- Speed's The Car Show debuted last week to a modest audience.
- Modest though it was, it's still not bad for the channel.
- Mike Magrath is not the only person who tuned in.
SOUTH BEND, Indiana — Speed's The Car Show aired its second episode this week and that begs the question: Is anyone watching? Well, yes. But not so many people that they shouldn't be on a first-name basis with one another.
Because Speed's audience is specialized (read "small") our usual sources for ratings information like TVByTheNumbers.com don't cover the cable channel. So instead Inside Line called Matt Edmonds, vice president of marketing at The Tire Rack, whose company has been supporting the show. Edmonds in turn referred us to The Richards Group, which does much of the media buying (air time and the like) for The Tire Rack. And The Richards Group gave us the numbers they got from the Nielsen Company. So here they are:
Total Households: 249,000
Men 25-54: 87,000
Keep in mind that Speed is, in the words of Adam Carolla, "deep cable" and isn't carried as part of many basic cable packages. Nowhere near as many as, say, History, which carries the U.S. version of Top Gear. For instance, Pinks, the show that ran before The Car Show, only pulled in about 5 percent more male viewers ages 25-54. And Speed Makers, the show that was in The Car Show's time slot the week before, attracted about 5 percent fewer male viewers 25-54.
America's Top Gear premiered to an audience of about 1.9 million last year. So the first episode of The Car Show attracted between 1/7th and 1/8th that number of eyeballs. Yes, many YouTube videos get more views.
But all this needs to be kept in perspective. "For a show that's just starting on that channel," said The Tire Rack's Edmonds, "it's a respectable start."
Inside Line says: It's going to be awhile before The Car Show attracts the critical mass for it to be an important part of America's automotive culture.
Add A Comment »
dat2 says:
03:24 AM, 10/19/2011
Motorweek = still the best US car show ever! I say scratch Dan Niel and put John Davis on the car show!
dwsmith1982 says:
08:02 PM, 09/28/2011
Top Gear UK is truely epic for car nuts, it is exactly what we want to see, because these guys do what we all want to do, get paid to do what they love. But its more than that, its the chemistry of the trio, the "britishness," and the talent they have. it will never be duplicated, ever!! i do like the car show and tg usa, but only because it's, at least, not motorweek or the other crap we have here already, which are virtually impossible to watch a whole episode. i do agree, it would be much better if the us shows could be more original with their challenges, etc. because the fact is, 80% of the viewers of these shows have already seen it on TG UK!!
kstadden says:
10:40 AM, 09/22/2011
The Car Show keeps getting better and better. Just saw their best episode yet, which focused on Adam Carolla's garage and the road trip for him to do a vintage race at Laguna Seca. The biggest improvement they've made so far is to kill the bimbo eruptions (various cheesy segments with scantily-clad young women). Mind you, I love scantily-clad young women-- but it was just crowding out the A material. This show is miles ahead of Top Gear US... I hope it gets the audience it deserves and thrives for a long time.
touringtest says:
09:25 PM, 08/08/2011
I enjoy it much more than Top Gear USA.
captainslappy says:
06:44 AM, 07/28/2011
Im so glad this show is getting crappy ratings- Adam Corollas alright he's goonie enough to pull off hosting something like this- but these other poser's can disappear- Dan Neil is the biggest insult on this show- has a Pulitzer Prize in Criticism not automotive technical expertise- he's like the illegit son of Frasier Crane and a southern dandy- Tom MacCahill would chew this guy up and spit him out. While reading his 50 worst cars of all time article, I was blown away that someone who could have so many technical errors in regards to car specs, etc. could have any credit in this arena at all. To think a car guy would rag on Barris as a car designer is pretty bold-yeah he was no Virgil Exner but the guys a legend, and it does nothing but serve to alienate car people- REAL car people.
torque63 says:
03:21 PM, 07/25/2011
Somebody finally made a car show that makes Motorweek look exciting. Hell, it even makes TopGear USA look good, and that's almost impossible. Congratulations idiots. Three real car guys sitting around a bar talking about their favorite cars and filmed on an iPhone would be 200% more interesting than this crap.
mrgold78 says:
02:08 PM, 07/25/2011
Get rid of John Salley! He is not a "car guy" and just doesn't fit the show.
etanretla says:
01:21 PM, 07/25/2011
boring...why does every other american car show try to mimic top gear?..seriously, i find motorweek more interesting.
ocramidajzj says:
10:58 AM, 07/25/2011
I like it. Saw both episodes and the second was better. Everyone seems to be getting more comfortable. I'm HATING TG USA and my wife hit the nail on the head the other night (a person who isn't a car nut but does enjoy TG UK). TG USA really has no orginal ideas, down to even the repore and jokes. Last night we watched what I think was a rebroadcast of season 2 premiere where they were driving around old cars with manure. What really put my wife and I over the edge was where the beaded guy kept bumping into I think Foust with his Miata (sorry I haven't invested enough in these characters to remember who is who). Now everyone who watched TG UK knows that this is an ongoing joke that Hamster (Richard Hammond) plays on his co-hosts. When he does it it's funny and restrained (i.e. he doesn't do it EVERY TIME they stop)! Even my wife said that they even appear more mean-spirited on TG USA. Admittedly TG UK's antics can be argued the same, only you always get the sense that Jezz, Capt Slow and Hamster have an incredible amount of respect for each other behind the antics. The same cannot be said for the TG USA group, though that may something that can be argued comes with time. Still these three are nowhere near as sophisticated or educated to pull off what comes so naturally to TG UK. That said I do see respect across the car show crew. Carolla though a littel rough around the edges has the talent to offer biting criticism withough making it personal. Bottom line I'm going to continue watching the car show and probably give up on TG USA (after the 6th time trying. Oh and I've seen all those old TG UK episodes and they aren't that bad. The worst part is when May tries to offer his picks on great car deals (Boring) but the producers were smart enough to kill that after the second series I think.
higgsboson says:
10:47 AM, 07/25/2011
I'd love to see for myself but, Comcast will not offer it except as part of some wakko sports option. Pass.