Monster Garage facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Monster Garage |
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| Created by | Thom Beers |
| Presented by | Jesse James |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 5 |
| No. of episodes | 80 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 42 minutes |
| Release | |
| Original network | Discovery Channel (2002–2006) Discovery+ (2021) |
| Original release | June 23, 2002 – June 12, 2006 |
Monster Garage was an exciting American TV show on the Discovery Channel. It was hosted by Jesse James. Each episode was about an hour long. The show was created by Jesse James and Thom Beers.
The first episode aired on June 23, 2002. The show ended on June 12, 2006. It was later brought back and started airing on Discovery+ on January 4, 2021.
Contents
What Was Monster Garage About?
The show's main idea was to turn regular vehicles into amazing "monster machines." A team of five experts in mechanics and building would work together. They would change a vehicle so it could do something totally different.
For example, a PT Cruiser might become a wood chipper. Or a school bus could turn into a pontoon boat! Sometimes, vehicles were changed to hide other functions. Like a police car that also worked as a donut shop. If the teams finished their project successfully, they won valuable tool kits.
How the Game Worked: The Rules
The show had a few important rules:
- The finished "monster" vehicle had to look like a normal car at first glance.
- The team had a budget of $3,000 for parts. Later, this was increased to $5,000.
- The team had seven days to build their monster machine.
- The first day was for planning the design.
- The next five days were for building the vehicle.
- The seventh day was for testing the new monster machine.
Sometimes, as the show went on, the rules were bent a little for fun. For example, in one episode, a Chevrolet El Camino was turned into a race car. The host, Jesse, joked about the "stock" rule when they decided not to add a spoiler.
Starting in season 4, winning teams also got to donate a toolkit to a high school they chose.
Meet the Host: Jesse James
The host of Monster Garage was Jesse James. He is known for his skills in mechanics and metalwork. Jesse is also the founder and owner of West Coast Choppers, a shop that builds custom motorcycles.
Jesse loved building monsters that were fast and could do cool things. He liked working with build teams who were dedicated and hardworking. Some of his favorite monster vehicles were a Ford Ambulance that could do wheelies and a Chevrolet Blazer built for hill climbing. Jesse always wanted to build a monster that could go over 200 miles per hour, but he never quite achieved it on the show.
The Voice of Monster Garage
The announcer for the show was Brett "The Big Schwag" Wagner. He was famous for often shouting, "You gotta be kidding me!" during the monster vehicle tests. He would also end most episodes by saying, "The next Monster Garage challenge is JUST... AROUND... THE BEND!"
When Monsters Didn't Make It
Building these monster machines was tough! About 1 out of every 10 projects failed. If a team couldn't finish their vehicle on time, the host, Jesse James, would make sure it was taken apart.
Here are a few examples of projects that didn't succeed:
- Cadillac Hearse/Car Crusher: This was the first project that failed. The team spent too much time having fun instead of building. Because it wasn't finished, the car was sent to be recycled.
- Scion xA/Rock'em, Sock'em Scions: In a special two-episode challenge, two teams built giant "Rock'em Sock'em Robots" out of new Scions. One team's car had engine problems, so they lost. Their unfinished monster was recycled.
- DeLorean Hovercraft: The team tried to turn a DeLorean into a hovercraft. They ran out of time trying to make it float. The unfinished vehicle was eventually taken apart.
- Peel Trident Micro Car: A team tried to put a very powerful motorcycle engine into a tiny Peel car. It was a very ambitious project, and they couldn't finish it. The tiny car was taken apart.
Successful Monsters That Were Taken Apart
Sometimes, even if a monster was built successfully, it might still be taken apart during its final test or challenge.
- Mazda RX-7/Doom Buggy: Jesse wasn't happy with how this off-road vehicle performed. So, he took it apart.
- 1970 Cadillac Coupe DeVille/Demolition-Derby Car: This car was built for a demolition derby. It was smashed up during the derby, as expected.
- 1970 Oval Racer/RC Car: During its test, Jesse crashed his own car into it, causing the monster to hit a wall and be totaled.
- 1969-1970 Classic Farm Tractor/Crop Circler: The vehicle worked, but Jesse found the project uninteresting. So, he had it burned in the desert.
Monster Garage in the UK
A version of Monster Garage also aired in the UK in 2004 on Channel 4. The UK show had a budget of £3,000 and only three days for building. The cars often looked very different from their original models. Some challenges included turning a Toyota into a lawnmower and an ice cream truck into a riot vehicle. One time, they even sold parts from a Rolls Royce to help pay for its transformation into a muck spreader!
The UK series only had 8 episodes.
Monster Garage in Other Forms
The popularity of Monster Garage led to other cool things:
Video Games
Invictus Games Ltd. made a PC video game based on the show. An Xbox version was also made by Impulse Games in 2004. Both games were published by Activision Value.
Books
A book called Inside Monster Garage was published about the TV series. Also, several instruction books were released under the Motorbooks brand. These books taught readers how to custom paint, customize, fabricate, and weld almost anything, just like on the show!
Images for kids
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The official logo for Monster Garage.
