MAKING CLASSIC CARS COOL AGAIN – THE NEW TV SHOW COMING TO SCREENS SOON

Getting more young people involved in the restoration of classic cars is the premise behind an exciting new TV show set to hit screens soon. Paddock Speedshop, which Motul partnered with earlier this year, is on a mission to make classics cool among the younger generation and features segments that educates and entertains them on how to maintain, run and restore older cars, whether that’s for work or pleasure.

With series one of filming nearly wrapped, we caught up again with the team behind the ambitious project to find out what viewers can expect.

Ethan Blake-Jones and Lucy Busby, both 23 years old, are the stars of the show. The presenters are working on real project cars and the show follows their work on them to restore them to their former glory.

The show looks at how to bring cars back to life – and even resto-modding the cars to give them an even greater lease of life and making them better than they were originally. One example is Paddock Speedshop’s wide-winged and uprated MGB GT as well as its road-going, competition-spec Morris Minor. Others, such as the Aston Martin DBS Vantage are more conventional restorations but still equally impressive.

“We’d really like to show a whole new generation that the classic car sector is not a closed shop which is the sole property of the ‘old guard’ but an opportunity to own and drive interesting cars at reasonable prices,” said Lucy Busby. “I came into the project with no formal motor engineering training, but I’ve learned as we’ve gone along – and we’ve had some really good people who have stepped in to help this. I’m very proud of the work we’ve done so far.”

“I think we look at classics differently. Though we really like them, we don’t have the emotional attachment to these cars that was bred into previous generations. I guess we see them as blank canvasses on which a young driver can stamp their own personally,” said Ethan Blake-Jones. “We are happy, in many cases, to make modifications to improve the overall safety, performance and drivability of the cars, but obviously we are still conscious where they’ve come from, and we don’t want to lose what makes them special.”

The Paddock Speedshop team has been using only Motul products for each build, from lubricants, coolants, and sprays right through to car care products. The team also wears Motul’s retro clothing, and the workshop is powered by Motul’s sustainable, solvent-free BioClean system. Paddock Speedshop and Motul partnered on a number of events during 2022. The Restoration and Classic Car Show in March saw the formal announcement of Motul’s association with Paddock Speedshop and this has been followed up by the Speedshop being an integral part of Motul’s activity at the Classic at Silverstone, as well as the Top Technician/Top Garage Awards, Goodwood Revival, Motorsport Days Live, the Classic Car Loan Scheme and the recent Classic Motor Show. At some of these events, the Motul-liveried Morris Minor Hillclimb car has displayed, too.

“We work really well together and the Motul team has greatly enjoyed playing a supporting role in helping the show come to fruition. Our partnering up on events has also been extremely worthwhile for everyone,” said Andy Wait, sales and marketing manager for Motul UK and Ireland. “We are truly excited by the potential the programme has and, like us, they are really enthusiastic about what they do. We do seem to be a really good fit with each other, and knowing what’s coming, we are now eagerly anticipating the finished TV shows – I think they’ll demonstrate a fresh and exciting new approach to car restoration programmes, which often seem to have a pretty set format.”

A global TV distribution deal has already been struck by Paddock Speedshow’s producers. Expect an announcement early in 2023 about where and when you can watch this new show.