‘Brits’ abroad on location in Los Angeles, ‘Wheeler Dealers’ is a UK-based television series that has been going since 2003. There are no desperate, jaw-dropping dramas or ridiculous deadlines involved, just really entertaining episodes talking and working on used cars you may or may not have thought of looking at buying. Seems like there are tons of similar shows out there, right? The answer is yes, there certainly are, but Wheeler Dealers have some simple touches that make it stand out from the rest.
First of all the cars featured are all somehow special, often referred as modern classics. In this show you will not see any hyper cars and outrageously expensive classics. What you are going to find are cars that are affordable nowadays that you can buy and do up.
They moved their wheeler-dealing to the U.S. in Season 8 after being approached by Discovery Studios, filming the next 8 Seasons until early 2021 in the sunny American climate where they could film more than 25 episodes per season (including some American classics) compared to a low 12 episodes due to the poor weather conditions in the U.K. Presenter Mike Brewer (a former car trader) and his mechanic sidekicks (Edd China until Season 13, and Ant Anstead 14-16) are on a mission – to save old vehicles, restore them or make them safe and roadworthy again, and then sell them on. Although realistically the figures of costings and profit are not right (due to their not adding any labor costs), the magnificent knowledge that is imparted by the mechanics is priceless.
This show is a great example of how to bring a car back to its best with an entertaining step-by-step guide to fixing engine parts and more while giving tips and hints on sourcing hard to get parts or thinking outside the proverbial square when looking for ways to refurbish existing faulty items. I highly recommend this series as it gives in insight into what to look for and how to fix a problem to the cars they recommend. It has a loyal fan base of existing and up-and-coming car enthusiasts (in the millions), and amazes me with how much information the mechanics really know regarding the intricate ins and outs of different cars.
Check out episodes featuring these classics – a 1982 DeLorean, 1970 Dodge Charger, 1945 Willys MB Jeep, 1996 Nissan Skyline R33, 1967 Ford Mustang GT Fastback, 2002 Range Rover TD6 Vogue, 2000 Porsche Boxster S, 1975 AMC Pacer, 1988 Jeep Grand Wagoneer, 1970 International Harvester Scout 800A, 1991 Toyota MR2 Turbo, 1984 Volkswagen Rabbit, 2004 BMW M3 E46, 2001 SAAB 9-3 Viggen, and a 2004 Mazdaspeed MX-5.
Although the series returned to the U.K. in 2021 with Mike and new mechanic Marc ‘Elvis’ Priestley, you can still see a variety of classic cars from England and the rest of Europe throughout not only the latest series, but also the early episodes before they filmed in Los Angeles. You can access whole episodes and series on various channels including Motor Trend, but also select segments from episodes and top tips on Youtube.