What is All Girls Garage?
Starring Sarah “Bogi” Lateiner, Faye Hadley, and Cristy Lee, “All Girls Garage” premiered in March 2012 as a competitor to the typically male-dominated auto-upgrade shows. Undertaking complex projects in each episode, Lateiner, Hadley and Lee have been running their own car shop for over a decade, proving themselves just as capable as male mechanics.
Since its inception on the Motor Trend Channel, “All Girls Garage” has been going strongly, and is currently in its tenth season, boasting steady viewership figures and a niche fanbase. The show’s first season saw the ladies work on all sorts of vehicles, from wrecked Suzukis and idling BMWs to one-of-a-kind vintage Camaros. Since then, the dynamic trio have pretty much done it all, embarking on ambitious projects, and impressing fans with their abilities while also entertaining them with their banter.
Bogi Lateiner
Lateiner was born on 15th December 1977 in Queens, New York City, but mostly raised in Montclair, New Jersey. Before being the business owner and successful automobile mechanic that we know today, Lateiner spent a year studying in Hungary, which inspired her nickname.
Despite studying Women’s Studies and Law & Society at Oberlin College, Lateiner chose not to become a lawyer, and went down the rather different route of a career in the automotive industry. Around the same time, an accident caused the untimely death of her older sister.
Working tirelessly as a BMW certified mechanic in New York and Arizona for six years – and being the only female mechanic at her workplace – helped Bogi perfect her craft before opening her own shop. What started off as a humble business in her driveway, became 180 Degrees Automotive, a two-car auto repair shop in Phoenix, Arizona.
Lateiner’s entrepreneurial vision clearly knows no bounds, as she went on to purchase a two-story building to expand her burgeoning business, and so able to teach car classes for women on one floor while the auto repairs took place on another. Now a respected coach, her classes focus on how to effectively communicate with customers, and she also makes a point of only having female apprentices, partly due to the gender inequality in the automotive industry.
Some career highlights include being named in the Phoenix Business Journal’s Forty Under 40 list, and launching a scholarship for women aiming to work in the automotive field. To have achieved all this even before “All Girls Garage” is a true testimony to Lateiner’s business smarts and work ethic, but not content with that, in 2017 the TV personality founded “Bogi’s Garage” and employed 90 women with various skill levels to rebuild a 1957 Chevy Montague truck for the annual Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) show.
In an interview, Lateiner explained that she didn’t grow up around cars and actually had no knowledge on the subject, which is why her sudden interest made her the odd one out in her family. “I’d fallen in love with Volkswagen Beetles when I was little,” she explained, detailing how she began reading Volkswagen magazines to figure out which make she should buy.
From that moment, the self-described “feminist hippie” had a mission: to purchase her dream Beetle, rebuild it, and appear in the magazine. Despite being discouraged by friends and teachers alike, Bogi achieved her personal goal, purchasing and rebuilding the vehicle from scratch – thus sparking a passion that she nurtured, even while pursuing her law degree.
“When we teach people and help people learn about things that intimidate and scare them, that translates to other areas of their life,” the educator explained. Noticing how little her friends knew about cars, Lateiner took it upon herself to teach them and help them out, attending Universal Technical Institute after college.
Inspired by the possibility of dismantling traditional gender roles in the workplace, and having created her own space to empower women from all walks of life – whether they want to become mechanics or just have a different relationship with their vehicles – Lateiner is now arguably the face of women mechanics. According to the entrepreneur, the key to success is to “be visible” and “project a professional, successful appearance”.
Faye Hadley
Another integral part of “All Girls Garage”, Hadley was born on 25th September 1986 in the US. With her father awarded a PhD from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and her mother supporting her every step of the way, the TV star was always encouraged to pursue higher education, and in 2010 enrolled at Harvard University to study.
“After my first term at Harvard, I had an early life crisis,” the affable entrepreneur later explained. “I was walking to my apartment after exams and saw this Volkswagen GTI with a license plate from Alaska. The owner told me he was on a trip around the US, and I knew I wanted to do that too”.
Hadley’s love of cars was born in middle school, and had become even stronger in 2007 when she made her first cross-country road trip in a VW Rabbit, which perhaps inspired her decision to train as a mechanic’s apprentice, despite being a licensed psychotherapist with a full-time job. In a life-changing decision, the brunette beauty left her job, moved to Portland, and went back to school to further her knowledge in the automotive trade, paying the bills with an evening job at a small local garage.
After landing a job at a Toyota dealership and earning even more certifications through her workplace, Hadley was inspired to open her own auto repair shop in San Antonio, Texas. The business slogan for Pistons and Pixie Dust is “by women, for women”, and the inclusive shop proved to be hugely successful, making Hadley a natural candidate for “All Girls Garage”.
Totally disinterested in the glitz and glamor of being a public figure, Hadley has previously confessed to not feeling like a celebrity, adding: “I don’t feel like I belong on TV… I never wanted to be a part of this world, I just want to be myself, the person who fixes your everyday Toyota”. Paradoxically, her down-to-earth personality has made her even more popular and appealing to fans.
Another impressive achievement of Hadley’s is the #WomanAndMachine movement, an all-female organization that hosts automotive workshops across the country and helps women follow their dreams. Other workshops offered by the organization include welding classes, with pupils learning how to make metal flower bouquets in Martha’s Vineyard.
As for her personal life, Hadley has been married since 2016 to the wood artist Brandon Hadley. A whirlwind romance led to them to marrying on her birthday that year, having only met the previous year. Currently, the couple reside in Texas and wholly support each other in their different professional ventures.
Cristy Lee
Born in Daytona Beach, Florida, on 1st July 1984, Cristy Lee made her industry debut in 1997, after winning the Surf Girl Contest on an episode of “Wild On…”. Six years later, the blonde beauty matriculated from DeLand High, and studied dance at Daytona State College. Her father, Barry McCoy, spent decades training motorcycle and marine mechanics at the American Motorcycle Institute, before relocating to DeLeon Springs with his wife Jean.
After getting her foot in the door with a job as a host on 101.1 WRIF Greater Media Detroit, Lee went on to work as a dancer and model, and auditioned for the Detroit Pistons basketball dance team in 2006. In 2013, the TV personality hosted “Tunnel of Fire”, a TV special which highlighted Clint Ewing’s attempts at setting a Guinness World Record with the longest motorcycle ride through a ‘tunnel of fire’. The following year, the Florida native hosted NBC Sport’s Off-Road Championship.
As a motorcycle and car fanatic, it’s little surprise that Lee was picked to co-host “All Girls Garage” in 2017.
Described as “one of the most popular personalities in today’s automotive scene”, the host previously confessed that her love for motorcycles started at the age of three, when her father took her with him on his dirt bike rides. To date, the blonde owns a dozen motorcycles and often shows off her collection on Instagram.
In 2019, Lee left “All Girls Garage” for possibly bigger and better things, and co-hosted 20 episodes of “Garage Squad”, starring Bruno Massel, Joe Zolper and Cy Kellogg. The show, which has been going strong since 2014, helps “weekend mechanics” finish their project cars with assistance from experts.
Most recently, Lee has been seen alongside Ant Anstead co-hosting “Celebrity IOU: Joyride”, in which famous faces create one-of-a-kind vehicles to gift those who have made a positive impact in their lives. A-list appearances so far include Octavia Spencer, Mary J. Blige, Danny Trejo and Tony Hawk, during its six episode run, and will likely be renewed.
The multi-faceted entertainer hasn’t ruled out hosting her own real estate show in the future, having worked in the housing market briefly until the disastrous 2008 financial crisis. Be it as a pit reporter, host, or analyst, we’re sure that the talented bombshell will be successful in her future endeavors.
What Happened To “All Girls Garage”?
Fans were shocked by Lee’s sudden departure from “All Girls Garage”, while netizens speculated that behind-the-scenes friction between the blonde and Lateiner was the cause. However, reports state that the show was merely trying to cut costs, while others claim that Lee needed to take a break after undergoing an appendectomy. Whatever the case, Lee only has good things to say about her time on the program.
It’s not unusual for this and similar shows to replace hosts: Rachel de Barros, who was part of the original “All Girls Garage” crew, also departed in April 2019, and thanked the program for giving her the opportunity.
Since then, the car enthusiast has been hard at work with her media marketing company, and the online series “Gearhead Diva”.
The last episode of “All Girls Garage” aired on Christmas Day 2021, and viewers have been left hanging, with no news of when, or even if another season will air. MotorTrend Network has yet to announce a renewal or cancellation, but most episodes of the show are available for viewing on Amazon Prime and other subscription services.
Net Worth
Despite online outlets inflating Lee’s fortune and claiming it to be $18 million, the richest “All Girls Garage” member is Lateiner, with an estimated net worth of $3 million. The businesswoman is said to earn up to five figures per episode, with her auto shop and specialized workshops bringing in plenty of money between filming. Social media endorsements and sponsorships also make up a healthy chunk of her small fortune.
As for Hadley, her net worth is reportedly over $1 million, thanks to her auto shop, promotion for online brands, and TV appearances. Boasting over 100,000 Instagram followers, social media publications are a lucrative source of income for the Toyota expert, with many of her posts garnering over 10,000 likes. The self-dubbed “chicken lady” also rears and sells poultry in her free time, a passion project which has since become another money-making venture.
Last but not least, Lee is said to be worth an estimated $1.5 million, from her hosting gigs and paid social media collaborations. From teaming up with established brands to do product giveaways, to hosting innovative digital car shows via livestreaming, Lee is always hard at work, looking to further her brand. Although her work schedule has slowed down in the last few months, the TV personality also sells merchandise to her loyal fans.
