The Intercooler

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel discuss the new Mercedes-AMG C63 with its controversial hybrid powertrain. Gone is the rumbling V8, in its place a four-cylinder engine with a powerful electric motor that between them generate 670bhp. But the car is also very heavy, very expensive and lacking an appropriate soundtrack for a C63 AMG. They also talk about McLaren's incredible Formula 1 turnaround, Mon...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel are joined on stage at PistonHeads' Annual Service by Max Girardo. Max has spent years buying and selling the world's rarest and most valuable cars, first as an auctioneer with the big auction houses and now through his own business, Girardo & Co. Max is a diehard car enthusiast with some fantastic stories to tell and plenty of very well informed opinions we shou...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel are joined in the studio by Steve Saxty, who arguably knows more about BMW design than anybody not affiliated with the company. Steve's book, BMW Behind the Scenes, explores the past, present and future of the marque's often beautiful, sometimes baffling designs. Many of its latest efforts, such as the XM SUV, are among the most contentious designs of the modern era....

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel discuss special edition Porsche sports cars, from the 1950s to the present day. Most are derivates of the 911 (including the original 911 S/T and its modern reincarnation, plus Speedsters, GT2s and more), though there are plenty of front- and mid-engined cars in here as well. But which ones rank among our favourites, and which ones did we simply not like at all? The...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel discuss the extraordinary Belgian Grand Prix at Spa, won on the road by George Russell who was later disqualified for having an underweight car. They also look back at the first half of the season, which looked likely to be another Max Verstappen stat-padding year before rivals McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes caught up with the Red Bull powerhouse. With 10 Grands Prix...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel host a live Q&A session with car design superstar Ian Callum. In this episode, Ian offers his view on BMW's controversial design language, reveals which cars he has in his own collection, shares his thoughts on the growing trend for coachbuilt ultra-high value cars and names the car designers who never got the credit they deserved. With thanks to car care special...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel interview Ian Callum in front of a live audience at Ian's design and engineering consultancy, CALLUM, in association with Autoglym. Ian has been a car designer since the late 1970s and has created many of the most beautiful Aston Martins and Jaguars of the modern era, including the Aston DB7, Vanquish, DB9 and V8 Vantage, and the Jaguar F-Type, I-Pace and many m...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel discuss the British Formula 1 drivers of the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s who had their careers, and often their lives, cut short. But which of them really was destined for F1 greatness? This is at times a morose episode, but so too is it filled with tales of extraordinary courage and bravery, of iron will and boundless determination. The best writers, the finest stories a...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel are joined in the studio by car journalist and presenter Henry Catchpole. Henry pulled off the twin test of the decade this year when he became the first car reviewer to compare the Gordon Murray Automotive T.50 to its spiritual predecessor, the mighty McLaren F1. In this episode, Henry explains how the test came about, what the key differences and similarities betwe...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel discuss this year's 24 Hours of Le Mans, won in style by Ferrari. Andrew, who was there with BMW, recalls one of the best runnings of the race he's witnessed in all the years he's been going. Dan and Andrew also tee up BMW M5 week on The Intercooler – in anticipation of the all-new version being unveiled at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in July, The Intercooler will...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel look at the riskiest and most reckless ways to spend £20,000 in the used performance and luxury car market. How about a 23-year-old Bentley Arnage, complete with 6.75-litre V8, for £19,000? Dan and Andrew unearth several 12-cylinder cars for that money, plenty of British and Italian sports cars and some German super saloons as well. Can it ever make sound financial s...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel discuss the remarkable racing career of Michael Schumacher. The German driver once held all the Formula 1 records, including most championships, most wins and most poles. Many of those records have since been broken, but for lots of F1 fans Schumacher is still the greatest ever to do it. But along with his ferocious speed and intellect came a darker side – a need to...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel discuss the facelifted Porsche 911, which Andrew has ridden in at Weissach alongside a Porsche factory racing driver. The new 911 Carrera GTS is the first road-going hybrid 911 – but why has Porsche chosen to create a hybrid 911 and why is its hybrid system so different to any other such powertrain? Dan and Andrew also talk about the upcoming live podcast recording w...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel look ahead to the 24 Hours of Le Mans, which this year features the greatest ever entry of cars in the top category. No fewer than 23 Hypercars from nine different manufacturers will fight for overall honours on June 15/16. But who is favourite to win? Dan also discusses his new car and the pair look at what British performance cars you can buy for £20,000. The best...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel discuss the ways in which car manufacturers really make money. Very often the profit margin on the car itself will be very small, but the profit on optional extras can be significant. At the top end of the market, the likes of Ferrari, Bentley and Aston Martin are generating huge revenues by offering ever greater levels of personalisation, from bespoke colours and fi...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel are joined by Ben Hedley, founder of The Little Car Company. Based at Bicester Heritage, The Little Car Company recreates iconic cars from the likes of Bugatti, Aston Martin, Bentley and Ferrari in miniature. Powered by electric motors and typically 75 per cent scale, these recreations have the blessings of the companies that produced the originals and in some cases...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel pay tribute to Ayrton Senna 30 years on from his tragic passing. They also speculate on F1 design superstar Adrian Newey's future after it was confirmed he was leaving Red Bull Racing, and discuss the advantages and drawbacks of electric vehicles. Dan and Andrew talk about the latest Sunday Scramble at Bicester Heritage too, where The Intercooler displayed all four M...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel have been trawling the classifieds looking for the best cars that can be bought for £5000 or less. From hot hatches to sports cars and even luxury saloons, you can still buy plenty of interesting cars for a reasonable four-figure sum. There are sensible and practical options at that money, but plenty of more ambitious avenues the more gung ho among us may choose to w...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel are joined by Wheelers Dealer frontman Mike Brewer. The car trader turned television presenter created the show more than 20 years ago, and since then it's become the world's biggest and longest running car TV show. On Wheeler Dealers, Mike and his master mechanic buy a desirable old car in need of restoration and rebuild it from top to bottom to try and turn a profi...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel discuss the future of Aston Martin. Andrew spent a few hours with owner and chairman Lawrence Stroll last week, and the Canadian billionaire was keen to paint a picture of a car maker poised to burst into the light – and profitability, at long last. There is much to be optimistic about, but how realistic are Stroll's claims that Aston's darkest days are in its past?...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel discuss the long history of Formula 1 scandals and conflicts from the 1960s to the present day. Be it bad tempered disputes with the FIA, teams threatening to quit and start a breakaway series, downright cheating, engineers exploiting loopholes in the regulations or drivers going on strike, F1 has been in near constant conflict with its stakeholders, and itself. Thes...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel are joined by television presenter and car hoarder Paul Cowland. With a car collection now close to 100-strong, Paul's passion for cars is as broadly defined as it gets. He owns little French hatchbacks and British limousines, American muscle cars, German sports cars and everything else in between. The Salvage Hunters: Classic Cars presenter has been in the motor tra...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel discuss the news that Bentley CEO Adrian Hallmark is leaving to join Aston Martin, while McLaren is now wholly owned by the Bahraini sovereign wealth fund. What does it all mean for Britain's most prestigious car makers? They also talk about the Australian Grand Prix, won by Carlos Sainz, and look at what less than £10,000 buys you in the performance car market. The...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel are joined by Jonny Smith, host of The Late Brake Show on YouTube, one half of the Smith & Sniff podcast and former Fifth Gear presenter. They discuss Jonny's podcast with Richard Porter, his popular YouTube channel, why he loves both EVs and V8 muscle cars, the joy of barn finds and much more. The best writers, the finest stories and no ads, all on The Intercool...

Dan Prosser and Andrew Frankel are joined by professional racing driver and television presenter Tiff Needell. Tiff raced in Formula 1, stood on the podium at Le Mans and even competed in touring cars, rallying and rallycross. Later on he presented Top Gear with Jeremy Clarkson before helping to create Fifth Gear. In this episode he explains what it's like to qualify an F1 car at Monaco, how he go...