#2645: Stink Bug

#2645: Stink Bug

Author: NPR June 6, 2026 Duration: 34:44
Ashley called us to say that when she takes long trips in her ’74 Volkswagen Bug she feels nauseous and has trouble staying awake. Sounds like a drive with Click and Clack after a chili dinner, but could this be more serious? Find out on this episode of the Best of Car Talk.

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For decades, the unmistakable laughter and mechanical wisdom of Click and Clack, the Tappet Brothers, filled the airwaves, creating a uniquely American institution. The Best of Car Talk from NPR distills that legacy into a weekly dose of their finest moments. This isn't a dry how-to podcast; it's a comedy show that happens to be about cars. Each episode is a curated collection of the most hilarious and bewildering calls from desperate car owners, ranging from mysterious knocks and perplexing smells to automotive decisions of truly questionable merit. The hosts, Tom and Ray Magliozzi, wielded their encyclopedic knowledge not as a cudgel but as a tool for comedy, offering diagnoses with a heavy side of sarcasm, brotherly bickering, and genuine warmth. The beauty of the show is that automotive expertise is entirely optional. The real engine here is the human predicament-the universal frustrations and oddities of life, all funneled through the dashboard of a failing sedan. You'll hear timeless advice, legendary puns, and the kind of unscripted laughter that reminds you why this program became a staple for so many. Tune in for a repair manual of the soul, where the fix is always a good laugh.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 13

The Best of Car Talk
Podcast Episodes
#2644: Who's the Bigger Slob? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:30
Julianne called Click and Clack hoping to get a clue in hunting down a nasty smell somewhere in her car. Instead she ended up on the wrong end of a sweeping generalization regarding whether men or women are the bigger au…
#2643: Breaking-in the Brakes [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 34:03
Colleen’s 85-yr-old dad was told by his mechanic that to properly ‘break-in his brakes’ he should be varying his speed between 30-50mph and applying the brakes periodically for several days of driving. So dad has been du…
#2642: Overtightening Our Belts [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 34:25
Stacy had her car’s belts tightened recently and more recently the car went up in flames. Coincidence or Causal? Find out on this episode of the Best of Car Talk.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection a…
#2641: How Cheap is Too Cheap? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 37:39
Michelle and her hubby need a second car but funds are ‘limited’ and she wants to know if it’s possible to get a decent one for $170? Tommy worries that Michelle is overpaying on this episode of the Best of Car Talk.See…
#2640: Flunking Physics Again [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:10
Kim from Florida has a physics quiz coming up and she decided to reach out to Click and Clack for some help. Kim has either never listened to the show before, or her working theory is to become familiar with all of the p…
#2639: Honda Habitat [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:16
Kristen is moving to Kosovo for a couple of years and has to leave her beloved Honda behind. She’s apparently so sentimental about the car that she wants Click and Clack to help her develop a list of criteria for choosin…
#2638: Melissa Strikes Back [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 37:42
Sherlock Holmes has Professor Moriarty. Superman has kryptonite. And Car Talk is cursed with… a little girl from Seattle who says mean stuff to us. That’s right: Melissa Peterson is back for another round in the ring wit…
#2637: Meet the Staff [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 38:08
It’s not often we get a call from members of the Car Talk staff during the show. And you’d expect that call to be from our chauffeur Pickov Andropov or perhaps our automotive seat tester, Mike Easter, but instead we hear…
#2636: In Praise of Cleveland [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:11
Marian’s Ford pickup is bouncing all over Cleveland, so she had a local shop replace her shocks and… it’s still bouncing around Cleveland. Click and Clack figure it out in about 10 seconds and proceed to work on the bigg…
#2635: Knock, Knock... [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 33:00
…”Who’s there?” Debra with her impossible knocking noise, that’s who. All we know is that it isn’t coming from the engine compartment. Wild guessing ensues on this episode of the Best of Car Talk.See pcm.adswizz.com for…