11 automotive DIY Youtube channels you should be watching

By Elana Scherr - Jun 22, 2020

 

The garage is our place of peace, our meditation garden, our chance to get things done and leave behind the cares of the week. At least, sometimes. Other times it’s working for hours on the same darn bolt before you realize it’s not a bolt, it’s a rivet, and hey, that’s not even your car. Whose garage are you in? Better get home before they notice you’ve taken the hood off. For times when your own project seems overwhelming and under-fun, it’s nice to settle down in front of a YouTube screen and watch other people’s projects. (Side note: There are big plans in the works for the Hemmings YouTube channel, but even when that's ready you should still mix up your viewing habits.) Here are 11 channels where people get things done. Watch, feel the satisfaction, and maybe even learn something.
 

Richard Holdener

 

 

Somewhere on your bookshelf, you’ve got one of Holdener’s How To Build XX Power engine books. From Hondas to Hemis, Richard Holdener has been publishing books and articles on engine assembly and hop up for more than 20 years. His YouTube channel is primarily dyno testing different combinations with the occasional in-car intake comparison or cam swap. Holdener’s channel is well-shot and easy to watch with just enough drama inherent in the “What will happen?” nature of a dyno room to keep you interested all the way through. Ever wondered how much nitrous a junkyard motor can take? So has Holdener.


 
Nick’s Garage

 

It’s worth watching Nick Panaritis just for the wide shots of his shop, Indy Auto (which is in Canada, not Indianapolis, FYI). First off, shop envy: So big, so many lifts, such a nice clean engine room. But also, oh man, the cars that come in! Cobra Jet Torinos, Hurst Oldsmobiles, plus Hemis, Hemis, and more Hemis. Panaritis made a name for himself as a Chrysler guy, but these days he applies his engine knowledge and careful diagnostic skills to muscle cars of all stripes. Nick’s Garage is excellent for close-up details and explanations. If you’ve ever wanted to see all the inner workings of a Holley double-pumper, Nick’s your guy.
 
 
Finnegan’s Garage

 

 

If you’re a fan of Mike Finnegan from Roadkill but want more beard and more boats, Finn’s personal channel has got you covered. It’s a little less wacky than Roadkill, but has the same light-hearted approach to trial and error. NASA says failure is not an option. Finnegan and his friends say it is not only an option, but an expectation, but that won’t stop them from trying again until it works.
 

Matt’s Off-Road Recovery

 

 

Okay, this one isn’t exactly garage do-it-yourselfing, but it is so enjoyable that we still put it on the list. Matt Wetzel and his team run an off-road tow service in southern Utah. As you can imagine, eager tourists often push the boundaries of their rental vehicle’s capabilities, or more often, their own off-pavement driving skills. Wetzel’s videos cover the challenges of extracting everything from minivans to ATVs from mud, sand, canyons, and sinkholes. The scenery is gorgeous, the scenarios are nail-biting, and Wetzel is calm as a desert breeze as he hooks up his yellow Jeep XJ and comes to the rescue. The sense of triumph at the end of each video will make you feel like you, and you alone, spent four hours digging a motorhome out of a sand dune.


DeBoss Garage
 

 

Wanna get dirty without having to scrub up afterwards? Rich DeBoss at DeBoss Garage gets absolutely filthy in pretty much every episode, and it will make you feel like you’ve got dirt under your nails just watching him. Like Nick’s Garage, Deboss is great at highlighting small details of the work he’s doing. (Maybe it’s a Canadian thing.) DeBoss Garage manages the rare balance of being accurate, educational, and entertaining all at once. It’s really funny, but he’s a good mechanic, and you’ll learn something from every episode.

 

Bus Grease Monkey

 

 

Scott Crosby got his first vintage bus as a photo prop, and then, as is the case with any classic vehicle, ownership required learning how to work on it. He got so good at repairing vintage diesel buses that other bus owners started asking him for help and now he and his wife Kelly travel the country in a 1947 GMC Silversides performing basic maintenance and major repairs on classic buses. They’ve got a great attitude, a love of roadtrips, and Crosby charges his customers less per hour if they work alongside him and learn how to do their own repairs. It’s a feel-good channel that will make you want an old Greyhound of your own.


Pakistani Truck
 

 

Never again will you complain about your lack of proper tooling or uncomfortable work space once you see what the mechanics and fabricators in Pakistan are capable of. Pakistan has a truck culture going back to the 1920s, when the first big Bedford trucks were imported into the country. The highly decorated haulers are beloved by their drivers and owners, and rebuilt over and over to keep them on the road. The process of stripping a truck down to the frame, and then stripping the frame down to the rivets and boxed steel is mesmerizing. The OSHA violations are horrifying. The ingenuity and fabrication skills are mind-blowing. It’s addictive: prepare to start watching in the evening and still be there in the morning.

 
Hello Road

 

 

Ethan Tufts is just starting out in the YouTube world and it’s a journey we can take alongside him as he figures out both editing and mechanics. It’s a lot more charming than that sounds. Tufts has a collection of cars that even he describes as “dumb,” and “terrible,” and honestly, we can’t disagree, but it’s a good time to watch him marvel at the impossible-to-work on engine in a Ford Probe, or attempt to get a Stanza wagon running again, or at least moved out of the mulch.
 

Rich Rebuilds

 

 

Electric cars? Heckin' yeah, there’s a lot to wrench on and Rich Benoit isn’t afraid of any of it. His videos are funny, his voice is fantastic, and he has no problem admitting his own mistakes, sometimes as he’s making them. If you’ve ever needed someone to commiserate with the fact that automotive projects can occasionally be more than you signed up for, Benoit would agree. In a "How To Paint" video, he says sadly to the cohost, “I’ve only been doing this for 20 minutes and I’m already bored and tired.” However, he keeps going till the end. That’s relatable.
 

Flying Sparks Garage

 

 

Feeling a little low energy? Emily and Aaron Reeves are the human equivalent of a chocolate-covered espresso bean. The couple has endless enthusiasm and tackles all their projects with good humor and obvious enjoyment. There are shop visits from dogs and babies and it’s kind of like if Daisy Duke had her own fix-it show, family-friendly and full of smiles and a cute southern accent. Don’t forget, Daisy used to wrench on that Roadrunner, and Emily would have no problem challenging her, or the Duke boys, to a race.
 

Tyrrell's Classic Workshop

 

 

Speaking of accents, let’s travel to England for this one. Iain Tyrrell’s workshop is to car people what a stable full of unicorns would be to horse people. For those of us who might never even see a Lamborghini Miura in the flesh (sheet metal?), Tyrrell gives us the chance to see one taken down to the boxed and hole-punched frame rails. Unlike many of the videos on this list, Tyrrell doesn’t aim for comedy, but his no-nonsense approach to the history and technical details of the cars he restores makes the videos entertaining without goofs and gags.
 
We could keep going. We didn’t get to Vice Grip Garage or the tractor repair guy we like, but there’s always room for another list down the road. [Editor's note: Maybe one with a shameless plug for the author's own YouTube channel.] Tell us who you like to watch, and why. The only thing better than wrenching in the garage is watching someone else do it from the comfort of your living room.
 
 
SOURCE: HEMMINGS