00TL-P3.2

Given the comments in the General chat thread, was curious what the feel is with the current crop of car reviewers on YT.

I know there are some well established guys, like Doug, Redline, Alex, Shmee, and the car mags channels. Think there's still enough out there for a newbie to break in?

What do they do that you like or dislike, and what do they not do that you would want to see?

Just an infant of an idea right now & would likely take some time to get something like this going. Would need to work some old dealership connections to see what I might be able to get access to.

TylerT

iTrader: (1)

I would say the YouTube arena is very saturated, but ... if one was motivated, I see you getting a following assuming you have a few ways to differentiate yourself from the others.

I've recently started following CarBros because they're one of the few channels that make parody versions of other YouTubers / car culture in general, not to mention .. their Podcast is hilarious and extremely relatable.

I would say, maybe review your own car or a friends car to get started and post it up ...

nist7

There is ALWAYS room for entrepreneurs but it you will really need to put your own style/spin/unique aspect to your videos to stand out.

What I realized about monetizing YT....you are competing for an extremely limited resource (even more than wallets) of your customers...and that is their time. People have only a finite amount of time during a 24hr period to decide what they want to watch on YT. So if someone already has 30 car channels subscribed, gonna be very hard to pull time away from them...especially when you have to go up against clickbaity-vloggy channels that upload low quality crap every single day but gets massive views.

Some of my humble opinion on car youtubers:

Doug - formulaic content that you can tell is more focused on generating views now. Poor editing/lighting/videography. Dude is swimming in money but doesn't want to take the time/effort to improve video skills. I asked him directly on reddit and his response is he upgraded to a 4K camera...he was actually proud of still filming using an iPhone as late as last year I believe.
Certain quirks/features are incorrectly explained/not-explained even though dude touts to be an expert in this arena (ie had no idea what Creep Mode is when he was reviewing Tesla while ago).


Redline - Used to like him but now I no longer watch anymore. Tries to be very casual and conversational and give a "fair take" but the more you watch the more you see how careless he is with various comparison/descriptions and will say flatout wrong things even though it sounds right in the moment or to the un-initiated AND opinions/reviews seem generic and bland. Saw a video of him rowing gears in a S2000 and that was a huge cringe to watch him grind gears and burn up the clutch. Mediocre videography/editing.


Alex - WAY better than Redline and needs way more reviews. Scripted dialogue that still seems fairly converstional. Actually puts in detailed factual numbers in easy to interpret graphic to compare similar vehicles in its class. You can tell the dude puts in his research. Also has much better production than redline/doug.


Shmee - only seen thumbnails, never watched this dude much. Seems like another rich dude reviewing hypercars every other day (but I may be stereotyping here).


Vloggy/clickbaity channels - Vehicle virgins, streetspeed717, tavarish, etc. etc. Not my style at all.


Scotty Kilmer - used to be good when more of his uploads were actual car repair advice. Now its much more clickbaity. Dude's truly cashing in using the YT algo.
Still funny dude though once in a while


Smoking Tire/Matt Farah/One Take - dude seems to know some stuff about driving/cars, but boring, and kinda d-bag after I learned more about him. Dude's making onto the TV scene, seen him on CNBC with jay leno's garage


Couple of my favorites:
Savagegeese - ultra HQ content, talks about underbody/chassis, insane videography/editing, very honest opinion, dude can wheel AND one of the true enthusiasts out there. love his humor. Dude needs to have 10x the subscribers

Straight Pipes - Millenial Top Gear without that 3rd D-bag

Alex on Autos - as noted above
Engineering Explained - great education

wackjum

There's always room for more reviewers since unlike traditional media, you are not competing for limited air-time. Instead you can just put the material out there and see if you develop a following.

Right now, I tend to watch Tyler Hoover, Doug Demuro, SubaruWRXFan, One Take with Matt Farah, Tavarish, and Red Line/Sofyan Bey. I also used to watch CNET reviews a lot because they weren't as focused on performance, but they only review new cars.

Doug Demuro brings quirky strange cars, but I think he is starting to get in over his head with his car knowledge. He's gotten bogged down on typos in owners manuals, or common features shared across an entire manufacturer for the time and not necessarily anything specific about the model he is reviewing.

Tyler Hoover and Tavarish are probably the two that appeal to me most since they have the whole undiscovered/depreciated gem angle.

Matt Farah's one takes are a good opportunity to see a car on the road and some 1 on 1 time with the actual owner.

What I would like to see is more information from real owners.

For example, I have a 1G NSX, and of course the line you hear all over the place is, "It's a Honda. It'll never break. Blah blah." Yeah well it is a 25+ year old platform after all that shares very little in common with any other production Honda. Honda discontinued support for the NSX a long time ago, and I don't blame them, seeing as how the last one rolled off the line in 2004. But owning one is a bit of a gamble because not every part is necessarily available anymore. The aftermarket supplies some of the major components, but even they are moving on as the user base continues to dwindle.

Anyway, you can always start with my collection. That will give you enough material for at least a few episodes.

wackjum

I forgot these guys too.

I kind of got annoyed with Engineering Explained when he supercharged his S2000. Savagegeese is good. I'm just now learning about Alex on Autos...

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

reviewers get boring because one runs out of adjectives to describe a car...what can you say about a car that hasnt been said already?


the very best content is creative content!!!! If you build it they will come!
That's why Tavarish and B for build and boostedbois content is so fun! Because they start from scratch and with each "episode" they come closer to completing a project...and at the end of the "season" you see the finished product... the viewer feels like he/she was there for the entire step of the way.

with reviewers, it's like...."oh this guy with the bland personality AGAIN??"
I guess there's no incentive to watch one particular reviewer when yes the market is oversaturated with "reviews" in general

SamDoe1

Don't forget about TFL Car/Truck/Off Road/other things. They are ok, certainly not the best, but you can for sure do worse.

I think the bigger market isn't for reviews, it's for showing you doing a project like what Tavarish does. People are genuinely interested in his struggle with that Lambo.

Shmee is just another rich vlogger, it's entertaining but that's about it. People just live vicariously through him, VV, Salomondrin, etc. They're all pretty annoying with the holier than thou mentality.

nist7

Haha yeah Jason done the real sacriligeous thing with boosting that S2k.

Alex on Autos is definitely underrated imo. Some may seem him as really dry but you can tell its very well scripted and extremely well put together with data/research and good videography as well and the dude comes off real kind/genuine.

Hmmm, maybe I should give tavarish more of a try....lumped him in with other rich clickbaity channels. Heard about that lambo project where he spent like 90k on it to fix it up....interesting.

You definitely have to put your own style to it and carve out a niche. Another generic review channel would not likely take off.
Has to be either unique content, personality/delivery style, or attacking cars from a very diff angle.

Oh yeah agreed on TFL for trucks and off-road stuff.

Didn't VV have some kind of fallout/drama with some dude that used to be part of his channel but got kicked out because VV is a D-bag and wanted the entire channel to himself? Doesn't help his image that VV basically is all daddy's money.

00TL-P3.2

True, it's a lost cause in a sense, if it's just another generic reviewer.
Don't really have the budget to run a project channel, as appealing as that would be.

Starting with owners' cars local to me would be a way to get some initial content going. Lots to consider.

juniorbean

iTrader: (5)

So I voted the first option. I do think if you are different you may have a chance... but here's my logic:

• Auto reviewers on YT are already pretty well established. Unless you have a completely different hook, you're entering a saturated market
• Becoming successful on YT these days is nearly impossible as it is. Becoming successful in such a niche genre is even tougher

As mentioned, if you can do something different it may be easier... but will still be difficult. I'm thinking there are better ways to focus your time...

00TL-P3.2

Thanks JB, still just a back-burner idea right now.

Finding something that's new/different from the current crop is the tough part.

Joneill44

The content has changed a lot with each YT'er over the years and I find myself watching less and less each week



Salomondrin - Used to be a huge fan in the beginning when it was strictly car talk. Pretty much since he left CUPGANG his videos have been more vlogy and just plugs for his other businesses. Cant blame him, but not my style

Doug - I'll watch depending on the car. Dont mind the satire

Vehicle Virgins - Havent watched in a long time. I didnt like how Parker ditched Eddie either

Mighty Car Mods - Just lost interest over time. Moog talking about unicorn farts will always make me laugh though

B For Build - Just started watching recently. Seeing someone actually do the work themselves is interesting. Kinds gives hope to us diy guys

Tavarish - Watched the entire Lambo build and some of the newer content. Again like B for Build its nice to see someone do the work themselves

Smoking Tire - Only watch the road test with Matt. Someone mentioned it above and I agree his attitude is on the douche side but the cars are always interesting

MaxMike93

Not really reviews, but one channel I've started watching a lot lately is VinWiki. They have different people for videos that tell their car stories (Rob Pitts aka Rabbit is the best, but "I bought a Lamborghini from a Prostitute" still gets a laugh).

StreetSpeed717: Liked the videos in the beginning with the Hellcat, got tired of the clickbait titles and the a revolving door of different Corvettes he does the same stuff to.

(More) Doug DeMuro: Still enjoy the videos, the branching off into houses is...odd.

LegitStreetCars: Really like this guy's delivery and showing the step-by-step of projects on his different Mercedes'

Donut Media: Different style of discussion, haven't watched a lot since I just subscribed but liked what I've watched.

Car Throttle: Liked some older videos.

I'll still find myself in a trap of different MotorWeek Retro Reviews from time to time.

StreetKA

iTrader: (8)

i've been watching StraightPipes lately and i like their videos quite alot but they're unfortunatelly not as technical as the SavageGeese

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

plus, no one makes money on the front end (Google Adsense )
it's all about the lucrative deals you can make as a business person on the back end via; sponsorships, selling merchandise, selling services/consulting,selling out seminars, selling out concerts,etc....

Joneill44

I feel like every person on the interwebs has a merch line

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

easy way to make a couple bucks!

shieet, meal plans too!!! you wanna get shredded JUST like me? pay me $300 bucks.

nist7

yeah I sometimes watch a few of Eddie's own channel but still pretty vloggy. And while lot bettter than VV himself (who just seems like a spoiled daddys kid playing with daddy money), Eddie seems to have some rich ass friends though.

Not surprising at all.

He is now probably expanding his own brand/business into more than just cars to capture and break into new markets/audience. He has made a fame for himself with the whole quirk/feature thing, and so no wonder he is now taking that same style/review/concept into other products (homes).

I wouldn't be surprised if he starts a 3rd channel or even more and he expands his style of review to all kinds of other things.

nist7

lol no kidding. And with patreon also. Everyone is begging for that new peer to peer economy/dollars.

But man I'm already giving my precious time to view videos...ain't no way I'm PAYING to help advertise them. lol Shouldn't the advertiser get paid by the company not the other way around? heh....

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

youtube is a medium or a platform and should be used as such. a means to the end, if you will.
there has to be an ultimate goal, like anything in life.
what does the OP want to gain from reviewing cars?
Does he ultimately want to be in the spotlight at these auto shows every year? or is he just looking for an additional income source? is the OP selling these vehicles, ie; creating an ad? Does he have a dealership that people can visit to buy cars?

nist7

I think OP is looking for just a side hustle/income

Someone praised @00TL-P3.2 in another thread about how great hes been with auto news updates on AZ, and I said something to the effect of maybe he can turn that into a YT gig.....

But definitely hard to break it into a primary career....sooo many youtubers trying to make it these days.

Joneill44

Creative content will separate you from the others, but you'll go crazy catering to your followers and/or run out of ideas. Reviewers are a dime a dozen,but you'll never run out of content

Not trying to be negative, its just that everyone these days has the attention span on 30secs and moves on to the next shinny toy

F23A4

nist7

Oh for sure. And if you're one of the guys who has made big following already...then you're pretty much set for life. Just look at Doug...dude has 2.5M subs and gets probably 1M+ total views every week with all his videos combined.....and there will ALWAYS new cars coming out every year until we're all 6 feet under.

So very very hard to probably break in...since people's time is also limited. If you already watch 5-10 car youtubers (not to mention other youtubers from other topics/areas), it's very hard to make more time in someone's day to watch ANOTHER youtuber.....

SamDoe1

This.

Unless you can offer some unique perspective on things that others don't already provide.

knight rider

iTrader: (1)

Agreed. And then it would have to be interesting enough that others will want to watch. OP, you could post 20 car videos on YT this week if you'd like. You'd then officially be an automotive YouTuber.

If you were thinking of making money from it, good luck with that. It's not the "good ole days" any longer on YT. The most successful automotive YouTubers have got their niche down to a science. They understand exactly what they need to do to generate revenue from their channels. It's not just shoot, upload and watch the money come in. I've noticed that there are some really intentional things these guys do to continue earning their YT millions, and what they do are things that come with know-how, experience, reputation, connections and marketability. Some of this turns me off as a viewer, but I understand.

On the other hand, if you just want to post car-related vids to YT and share them as a hobby that's great. I subscribe to quite a few automotive YT channels but if there is more content that I am interested in I'll watch that too. I don't watch all of the videos of the YTers that I subscribe to because I'm not interested in every piece of content they put out, and that always leaves room for more car content that I actually want to see.

Sarlacc

There is the catch 22.

You want to take off...you have to have something different and more appealing than the others. But you also have to generate content all the time. Then you get viewers, then you get advertising, then you get revenue. Its very rarely an overnight success...and now with cars what can you do that different, cheap and looks good? How are you going to get review cars? Do you have contacts in the auto industry?

Not trying to put you off...you just have to know youre going to have to work at it.

RDX10

I've never agreed more with a post on Acurazine ever!

Doug is fun to watch only when the car is actually quirky or rare. He's begun reviewing things like toyota Rav4's and other mainstream vehicles and raving about "quirks" that aren't actually quirks. I also am over the robotics. I don't watch him anymore, only liked him for like 2 months.

Redline is just obnoxious and I'm tired of his personal opinions on everything. I don't care if YOU like the design, that's up to me. Don't spend 40% of the review telling me what you like. He also says so mamy wrong things and does not bother to edit them. Also it's exhausting listening to him speak 3 words per second. Terrible reviews and terrible quality. Don't watch him anymore.

Shmee is fairly thorough but for the most part he is reviewing vehicles that I just don't care about right now because I couldn't afford to buy tires for them let alone buy them (i.e McLaren and Lambos...etc). So why waste my time?

VV I can't stand anymore. He's so clickbaity and spoiled. Very poor production and often inaccurate information. He can go play with daddy's money somewhere else.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the good ole Canadian boys at the straight pipes. Partially because they are Canadian but honestly 90% because they actually do an amazing job. Very fun and entertaining. I appreciate the thorough reviews and they are very honest. I also like that they mention things that I wouldn't think of. I.e a feature or inherent design festure that does alternate things.

Savage geese is incredibly under rated as well. Very very thorough, also incredibly non biased and he's also pretty damn funny. I particularly enjoy the under carriage review as it really helps uncover areas of cost cutting. He also avoids personal opinions on things such as style which I highly appreciate.

Lastly Alex on Autos is soooooooooo underrated it's almost sad. He's SO DAMN THOROUGH AND ACCURATE! You can tell he does his research. He explains very complicated technologies with cool infographics and I particularly enjoy how he goes through the cabin of a vehicle naming all the materials. It really helps you get a picture of build quality as though you were actually there.


As for what you actually asked OP, I think the days of making money on YouTube are gone unless you are already established or somehow niche and killing it. First off because of the whole ad apocalypse that went on not too long ago. But I also remember reading something about YouTube showing videos of people with more subscribers/more established accounts first and hiding new Youtubers' videos. So it's literally a double uphill climb. Furthermore they also hold new Youtubers to a higher standard. I.e actions that get a new youtuber banned would not for established accounts. I vaguely remember one of those putrid paul brothers posting a sex tape to YouTube and having nothing happen. So essentially YouTube is making it impossible for new people to try and come in and establish.

Arguably, with such stiff competition in the YouTube arena, content creators have had to become over the top in terms of video quality, production...etc. Shitty production just isn't cutting it anymore. Now you need 4K cameras and lighting....etc. If you're established you might get away with less than stellar quality. But a new guy with poor videos? Good luck.

I myself have considered starting a YouTube channel. Not in the car space though. But the recent events such as the adsense debacle and other things I've heard are making me not want to get into it. I might give it a try next year when im away for uni because if it does take off, it could be a nice side hustle to make cash on the side but I'm not sure I'm up to the task with limited time and such.

Curious3GTL

I used to watch Doug, but just this week I unsubscribed. Recently ever since he started his second channel "More Doug DeMuro" he basically give's his opinions about things in the car industry and he really comes off as condescending. I get the impression if you disagree with his opinion he really doesn't like it all. He's gotten almost whiny about the entire thing, and it's really gotten annoying. In addition he's mentioned a few time's he doesn't like how the car community is against front plates and he's for them for safety. Well now that he lives in California guess what's missing from the front of his Ford GT?

My other issue is he just seems to not be the most knowledgeable. I remember in his Jeep Grand Cherokee review he's like "look it has a light in the center console!" The 99 Acura TL had that, along with a ton of Honda's before it. If you read comments it seems to happen with a lot of other things too. Why wouldn't you research that before you post the videos?

I like Tarvish and Tyler both for the same reason's, I like seeing old cars get restored and seeing how they do over a time frame. I really want to see what happen's with the Bentley and if it can be road worthy again. I am also really into Tyler's M5, good luck with that one!

I like Samcrac too because it's interesting to learn about the salvage process.

Engineering Explained is another awesome one. I actually went to college with Jason and we graduated at the same time with the same major. He's a SUPER nice guy in person. I didn't know him well back then, but when I did interact with him he was super friendly. I am really glad he's gotten his channel to take off.

Alex on Auto's doesn't seem to be too big yet, but I hope he channel gets bigger. Like already said he does a very thorough job and I think he deserves more popularity. His channel is underrated.

I can't think of their name right now because I just recently discovered them but I really like the two Canadian guys. I have only watched two of their videos but so far so good.

I don't know if Zebra's Corner counts as a car channel but I love his videos making fun of the terrible Chevy commercials. His channel is awesome.



Overall, it's a pretty big market and I think they make it look easy but it's not. It's going to take a light of time to edit the videos and make them flow nicely. They also aren't doing this with an iPhone either, I am sure they all have great camera equipment. Not saying let this stop you, but just make sure you're cool with doing all that. If you do decide to start a channel good luck!!

RDX10

The 2 Canadian boys are "the straight pipes"!! Love them. Another pretty good Canadian YouTube channel is throttle house. They do these really cool car comparos that I like such as Volvo s60 and Genesis G70, or VW tiguan and Toyota Rav4...etc.

Curious3GTL

Added them now, thanks!

juniorbean

iTrader: (5)

Bingo.

I actually thought about going this route a few years ago. I have connections with cars. I have connections with videographers who could help me learn the tips and tricks of shooting and editing. Even did a test film (no commentary, just video'ed a car) to practice editing on. As I was sitting there editing I realized.... holy shit, this takes time. Then I was thinking of how much content you need to produce. Then I was thinking about how often that needs to be done. Then I was thinking of the logistics of gettng a car, doing the actual filming and review, doing the editing, doing the uploading... over and over and over. And that doesn't even count the promoting to get the views and subscribers. Then it started to seem less enjoyable and more like tedious work. And at the time it was a side-hustle, so I would not be able to start out full-time on it.

At that point, I decided against it

SamDoe1

I just started watching Throttle House and am hooked. Excellent channel. Another place to get into the market is head to head comparisons rather than individual reviews kinda like Motor Trend did before the one dude quit and they put everything else behind a pay wall.

RDX10

Definitely! I'm liking them more and more as I watch them. Very entertaining and I do like the head to head comparisons as well. The G70 and S60 one was a really smart one IMO. I hope they get more recognition soon. Doing head to head comparisons is a good niche within the auto review niche but securing 2 cars at the same time can be difficult even fof big publications like motor trend. So I wouldn't want to handle that myself honestly.

00TL-P3.2

The head-to-head & group tests would be fun to do, but I'd imagine you definitely need a few people to get it done
Unless you're going to shoot each car separately in the same location/roads/conditions. But then it's more of a compare than a head-to-head.

SamDoe1

Oh for sure. The most fun part of these reviews is the banter between the presenters. Johnny and Jason from Motor Trend had it MADE before Jason quit.

nist7

Agreed 100%. The problem I think is that Doug makes his videos in large part to just maximize profit/money. He puts out like what at least 2 videos a week? maybe 3? And I heard he did some thing in December where he uploaded like a crap ton of videos a week (maybe even one a day at one point) and was probably rolling in the money. He openly says he uploads videos more frequently to make more money AND made a video about how he does more newer cars vs older ones because newer car reviews makes more money than older car videos. So I guess at least he's honest about his intentions.

And because his main goal is to make money, NOT actual car enthusiasm to its best, he HAS to keep a VERY tight filming schedule, like @juniorbean said it takes a shit ton of work to go from having the idea in your head to it being a finished video on YT, so he probably has no time to look up everything.

Now I do want to grant him a small break, even though I too am not a fan at all of Doug, because there's only so much that one man can know. But some things do seem very odd for someone who claims to be a car expert or at least a quirks/features expert. There was one time where I think he said he had no idea Ford and Motorcraft were related. Also I mentioned above he had no idea what Creep Mode was in a Tesla, which is a VERY interesting/quirk that is also educational too if you look into what it does and why it's offered in a EV for people who are coming from ICE cars.

Dude's now branching into reviewing homes and stuff on his 2nd spin off channel. He's definitely milking that YT for all its worth. NO way he is changing now, he's making too much money and too many kids all up on his nutz so his ego probably pretty big now.

My main big 4 channels I watch now a days: Savagegeese, Straight Pipes, Alex on Autos, Engineering Explained

I'll have to try out some of the other YTers mentioned in this thread though...

Midnight Mystery

YT car reviews is my dream job. Period.

imj0257

iTrader: (1)

I was going to mention Mahk from Zebra Corner. Not really a reviewer, more of a parody. But I love his videos.. one of the few I will actually watch start to finish.

Do be honest I don't know about all the different YT'ers ... I only know of the bigger names aka Motor Trend, Car and Driver, etc. I also don't have the time to look at all of them.

When I want to REALLY review a car closely, I don't just look at one review. I will look at many to see the different reviews.. comparisons and contrasts. I'm sure the average consumer would too. No sane person would take 1 person's opinion and think that is the true review of that car. In that respect, I think there is more space out there.. it is already just so saturated though.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

google adsense is stupid...it's something like a dollar per millions of views.
there's absolutely no way anyone is monetizing their videos without millions of views. Plus, if you have to pay out your production crew(filming, editing), you're already in the red.
thus why everyone sells merch AND BEGs for subscriptions, donations, followers, likes, etc.


Now, if you're uploading videos because you care about the content you put out...and dont really need or want the monetization, GO FOR IT! as you're doing something you're passionate about and creating art.