What do you do when you’re co-host of one of Australia’s most successful car shows? Well, you sign up to co-host the rebooted Top Gear Australia, of course.
Well, at least you do if you’re Blair Joscelyne, better known as Moog to fans of Mighty Car Mods, the YouTube hit that has more than 3.8 million subscribers. He’s one of the three new stars of Top Gear Australia, alongside former rugby league player Beau Ryan and actor Jonathan LaPaglia.
The Australian version of the iconic British show already made one attempt at a local version over a decade ago, but failed to fire and was quietly parked. Now it’s back on Paramount+ with the new hosts and, perhaps more importantly, most of the creative and production team from the British version.
Joscelyne has made it clear that his move to Top Gear is in addition to Mighty Car Mods and he’ll still be working with his long-time mate and fellow DIY expert, Marty, for as long as people keep watching.
So how does it feel for Joscelyne to be the front-man for two of the most successful automotive products of all-time?
“Look, I mean, to be honest, it was surreal to get asked to do the show in the first place because I think from, you know, I’m not a career journalist, nor am I a career TV presenter,” he admits. “And I’ve just been having a really good time making YouTube content for 16 years and doing it for fun and doing it for the love of it.
“So when I got first contacted by BBC Studios, I wasn’t sure if it was actually legit or not. I thought, you know, like, do they really want me to do it? And so initially I wasn’t sure if I would be able to do it or not, and then I spoke to my family, spoke to Marty that I do Mighty Car Mods with, and I was just like, ‘just go and audition and see what happens.’”
The audition evidently went great and Joscelyne soon found himself driving around exotic global locations making Top Gear with Ryan and LaPaglia.
“They went to town on it,” he says of the producers and their choice of locations. “The show went to places all over the world. From Europe to the Alps, Monaco, St. Tropez, Dallas, Columbia, and some of the stories were shot in Australia as well, but a huge component was international. That’s because there is obviously a huge international audience for Top Gear, but also while this one that we are creating is called Top Gear Australia, it is an international offering and it’s being released in countries all over the world, including Canada, Japan, Europe, South America, and so it’s really kind of, I think, putting an Australian story and Australian hosts on the map in these different places.”
He adds: “We can take Australian stories abroad, and that’s why I was really proud to be part of this, because I think there’s going to be some people that can get an insight into Australia and Australian culture, even though it’s being shot in countries all over the world.”
So, what does this globe-trotting, double-show hosting car fanatic want in his Dream Garage? Well, not surprisingly for a man who loves building cars, he’s actually got his three ideal wheels.
“I’m kind of in the process of trying to make my dream garage in real life. And so some of the cars in the dream garage are actually in the dream garage already,” he admits.
Top Gear Australia is streaming on Paramount+ beginning May 17.
Daily driver: Modified Audi RS4
Naturally for the host of Mighty Car Mods Joscelyne doesn’t want something unmodified in his Dream Garage. The Audi is an easy-to-understand choice too, thanks to its combination of performance and practicality.
“Because they’re just super fast, super capable, all-wheel drive,” he explains.
“You could take them to a track day if you happen to be driving past one. But they also do all the ordinary stuff and you can fit bikes and stuff in the back of them. So that is the daily drive category.”
And what sort of modifications would he make?
“I think with a lot of cars that come out of Europe, there’s like a whole lot more that can be tapped into,” he says. “And so most people would consider obviously a stage one or a stage two tune. I’ve done stage one, two and stage three cars.”
Something special: Nissan 240Z
Joscelyne understood the assignment when it comes to picking something truly special for your Dream Garage, he’s got a restomod Japanese sports car icon.
“Something special that I have in the garage, which I really have for real, is a Nissan 240Z that I found in Japan and imported to Australia,” he says.
“The powerplant’s been changed and it’s running like an RB [inline-six] engine from a GT-R, five-speed manual, single turbo and kind of all the modern stuff you would expect. Well, modern in terms of like a late ‘90s engine but in a ‘70s car. It’s fully engineered and that is kind of a dream car for me and one that I have built up on Mighty Car Mods and will keep for a very long time.”
Track toy: Subaru BRZ
While Top Gear had him discovering an appreciation for supercars, something he admits he’d never really enjoyed, Joscelyne has a pair of track cars that are much more budget friendly than a Bugatti or Porsche.
“So, I always thought the best kind of track car would be something like a Lotus, and then I bought one and I drove it around and on track it was amazing. But what I realized soon is that the difference in my ability [and the car], because you’ve got to be really bold to drive them fast in my experience,” he says.
“So I ended up selling that and getting a BRZ, which I turbocharged. I’m currently driving that around, which is excellent.
“But I took it kind of even one step cheaper and recently bought an older car than BRZ – a Suzuki Swift Sport like, you know, the old yellow ones that came out about 20 years ago. And then modified it almost exclusively with Japanese parts. So Weds wheels, Plain coilovers, Bridge seats, it’s got like a half cage in it and harnesses. It’s just 1.6-liters of fury and I absolutely love it.
“And it’s also a car that if you did have an accident with that cost six or seven thousand dollars. For me to really enjoy myself on the track. I have to know that whatever I’m driving is replaceable. And so that kind of puts most, you know GT3s and track cars and stuff out of contention for me.”
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