Nine’s Drive has launched an all-new TV series. The half-hour show commenced in January and brings entertaining and informative car content to TV to meet Australian’s love of great drives and great cars.
CEO of Drive Simon Halfhide (main photo) made the announcement of the new TV series as Drive completed its annual Upfront presentations to the automotive industry at the end of 2021.
“The Drive TV series is automotive storytelling at its absolute best, showcasing what’s next in all things cars and the automotive topics Australian consumers should be thinking about today” said Halfhide.
Cars will be put to the test in a variety of environments and engaging stories that visualise Australian’s love for a great Drive, meeting interesting locals, and discovering new adventures when on the road.
The new program, simply named DRIVE, has been created to appeal to all types of drivers, from the most passionate enthusiast to the everyday adventure seeker and is now being broadcast on Channel 9, 9Rush, and 9Now.
The series will be hosted by Drive’s industry experts and journalists including James Ward, Trent Nikolic, Susannah Guthrie, and Emma Notarfrancesco. The team’s experience, passion, and energy are central to its success, said Drive’s director of content James Ward.
“Our amazingly talented journalists draw on decades of local and international automotive industry knowledge and experience to deliver their insights and advice through a highly-relatable consumer lens. There are so many cars and categories on offer to consumers today so the TV show will highlight their unique personalities and benefits to Drivers,” Ward said.
Drive has a long history of producing authoritative car commentary, imagery, and video content. The new TV format allows the brand to showcase this expertise to a wider market and push their production capabilities even further to deliver visually stunning and creative content for Australian Drivers.
“We are thrilled to see the Drive brand on the 9Network in 2022,” added Halfhide. “This is the next stage of our long-term evolution which sees Drive give auto brands access to our unique media ecosystem across online, print, radio and now television.”
Executive producer Terry King added: “The TV opportunity for Drive creates an amazing platform to broaden the reach and appeal of our industry-leading content. We all research and consume content in different ways and not everyone wants to read a written review. Today’s car researchers expect content to be available on every platform and format”
“The past 12 months have been transformational for the relaunched Drive brand. We’re on a strategic journey that continues to accelerate Drive’s market-leading automotive commentary, comparison, and commerce and ensures it is at the heart of everything we do,” said Halfhide.
The first episodes of DRIVE aired on Channel 9, 9Rush, and 9Now on January 9, 2022.
