Cars as a rolling anthropology? That’s the premise of the Car Show.

WE petrolheads can be a peculiar bunch; our passions can often be such that we lose sense of objectivity. A classic example would be Ford versus Holden.

Is podcasting immune? I can think of many that are sadly weakened by ego, bias and irrational debate. One production striving to steer clear is Eddie Alterman’s ‘Car Show!’

The host has quite a reputation Stateside; a long-serving editor-in-chief of Car and Driver Magazine who is now chief brand officer for Hearst Autos, he is also known for involvement in the most infamous of American renegade automotive feats, the Cannonball Run.  an unsanctioned speed record for driving across the United States. 

Alterman thinks all cars are great, even the awful ones. But some cars, he says, transcend their "car-ness” and have a story to tell. On Car Show!, Alterman tells those stories. Stories of the vital cars — the ones that have changed how we drive and live, whose significance lies outside the scope of performance or economy. Because? He argues some cars are more than just a pile of metal, glass, and rubber. Some cars, he says, “are rolling anthropology”, whether they are celebrated icons or mundane family runabouts.

Alterman’s philosophy allows for a diverse range of topics, from the feat of engineering that is the Bugatti Veyron to the sheer practicality of the Kia Carnival. It successfully goes beyond technical specifications to delve into how these vehicles resonate with different generations and cultural contexts.

The podcast also explores niche events like the Gumball Rally, a race against the clock from New York City's Red Ball Garage to the Portofino Hotel in Redondo Beach near Los Angeles, covering more than 4000km in a ludicrous 30 hours. Or less.

Listeners will also appreciate Alterman’s exploration of the 2020 transcontinental Cannonball run, achieved in a record-setting time of 25 hours and 39 minutes.

More than the time is worthy of interest. They ran an Audi S6 (above), disguised to like a Ford Taurus police interceptor. The lengths they went with this deletion were impressive.  Badges were removed, white tape was employed to change the shape of the taillights and aerials were installed to help throw America’s license-shredding and gun-toting highway patrol off their trails. Wild stuff!

Objectively speaking, the pod’s structured, scripted and narrated format can sometimes feel too rigid, and the pre-show advertising will throw a few listeners off, too. 

On the other hand,  you don’t encounter too much conversational waffle or obnoxious bias towards one make versus another.

The show has a YouTube presence, but it’s so limited as to seem a missed opportunity. Many episodes are missing in action, those posted seem to consist of external driving footage with narrated voiceovers. Nothing fresh appears to have been uploaded since late 2022.

Despite this, Car Show! is a worthy listen, offering well-researched insights and engaging stories that bring the automotive world to life in a unique and accessible way.

The Car Show! with Eddie Alterman homepage: https://www.pushkin.fm/podcasts/car-show-with-eddie-alterman