If you like to watch automotive content on YouTube, chances are that you’ve heard of Car Throttle. Car Throttle started its life as an internet blog in 2009, with the creation of a YouTube channel shortly after.
Alex Kersten joined Car Throttle in 2012. Alex was recruited by Car Throttle founder, Adnan Ebrahim, to head up Car Throttle’s video department. Since then, Car Throttle’s YouTube channel has grown to well over 3 million subscribers with 700+ million video views.
In 2022, Alex announced his departure from Car Throttle. For automotive content fans, this was a real shock. He was the face of the channel for 10 years. But why exactly did Alex leave Car Throttle? Read on to find out!
Why did Alex leave Car Throttle?
Alex Kersten officially left Car Throttle on April 28th, 2022 to start his own channel, ‘Autoalex Cars’. Alex claims that he wanted to take the risk of starting his own channel, where he had the freedom to create the videos that he wanted to create.
It’s safe to say that it was a shock for many CT fans when Alex announced that he had officially left the company. For a long time, Alex was the face of Car Throttle. From the 2 Guys 1 Car series through to the later NC500 and SC500 challenge videos, Alex helped to turn the channel into a unique and comedic masterstroke of automotive creativity.
Despite popular belief, Alex has clarified on many an occasion that he never owned Car Throttle (CT). His job title was Head of Video, and he received a salary like any other job. This meant that he never had full creative (and monetary) control over the CT YouTube channel.
As Car Throttle was sold to various different publishing companies, it became more and more restrictive for Alex to create the videos that he wanted to create. It was because of this that Alex took the risk to launch his own channel, first as a part-time side hustle.
In the first episode of Alex’s new podcast, he explains more of his reasoning behind leaving Car Throttle. Alex didn’t expect his own channel to be so successful so quickly – and so a part-time adventure turned into a full-time job. I’d highly recommend listening to the episode for more information on the situation.
While it was understood that Alex would continue to take part in Car Throttle videos in a freelance capacity, it soon became clear that his own channel was successful enough to warrant a full-time effort.
Will Alex still be involved in Car Throttle videos?
Initially, Alex confirmed that he would still be involved in Car Throttle videos on a freelance basis. However, it looks like this is no longer the case, due to the success of his personal channel.
It’s safe to say that Alex’s new channel is popular. Very popular. To date, he has over 610,000 subscribers. The channel enjoys great viewing figures, which likely translates to great advertising revenue.
Combined with sponsorships, Alex is probably making significantly more money on his own channel than he made working for Car Throttle. All of those BMWs don’t come cheap!
Money aside, Alex’s personal channel symbolises creative freedom and the ability to go his own way. If he has a cool idea for a video, he can now go ahead and make it happen – without going through tedious approval processes and budget requests.
We would love to see Alex return to the Car Throttle channel in some capacity soon. Whether it’s for a grand reunion, a challenge video or a simple catch-up, many fans miss the chemistry and camaraderie that Alex, Ethan and Jack brought to each and every video.
Will Car Throttle continue making videos?
Good news – yes, Car Throttle will continue to make new videos. Ethan and Jack are continuing to upload new content to the Car Throttle YouTube channel.
Much of Car Throttle’s newer, post-Alex content has revolved around challenges and builds. Since Alex officially left in April of 2022, both Jack and Ethan have taken on more of a presenter-style role.
Jack’s witty banter and Ethan’s limited mechanical knowledge make for a good pairing.
For those of us who enjoy attainable builds and budget adventures, Car Throttle’s YouTube channel is still the place to be.
Is Gareth still involved in Car Throttle?
It’s not yet clear if Gareth Potter will continue to feature in new Car Throttle videos. Gareth and Alex had been close friends since their University days, and Gareth used to feature in CT videos as a technical advisor and co-presenter.
For old-school Car Throttle viewers, there will be many memories of watching Alex and Gareth working on Phil, the beloved Mazda MX-5, in bringing him back to life with a V6 engine.
Since Alex’s departure from Car Throttle, Gareth has not featured in any new Car Throttle videos. He has however joined Alex in a few videos on his personal channel.
Conclusion
Well, as they say, when one door closes – another one opens. This much is true for Alex Kersten. For those of us who enjoy automotive content on YouTube, Alex’s departure from Car Throttle was a shock: but ultimately a positive move which means double the amount of entertaining content for us.
I can’t help but be happy for Alex with the success of his new channel. I’m so excited to see where both channels go in the future, and I hope you guys are too.
How do you feel about Alex’s departure from CT? Let me know below!
