United States
MotorTrend Channel is the YouTube and social media extension of MotorTrend, one of the United States' longest-running automotive media brands, tracing its roots to a print magazine launched in 1949.
Total Followers -0.1%
9.5M
Across YouTube, Instagram, TikTok
Primary Platform
YouTube
7M followers · 74% of audience
Engagement
3.4%
vs. 1.5% category median
Sponsorship Tier
Mega
Est. $27K–$63K / IG post
| Window | YouTube | TikTok | Combined | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Last 7 days | +0 +0.0% | -676 -0.0% | +0 +0.0% | -676 |
| Last 30 days | -9800 -0.1% | -1127 -0.1% | +0 +0.0% | -10927 |
| Last 90 days | -9800 -0.1% | -9468 -0.4% | +0 +0.0% | -19268 |
| Last 365 days | -9800 -0.1% | -9468 -0.4% | +0 +0.0% | -19268 |
Daily follower snapshots from CreatorDB's longitudinal index.
| Brand | Type | Platform | Date | Performance vs. baseline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pennzoil Sponsorship | Sponsored content | YouTube | Apr 2026 | — |
| Toyota Motor Sponsorship | Sponsored content | YouTube | Mar 2026 | — |
| Ford Motor Sponsorship | Sponsored content | YouTube | Aug 2025 | — |
| Nvidia Corp. Sponsorship | Sponsored content | YouTube | May 2025 | — |
| Holley Sponsorship | Sponsored content | YouTube | May 2025 | — |
MotorTrend Channel is the YouTube and social media extension of MotorTrend, one of the United States' longest-running automotive media brands, tracing its roots to a print magazine launched in 1949. Operating under the MotorTrend Group umbrella — which also encompasses Hot Rod magazine and the MotorTrend+ streaming service — the channel brings decades of editorial authority into a digital-first format. Content spans the full automotive spectrum: head-to-head performance comparisons, drag race showdowns (the flagship 'World's Greatest Drag Race' series pitting American performance icons like the Corvette ZR1X against the Lucid Sapphire), truck and off-road coverage anchored by hashtags like #4x4garage and #ToyotaTacoma, and live event promotion for Hot Rod Power Tour and Power Fest. With millions of subscribers across YouTube and Instagram, the channel posts frequently and maintains engagement well above the category median — a signal of genuine enthusiasm from a core audience rather than passive viewership.
The audience profile reflects the brand's legacy roots: overwhelmingly male and heavily weighted toward the 45-and-older demographic, with strong domestic concentration in the United States. This is a community of committed gearheads who grew up with MotorTrend on their coffee tables. Sponsor partnerships reinforce that positioning — Pennzoil and Holley speak directly to performance and maintenance enthusiasts, Toyota and Ford align with the channel's hands-on vehicle coverage, and an Nvidia integration hints at growing editorial interest in automotive technology and EV platforms. For brands targeting experienced, high-consideration car buyers across the consumer, performance, and truck segments, MotorTrend Channel remains one of the most commercially legible destinations in U.S. automotive media, with cross-platform infrastructure that few pure-play creator channels can match.
MotorTrend Channel reaches an audience concentrated in United States primarily through YouTube, and is best activated via long-form YouTube integrations, Instagram Reels and Stories, TikTok branded content. As an automotive creator they map naturally to brands targeting that space. Demonstrated partners include Pennzoil and Toyota Motor. Engagement on YouTube runs around 3.4%, pointing to an audience suited to category-relevant, mid-funnel brand campaigns rather than pure-reach buys.
Benchmark estimates for a creator at MotorTrend Channel's tier (Mega, 9.5M combined followers, United States). Pulled from CreatorDB's category benchmarks.
The CreatorDB Agency runs end-to-end influencer campaigns globally — shortlisting, outreach, contracting, and performance reporting. Talk to our team about building a campaign around creators in this niche.
The HOT ROD Power Tour is one of America's longest-running open-road driving events, where thousands of hot rods and custom cars cruise together across multiple states over several days. MotorTrend and HOT ROD operate under the same media group, and the MotorTrend Channel actively promotes the tour — with the 2026 edition already announced on the channel.
4x4 Garage is a MotorTrend content series centered on off-road builds, four-wheel-drive trucks, and heavy-use vehicle projects — sitting alongside the channel's coverage of Four Wheeler content. It draws from the same crowd that engages with MotorTrend's #Jeep, #ToyotaTacoma, and #offroad posts, which rank among the channel's most consistently used hashtags.
Nvidia partnered with MotorTrend for YouTube sponsored content in 2025, a pairing that reflects Nvidia's major push into automotive AI — its DRIVE platform powers in-vehicle computing systems across numerous production cars. For MotorTrend's gearhead audience, that angle bridges traditional car enthusiasm with the EV and autonomous-tech coverage the channel has been expanding.
MotorTrend+ is the brand's subscription streaming platform, hosting full seasons of original shows, exclusive long-form reviews, and content not available on the free YouTube channel. The YouTube channel functions as a highlight reel and discovery funnel that points dedicated fans toward the deeper content library.
The MotorTrend Car of the Year is one of the most recognized honors in the automotive industry, awarded annually since 1949 to the vehicle that best meets criteria including performance, value, safety, efficiency, and design. Winning it carries real commercial weight — manufacturers routinely use the title in national advertising campaigns.
Yes — Mecum Auctions content appears regularly across MotorTrend's social posts and is a recurring hashtag theme, spotlighting classic cars, collector muscle cars, and rare American iron going under the hammer. It's a natural fit given that more than half of MotorTrend's audience is over 45, skewing toward the collector-car-minded viewer.
Drag racing is one of MotorTrend's most consistent content formats, typically pitting two performance or muscle cars against each other in quarter-mile shootouts to settle real-world comparisons. The #dragrace hashtag is among the channel's most frequently used, and these head-to-head videos tend to drive strong viewer engagement.
Yes — MotorTrend magazine, founded in 1949 and long considered a cornerstone publication of American car culture, is the editorial origin of the broader MotorTrend media group that now runs the YouTube channel, MotorTrend+, and related brands including HOT ROD and Four Wheeler. The YouTube channel is effectively the video publishing arm of that same legacy automotive brand.
MotorTrend's confirmed YouTube sponsors include Pennzoil, Toyota Motor, Ford Motor, Nvidia, and Holley — a mix covering engine lubricants, major OEM automakers, automotive AI tech, and aftermarket performance parts. Holley in particular is a natural partner given MotorTrend's muscle car and hot rod content, since Holley is one of the most recognized names in the American performance aftermarket.
MotorTrend covers the full spectrum, but trucks, muscle cars, off-road rigs, and classic American iron feature most prominently in its social content alongside European performance cars like Porsche. Recent channel posts have also covered newer territory including the Toyota GR GT, the Genesis Magma GT3 concept, and BMW's latest electrified SUV, reflecting a genuinely broad editorial remit rather than a single lane.
Stats (followers, engagement, audience demographics, growth) are pulled live from the CreatorDB API covering YouTube, Instagram and TikTok. Bio and FAQ content is AI-assisted; news items are sourced from cited public press at generation time. Read the full methodology →
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