Meet Adam Morris. He loves cars. And what he doesn't know about them, he's keen to find out, and tell you.
Along with his boyish good looks and friendly Australian banter, Morris is the perfect fit to be an automotive critic on moving screens.
He's also the front man, the personality, if you will, for ReDriven, an Australian brand that has grown a YouTube channel audience from zero to 142,000 subscribers in three years, and a rapidly expanding website that espouses unbiased, well-researched information on used cars.
Morris's cheeky Australian manner is more than curiosity, it's addictive.
In a recent ReDriven review of the Jaguar XF series, he's sitting inside the car when he says, "if Helen Mirren was a car interior, this would be it, because it's attractive, classy and nice to touch - I mean the car interior".
Besides straight up-and-down individual model reviews, ReDriven has a wide selection of entertaining videos, like Best Used Large Cars Under $20,000 to buy in 2023, and Top 5 Worst SUVs Under $20,000 for Single Mums, or Top 5 Ferraris of All Time.
ReDriven was hatched only three years ago. The pandemic pause gave Morris, who lives in Newcastle, and his business partners Sam Rawlings and Jim Hull a chance to breathe some air into the concept of a car review website that is not beholden to the automotive industry.
It's a tight team, five all up, including Morris in front of the camera for videos, Rawlings as the camera operator and tech wizard. Hull is a working automotive mechanic, who also does a troubleshooting segment in every video.
"I can't believe it. I honestly can't believe it," Morris says. "We were not expecting this response. It was supposed to be a little side hustle we do, on the side of our normal jobs. And it has now completely taken over our lives.
"And we are still only at the start. I don't know what it's going to be over the next five years, but it's super exciting."
After several months of development, they settled on a video presentation format they felt would break through and they were right.
On their website, they offer more than 130 "cheat sheets" they have researched for vehicles that tells a potential car buyer (or anybody) the pros and cons of the model, including a comprehensive list of common faults, original price and estimated resale value, any recalls on the vehicle, how it performs and the tech specs. And, a detailed (and entertaining) ReDriven video is embedded with every one of them.
Morris is honest about the fact that while it is a success, it is still very early days in building the brand and the business.
"Sam and I don't see a cent," he says. "I'm still living off savings.
"The business is making money, there's money coming in, but we are putting it straight back into the business. We've just launched our new website, that was hugely involved.
"We are trying to expand our website, so the money that we are making goes back into making ReDriven bigger and bigger."
Morris figures the website won't start to realise its real potential until he's got a bigger database of reviews. "We're working hard to have as many cars as we can. Once we have 400 to 500 cars, then we'll get more traffic. It's still early in the build phase," he says.
ReDriven has found a large share of its audience in the US and the UK, and those viewers are true "binge" viewers, which means they probably just love hearing about cars and talking about cars, even if they are not in the market to buy one.
Morris was an automotive journalist who spent his time writing about new cars, and hence, was in position to realise publishers weren't paying much attention to the used car marketplace.
Morris has always been one of those guys whose friends ask him for car advice, which he freely gives. He reckons he's owned about 50 cars, but he's never been a car salesman.
"I noticed more people asking about used cars than new cars, and then I looked at the numbers and I looked at the industry, and at the moment, the used car industry is more than four times as large as the new car industry," he says, "And Sam [Rawlings], my offsider, we were discussing it, 'why is nobody doing used car videos'. That's where the market is."
And, there's no commercial pressure from manufacturers.
"With used cars, what I love, I don't care what the companies think, we just don't care ...," Morris says.
"They should make cars that last longer. They should make cars that aren't incredibly expensive for repairs and parts. It's really nice, to go, 'we're all about consumers', we're all about being as honest and genuine as we can be, and as informative as we can be. And I just don't care if I get invited to another car launch. I simply don't have time to go to another car launch."
Morris's appreciation of cars runs deep. And you could say he's got a foot in every camp.
"My daily drive is a 2006 Honda CRV, which I have my PA in the back, since I play drums in bands," he says. "My partner has a 2011 Honda Jazz - I'm not a Honda loyalist, but they are both fantastic cars.
"I've got a Mazda MX5 1989, which is a fun car - I occasionally take it to the track.
"And a 1999 Subaru WRX is my pride and joy. It's in mint condition, hardly any kilometres on it. I did buy it as an investment. It's not registered. I haven't started it in over 12 months."
Morris isn't wrong when he suggests everybody has a sentimental car memory, whether they love cars or not. "I say all the time, 'everyone is a car person'," he says. "Everyone has some memory of going on a holiday as a kid or, for some, that first kiss."
Of course, there are a lot of people who attach significant value to their relationship with cars.
"We love the passion with people," Morris says. "We've got a couple of videos where the comment sections really lit up. And they are cars that very definitely have a passionate fan base.
"But I understand that. For most people, it's the second biggest financial decision they are going to make. Funnily enough, I think it's the one that says more about who they are, because with a house you buy the house you can afford. But with a car, it is sort of a representation of who you are.
"With passion brands, I think a lot of people hold that dear to who they are. So me getting on camera and going, 'this is a shit car, don't buy it,' is almost like me going, 'you're a shit person, you're an idiot'. I get that they take it personally, and I don't in any way mean it personally."
Love him or hate him, Morris has already had encounters with fans of the ReDriven website around the world - being recognised in London, being recognised by a fan from Texas while he was eating at a restaurant in Newcastle. A fan in Canada even had Morris's signature tattooed on his neck.
Whether this venture is going to bring him both fame and fortune is yet to be determined. But it's certainly a fun ride so far.
- redriven.com
