The Automotive Advantage

Grow your business and get smarter in just one hour. Join the go-to newsletter for automotive industry insiders looking to up their marketing game, build their brand, make smart investments, and grow their business.

The Automotive Advantage is a business podcast hosted by Unknown Host, with 35 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Unknown Host hosts The Automotive Advantage, a business show with 35 episodes published.

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  Episode #43

  Mike Finnegan on YouTube Money, Merch & Life After Roadkill

  Sep 28, 20261h 2mS2

  Mike Finnegan (Roadkill, Hot Rod Magazine, Finnegan's Garage) sits down at Roadkill Nights to talk about what 13 years of Roadkill really cost him, how his YouTube business actually makes money, and why he has no interest in becoming the next Cleetus McFarland.Mike breaks down his path from mini truck magazine freelancer to Hot Rod associate editor under David Freiburger, how a junkyard road trip turned into Roadkill, and what happened when Motor Trend pulled the show off YouTube. He shares honest numbers on YouTube revenue vs. merch, the one audio mistake that cost him viewers when he launched his channel, and his advice for anyone starting an automotive YouTube channel today.In this episode:- How much Roadkill really cost: every shoot for 13 years added up to one full year away from his kids- How Finnegan's Garage makes money: roughly 60% merch, 40% YouTube- Why a million-view car video pays far less than a 1-page print ad used to- What gear Mike uses: GoPros, an iPhone, and a DJI mic pack (bad audio will lose viewers, grainy video won't)- The biggest content gap in automotive YouTube right now: short, accurate how-to videos- Why "companies aren't cool, people are," and what brands should do about it- The Roadkill Cuda road trip where the crew nearly suffocated from exhaust fumes...CHAPTERS0:00 Cold Open0:43 Mike Finnegan at Roadkill Nights1:31 "I Don't Watch Your Podcast"3:38 The 13-Year Bowtie V6 Engine Block Deal5:50 Automotive ADHD & Why Roadkill Worked7:06 Storytelling Tips for New Creators10:03 From Mini Truck Magazine to Hot Rod14:57 How Roadkill Started16:20 YouTube vs. Cable TV Fame17:47 Why Creators Should Think Like Journalists20:32 Working With Brands & Sponsors22:29 YouTube Money vs. Print Ad Money23:38 Mike's Revenue Split: Merch vs. YouTube24:39 Why He Doesn't Want to 10x His Business25:42 What It Takes to Be Cleetus McFarland28:16 Clickbait vs. Authentic Content31:27 The ZF 8HP Transmission Swap Craze33:00 Roadkill Nights & Woodward Dream Cruise38:32 The Aftermarket Brands That Have His Back43:48 Companies Aren't Cool. People Are.45:21 How Dangerous Was Roadkill?48:09 Mike's YouTube Camera & Audio Setup50:07 Launching His Channel When Roadkill Left YouTube50:53 Gaps in Automotive YouTube Right Now52:41 The State of the Car Industry57:20 Who Inspires Mike Finnegan59:42 What's Next: Wheelie Cars, Jet Boats & the Roadkill C10Subscribe to Automotive Advantage for more conversations with the people building the automotive aftermarket.#MikeFinnegan #Roadkill #AutomotiveAdvantage

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  Episode #40

  5 Ways to Use AI to Grow Your Automotive Business in 2026 | Automotive Advantage EP040

  Jul 15, 20261h 19mS2

  Year one is in the books. In this one-year anniversary episode of Automotive Advantage, Jamie and Justin lay out five practical ways to use AI in your automotive business in 2026, share hard numbers on where the aftermarket actually stands at the halfway mark, and pull the marketing lessons hiding inside the World Cup. This is the business side of the automotive aftermarket. Real strategy for shop owners, builders, manufacturers, and marketers who want to grow. From using Claude to read contracts, spot revenue trends, manage Shopify catalogs, and audit Google Analytics, to the Midway Plus Wholesale Index showing the industry up 12.3% through the first half of 2026, this one is packed with things you can use Monday morning. 5 ways to use AI in your automotive business 1. Spot revenue and market trends in your own data 2. Read contracts, flag your exposure, and prep pitches 3. Lock in brand voice, tone, and style-guide compliance 4. Connect Shopify + Google Analytics to run catalogs and reporting 5. Write copy — press releases, emails, social — that doesn't sound like AI State of the aftermarket, first half of 2026 (Midway Plus Wholesale Index) - Wholesale revenue up 12.3% year-to-date vs. 2025 - Wholesale order volume up 52% year-to-date - June-over-June sales up ~28% - 32% of all wholesale transactions happen after business hours What the World Cup teaches the aftermarket about marketing $10.5B in global ad spend — and the brands that won didn't always have the biggest check. Nike, Gillette, Levi's, and the Dodge Demon on how constraints become campaigns. Plus: our first-ever sponsors — welcome Spec Coffee and Midway Plus — and a tribute to Brian Loundsbury, founder of Midway Plus. Chapters 0:00 Cold Open: The Great AI "Slop" Debate 0:41 One Year of Automotive Advantage 1:58 Year One by the Numbers 6:50 First-Ever Sponsors: Spec Coffee & Midway Plus 10:19 Taking the Podcast Live (Cars at the Station, SEMA) 13:02 State of the Industry: First Half of 2026 17:26 Midway Plus Wholesale Index + Tribute to Brian Lounsbury 37:56 5 Ways to Use AI — #1 Trend Spotting 41:22 #2 Reading Contracts & Pitches 46:17 #3 Brand Voice, Tone & Style Guides 50:47 #4 Connectors: Shopify & Google Analytics 57:37 #5 Writing Copy That Doesn't Sound Like AI 1:05:53 AI News: Ford Recalls 300+ Engineers 1:07:39 Automotive News: EPA Pardons & 7-Year Car Loans 1:10:22 World Cup Marketing Lessons for the Aftermarket 1:18:42 Here's to Year Two Automotive Advantage is a business-first automotive podcast for owners, operators, builders, and marketers in the performance aftermarket. Grow your business and get smarter in about an hour. Subscribe for a new episode every week(ish). Hosted by Justin Cesler (Driveline Studios) and Dr. Jamie Meyer (6757 Consulting). #AutomotiveAftermarket #AutomotiveBusiness #PerformanceAftermarket #ShopOwner #AutomotiveMarketing #AutomotiveAdvantage #AITools #SmallBusinessGrowth

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  Episode #39

  21.7M Vehicles Recalled: What Rolex, Glocks & Deli Meat Teach the Auto Industry | Ep. 40

  Jul 2, 20261h 20mS2

  New vehicle recalls just doubled... 21.7 million cars recalled in the first half of 2026, up from 10.7 million last year. Justin Cesler and Dr. Jamie Meyer break down what's actually driving the crisis, then pull hard-won lessons from three completely unrelated industries (watches, firearms, and grocery deli counters) that every automotive business needs to hear.In this episode: The 21.7 million vehicle recall surge: what's really causing it, and why new owners are becoming unpaid beta testers Jamie's own truck gets "bricked" mid-warranty — and what good dealership customer service looks like when it happens to you What Rolex and Omega teach brands about managing scarcity without losing customers Why the firearms industry (Not Just Guns, 2011 pistols, suppressor brands) runs on branding and hype as much as engineering and the shadow-banning problem that comes with it The "deli meat lesson": how one grocery store lost 40% of total revenue by dropping a single product, and what it means for cross-selling in your shop Woodward Dream Cruise activation strategy: marketing a brand across a 13-mile, two-week event How new client relationships actually start and why clarity beats "we do everything" Timestamps: 0:00 – Cold open: the recall that started it all 1:25 – Welcome to Automotive Advantage 3:13 – What's on deck this episode 6:44 – Woodward Dream Cruise guest lineup tease 9:43 – The full story: Jamie's Colorado gets bricked 13:06 – Why recalls have doubled industry-wide 19:01 – Ferrari, Porsche, and the return to pre-COVID cars 23:08 – The "turn it all off" button pitch 26:09 – Business lessons from other industries 26:50 – Rolex, Omega, and managing scarcity 34:55 – What the firearms industry gets right (and wrong) 43:44 – Shadow banning and building on someone else's platform 50:29 – The deli meat lesson: cross-selling and related products 59:03 – Woodward Dream Cruise: activation strategy 1:09:23 – How new client relationships actually start 1:19:08 – Wrap-up and where to find the showAutomotive Advantage is the business-first podcast for owners, operators, builders, and marketers who take the automotive industry seriously. No hype. No bench racing. Just the real mechanics behind businesses that grow.Hosted by Justin Cesler (Driveline Studios) and Dr. Jamie Meyer (6757 Consulting).Subscribe for new episodesLike, comment, and share if this helped your businessMore at TheAutomotiveAdvantage.comAlso on Apple Podcasts and Spotify

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  Episode #38

  The Car Industry Isn't Slowing Down — HPX, Street Car Takeover & Power Tour | EP038

  Jun 23, 202657 minS2

  Is the automotive industry actually slowing down? Not even close. In this episode of Automotive Advantage, Justin and the team break down three very different events from one stretch of "car summer" 2026 — the High Performance Expo (HPX) in Charlotte, Streetcar Takeover, and Hot Rod Power Tour — and answer the question most brands never ask: how do you actually measure whether an automotive event was worth it?This is a business-first look at the performance aftermarket: B2B vs. B2C strategy, event ROI, brand activation, content that converts, and why showing up the right way is now non-negotiable. From a JEGS distribution deal closed on the trade-show floor, to Tom Peters sketching a future Corvette live, to three Chevrolet Performance reels hitting 3 million views in a week — this is what the modern car business actually looks like.What you'll learn:How to set a goal before an event so you can measure real ROI afterwardThe difference between measuring a B2B trade show and a B2C consumer eventWhy "business development" — not booth traffic — is becoming the point of HPXHow big brands like Chevrolet Performance and Tremec activate authentically (and why engineers driving the cars matters)How event content turns into millions of views and real salesWhy being "culturally relevant" beats legacy reputation in 2026Chapters:0:00 — "No one's into cars anymore" — the Tesla Robotaxi myth0:30 — Three very different events in two weeks2:11 — High Performance Expo (HPX): Year 2 recap3:12 — Why HPX became a B2B business-development machine5:10 — Education & Power Talks at HPX5:33 — Building Cadillac's F1 powertrain from zero7:09 — State of the industry: where the market is headed in 20268:23 — The AI panel: Amazon Quick, agentic AI & MotorMia10:08 — When Gridlife & Streetcar Takeover met on stage11:35 — Inside the HPX Leadership Conference ($99 vs. $10K seminars)12:51 — How Greg Fornelli acquires companies (banker in the room)17:08 — Tom Peters draws a "secret" future Corvette, live21:46 — Live podcast + the new AutomotiveAdvantage.com24:05 — The networking trick that changes how you work a show25:48 — Streetcar Takeover takes over Concord (100 cop cars!)29:17 — Roll racing a 1,000-hp Trans Am at zMAX33:17 — Protecting your brand at the track (Vengeance Racing)36:32 — Hot Rod Power Tour & the 100th anniversary of Route 6641:38 — How big brands should activate (Chevrolet Performance & Tremec)42:52 — 3 reels, 3 million views: content that converts45:25 — How to measure a B2C event (leads & sales)47:39 — How to measure Streetcar Takeover48:42 — How to measure a B2B trade show (business development)53:55 — Looking ahead: Woodward Dream Cruise & Q354:16 — The CanCon × automotive crossover nobody expected56:12 — Why the industry has momentum heading into Q3Questions answered in this episode:How do you measure the ROI of a car show or automotive trade show?What's the difference between a B2B and B2C automotive event?How should brands activate at Hot Rod Power Tour or Streetcar Takeover?Is the automotive aftermarket growing in 2026?How does event content turn into sales?About Automotive Advantage:Automotive Advantage is a business-first automotive podcast for shop owners, operators, builders, marketers, and decision-makers who take this industry seriously. We explore the real mechanics behind successful automotive businesses — growth, leadership, brand positioning, sales, marketing, and operations in the performance aftermarket. No hype. No bench racing. Just real conversations that help serious automotive professionals build real advantage.🎧 Full archive, transcripts & key takeaways: https://automotiveadvantage.com▶️ Subscribe for new episodes and turn on notifications.#AutomotiveAdvantage #AutomotivePodcast #PerformanceAftermarket #HPX #HighPerformanceExpo #StreetcarTakeover #HotRodPowerTour #ChevroletPerformance #CarBusiness #AutomotiveMarketing #Route66 #CarSummer

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  Episode #37

  Chase Lautenbach: 1320 Video, Street Car Takeover & the Billion-Dollar Empire Nobody Noticed | EP037

  May 29, 20261h 3mS2

  <p>What does it actually take to build one of the most influential </p><p>organizations in grassroots motorsports?</p><p><br></p><p>Chase Lautenbach got his start with 1320 Video — traveling the </p><p>country, covering races, and watching the machine Kyle Loftis was </p><p>building in real time. One phone call later, Street Car Takeover </p><p>was born in a Sonic parking lot.</p><p><br></p><p>Now it's an 18-race season, an $8M+ operation, a car dealership </p><p>specializing in 1,500-3,000hp builds, and one of the most </p><p>authentic communities in th...

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