Bitchin' Rides

This shop has some of the best talent in the industry that I've seen. They do amazing work. Stick with that; don't need stamps, cookies, donuts, Kevin's stick drawings, etc. More Will.

A lot of car restoration shows are about the staged dramatics between the staff or problems occurring during build. This show lets you see more of the actual restoration work taking place.

With all the overly dramatic reality shows it's refreshing to watch something that actually captures your interest, shows cars being restored as well as the difficulties, mistakes, fabrication and painting.

I love that they show the whole process including manufacturing upholstery which is really interesting. And they don't create unnecessary drama to try and enhance the show, a nice change. I also noticed that they will attempt anything and have no bias towards a particular car manufacturer although the individual workers do and that's ok.

Dave's colour palette continually impresses and at times I would never think to put colours together that he does but they always work and work well. Dave has a great presence, quiet, dry humour and can take a joke as well. He treats his staff very well and is a great boss. Every staff member seems to take great pride in their work and they produce truly inspiring vehicles.

However, they need to dial back the scripted banter, it looks and sounds unnatural. The humour is fun but at times feels a little forced and goes on a little long, everyone wants to be a comedian. Thankfully Dave reigns it in before it becomes annoying. At times the show feels a little saccharin and they need to make sure the intention of the show is it's primary goal. Kevdog is the Workshop Manager and if he is that knowledgeable he needs to step up. I don't see much evidence of his knowledge, management or organisational abilities. He acts like the class clown that everyone tolerates, this needs fixing.

Interestingly enough a number of cars that they work on appear for sale on their website. Yet when they complete the cars the owners just about cry and overly enthuse on how much they love the car. If so, why is it up for sale? Curious.

Overall this is a solid 8 for the detail they show and the likeability of the cast without overdoing it.

The show tosses in more doing than most which I really appreciate. You actually get to see how and why certain things are done. I enjoy the whys. The amount of drama is kept to the bare minimum thankfully. I guess you do have to some of that unfortunately. There's some wicked talented and smart people working here. I also like the way the guys aren't micro-managed to death.

For the folks dumping on Kevin, now in 2018, he's worked for Dave for 14 years. It also sounds like he and Dave go further back than that. You ever notice that there's a lot more people in the background who never get face time? He's the shop foreman. Someone has to do it. Also, he seems to be at the table when some big decisions have been made. Remember the business existed before and will after the show goes off the air. Whether you like him or not, there's a chain of command that tasks must go through. Dave does Dave things. Dave has Kevin get further into the minutia. And the guys with tools in their hands get deeper still.

As an automotive professional in the real world, it's really easy to identify who's the real deal on these car shows and who isn't. Unfortunately, a lot of these shows are all scripted with gimmicks and it gets old real fast. But this particular business and show is legit. By far some of the most talented fabricators out there. They're entertaining and do amazing work, but lately they seem to be spending more time on "entertaining" and a little less time showing the actual work they're performing on the cars. Overall, it's one of the better and most realist car shows on TV right now.