. It’s meant to check and refresh several important parts so the car keeps running well.
The Nürburgring 24 hour is a long endurance race at the Nürburgring track in Germany. Cars have to keep going for a full day, so reliability and strategy are huge.
The Autobahn is a famous German highway system known for very high speeds. People sometimes drive there specifically to test how fast their cars can go.
A “tune” is when someone adjusts the car’s computer settings to make it run differently. It can change things like how much power it feels like it has and how it responds.
The Dacia Duster is a budget-friendly SUV-style car. It’s meant to be practical, with a higher driving position and room for everyday needs. The podcast mentions it as part of a humorous moment about a “pink duster.”
The BMW M2 Competition is a sporty BMW made by BMW’s performance team. People talk about it a lot because it’s fun to drive and tends to be a popular, expensive-to-own kind of car.
An “appreciating asset” is something that can become worth more over time. With cars, that usually means the model is in demand and holds its value better than average.
Term
people finance
“People finance” means they buy the car with a loan and pay it off over time. That usually adds monthly payments and possibly interest on top of the car’s price.
The Audi RS4 Avant is a fast Audi wagon. It’s meant to be practical like a station wagon, but still drives like a performance car.
Term
fuel bills
“Fuel bills” just means how much money you spend on gas or diesel. If they say it’ll be “extortionate,” they mean it could cost a lot more to drive than you’d think.
A “pan roof” usually means a panoramic glass roof. It’s like a bigger sunroof that brings more light into the cabin.
Term
DPS
“DPS” sounds like a car system or feature that doesn’t work well with lots of short trips. The speaker is saying their driving pattern makes it build up or get in the way.
An Audi RS4 is a “hot” version of the Audi A4. It’s built to be much quicker and more performance-focused than a normal A4.
Car
Octavia VRS Mark 2
This is a Škoda Octavia VRS, which is the more performance-oriented version of the normal Octavia. Here, it’s the exact used car the host was trying to find.
The Skoda Octavia is a practical car that’s usually chosen for space and everyday usability. The VRS version is the sportier, faster trim. The podcast mentions the VRS Mark 2 as a dream car they were looking for and found.
This is a background check you can run on a used car using its details (like registration). It can reveal problems like accident damage or theft history that the seller might not mention.
Those “yellow warnings” are the report’s way of saying the car has some problems that you should be careful about. In this case, they’re tied to damage and theft-related flags.
The Range Rover is a large luxury SUV from Land Rover. It’s designed to be comfortable and capable, including on rough roads. The podcast brings it up because it was involved in an incident where someone backed into it.
A “written off” car means the insurer considers it not worth fixing after damage. The hosts are using it to show how expensive repairs can be and why you should double-check a car’s history.
Concept
production totals (how many vehicles were made)
They’re comparing how many of each famous car were built. That matters because it affects how rare or common the cars are now.
The Ford Model T is one of the earliest cars Ford made in huge numbers. Here, they’re talking about how many of them were built compared to other famous cars.
The classic Volkswagen Beetle is a famous old car that was built in very large numbers. They’re comparing its production totals to other well-known cars.
The Smart Roadster is a specific small two-seat car model made by Smart. In this part of the conversation, it’s just being named as one of the cars in a list.
The BMW Z8 is a two-seat sports car with the top down. It’s a special, limited model that’s known for its looks and driving feel. The podcast mentions it because the speaker really likes it.
The Alpina Z8 is a special version of the BMW Z8 that’s been tuned by Alpina. The idea is to make the car feel more refined while still being fast. The podcast mentions it as another car they love.
The Bugatti Veyron is one of the most famous super-rare supercars ever made. They’re pointing out production numbers to underline how hard it is to find one.
Term
W style engine turbo
They’re describing a special engine layout that uses turbocharging. The “W style” part is about how the engine is shaped internally so it can fit and work efficiently.
The Lotus Evora is a sports car built by Lotus with the engine mounted in the middle. They’re mentioning it as one of the cars in their “which is most common” style list.
The Renault Clio V6 is a very unusual hot hatch because it has a V6 engine. They’re listing it as one of the cars that could be “most common” in their group.
The Vauxhall Monaro is a V8 rear-wheel-drive car with a “muscle car” feel. The speaker’s point is that a 2005 Monaro gives you that big, fun driving character while still being practical.
The Lotus Carlton is a special, high-performance version of the Carlton that Lotus helped develop. It’s the kind of car enthusiasts get excited about because it’s fast and a bit unexpected.
“V8 rear wheel drive” means the car has a V8 engine and the power goes to the back wheels. That usually makes it feel more like the classic muscle cars people talk about.
The Ford Mondeo Mark 4 is a practical family car. In the conversation, it’s the car the wife drives now for errands and kid hauling, but they want to downsize.
The Audi S4 is a sport version of the Audi A4. They’re considering it as a practical-but-fun alternative to the Monaro.
Car
Volvo V70R
The Volvo V70R is a faster, sportier version of the V70 wagon. They’re considering it because it offers more practicality than a coupe while still aiming for performance.
Car
Skoda Fabia estate
A Škoda Fabia estate is a compact wagon version of the Fabia. It’s practical because it has more room for luggage, and the back seats can fold down.
The MINI Clubman is a small car that’s shaped like a wagon. They’re saying it’s the main “mini estate” you should think of.
Term
B48
B48 is the name of an engine used in certain Minis. It’s a turbocharged 2-liter four-cylinder, and the hosts are saying that engine choice is part of why the car is so good.
The Ford EcoSport is a small SUV/crossover. In the conversation, it’s mentioned as the kind of car that might suit the host’s wife for everyday driving and fitting things in.
The Bentley Flying Spur is a luxury sedan made for very comfortable, long-distance driving. It’s designed to feel upscale and smooth rather than sporty. The podcast mentions it as another possible choice.
Primer is the base coating applied to bare metal or old paint before final color paint. It helps the paint adhere properly and provides corrosion protection, and the hosts are tracking whether the car has reached that stage.
“Prepped” means the car’s surface has been cleaned and sanded so painting can go smoothly. It’s basically the step right before primer and final paint.
The BMW 8 Series is BMW’s big, luxury-style performance car meant for comfortable long drives. Here, they’re saying they’re planning a custom modification for that specific BMW model.
Suspension is the system that connects the wheels to the car’s body and controls ride quality and handling by managing how the car moves over bumps and during cornering. In performance builds, suspension changes can significantly affect grip, steering feel, and how the car behaves under load.
An M3 is BMW’s high-performance version made by BMW’s M division. The host is saying they previously got suspension parts for their M3 (likely an older E36-era one), and that experience is driving this new project.
“Air” likely means air suspension, where the car’s ride height can be adjusted using compressed air. People do this to change the car’s stance and how it rides.
Seeker is the company the host worked with before and is using again for this project. They’re saying the kit is made specifically to fit the BMW 8 Series, not a one-size-fits-all solution.
The Ford Mustang is a popular American sports car with lots of aftermarket parts available. In this segment, they’re saying the parts they need for their Mustang are already lined up.
The G-Class is a luxury SUV with a very recognizable, boxy shape. It’s designed to handle rough roads and still feel comfortable. The podcast mentions it because they want to use it for a big trip across America.
LIVE
Just saw the sign for Spain.
Are we in Spain?
We're in Spain.
So the question is, Rory, you're not buying any more cars?
No.
What are you selling?
An apology to everyone.
The Ford Transit was not the heaviest vehicle of those three.
I said that.
I know, I know.
I literally said that.
I'm sorry.
No.
Hello, everyone, and welcome back to the Auto Alex podcast.
Home of automotive financial mistakes, our life in cars,
and your question's answered today.
Rory.
Yes?
Taylor.
Hello.
And I will fill your ear and your eye holes
with what we've been up to.
We'll answer your car dilemmas, and we'll play a game
to test your automotive general knowledge.
In case the podcast sounds and looks a little bit different,
Taylor, where are we currently and what are we doing?
We are currently somewhere in the South of France
in a Bentley, traveling about 75 miles an hour
on our way to Africa.
We are on our way to Africa.
Rory, how are we feeling?
You're currently driving?
Yeah, revitalized.
Definitely had a good night's sleep last night.
No, no, I didn't.
You didn't, did you?
No.
I think we got in at 2 AM into the hotel,
and then we were sort of, well, I was up at 6,
and then we left at 8.
So I was actually up a bit earlier than that,
because I was up at about 5 o'clock in the morning.
Because for some reason, completely unbeknown to me,
I chose to share a room with Robin,
who has come on the strip with us.
And, well, cut to clip.
Oh, why don't you just put it on your phone,
because this is a podcast.
This is all live, isn't it?
Hang on, hang on.
And we thought that we would take you along with us
for any live breakdowns or, you know,
automotive or Rory related.
Right, you ready?
Hang on.
Here we go.
Hang on, wait.
Here we go.
So this is Robin for Biking Detail.
Last night.
He looks like a snorer.
Oh, what a way to start the podcast.
That was a few snores, and then a far.
Yes, fantastic.
Right, before we get into the podcast,
Taylor, what do we do?
We say hello to everyone.
And hello to van driver Ollie from Wigan,
Jessica, Tom and his family,
Scott and his son Alfie,
Martin Straub,
Jeff and his family, Martin,
Tom and their girlfriends Callum,
Nathan, Mark, Chris and his son,
who all emailed in at?
Podcast at autoismomjackie.com
to say how much fun they had at Shedfest
and that they will be back next year.
More on that in a minute.
But yeah, we'll get on to Shedfest
in a little while as well.
Also, hello to Mark listening
while running the great breweries marathon in Belgium.
Gail, who wants to shout out her boyfriend,
Jaden Coulthard, who works nights at an aerospace hub
and Rory's Mum Jackie.
How is Rory's Mum Jackie?
And did she enjoy Shedfest Rory?
She loved Shedfest and you did your usual
and Rory's Mum Jackie.
I couldn't quite see her reaction,
but I think she found it quite funny.
Excellent.
So she had a good time
and everyone had a good time at Shedfest.
It was by far the biggest
and the best Shedfest we've ever done fourth year in the row.
We welcome 12,000 of you.
We had a family zone.
We had two stages.
We had live track action.
We had a man with bubbles for all the kids.
Dad cars was there.
Food village.
I'm missing so many things.
BMX, there was so much for everyone
and we cannot wait to be back next year
at a location that will tell you very, very soon.
Right, Rory?
We can do that.
We can probably reveal it.
Can we reveal it?
We can actually reveal.
It will be.
It'll be at Bolsworth again.
It'll be at Bolsworth.
And because loads of you guys said,
oh, there's a bloody payage again in 1100 meters.
Because loads of you guys said
that one day was not enough to see the entire show.
We are going to turn it into a two day festival.
So we'll have more of you guys camping
because we sold out of camping really quickly
because we'd never done it before.
We just wanted to try it out
and 250 campsites or camping places went very quickly.
So yeah, we're going to have more of you guys camping.
So yeah, more festival vibes, which is fantastic.
I'm gonna have to open the window in just a second
to probably pay more money to the bloody French
because they keep on charging us lots of money
for their toll roads.
If anyone is watching this with their eye holes,
they will see that I'm quite zoomed in.
My apologies.
The only place I can mount the camera to get this angle
is on the interior mirror bit.
And it's very close to my face.
Right, windows going down.
Rory, have you done it?
Probably not too far away.
Hold on, I just got to lean across.
Wait, here we go.
Yep, sorry.
You're not that close.
Payments. How much was that?
Doesn't matter how much it was.
It was, are we good?
Yeah, just saw it go.
Can't be bothered with the bloody receipt.
Always the receipt.
Nice big swaft of oil coming in.
Are we in Spain yet?
No, we're not quite in Spain.
Because I'm seeing a lot of Spanish number plates on cars.
Well, we're getting into Spain,
but we're not quite in Spain.
Also, Rory, as you'll probably confirm as well,
that was quite close to that toll booth,
but not quite as close as Alex was
to a kerb last night, was he?
No, Alex managed to absolutely annihilate one of our,
what are they called again, Tethi?
Milano alloys.
Oh, you mean the Mazinis?
The Mazinis are a lovely Mazini tire that we put on this.
And he's absolutely annihilated it.
Oh, oh, oh, we just gone through it.
We just saw the sign for Spain.
Are we in Spain?
We're in Spain.
We're in Spain.
That was a sign, said Espanja.
We're in Spain.
This is the first ever podcast.
Correct me if I'm wrong, like we've ever done.
We've changed countries midway through the podcast.
I don't think so, because we've done a podcast
before with Tom Lenthal in the back of Big Pete,
and I think we went through countries there.
But it's the first one that we've ever crossed into Spain.
Now we have the entirety of Spain to get through
until we can get a ferry to Morocco and then into Africa,
which is very, very exciting.
Hopefully, if we actually make it that far.
If we make it.
But the car currently has done 1,016 miles.
Completely untested, wasn't it, Tate?
Yeah.
So this car 48 hours ago was actually misfiring.
It wasn't running properly.
I had to do loads of work to take all the inlet apart
and everything like that, repair loads of hoses and stuff.
And I didn't even think that we were going to start this trip,
because me and Rory came in on bank holiday Monday
after Shedfest and spent quite a long time doing it.
And we were like, hmm, I don't think this is possible.
But we managed to get it going after a fair bit of tinkering.
And it touch wood.
Does seem to be running all right at the moment.
We've had a few little issues other than the curb.
Yeah, I do like a bit of curb crawling.
You know me?
Well, Alex Kerbston.
Yeah, Alex Kerbston, thank you.
It's good.
Yeah.
Anyway, let's get into what we have been up to.
Obviously, we're sitting in the beautiful Bentley.
We'll get onto that in a minute.
But before that, four years of Auto Alex,
we recently crossed four years.
Do you know how I know that we did four years, Taylor?
Martin Franklin.
Martin Franklin, who listens to the podcast.
You actually messaged me or you tagged me in on Instagram
saying, happy four years.
And I was like, it's not four years already.
And yes, it is four years.
So thank you to Martin for reminding me.
Four years, I feel like I've been with you guys
for about 20 years.
You guys have made me slightly gray, very wrinkly.
You've given me two herniers.
Yeah, so thank you very much.
How do you feel?
Actually, great.
You've given yourself the herniers.
Thank you very much.
I will admit the greys and the wrinkles.
And we haven't given you a receding hairline.
That happened beforehand.
Yeah, that was before.
I was born with a receding hairline.
Even when I was in third form at high school,
people said I was going bald.
Yeah, but yeah, I do have that.
It's called a widow's peak, man.
It's a sign of intelligence.
That's what mommy says anyway.
Not sure it is.
But yeah, four years is mad.
Like that is bad.
That really has flown by.
So thank you everyone who's been with us
on the four year journey.
We've done a lot of silly things,
including driving a Bentley to Africa.
That's probably one of the silliest things.
And driving a Citroen BX with chocolate milkshake
in a radio to Paris.
And taking a caravan round track
while you were making a sandwich in the back of it.
Yeah, that was quite silly, but very fun.
And testing some steering locks and crashing into a smoker's shed.
Oh, you did do that. Apologies to that landlord.
Yeah, they were not happy with us at the time.
No, they're linen lines. I do apologise.
Yeah, and apologies to our storage landlord, Bruce,
because he's very upset with us as well,
because we had lorries coming back from Shedfest
and we disturbed his dinner.
So, yeah, sorry, sorry, but genuinely sorry.
That sounds very insincere, but it was sincere.
Yeah, we don't mean to piss you off.
Right, OK, so four years more, Taliq, Shedfest.
Oh, my God, Shedfest was the most amazing day,
I think most of us had in our lives in recent times.
It was fantastic. It went without a hitch.
The track staff was incredible.
And do you know what one of my favourite parts of the day was,
apart from meeting all of you guys and being up on stage?
Go on. Any guesses?
I'm going to say your favourite part of the day was...
going out in Phil.
That was one of my favourite parts, Rory.
Never toll road.
Oh, for crying out loud, these French are taking the piss now.
Spanish. Spanish.
Does that mean it's a bit cheaper if it's Spanish?
I've never done a Spanish toll road.
Do we get... Maybe we might get a boca díos.
That means a sandwich.
Yeah, go on. What was your favourite part?
Actually, my favourite part was seeing my daughter Amelia,
taking her to the kiddies' area and dancing with her
to nice music to the man who had the bubble machine.
Well, he was doing bubbles himself.
He spent all day doing bubbles. It was fantastic for the kids.
And I loved it.
It was just like five minutes of just, like, just nice,
just being a dad at a really cool car show.
Just completely switch off and just have fun.
So that was absolutely beautiful.
We also had, like, face painting and everything like that.
It was, oh, what a day.
I cannot wait for next year. It's going to be bigger and better.
Oh, it's a person.
Do you know it's a person? Oh, shit.
Where's my wallet?
Oh, my God. Oh, my word.
We're going to have a guest appearance on the phone.
OK, yeah.
Oh, OK, sorry. Bear with me.
I'm starting to panic a little bit.
Amelia's on phone. OK.
Oh, is it not?
Ciao, buongiorno.
OK, thank you.
Would you like to say hello on the podcast?
Oh, no.
No, no, no.
No, no, no.
Thank you very much.
Thank you.
Grazie.
Grazie.
Yeah.
Grazie.
Grazie.
Grazie.
Yeah, OK.
But yeah, Shedfest.
Yeah.
Jesus.
Hey.
Absolutely unreal for me as well, like, I super enjoyed it.
Yep.
It was great fun.
Everyone there was so lovely.
I tried to meet as many people as possible and chat to as many people as possible.
The guys that were doing food for us, they did the brisket and the ribs and stuff like that.
Brendan.
Brendan.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
I didn't fully catch their names.
Lovely, lovely people.
They were so, so nice.
I had a good chat to the guys at Latitude Tents as well.
They were really lovely.
Charlie and all the gang.
We had Febby there.
Holy.
Yeah.
And Custodian as well.
Custodian.
They were really, really nice.
Great to chat to, guys.
I've actually got one of their hats on the dashboard of the Bentley.
You do, yeah.
And yeah, it was just really, I think that was the highlight for me, was seeing and talking
to everyone.
Yeah.
And just, you know, it also, I don't know about you, the day flew by.
Oh, it was so quick.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Like, I remember we stayed in a hotel obviously because it's quite far away from where we
all live.
And when the day was over, we went back to a pub and we had a little drink to reflect
on the day.
Yeah.
And I was falling asleep at the table.
You were, yeah.
So tired and like sort of just overwhelmed by the day, but in a good way.
Yeah.
And then we went back to our rooms.
I laid in bed and I couldn't switch off because I just felt so like, I felt like I was still
talking to everyone.
It was amazing.
Yeah.
When you get back, you kind of realise how, you know, in a good way, like how overwhelming
the day is and how like mentally stimulating and exhausting it is at the same time.
Yeah.
Because you're always trying to be like on your, you know, best form, entertain everyone,
chat to everyone, autographs, pictures, and you always want to give 100%.
Yeah.
It is quite tiring.
It's really tiring actually.
So it does knack of you, but we said hello and we shook hands and we did signatures with
as many people as possible.
Yeah.
I mean, it was hundreds, hundreds and that we did.
And it's quite, for me, like it's quite hard because I get easily distracted.
Oh, yeah.
Don't we all?
You don't know where to look.
Yeah.
You know, like people come and say hello to you and you don't know where to look or
who to say hello to, you know, like it was just so, as I say, overwhelming, but in a
good way.
Yeah.
Yeah.
And it was just really, really lovely, really wholesome.
Yeah.
We also had the Top Gear Highlights there.
Oh, yeah.
That was such a highlight, wasn't it?
People absolutely loved that.
Yeah.
And after the show ended, I brought the Six Series inside because it was raining and
I parked the Six Series next to it and I just stood there and I was like, you know, I grew
up watching this vehicle.
That's like an A-list celebrity that car.
Yeah.
And it was not only part of a series, a very big series, but it was then in their studio
for years on display in every single episode they did.
The amount of celebrities and people that would have seen and touched that car.
I know.
Yeah.
It's mad, isn't it?
And it was in a room and I parked my Six Series next to it.
I know it sounds silly, but I just stood there for a while and just looked at it and
took it in.
And for me, that was like a really special moment.
It was really cool.
Yeah.
And also shout out to Nick from Motoraddix who was heading up the main stage.
He's absolutely fantastic.
He'll be back next year as well.
He's great.
Grace Webb as well was on our new Shed Talk stage as she was interviewing.
Yeah.
Tom Lentville, Tom Barkley, Dad Cars, Mike Ferney, Bob from the Machine Shop.
And a massive shout out to Tom Barkley for crashing Tom Lentville's car.
Yay!
That was so funny.
Insert clip.
Oh, and there is some bales, Tom.
There's bales on this road.
The road is yours.
The bales are ours.
Yeah.
Sorry, Tom Barkley.
No, we actually put him up to that.
I said to Tom Barkley, look, I'll give you five quid if you crash his car.
And he was like, OK, all right, I'll do it.
Consider it done, mate.
Consider it done.
It was so good.
It was so good.
Yeah.
But yeah, we did loads of drifting.
Taylor, you and the M5.
That was quite impressive.
Yeah.
I know in the last podcast I said that I wasn't going to go out.
Yeah.
I wasn't going to do any skids in it because my tyres were really expensive and I just
bought them.
And it came to the day and I saw everyone else queuing up and I was like, get me out.
I was like, I want to go out in that.
So I did three runs in it.
First run, I absolutely clotted two cones and sent them flying.
Second run, it was all right.
I did pretty decent.
And a third run, I took my mate George out for a little spin, who'd never been on track
before or anything like that.
And he blessed him.
He got in the car, he was absolutely shaking.
He didn't know what to say.
And I took him out.
And like the M5 was a bit, like even I was a bit scared because it's quite fast.
And I got to the first corner.
I was like, I'm really going some.
And then I did it.
I felt like I did it really well, got to the donut bit.
I did like three great donuts in it.
Tire smoke.
I was, yeah, I was absolutely buzzing, came off the end of it and it just felt great.
It felt great.
And I also took my mini for a little sprint run as well.
I did a massive burnout and a little handbrake turn for a laugh.
And yeah, it was just, it was, oh, oh, it was so good.
Yeah.
And you know what?
Doing those, doing the laps and doing the donuts and stuff and burnouts and whatnot
has like reignited my love for Phil properly.
I love that car.
It literally sits in storage, gets taken out and then gets absolutely ragged on track.
Storage out ragged.
It doesn't get much love, but it still keeps on going.
And I'm now at a stage where I want to do like a proper big build on it.
So either supercharge it, turbo, turbocharge it, put a V8 in it.
I want a hydro handbrake.
I want just to redo the interior, the exterior.
I kind of want to start from scratch a little bit.
Something really fun.
Yeah.
Something really fun.
Something like big power.
I want minimum like 350 horsepower because we've also got food and fuel, Chelsea Welsh
Hill Climb on August the 22nd.
And again, I want to do big burnouts, do donuts, do drifting round corners.
And I want to just, you know, have a lot of fun and impress a lot of people.
So that's my plan.
That's our plan.
Maybe on the V2 channel, we'll do a bit of a build on Phil, so I'm very, very excited
for that.
I feel that'd be great fun.
All right, then now a quick shout out for our podcast sponsor that is our very good
friends, Shopify, who've really, really helped level up how we sell stuff.
Rory, we've recently had Shedfest.
How has Shopify been so instrumental in helping everything run so smoothly?
At Shedfest, we had all of Shopify's latest POS systems.
So Shopify not only do the software behind our shop, they also do the hardware as well,
which means that when we had all of our sales coming through, it was actually taking stock
and we had our numbers of how much each individual items are sold and everything like that.
Before we started using Shopify, we used to just have manual card readers where we then
had to add up how much have been sold, had to manually count stock afterwards, whereas
now we've finished the day, we knew exactly how many items are sold.
We could even start building data from that and seeing, oh, this jumper sold more than
this jumper.
And then it allows us to then reorder more for the next show.
It's just a great way of interfacing your shop with the actual in-front store.
And as we know, Shopify is the commerce platform behind millions of businesses worldwide, including
massive businesses like Gymshark and Mattel, to smaller businesses like us, although we're
not really that small anymore because we have surpassed 10,000 orders.
We're doing so well, in fact, Shopify have sent us out a plaque to say congratulations
on that.
And if you guys want to get started, Shopify have got their own design studio with hundreds
of ready-to-use templates that means that you can make your shop look as beautiful and
as detailed as you want.
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So start your business today with the industry's best business partner, Shopify.
And you can sign up for a £1 per month trial period at Shopify.co.uk forward slash auto
Alex.
That is Shopify.co.uk forward slash auto Alex.
On with the podcast.
What else?
Oh, FFs as well.
You know, they've been coming back into my periphery again.
Edwin from TDC sent me a link to a cars and classic one.
Higher mileage, 59,000 miles.
It's green.
It was white being re-sprayed green.
And it's currently off itself for £65,000.
So we've actually been looking at some of the cars that I could sell to be able to get
into that kind of 65 grand mark.
So there's a lot of stuff I want to sell, which Rory, I think will make you quite happy
And there's quite a few cars that have sat there for a while.
They've been meaning to be sold.
And I think this is now going to be like that moment where you go, do you know what?
I should get rid of these.
And then you might just just be able to get a Ferrari FF.
I know that would be amazing.
So the Hummer needs to go.
The classic Mini needs to go E30 at some point.
I want to engine swap that and that can go of even being considering, right,
getting rid potentially of the Alpha 156 GTA.
That would be a shame because I do really like that car.
Yeah, I really enjoyed working on it.
It's fantastic.
It makes me smile every time I get in it.
But if it means I can get a step closer to an FF, even though it's a high mileage
one, then I think it's a no brainer because when am I going to get a chance again?
I just don't know.
And an Alpha 156, they are coming down in price.
So I think if I wanted to in a couple of years time, get back into one,
then it wouldn't hopefully be too much of a stretch.
So and to be fair, I think you would slightly prefer a sport wagon.
Yeah. The estate.
Yeah, I would. I would. Yeah.
Yeah, because I quite like a saloon, but you're more of a like an estate car.
I am. Yeah. Yeah. Nice dad wagon.
That's what I really like.
But yeah, the last the last two weeks have been hectic.
They've been fantastic.
We've met thousands of people.
It's been amazing.
And yeah, I just can't wait to level up even more.
Shout out to M who heads up events as well.
You know, she pretty much did everything single handedly, planned everything.
So you're doing a fantastic job.
We love you.
And yeah, we can't wait to plan more events with you and to invite more people.
Rory. Yeah.
So for those of you don't know, this was actually the first shed fest
that was fully in house.
So there's no team behind it.
There's no like business that's organizing at this time.
It was it was internally organized.
We've obviously got M who's works with us now.
But yeah, it was the first one that we did on our own, which is why we we sort
of went bigger and better than we've ever done before.
And I think because we we'd had more time to actually plan it ourselves.
That's why it was just it was so special, I think, to all of us as well,
because the amount that was going on there was insane.
I must say when I've I've never been on that site before and I got there in the
evening and I walked around and looked at the attention to detail that M has
put into that event and it was insane.
Like all of the different brands that were there were their amazing stands.
Like all of the just little cool bits, even the shed fest sign that was
handmade out of the Honda Civic and like all the different bits of the venue.
It just made it feel so so special.
She's done an amazing job.
That is why we have chosen to go to Bolsworth again next year.
It's also because I know obviously for people who are in the in the South,
it's it's a bit of a trek.
But you've got to remember there is a big part of the country that's still
past the South and it is actually quite a central point.
We had a lot of people coming from Ireland,
from Scotland who were making it down.
Obviously, there was a couple from Australia there again.
Yes, but yet the actual venue itself,
it's so hard to find something that has the feel of Goodwood, which is so special
anywhere else that will also allow you to do track action.
We've gone through all of the sort of possible places everywhere we can do.
And Bolsworth is the place that we just keep coming back to.
And it's such a good location for hosting that that shed fest feel with having
the track action and then being able to expand into this camping sort of two day
event that we want to do as well. So yeah, that's why we're going to Bolsworth.
Yeah, and we can't wait as well.
Also, the hotels nearby that we've probably already booked as well.
Fantastic. Like waking up with the view of the countryside is just so nice.
It's really a lovely, lovely part of the country and everyone's just so good
and nice and wholesome and I can't wait. I'm so excited.
Anyway, Taylor, what you've been up to recently?
Obviously, we've just discussed shed fest and Bentley.
What else has been going on in your life?
Mainly what have I been up to?
Mainly shed fest, obviously, that was a lot.
I actually went up to shed fest in my Tuareg, which I've been working on recently.
So I've put Apple CarPlay in it.
I've just been tying it up and finishing it off.
I've put a new window regulator in it as well.
Because remember on the Scotland trip, the window broke?
Yeah. And do you know what?
I absolutely love that car.
I've never it's so strange because I've never hated a car as much as that before.
Sorry, if you hear around, that's the windscreen wipers on the Bentley,
which are currently disintegrating and it's raining as we speak.
But yeah, I've never like hated a car.
That car broke me, but I love it so much at the same time.
Driving it and like the power that it has and it's comfortable.
It's just such a brilliant, brilliant vehicle.
So I've been working on that.
I've been fixing it up and just making it really, really nice.
I put my latitude temp back on it and that was shed fest on display.
Shout out to Trev for giving you a hand as well.
Yeah, Trev gave me a hand putting that back on.
And then I towed the six series up to shed fest with that.
And my God, what a cool rig.
Like it was so cool.
I felt like such a badass driving that up there with the trailer connected.
I even jet washed my trailer and put tie shine on it.
You're such a tough.
I know. I know.
Do you know what? I just loved it.
It was so, so cool.
I was so proud of it, like being able to drive that up there.
I absolutely loved it.
Well, also, if I've been up to M5, I've actually just ordered a load of motor oil
for and I'm going to give it a major, major service.
Why are you doing that, Tay?
So I'm changing.
We're so jealous because next week, Rory and I are on holiday,
like actual holiday, not together, but we're actually not going to be too far
away from each other, are we?
No, yeah, Riyan and Ellie just sort of phoned
each other and went, maybe maybe we could go near and then just run away and
leave the boys to it.
Yeah, we've got more videos to plan, don't we?
So, yeah, you guys are on holiday with your families this week.
And I am traveling.
Yeah, I'm very excited to the Nürburgring 24 hour.
So jealous, but happy for you at the same time.
So I'm honestly so, so, so, so buzzing.
Yeah.
I'm going with Jamie, who does a lot of our videography and transport and stuff
like that.
He actually does a lot of my videography as well for my Tailor Made Cars channel.
And I am going with Motel and they said to me when I when when they asked me if I
wanted to go, do you want to drive or fly?
And I was like, of course I want to drive.
So I'm driving over in my M5.
And before I go, I'm going to give it a good service.
I'm going to put some fresh Motel engine oil in.
I'm going to change a gearbox oil and I'm going to do the diff oil because I've
never done them and I want to make sure that it's all hunky-dory ready for the trip.
And I'm going to be leaving next Thursday.
Question, Taylor.
Yes, what is the fastest you've ever driven on the Autobahn?
I think it was actually in my six series.
Really? I think so, yeah.
So about one was that 140?
146 I think I did 146.
I think that was the fastest.
OK, I may have done another time, but I can't remember it.
Yeah. All right.
So you're going to be in your M5, de-restricted Autobahn.
What's the plan? What do we think?
So if it's clear weather, yeah, I will be honest.
Yeah, car has got an E.
It's it's got a tune on it.
Right. It's got an infinity intake on it.
Yeah. And I when I had it tuned, I did have it de-restricted.
OK, so what's the theoretical top speed of that?
So that car will do standard 206 miles an hour.
Standard standard 206.
But it's not standard.
It's got 550 horsepower.
Jesus. OK.
So I mean, in theory, it's geared to do like 210 miles an hour.
Jesus, bloody hell.
Which is quite insane.
It's quite scary to think that I have I have access.
Yeah.
And I am usually at the helm of a 210 miles an hour car.
When you're on the way to the unit.
When I'm on the M25 or the M25.
Yeah. So yeah, if the weather is clear and the conditions are clear and the roads
are fairly empty, I may I may give it a bit of a drive.
Yeah. And I may break my personal record.
My personal record for driving the fastest I've ever driven before was 176 miles an hour.
Oh, where was that?
That was in Mexico.
Yeah. No, it was actually on a track.
On a track.
Yeah, that was just 176 miles an hour.
Yeah. All right.
So if I could break the target, if I can beat that, I will be happy.
OK. So and it will all be documented as well, because you're filming it for the V2 channel.
I am. Yeah.
So you're going to take us along with you.
That's very exciting.
Yeah, I'm really excited about that.
So I've got a bit of work to do when I get back and give it a good service and stuff.
But I'm really excited to take that car because do you know what?
I love my M5 so much.
Yeah, I absolutely adore it.
Like when I first got that car, oh, another bloody toll.
Are you taking the piss?
Sorry, everyone. Sorry.
There's just another toll in front.
Yeah, there are a lot of tolls in Europe, aren't there?
I must say, though, the scenery has changed quite dramatically since we started the podcast.
Like it looks really different.
It's also warmer as I'm sweating.
It is quite warm. Yeah.
All right. Thank you.
Window down. Right.
Don't clout any kerks again, worry.
Oh, is it a man again?
Oh, it's a ticket.
What do you want for me?
I'll help you out.
What do you want?
Oh, if you're watching this,
I hope you're all right.
Oh, I'm a hero.
There you go.
Oh, thank you.
Oh, yeah.
So what's happening if people are listening with their ear holes?
If you're listening with your ear holes, I've got a pink duster on an extending rod.
And I'm just buffering the boys.
I'm just making sure that they feel so.
Oh, yeah, you know, you've got to look after you look after your team.
Yeah. OK.
M5 top speed.
That's the plan.
Yep. So potentially, as I say, as long as the conditions are clear,
I will give it a bit of juice and see what happens.
Other than that, still without an Audi RS4.
Yeah, but you're getting closer.
I feel like more people are messaging you about maybe.
Yeah, maybe.
But I think it would be done to buy one without finishing my 9-11.
Rory.
Yes, that would be extremely done.
Thank you.
So you think I should buy one?
Oh, 100 percent.
Yeah, yeah.
So you seem to like you don't like the idea of me buying cars, Alex,
but you seem to like back this whenever I mention it.
Yeah, I'm like, you know, the devil and the angel.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
I feel like you say, yeah, yeah, buy one.
Like, it's a great idea.
And then I'd buy one and bring it to the unit.
You go, what do you do that for?
Do you know what it is?
Like, sometimes you say, I want to buy X and I'm like, that's just really dumb.
What a silly idea.
Like, what was it? M2 competition you wanted?
That was such a dumb mistake.
No, I like those.
I know you like those, but, you know, an RS4, at least it's an appreciating asset
and it's cool. All right.
An M2, people finance, rag about, and then they just go put in a bit.
So what would you say?
Yeah. If I were to sell my 33
five D touring and buy an Audi RS4 Avant?
I would say, when are you moving close to the unit?
Because your fuel bills are going to be very, very extortionate.
I'm actually potentially going to look at somewhere next week.
Oh, OK. Well, I would say by the RS4.
If you're within 15 minutes, then I will cover your fuel bills happily with an RS4.
OK. How about that?
Yeah. OK. Cool.
Good job. Yeah.
OK. Well, maybe anyone want to buy 335 D touring with a pan roof.
You are actually selling a 335 D touring.
Well, to be fair, I couldn't actually, if I'm moving as close as I'm looking at moving,
I couldn't keep it anyway, because I just clog up the DPS.
You couldn't possibly know because you'd only be doing those journeys.
I know it would be insane for me to keep that.
I'd have to replace it with an Audi RS4.
Exactly right. Yeah.
But yeah, other than that,
well, so I've been doing a couple of little bits to my mini as well.
I've been fixing that up.
I have, yeah, just mainly shed fest and cars and stuff, not really a massive amount.
Other than that, I'm just really excited for things to come in the near future.
Yeah, I'm excited for the Nürburgring 24 hour.
I'm also really excited to get my 911 fixed and up and running.
Yeah, which hopefully, hopefully won't be too long.
Maybe another couple of months or so.
It's currently in the body shop being painted at the moment, the car.
Yeah, so that should be back very, very soon.
I'm having the seats refurbished at the moment.
Yeah, I'm just very excited for stuff like that.
Excellent.
And yeah, see what the future, the future hold, maybe an Audi RS4.
Because I haven't been offered one.
Rory, what about you?
What's been going on in your life?
Uh, so not a lot really, you know, just wait, is it is it time?
Oh, my God, is it time?
It is time.
It is time. Oh, my God, oh, God.
So Alex has been doing his really best to not say anything because you are so awful.
Are you sorry, you are the biggest gossip?
No, no, no, yes, yes, you are the biggest instigator of oh, what's happened?
What are you doing?
Oh, trying to push a little story out.
But anyway, I'm a journalist or anything for a good story.
Right, Rory, you have news.
What's the news?
So in October, me and Ellie and now cut to the podcast sponsor.
Come on, we are having a little girl.
Yeah, well done.
I'm finally joining Alex.
So all the times that he said, just wait, just wait, this will be you soon.
It will now actually be me soon.
Yeah, I know.
I'm going to be a girl.
Do you know what?
I'm so happy for you and Ellie.
I really am. Oh, thanks.
Really nice. Like it's very sweet.
And do you know, like when we go to our events and stuff and everyone brings
their families, it's so sweet to see everyone all together.
And it's just lovely, isn't it?
Like and everyone chats and gets along and it's just nice.
It's nice to see like everyone's families evolving over the years.
And even like Amelia, she's grown so quickly and to see her like running
around Shedfest and stuff and growing up.
Oh, she loves it.
He really loves cars as well.
And I haven't pushed that on her.
No, which is such such a refreshing, nice thing as well.
It's really wholesome.
And you know, on the note of Rory having a child, have you got news?
I've got news.
Oh, here we go.
Are you having a child?
I am. Yeah.
I'm not. I'm going to get an RS4.
Yeah.
Rory, how are we feeling?
Are we nervous? Are we anxious?
Are we are we excited?
I'm excited. I'm really excited, actually.
Yeah. I don't know.
You always feel like you're not ready enough really to have a kid.
But I'm starting to feel like I I'm going to be all right.
It's going to be all right.
That's the moment I'm getting to.
I think the nerves were very much at the start.
I was very much like, oh, crap.
Like, am I ready for this?
You know, is it all good?
But yeah, it's I'm buzzing, actually.
I can't say it.
What? Just say it.
Say what? Just say it.
So I don't know what just say it.
What? Everything always works itself out in the end.
I can't. I can't say just say it, Rory.
Everything always works itself out in the end.
You're welcome. You're welcome for that, working yourself out.
I was there in the room at the time I was up.
That's my boy.
Oh, God.
Oh, congratulations, Rory.
Yeah, we're very, very happy for you.
And yeah, Ellie, congratulations as well.
It's not too late to leave.
So now it is too late to leave, I'm afraid.
So the question is, Rory,
you're your family's growing.
Yeah, you know, you're having a child, being more sensible.
You're not buying any more cars.
No, what are you selling?
So
what's the sale in the Rory collection?
Well, at the moment, we may have come up with a plan for the mini.
This is a plan that I've not OK'd yet.
I've not vetoed it yet.
But it pretty much has been OK.
We get an N18 mini.
We swap all the parts onto it, all the good stuff, because there is a lot of
valuable money in that car.
Yeah.
And then we take the shell of the other one and we blow it up.
Yeah, I'm all for it.
You didn't mention blowing it up.
OK, pass. There we go.
Let's do that. Absolutely.
So it's either that or run it over with a tank, I think blow it up.
I think blow it up.
If anyone has a green N18 mini.
So there's actually someone who is message.
Have you got the email?
I've got the email, actually, because he emailed that podcast at autoxcars.com.
His name is Jeff.
Hello, my name, Jeff.
Jeff, Jeff, we're interested.
Yeah, it's got to be cheap, though, Jeff.
All right, Jeff, so a touch more pictures, please.
So, yeah, your mini looks nice.
So, yeah, we are interested.
So that's kind of our news now.
Any more news?
No, that's about it.
Oh, actually, my Mustang.
Oh, my Mustang.
So it came back and it was so cool to see it at Shedfest and just see all the people
looking around it, walking around.
There were a few people who walking around it going, is this Richard Hammond?
I was like, no, it's mine.
But yeah, I now just need to decide on the color of stripes.
I'm still undecided.
Gray.
Look, it could be gray or it could be white.
Either way, either it's amazing.
Yeah, I'm really excited to get that car back on the road.
Me too.
All right, cool.
Well, let's now move the podcast on to the sponsor of the podcast, which is CarVertical.
And we've had an email in at podcast.autocars.com from a man called Andrew Cook.
Now, we've been saying to you each week, if you've got any car vertical
kind of stories, then let us know how you've been getting on with CarVertical.
Because, you know, it's all right for us to keep on saying, oh,
use CarVertical, get the credits, you know, check the cars.
But we want real life stories from you guys.
So Andrew Cook has emailed in saying, now then, boys, he's clearly northern.
Now, who starts an email with now then, if you're not northern, he's definitely
calls a bread roll, a bread cake, a bread cake.
So now then, boys, hope you're doing well.
I'm Andrew 26 and I'm an avid watcher of the channels and listener to the podcast
when doing my van runs at work delivering car parts.
I just finished listening to season two episode 34 of the podcast and I've got
a fun CarVertical story from you.
Now, I'm from North Yorkshire.
Alex will probably do the accent here.
A-O-B-S-T-O-D.
That's what he's actually written.
And cars up here are awful.
Bradford Leeds, et cetera.
I was on the lookout for an Octavia VRS Mark 2.
My attainable dream car and I found the perfect one.
It was black estate and it was local to me.
Excellent, I thought.
The ad looked clean on Facebook marketplace and luckily the number plate
was on there, so I ran a car vertical check.
Let's just say things weren't as they seemed, even though the owner said in the
ad, everything was fine, a check told me different.
There were yellow warnings for damage and theft, giving this particular car
a miserable score of 32.
Wow.
The worst, he said the worst IT.
I've never seen anything below like 40 or so.
That is half of what this Bentley got.
So this Bentley is actually 60.
Yeah. So 32 is abysmal.
I told the owner this as benefit of the doubt, but he point blank, refused to
budge on price and told me it was all fine and not to worry.
Luckily, I found a blue saloon VRS, which had a clean car vertical report.
And despite having a few more miles on the clock at 172,000,
it was cheaper, had recently had a lot of work done to the underside of the car
and was in better condition.
Needless to say, if I didn't run a car vertical check, I'd have been stuck with
a dog, which would have caused me no end of bother further down the line.
So thanks for always reminding us to do the proper checks before even leaving the house.
Keep up the great work you do.
And I'm looking forward to seeing what you do next.
Regards, Andrew.
There you go.
Another testimonial from you guys from Andrews, giving you guys another reason
why to use car vertical.
If you're listening to this podcast, which you obviously are with your ears and your
eyes, you can use my code Alex cast for 20% off your next car vehicle report.
If you front load now as well, you can get up to 50% if you buy more credits.
What's more, Taylor car vehicle doesn't only work in the UK, does it?
No, it works in the most of Europe.
It works in America, Australia and South Africa, South Africa as well.
It's definitely worth doing.
We do it on literally every car we buy.
And also I do it all on, you know, I've done it all on my personal cars as well.
So it's nice to build up a timeline of the history of your car.
Yeah.
So yeah, leave no car on check.
Always, always run a car vertical reports and sorry, one more thing, Rory.
I actually did a car vertical report on all my cars the other day on something
that I had bought a while ago and my Jag.
Oh, the Jag, the Jag that I gave you as a present.
The Jag that Mr.
Lenthal sold me has previous actually had been in an accident,
but it's it's actually been an accident that wasn't recorded and a car vertical has
found it and it's come off as a insurance quotation of to 15,000 pounds of damage.
Oh, my God, Rory, are you sure that wasn't
when Alex backed into it with a Range Rover?
Shut up, shut up.
All right, well, that's quite a lot.
That's quite bad.
That is quite bad.
So yeah, that's not the only written off car that you've got then, because the
Land Rover as well is right off as well.
Although the Jag isn't recorded.
No, no.
So the Jag was of it.
Well, to be fair, a minor shunt in that Jag would probably be 10 to 15 grand
because of the headlights and everything like that are quite expensive.
But yeah, it goes to show.
Check your own cars again, because you might find because the thing is
car vertical adding more and more data into their database every single week.
So you could find that your car that you thought was clean might not be as
clean as you thought it was.
Yeah, in which case, just sell it.
Right, let's now move on to a game.
I've got a new game. All right.
Last week, I think it was which was the heaviest vehicle.
So an apology, an apology to everyone, especially you guys.
OK, the Ford Transit was not the heaviest vehicle of those three.
So you guys, I think, got it right.
I think we had someone from like the Ford Transit Society actually message or
comment saying, I think you'll find it's actually 1.8.
It's 2.4 later.
I said that I know, literally said that I'm sorry.
No, no, I told me.
So I've done my research.
I've actually gone through these cars individually to make sure that I know
how many of these vehicles were made.
Ford Model T or classic Beetle
or Tesla's of any variety or varieties.
OK, Ford Model T, all Tesla's classic
Beatles, which of those three vehicles are that are their most of or were most
amount of made? OK. Yeah.
Ford Model T, 15,000.
OK.
Beetle.
1.5 million.
Yeah. The Tesla's.
Yeah.
4000000 OK. Rory.
Ford Model T, 200,000.
What was the next one?
A Beetle.
Classic Beetle.
4000000
4000000
No, 4000000
I'm going to say it's quite high still.
And then a Tesla's.
100 and 50000000
100 and 50000000
That is that's a lot, Rory.
So you think the winner there of those three is Tesla with 100 and fifty
million and, Sayla, you were going with?
Which was yours again? Sorry.
I think the Beetle.
The Beetle. More than a million.
OK. I can tell you the Tesla.
Teslas, all Teslas ever made 9000000 currently.
18000000 currently.
Ford Model T, both of you were way off.
Fifteen, you said thousand.
Yeah. 15000000
What? 15000000
That's impossible. 15000000 Model T's.
No, I don't know.
Classic Beetles.
Do you know when they were made?
They were made from I think 1965 until 2003.
Oh, wow. Yeah.
They were made in Brazil until 2003.
21 point 5000000 Beetles have been produced.
Do you know I believe the Beetle?
I believe the Tesla.
I don't believe the Ford Model T.
I think that's incorrect.
OK. AI has done you a dirty.
Let me let me hold on.
Model T.
You've got to remember the Ford Model T was not
altered. It's not automated production.
They were all made by hand.
Imagine Model T's.
They were pretty much the only cars back in the day.
Yeah, I know, but there weren't 15 million.
There were 15 million.
I'm telling you, there were 15 million.
OK, so it's currently nil nil.
The next set of three cars.
We have got Smart Roadster.
We've got Alpha 4C.
Or the first generation Honda Insight.
Oh, well, this is not easy.
No, it's not easy. That's the whole point.
So Smart Roadster, Alpha 4C,
or the first generation Honda Insight,
which one of those are there most of?
Rory, I believe the Smart Roadster wasn't that quite a bit of a failure for for
Smart. I don't think that did quite well for them at all.
I'm going to say that was one of the low low.
So what do I have to give numbers?
You can have a little guess.
I'm going to say 10,000 Smart Roadsters.
No.
I'm going to say 50,000 Smart Roadster.
No, 20,000 Smart Roadsters.
OK, then the next one was the
Honda Insight or the Honda Insight?
The 4C, the 4C.
I'm going to say was 10,000.
And Honda Insight?
I'm going to say that one was 30,000.
So Honda Insight is your winner, Taylor.
I'm going to say.
So it's the Honda Insight, the Alpha 4C or the Smart Roadster?
Hmm.
I reckon the Smart Roadster, they made the most.
Yeah, I reckon they made 20 numbers.
Just just give me which one.
Smart Roadster.
OK.
Alpha 4C, then the Honda Insight.
OK. Smart Roadster, 43,000.
You were correct.
First gen Honda Insight, 17,000 and the Alpha 4C, only 9,000.
OK. So Taylor, you won that round.
All right, congratulations.
Very kind. Right. Next list of three cars.
We have got the BMW Z8.
Oh, I love those.
We have got the McLaren P1
or the Bugatti Veyron.
Which one do you think is most common out of those?
I think this is annoying.
I reckon they made.
I reckon it's Veyron.
Yeah.
P1 then Z8.
Rory.
I think Veyron.
And then I'm going to say Z8, then P1.
So Veyron is the most common car out of those three, you reckon?
Really? Oh, OK.
Yeah, I can reveal.
Go on.
There were.
300 and 75 McLaren P1s made.
400 and fifty Bugatti Veyrons.
Wow. Only 400 and fifty.
BMW Z8's 5700 and three.
Quite a lot.
Quite a common car in this list.
So it's still one love to Taylor.
Do you know what's mad?
Yeah, being in this Bentley is probably the closest we're ever going to get to a
Bugatti Veyron. Yeah, probably right.
Yeah, very loosely liked.
It's got the W style engine turbo.
You know, it's it's that pique generation of Volkswagen Audi group product.
Yeah. OK, right.
So let's move it on.
We have got question four.
So it's still all to play for the VW Lupo 3L.
No, TDC's vehicle, the Clio V6 all generations or the Lotus Evora.
I'm going to say Lupo most common, then Lotus, then.
What was the last one? Sorry.
Then Clio. Oh, no.
Yeah. No.
Do you know? I think it's true.
I'm going to go.
No, I'm going to keep that Lotus Evora.
No, sorry, Lupo Lotus Clio.
All right. OK, Taylor.
I think it's Clio is the most common.
Yeah, then the Lotus and then the Lupo.
OK, I can reveal as we are hard on the brakes here.
We are colliding.
I can reveal our gearbox is not like that.
No, it's a bit.
It's having a bit of trouble.
The most common of those vehicles is indeed the Lupo 3L.
Is it 30 to 35,000 were made.
Then the Lotus Evora 6117,
followed by the Clio V6 of all variants, 3000
So it's one all it is now extra point for getting all three right.
No, I might minus one for being cocky.
One all it is now all to play for.
Question five, OK, all to play for.
We have got
the BMW E34 M5, the BMW E39 E60 M5.
Right, Taylor, as the BMW expert, it is all to play for.
Which of those is the most common?
I reckon E39 most common, E62 E34 last.
OK, so you're saying E39, E60, E34, Rory, all to play for.
That's so annoying, because I would also probably say E39,
but I'm going to have to go different because I'm rising to make sense.
Because I believe there was a massive price jump wasn't there from the E39
to the E60, which I mean, they must not sold as much.
But I'm going to go, still say E60, E39, E34.
All right, so Taylor says the E39 is the most common.
Rory says the E60 is the most common.
I can reveal the least common was indeed the E34 M5, approximately 12,000.
Yeah.
Then we have got the E39 with 20,482
followed very closely by the E60 with 20,548.
So only about 60 cars in it.
But Rory, you are victorious.
You have won this week's game.
Congratulations. How do you feel?
Does that mean I don't have to go in the back next?
Yeah, you do, I'm afraid.
Yeah, sorry, you do.
Yeah, but how do you feel?
Well, I feel a bit shit now.
All right, well, I hope you guys had fun at home as well.
Email us at podcast.autorelexcars.com
and let us know how you get on.
Also, with the whole car vertical thing as well,
email us if you if you've used car vertical and if they've helped you.
Let us know and I will happily read out your story.
Right, let us now move it on to a car lemma that we have got a keeper quits
from a man called Jack Ainsworth and his keeper quits is Monaro.
We like a Monaro, don't we?
You know, at Shedfest, there was a Lotus Carlton.
Oh, my God, yes.
In mint condition, next to a Monaro, a bright red one, stunning.
Absolutely stunning.
And, you know, I'm going to be completely honest.
Yeah, I would have driven home in the Monaro.
You're wrong.
And I would have.
It was bright red and it looked really good and it's just a bit.
I just I know, you know what?
I'd probably be with you on that because it's just so much more lary.
Isn't it? So good.
V8 rear wheel drive, big power, light on the rim.
Oh, I love the car that you can really like spank as well.
It's a bit of fun as well.
Right, anyway, Jack Ainsworth, hi, Alex, Rory and Taylor.
First off, big thanks for keeping the commute in the work van, entertaining
with your podcast. Now, I've got a bit of a car lemma.
My current car is a 2005 Vauxhall Monaro with a 5.7 litre LS1 V8 and it's an
absolute blast, probably the closest to old school muscle car that you can get
while still being fairly modern and reliable.
It's also big enough to fit the two little kids and their car seats,
although trying to strap in two toddlers in the back of a two door car while being
six foot four myself is not the easiest.
Also, aftermarket support isn't great, at least compared to German or Japanese vehicles.
My wife currently drives a Mark 4 Mondeo and while I love it,
it's practicality for hauling kids in the occasional tip run.
The Mrs hates driving it and is desperate to downsize to something more
fiesta sized. So I think I've got three options.
Number one, keep the Monaro and get a small fiesta,
but lose out on practicality of being able to do tip runs and pick up large items.
Option two, keep the Monaro and get a Ford Focus, which might be a compromise
and be either too big for the Mrs or too small for my needs of practicality
and accommodating someone my size.
Or option three, get the wife a small car and change the Monaro for something
more practical while still being fast, fun and a little bit different.
If I was to change my car, it would have to be a saloon or a stage,
preferably a V8 or at least a five pot.
I've considered Jaguar XJRs, Volvo V70Rs and Audi S4 events,
but always worry, I'll regret losing the Monaro and finding any replacement
lacking the something special my car and car has.
Any help, much appreciated.
Thanks, Jack. What are we saying, lads?
Can I get started? Yeah.
I've got an RS4, B7 and a Vart.
No, not an RS4, B7 and a Vart.
I'm going to say keep your Monaro because it's so special.
I think you'll struggle to get one in the near future.
If you ever want that, it's also really unique.
You don't see them on the road.
So keep that you clearly love it because in all three scenarios,
you're pretty much saying that you want to keep the Monaro.
So keep the Monaro.
What about getting something like a correct me if I'm wrong, Taylor,
but you can get a Fabia estate.
It almost has a similar footprint to a Fiesta in terms of width.
Yeah, it's a bit longer.
You can fold the seats down.
You've got plenty of space in the boot if and when you need it.
They don't do Fiesta estates, do they?
You can get a Focus estate, which is a similar estate.
Again, it's a different kind of class of car, isn't it?
But I would get like a super mini estate.
The only one I can think of currently is the Fabia or can you get the Ibiza estate?
You can get an Ibiza estate as well.
You're forgetting one.
I'm forgetting one. What's that?
You really should know this one.
Come on, have a think.
Why should you really know about a mini estate?
Oh, because you can get a mini clubman.
Yeah, a mini clubman is a good shout.
Them in a Cooper S with the B48 are actually quite good cars, Tayon.
Yeah, they're really good cars.
Even the one that your wife has, Alex Rianne,
she's got the one point 53 cylinder and they're also really good.
I will say, though, that compared to a
minute, that compared to a Fiesta, again, is more kind of three series sized.
OK, because the clubman is actually quite a wide car.
Like the mini is not mini anymore.
Well, then just go for the standard.
You get the I think you could still get a four door
F 56, couldn't you?
Yes, you can.
I think, yeah, we'll just get a standard four door or just I mean, if she's
I think the thing is, once you've driven a mini and sat in a mini,
the quality difference between that and a Fiesta, I think all is forgiven
because it is is far superior in every single way.
So I would say, depending on what size, there's lots of different versions of that
mini, you can either, you know, if you want something a bit bigger, go for the clubman.
If not, you've got an F 56 at four door.
And if not, you still want something a bit smaller than go for the free door.
I can't believe after all the recent conversations,
Rory's recommended that someone buys a mini, not an F 56.
Whatever you do, do not get the F 56.
Yeah, that's fair. Yeah.
Taylor, what do you reckon them?
I'm with you. I would keep the Monaro.
I think in the near future, they're going to be really hard to get hold of.
They're also really cool.
And I think having a car like that while your kids are growing up.
Oh, yeah, it's just really, really cool to have and it's fun.
And realistically, you've given us three options and two of those options are
keeping that Monaro, Monaro, which says to me that you, you know,
in an ideal world, you want to keep the car.
Yes, I would keep it and I would, you know, get your wife, you know,
take her out to see some cars.
I think she would like something more like a Ford Eco Sport, which is like a
Fiesta, but slightly higher up or a Ford Cougar.
No, no, not a Cougar.
Well, you say that, know, we've never driven one.
We've never tried one. I have.
But the reason that the Fiesta is no longer being sold in the UK is because
these cars outsell the Fiesta and they're, you know, people like them.
People like them for a reason.
They like driving and they like taking them to the tip, whatever.
They are good cars.
So I would be more inclined to take her out, you know, spend a day or a weekend
or whatever test driving some cars, see what she likes, see what you can fit in
the boot and work around the Monaro.
Do you know there is another option
of Bentley Flying Spur?
No, there is another option by your wife, a Fiesta and put a tow bar on it.
If ever you need to lug stuff to the tip by yourself, a tiny little trailer,
a tiny little box trailer, why are you shaking your head?
The thing is, you got to remember,
you guys forget because you just find it quite easy having a trailer and you even
know having a small trailer is not an easy feat for a lot of people.
Just never reverse.
That's what I mean.
It's a small trailer is actually quite a difficult thing.
And it's it's not the easiest thing to learn to be able to reverse a trailer.
I must say, whenever I've had a small trailer in the past and put stuff in it,
it always falls out.
What? Yeah.
Why? I don't know, it just falls out.
They just bounce about a lot and stuff flies out.
Oh, actually, no, you're right.
When I did my wedding, I had a little box trailer and put it on the back of KN
and all of our umbrellas flew out.
Yeah, I remember there was like strewn across the road.
Yeah, they always stuff just flies out of them.
OK, I forget why I said.
Or just get Bentley Continental GT, they're really cheap.
Sure. Yeah.
So hopefully, Jack, that gives you a bit of perspective.
We all agree, keep the Monaro because it's such a special car.
And Taylor quite rightly said with your kids, like that is like core memory, isn't
it? Yeah, like daddy taking us out in the VA, going sideway.
No, you know, you know, just driving sensibly.
So, yeah, please, whatever you do, keep that.
Rory, what we got coming up?
We have got coming up.
Well, I mean, the Africa road trip.
Who knows if the Bentley made it on the road trip?
Who knows? We actually, at this point, don't know.
No, no, who knows if we managed to leave the unit and get it working?
Oh. Oh, yeah.
Who knows? Who knows?
We know. Don't tell anyone.
And then we've got obviously our V8.
So after we saw your SL for the first time at Shedfest, which looks incredible.
The SL shop guys have done an amazing job on that.
The 840 is nearly back from the body shop.
Speaking of which, oh, I have been sent.
Is it in primer by Nishan?
Photographic updates of that.
Oh, it's not in primer yet, but it's pretty much prepped.
Look how much work has been done to that car.
Wow. Just a quick help.
It's a bit more than a quick blow over.
That's amazing.
Yeah, that's ready for primer now.
And we want to do something a bit different, don't we, to the 8 series?
We've never done this mod.
Shall I say what?
Yeah, go on.
And I've been speaking to a company that I worked with many, many years ago on my
36 M3 where they gave me suspension, but this isn't any old suspension, is it, Rory?
No, I sort of I thought of the idea of maybe putting it in on air.
Yeah.
And I think that car is such a good car to put on air, especially if we can get the
right wheels for it as well.
I'm well excited about that.
I think that'd be so cool.
Yeah. So what's the company?
Seeker, C-E-I-K-A.
And they do a kit that just happens to be literally specifically for the 8 series.
Yeah. So yeah, I can't wait to do that.
And then Mustang, all the bits are ready to go on that.
So yeah, those three cars are nearly ready.
And then we just need to road trip them.
Poor stuff is happening in the background as well.
You've had some more bits arrive.
I've had more bits arrive.
Taylor's engine is in progress.
Yeah. And then we just need to, especially before baby comes, we need to get
Las Vegas done and get this G-Wagon and get it across America.
Yeah, maybe with our families as well.
Family. I'll bring the wife and kids along.
All right. All right.
You bring your attack helicopter.
Oh, speaking of which, someone very, very kindly at Shedfest.
Yeah, I brought it with me.
Ignore that.
That one's good again.
Someone very kindly bought me a model attack helicopter that you build
yourself and I'm going to build it on this trip.
Fantastic. So thank you for that.
If you're looking for your eye holes, I'm holding it up into the camera.
If you want to see Taylor get his attack helicopter out, then make sure you watch this.
And I'll assemble it as well.
Oh, you'll assemble it.
Yeah, you'll get your helmet out and fly it about.
Yeah. Fantastic.
Uh-huh. All right.
We're going to call it there now for the Autonautics podcast.
This has been a mobile podcast.
Hopefully the sound quality's been all right.
We are still going.
We have clocked 1,085 miles and we've got another seven or 800 miles to go.
But yeah, thank you very much for why are you laughing?
God, when you put it like that, like we've been doing this for a while now.
We've barely made a dent in the mileage.
It's really far away.
So again, thank you very much for supporting us.
Watching, listening to the Autonautics podcast with your eye holes and ear holes.
Again, everyone who came to Shedfest, it was fantastic to see you.
Thank you so much for all the positivity.
All of the emails.
If you want to email us, do it so at podcast.autonauticscars.com.
And we can't wait to see you and hear you and listen to you and chat to you next time.
But whatever you do, do the best of your ability.
We love you guys and we'll see you soon. Bye bye.
About this episode
Banter from a road trip in a Bentley in the South of France sets up a mix of event recaps, track chaos, and real-world prep. The crew talk Shedfest and a return to Bolsworth as a two-day festival with camping, then pivot to car plans and buying/selling decisions. A big personal reveal lands after Rory jokes about getting an RS4—followed by congratulations. The Monaro debate closes the loop: “keep the Monaro” because it’s special and hard to replace.
