Car Talk

By NPR

Comedy Automotive

What's Car Talk about?

America's funniest auto mechanics take calls from weary car owners all over the country, and crack wise while they diagnose Dodges and dismiss Diahatsus. You don't have to know anything about cars to love this one hour weekly laugh fest.

4.5

11,345 ratings

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LAST EPISODE

#2003: Optimal Rust

01.18.2020

This week on the Best of Car Talk, Steve's wife gave him a homework assignment--write a paper explaining why he should keep the '77 MG he bought a year ago, but has left sitting in the garage. But does Steve ...

Car Talk episodes:

01.18.2020 #2003: Optimal Rust This week on the Best of Car Talk, Steve's wife gave him a homework assignment--write a paper explaining why he should keep the '77 MG he bought a year ago, but has left sitting in the garage. But does Steve ...
01.13.2020 #2002: Falls Village, We Have a Problem This week on The Best of Car Talk, Nina's mechanic ripped off her Altima's heat shield and said she can live without it. But Nina's seen enough Star Trek episodes to worry she might burn up on re-entry without it. ...
01.06.2020 #2001: That's Worth Needlepoint! This week on The Best of Car Talk, Kim and her husband each made questionable car purchases. He got an abandoned Lexus, while she went for an ancient VW Campervan. Who gets bragging rights for being more wacko? Meanwhile, another ...
12.28.2019 #1952: Blow it Out This week on The Best of Car Talk, Jill's pal keeps telling her she needs to do more highway driving to "blow the stuff" out of her car. Jill's not opposed to this on principle, but she would like to ...
12.21.2019 #1951: One Truck a-Dangling This week on The Best of Car Talk, Bill Bailey's truck made a horrible noise and lost reverse. But, the fun really began when it rolled into a lake after Bill got home. Now the only thing keeping it from ...
12.14.2019 #1950: The Great Cow Magnet Caper This week on The Best of Car Talk, could cow stomach magnets have improved the gas mileage on Tim's Jaguar? Or is that udderly (sorry) ridiculous? Meanwhile, down in Antarctica, summer is coming, but Matt's vehicle is still having trouble ...
12.07.2019 #1949: Stop and Chat Out in Gustavas, Alaska, Janet and her neighbors like to stop and talk to each other when they're driving. One of the topics: whether their cars are better off idling or being shut off during the conversation. This week on ...
11.30.2019 #1948: Honesty Will Always Get You in Trouble This week on The Best of Car Talk, Prashanth's new wife is about to come to America for the first time. Should he greet her with his beat-up Corolla, spring for a new car, or try to fake it by ...
11.23.2019 #1947: Ray Caught Working This week on the Best of Car Talk, we demonstrate just how much effort goes into. . . .embarrassing Tom and Ray. You didn't think we were talking about putting effort into the show, were you? Elsewhere, "Sweetie" has to ...
11.16.2019 #1946: Mmm, Donuts This week on the Best of Car Talk, Ben and his brother took their dad's Camry for a ride--in reverse, in the neighbor's yard, with the steering wheel cocked all the way to one side. They had a great time! ...
11.09.2019 #1945: Phantom Foot This week on The Best of Car Talk, Amy's husband is no longer driving a stick shift but is still using both feet, keeping his left foot on the brake. Is this dangerous and can Tom and Ray help Amy ...
11.02.2019 #1944: I Stink, Therefore I Am This week on The Best of Car Talk, Fran and her boyfriend are both jocks, and as a result her Taurus smells like a locker room. Will a few dozen Odor Eaters hanging from the rear view mirror get rid ...
10.26.2019 #1943: Cream Rinse This week on The Best of Car Talk, Tom and Ray stray ever further into terra incognita, as they try to help Sharon figure out why her hair looks lousy after a long drive. Procter and Gamble may have issues ...
10.19.2019 #1942: A Bevy of Bad Options This week on The Best of Car Talk, should Bill risk humiliation and passenger nausea by trying to learn how to drive a sitck shift in time for the high school dance? Given that his options are the family minivan ...
10.12.2019 #1941: Bryology This, Pal This week on The Best of Car Talk, Jenny's fiance, a budding bryologist, thinks she's crazy because she swears her car is more difficult to start when its low on gas. Should he stick to moss and stay away from ...
10.05.2019 #1940: Junkaraderie This week on The Best of Car Talk, Michelle's husband paid $170 for her dream car, and she thinks he may have overpaid. It's just missing a few things, such as the rear windshield, the gas cap, chunks of the ...
09.28.2019 #1939: If That's What It Is This week on The Best of Car Talk, Anne's mechanic can't identify the gunk blowing out of her car's ventilation system, but he does know that whatever it is, fixing it will cost $1000...if that's what it is. Sounds like ...
09.21.2019 #1938: Theresa Syndrome This week on The Best of Car Talk, Lee's mild-mannered wife's temper and vocabulary both take a dive, but only when she listens to our show. Are Tom and Ray carriers of a new form of ABS—Aberrant Behavior Syndrome? Meanwhile, ...
09.14.2019 #1937: The Great Montreal Hotel Fire This week on The Best of Car Talk, the best prank ever in Magliozzi history, as Ray's family vacation is interrupted by the unfortunate news that his beloved Ford LTD has "burned to a crisp." Elsewhere, grad student Erica hopes ...
09.07.2019 #1936: The Super Magliozzi Brothers This week on The Best of Car Talk, two preteen kids present "Car Talk: The Video Game," and prove they're a lot more creative and have better marketing skills than anyone in our office. But, they probably can't beat Tom ...
08.31.2019 #1935: Think of the Tucchus This week on The Best of Car Talk, Matt needs a car that can handle his annual 100,000 mile commute, and no, we didn't add too many zeros there. Matt is looking for reliability and good gas mileage, but Tom ...
08.24.2019 #1944: Tea and a Haircut This week on The Best of Car Talk, one listener undertakes a bold, yet reckless experiment to find the correlation between drinking iced tea and needing to take a haircut. Is the real question "if", or "how fast"? Elsewhere, Robert ...
08.17.2019 #1933: The Geek Squeak This week on The Best of Car Talk, Dana's wife's Volvo's brakes squeak, but only when Dana drives the car. Does his wife have a heavy foot or is Dana driving too much like a geek? Elsewhere, Louise made the ...
08.10.2019 #1932: A Series of Unforced Errors This week on The Best of Car Talk, Marc bought a used Peugeot for $100, and, believe it or not, that wasn't his worst mistake. Now he's got a car he can't drive, and a mechanic who can't get the ...
08.03.2019 #1931: Eggs Prestone This week on the Best of Car Talk, can an omelet save an engine? A friend suggested that Sasha use eggs in his cracked radiator. Was this advice to actually stop the leak, or just to give Sasha something to ...
07.27.2019 #1930: The Andy Letter This week on The Best of Car Talk, Tom and Ray's noble, but doomed, attempt to diagnose a problem with electrical brakes may have helped another listener resolve a different conundrum: Do two people who don't know what they're talking ...
07.20.2019 #1929: Electric Brakes This week on The Best of Car Talk, our all-time favorite demonstration of Male Answer Syndrome. The electric brakes on Paul's cattle trailer engage when he uses his turn signal. Will Tom and Ray's ready acknowledgment that they know nothing ...
07.13.2019 #1928: I'm Stupid's Brother Tom and Ray prove they are their brother's keepers, until Ray's explanation for Becky's smelly Toyota goes too far off the deep end. Elsewhere, Arlene bought an old Volvo for her teenage daughter, who promptly drove it off road and ...
07.06.2019 #1927: Call Stella Stella is renting a highway billboard for a personal ad. What size font should she use to attract the right guy, and should she divulge she's a lawyer? Elsewhere, Frank may need to offer a couple of spiral cut hams ...
07.01.2019 #1926: MIT Wants Its Diploma Back Tom and Ray run through the entire table of elements trying to identify the white powder in Ann's Subaru's radiator. If only they could put that much effort into figuring out why the car is blowing through heater cores! Elsewhere, ...
06.22.2019 #1925: While Mom's Away Did Sarah's family defy the laws of Physics in the minivan while she was away?
06.15.2019 #1924: Belize It or Not Nancy needs to find a vehicle to take to Belize for a year. Other than something big enough to haul back Cuban cigars for Tom and Ray, what should she be looking for?
06.08.2019 #1923: Emboldened Electrons Rob's car has trouble starting unless he holds the key in the start position for several seconds. Does Ray's Emboldened Electrons theory mean Rob's electrical system needs to read Profiles in Courage? Elsewhere, Gary is guilty until proven innocent for ...
06.01.2019 #1922: If It Blows, It Blows Car Talk June 1, 2019
05.25.2019 #1921: No Sleep Till Hunga Dunga Car Talk May 25, 2019
05.18.2019 #1920: Crushed Cans and Loose Lug Nuts Car Talk May 18, 2019
05.11.2019 #1919: The Tao of Fred Glass Car Talk May 11, 2019
05.04.2019 #1918: The Ungrateful Passenger Car Talk May 4, 2019
04.27.2019 #1917: Double Fault Car Talk April 27, 2019
04.20.2019 #1916: Desperate Measures Car Talk April 20, 2019
04.13.2019 #1915: SUV Absolution Car Talk April 13, 2019

Car Talk

What's Car Talk about?

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Car Talk episodes:

#2003: Optimal Rust

#2002: Falls Village, We Have a Problem

#2001: That's Worth Needlepoint!

#1952: Blow it Out

#1951: One Truck a-Dangling

#1950: The Great Cow Magnet Caper

#1949: Stop and Chat

#1948: Honesty Will Always Get You in Trouble

#1947: Ray Caught Working

#1946: Mmm, Donuts

#1945: Phantom Foot

#1944: I Stink, Therefore I Am

#1943: Cream Rinse

#1942: A Bevy of Bad Options

#1941: Bryology This, Pal

#1940: Junkaraderie

#1939: If That's What It Is

#1938: Theresa Syndrome

#1937: The Great Montreal Hotel Fire

#1936: The Super Magliozzi Brothers

#1935: Think of the Tucchus

#1944: Tea and a Haircut

#1933: The Geek Squeak

#1932: A Series of Unforced Errors

#1931: Eggs Prestone

#1930: The Andy Letter

#1929: Electric Brakes

#1928: I'm Stupid's Brother

#1927: Call Stella

#1926: MIT Wants Its Diploma Back

#1925: While Mom's Away

#1924: Belize It or Not

#1923: Emboldened Electrons

#1922: If It Blows, It Blows

#1921: No Sleep Till Hunga Dunga

#1920: Crushed Cans and Loose Lug Nuts

#1919: The Tao of Fred Glass

#1918: The Ungrateful Passenger

#1917: Double Fault

#1916: Desperate Measures

#1915: SUV Absolution

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