Up To Speed (2017)

Formula 1 is incredibly dangerous, few people knew this more intimately than three-time world champ Niki Lauda. The Austrian F1 ace survived one of the most grisly wrecks in the history of the sport, at the Nürburgring, then got back in the driver’s seat a month later and missed the championship by only one point! Lauda was one of the most determined drivers of all time. But there’s more to his legacy than winning. Join host James Pumphrey for a deep dive on the driver whose push for safety reform undoubtedly saved countless lives on the grand prix circuit, Niki Lauda!

Why is the world’s craziest car collection rotting away in a jungle? We’re talking $5 BILLION of Lamborghinis, Bugattis, Bentleys, and McLarens in doubles, triples, and more—some of the rarest, coolest, and most-valuable cars on the planet! The royal family of Brunei has more money than God and less morals than a barrel of demons. But that doesn’t explain why so many priceless cars are left to rot, does it? Join host James Pumphrey to find out as he digs into the $5 Billion car collection of the Sultan of Brunei!

Colin McRae is the most famous rally driver of all time, yet he only won the World Rally Championship once! He was a wild, unrelenting force of nature behind the wheel. Colin introduced a generation to the excitement of rally racing, and built a legacy that would one day come to an abrupt and tragic end. Who is this guy? How did he become the biggest name in rally racing, and why did his driving style make him an icon? Join host James Pumphrey for a deep dive on rally racing's reckless messiah, Colin McRae!

Pretty much everyone thinks the new Bronco is badass, but if Ford had messed it up they’d be in big trouble. Bringing a beloved automotive icon back from the dead is risky business, and it’s gone badly for a lot of manufacturers in the past—including Ford! What did they do differently this time? And why were the stakes so high? Find out with host James Pumphrey as he dissects the return of the Ford Bronco!

You probably know the Fiat Abarth 500 hot hatch. But did you know Abarth is one of the first factory tuners in the world? The House of the Scorpion is so famous for making cars faster “Abarth” is slang for anything strong in Italy. Cool, but how did it get such a killer rep? And what does a cross-country race with a train have to do with it? Find these answers and more as host James Pumphrey investigates the history of Italy’s legendary tuning firm, Abarth!

Forza--the game that literally opened up the world of digital racing, the first console racer that let you yell at other players online, and the only racing game to knock the mighty Gran Turismo from its golden throne! This is everything you need to know to get Up to Speed on Forza!

Lamborghini Countach--the V12 supercar that went head to head with Ferrari for almost two decades, the originator of Lambo doors, and the most famous supercar the world has ever seen! This car was made specifically to take down Enzo Ferarri, but was it successful at killing the all powerful Testarossa? Put on your Ray Bans and get ready for a top speed run down the ‘80s nostalgia highway, this is everything you need to know to get Up To Speed on the Lamborghini Countach!

The Batmobile, Batman’s favorite crime-fighting, jet-powered, bat-shaped supercar with gadgets galore and a heavy goth vibe! The Batmobile is an icon that has evolved since its DC Comic debut in 1939, with icons like Tim Burton and Christopher Nolan shaping its creative journey along the way Between the comics and cartoons, the TV show, and the movies—from The Dark Knight, to Batman Forever, to The Batman (which comes out next week,) there are OVER 250 Batmobiles. But, which came first? Which one is craziest? And which one actually makes sense for fighting crime? This is everything you need to know to get Up To Speed on the Batmobile!

The Pontiac Firebird--It’s the famous muscle car with a big ole fire-chicken on the hood--the car that gave birth to the Trans Am. The fire breathing, tire burning, highway ripper from Smokey and the Bandit. From it’s humble pony car origins, to the airbrushed phoenix of the 70’s, to the round and ugly as heck final generation Trans AM in 2002… What happened to this magnificent beast? What finally killed off the Firebird? Join James Pumphrey as he tells gets us up to speed on the Firebird!

The 1973 gas crisis didn’t just mean prices at the pump spiked. It meant a sea change in how Americans thought about their relationship with cars, and how U.S. auto manufacturers designed them. Luxury and V-8 dominance had been the signifiers of car culture for a generation, but suddenly, fuel-sipping economy and the nimble joys of compact imports had changed the game. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the old dogs of Detroit didn’t exactly knock their first experiments in competing out of the gate.

For seven decades, the Volkswagen Bus–or the Kombi, the Transporter, the Caravel, the Hippie Van, the Vanago, or the Type 2, if you prefer–has been a global icon on the roads. But the staying power of this hardworking, underpowered cab-over that bursts at the seams with personality wasn’t a sure thing. After it became a phenomenon, a conspiracy between an American president and a powerful labor union (yes, the States used to have those) nearly stopped the Bus in its tracks, and it all came down to chickens. From its humble origins as a back-of-the-napkin design exercise, to its upcoming all-electric rebirth, this is everything you need to know to get up to speed on the Volkswagen Bus!

Everyone’s seen a Honda Civic that’s been stanced to within an inch of its life with overfenders bolted on. No big deal! But try to do the same to a hand-built exotic supercar and people are gonna have opinions. So what kind of a madman would make his name doing just that? Enter: Wataru Kato and his attention-grabbing custom shop, Liberty Walk. Take a ride through the origins of Kato-san’s unique style and the rise of his unique and controversial body kit biz.

With the just-revealed Toyota Corolla GR hot hatch on its way, now’s a good time to take a look at what those two letters–increasingly relevant to everything exciting in the Toyota lineup–mean. What the heck’s a Gazoo, and what’s it got to do with racing? Come along on a hero’s journey, involving an unlikely middle-aged protagonist and his tragically-fated mentor, as we get you up to speed…on Toyota Gazoo Racing!

By now, there’s a good chance you’ve heard some version of the story: Nissan’s CEO, facing a prison sentence in Japan, hires some smooth operators to sneak him out of the country in a music box. It’s not the kind of circumstance we’re used to watching billionaires find themselves in. So who is Carlos Ghosn? How did he climb to the top of the automotive industry and what caused him to fall so hard? And what’s going on with him now? This is everything you need to know to get up to speed on…Carlos Ghosn!

Prepare for some dang foolishness. The world’s most expensive cars, covered in eye-melting livery, racing (and wrecking) on public roads because who cares about the rest of us peons, right? Except, don’t call it a race–it’s a rally. Maybe you heard about the time Johnny Knoxville nearly got creamed participating in it. Or how about the time its organizers took the action to North Korea? It’s a larger-than-life story with some larger-than-life personalities...This is everything you need to know to get up to speed about The Gumball 3000!

A three-wheeled car that gets 70 to the gallon! Murder in a corporate office! Financial crimes and possible mob ties! A CEO with a surprising past! Even though this story takes place half a century ago, people keep coming back to it. But of all the failed auto start-ups, why are people still captivated by the story of the 20th Century Motor Car Corporation? This is everything you need to know to get up to speed on…The Dale!

How Red Bull got a Formula 1 team...