People don't mind being lied to.

"Josh Welton" (watchtheprettylight)
04/26/2014 at 18:57 • Filed to: shady, hot rod magazine, gas monkey garage

Hot Rod Magazine recently took the not-very-real reality TV stars at Fast N' Loud to task for misrepresenting their "barn find" Pontiacs. Basically the Gas Monkey/Discovery crew says the cars were !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! that are worth high six figures. The !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! according to HRM is that they're production cars(albeit low VIN) that have been in storage and known of for at least a while because they sold a couple years ago for 30k.

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I'm not much of a car show guy. And I'm definitely not a Gas Monkey fan, I've got a few friends that have had interactions with Rawlings and confirm that he's a grade A douchebag. While I use to think Americans were just ignorant, now I think they really just don't give a shit. The blowback to HRM for calling GMG out can be summed up in "we know they're lying, so what, it's a TV show I like. Why you gotta hate?"

I mean...it's TV. It's entertainment. But does that give a "reality" show license to routinely fudge numbers and facts? It can have a tangible effect on the vintage/classic car industry, and artificially inflating worth seems to be a pretty shady way to make a buck. I remember the F40 they built(except they didn't, other shops did while they took credit for it they outsourced the work to legit shops). According to a few sources the car was available for 200k, nobody was offering more than 80k, and suddenly Rawlings and his partner claim they buy it for 400k? Then they say they put 300k into it? !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! ? Original f40s with clean titles go for 700k. Even a lot of Ferrari guys were like "hey, it's just TV, jacking up the numbers should help our values anyways." But isn't that fraud?

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It's just a TV show, I get it. But damn it seems shady and I'm really surprised at how many people give them a free pass based on their popularity. Guess I shouldn't be though.

DISCUSSION (17)

Zipppy, Mazdurp builder, Probeski owner and former ricerboy > Josh Welton
04/26/2014 at 19:03

The same can be said for Storage Wars, I lost all interest in that show after they started staging everything, along with increasing the sex appeal of a "contestant".

JR1 > Josh Welton
04/26/2014 at 19:06

While I use to think Americans were just ignorant, now I think they really just don't give a shit.

That statement is a tad too blunt buddy. But thank you for the Hot Rod link, it does't surprise me GM overstated the value, it is a TV show though so honestly you should probably take everything they say with a grain of salt.

AthomSfere > Josh Welton
04/26/2014 at 19:06

Yes, that's fraud. I guess I don't like the show again. Ok I never liked that show...

Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis > Josh Welton
04/26/2014 at 19:09

Were part of a society that thrives off of Real Housewives of who-gives-fuck. Of course people dont mind being lied to, there is a reason why reality shows are so popular.

zeontestpilot > Josh Welton
04/26/2014 at 19:15

Back when I had cable, I watched Fast n' Loud. I enjoyed it actually. I learned about new cars, idea's on how to fix up older cars (which I'd love to do), and just basic car knowledge that I didn't even know existed. I tried to watch all the episodes, I enjoyed every single one. Then I found out about the F40, like you said, the price claimed they bought it at was a lot higher than what it was being sold for (or at least, that's what i read). I came to the realization that this is another reality show. I still enjoyed it. The biggest difference is, they actually fix these cars (or at least appear to) and put them back on the road, where a car belongs. I can't really argue with that, because a lot of cars are left to decay and that's sad.

Yeah they exaggerate the truth and whatnot, its reality tv, the "hippest' (dumbest) thing to appear on television. When compared to other shows like Counting Cars, where they neglect to show how the car got from point A to point B, and instead focus on stupid drama in the shop, I'm willing to take Fast n' Loud with a grain a salt and just ignore their sometimes obvious lies to enjoy what I came to see, people fixing up old cars.

But then again, this is my 2 cents.

Justin is driven > Josh Welton
04/26/2014 at 19:27

It wouldn't be the first time we were lied to by a car show. Generally television shows about cars pander to the bottom 10 percent of car enthusiasts and the rest just watch so they can go "Pfft - this guy's full of shit" and roll their eyes/ throw their beer derisively.

I wouldn't say they get a free pass, just the acknowledgement that they're clownshoes who know jack about what they're talking about, a quiet shrug of acceptance, and a trip to finalgear.com to torrent whichever Top Gear episode is the earliest that you haven't seen yet.

Josh Welton > Justin is driven
04/26/2014 at 19:29

I'd usually agree, but I was blown away by the numbers of people bashing HRM for calling them out for flat out lying about the "barn find."

Justin is driven > Josh Welton
04/26/2014 at 19:35

See, now that's unacceptable. Screw those people.

cluelessk > Josh Welton
04/26/2014 at 19:37

I bet you also think WWE is real too....

It's reality tv. Not a documentary.

Josh Welton > cluelessk
04/26/2014 at 19:48

The WWE has openly admitted for the past 3 decades that it's fake. Discovery/Gas Monkey exists in a real market where they compete with actual shops, and they release statements trying to confirm their legitimacy.

cluelessk > Josh Welton
04/26/2014 at 19:51

It's all an illusion. Only an idiot would believe that a shop that successful has to sell $10,000 cars to keep running. The whole show portion is just for tv.

Josh Welton > cluelessk
04/26/2014 at 20:02

Their succes is the made for TV illusion. Most hot rod shops, no matter how successful, run on a pretty tight margin. I've got a couple friends that have done TV, and the ONLY reason was money to keep their shops going.

cluelessk > Josh Welton
04/26/2014 at 20:07

These guys are not struggling. The owner has money. Just like the OCC back in their prime.

Sounds like your friends were running their businesses badly.

Josh Welton > cluelessk
04/26/2014 at 20:19

Rawlings and Teutul both launched their respective shops with a substantial amount money already in the bank.

cluelessk > Josh Welton
04/26/2014 at 20:24

So like I said the whole thing is a added drama for entertainment. No one besides you seems to take the show seriously.

N51fanatic > Josh Welton
04/26/2014 at 21:00

I don't get why these shows need so much BS drama!!! You dont see Mike yelling at Ed about deadlines, or budget, or someother BS. Wheeler Dealers is a great show. Just make shows about building cool cars. You don't see Wayne Carini yelling at his mechanics. AAron is cool enough, so are a few of the other Monkeys. Rawlings and Dennis are grade A cornballs.

I started watching Lord of the Car Hordes last week. Interesting concept, they will take all of a horders cars and in return, build one of their cars as payment. Before you know it, they are showing eviction notice (omg we're getting evicted, we'll have to find a new shop, what will we do!!!). The body panels are beyond repair, the budget is blown! What will we do.

The concept is cool, just build the effin cars.

Josh Welton > cluelessk
04/26/2014 at 21:13

Drama is one thing, perpetuating a fraud is another. No one besides me...and the national media and the hot rod fans country wide who went nuts at what Rawlings called "one of the biggest barn find in the last 20 years." I guess HRM calling them out wasn't them taking it seriously...