Who’s Who

As Emmy® Award-winning producer, host and creator of MotorWeek, television's original and longest running automotive series, John Davis can be seen and heard throughout the U.S. on PBS broadcast and the MAVTV cable networks. Through media appearances, Davis' automotive industry expertise is tapped by commercial radio and television programs nationwide (CNN, Weekend Today, and Live with Regis and Kelly) as key industry developments arise. A sought-after speaker, Davis frequently addresses automotive executives, consumer groups, automotive enthusiasts and students interested in the field.

As MotorWeek's host for the show, now celebrating its 40th season, Davis has the opportunity to put all of the new car models through extensive road tests and to judge their practicality for buyers. He also acts as final editor on all of the new car road test segments and writes many of the test opinions as well as other portions of the program. MotorWeek offers him that rare chance to bring the enjoyment of a hobby to his professional life, and to use his broadcasting, engineering and analytical expertise to bring information and insight to those who enjoy cars.

As outreach, Davis and MotorWeek have worked in recent years with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to promote public awareness of alternative fuels. During 2004 and 2005, he served as spokesperson for North Carolina Department of Transportation's initiative promoting annual automotive emissions inspections. In 2002, Davis was spokesperson for the "Smooth Operator" public awareness campaign on aggressive driving in the tri-state area of Maryland, Northern Virginia and Washington, D.C.

Davis is one of the founders of the North American Car & Truck of The Year Awards, the only independent journalistic automotive award in North America. He served on its executive board from 1994 to 2010. He is also one of the organizers and an original member of the Washington Automotive Press Association, the oldest and most prestigious organization of automotive journalists in North America.

A 1970 mechanical and aerospace engineering graduate of North Carolina State University, Davis also holds a master of business administration degree from the University of North Carolina. He was the 1969-1970 recipient of the W.D. Cartwright Memorial Engineering Scholarship and a member of the Pi Tau Sigma honorary scholastic fraternity. Prior to joining Maryland Public Television, Davis worked for the Wall Street brokerage firm of Kidder, Peabody and Company as a transportation analyst. Upon joining MPT, John served as Producer, Executive Producer, and finally Senior Executive Producer on the iconic PBS television series Wall Street Week with Louis Rukeyser for most of the show's thirty year run.

Davis has owned a variety of high performance cars, including several vintage Ford Mustangs, Chevrolet Corvettes and a deTomaso Pantera.

Shifting gears, Lauren Morrison is back in the driver’s seat at MotorWeek and is focusing on giving viewers the inside track on important consumer stories. Lauren’s Motor News segments track auto industry news, focusing on crash tests, safety ratings, new advances in technology and the latest from auto shows around the world.

Lauren first joined the MotorWeek team in 2015. Since then, she has been recognized by some of the most respected automotive journalism organizations in the country, winning an International Automotive Media Competition award for her work on an FYI segment highlighting tech-savvy teens and today’s cars.

Born in Hollywood, Florida, Lauren studied Communication and Mass Media at Florida State University before moving to Bangor, Maine to anchor the evening news for the local CBS affiliate. She headed south after that, reporting for the NBC affiliate in Huntsville, Alabama.

Before welcoming her first daughter in 2018, she would have said a 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air convertible in tropical turquoise was her dream car. Now, you can find her drooling over the idea of a Chrysler Pacifica in her driveway….but, she still likes to let her hair down and take her dad’s 2013 Corvette Z06 for a trip around the track!

Growing up around cars and cameras, it seems fitting that Greg Carloss ended up at MotorWeek. Raised in Maryland, Greg spent countless weekends either in the passenger seat of an 18-wheel car hauler helping his dad deliver new vehicles or in the garage working on the family’s car. Young Greg was quite the tire-kicker — literally — taking every opportunity to kick the tires of anything on rubber to test its road-worthiness. Cameras were also a big part of his childhood evidenced by dozens of hours of home movies starring himself, his mom and two older sisters. As much as Greg insists he prefers staying behind the camera, our Over the Edge reporter would be lying if he said he didn’t enjoy it just a little bit.

Greg got his start at MotorWeek as the Assistant Road Test Producer in 2012 after interning for the show during his final semester at McDaniel College. Since then, he’s driven hundreds of cars, visited over 20 U.S. states and attended overseas press drives in countries like Germany, Portugal and Bahrain just to name a few. In 2016 Greg transitioned to MotorWeek’s Online Content Coordinator, overseeing the show’s digital presence while still playing a major role in the Road Test department. He even found time to become an FAA certified drone pilot.

Test driving cars and reporting on unique automotive experiences certainly qualifies as a dream job, but it’s not always glamorous. For Greg, thrashing a Porsche 911 GT3 around a Spanish racetrack is every bit as likely as crawling through the mud to get a two-second shot of a RAM Rebel in freezing temperatures. All in a day’s work — just don’t ask him “what’s the best car?”

Currently, Greg lives in Frederick, MD with his wife and two small children. To make room for his daugher and son, he sold his 1993 Mazda Miata and now drives the newest car he’s ever owned…his wife’s 2008 Kia Sportage. Despite this, Greg still believes he’s cool and vows to prove it once he can afford it.

There are three good reasons you shouldn't be surprised that Brian Robinson has been MotorWeek's Road Test producer since 1997, and Two Wheelin' correspondent since 2009. One, while growing up in rural Maryland, Brian's first words included "tractor." Two, he spent every spare moment checking out the action at local racetracks. And three, he and his dad never missed an episode of MotorWeek. So, after attending Villa Julie College (now Stevenson University) in Baltimore, he set his sights on a career that would put his love of cars and bikes to use. He knew just the place for that - MotorWeek.

While Brian enjoys telling people his first car was a 'Vette, we must clarify that it was actually a Chevette. He's come a long way since then, traveling around the globe to test everything from Land Rovers to Lamborghinis. Brian is still stoked about a trip to Ferrari's Fiorano test track in Italy a few years back. Not only did he get to test drive a Ferrari 575M Maranello, but he got to see the F1 team in action on the track. But for every exotic Ferrari he's driven, there is also an economy car like the Ford Fiesta. Brian says it's all about helping consumers make smart buying decisions, and of course letting them dream a little!

Brian puts his dry wit and extensive knowledge of autos and bikes to use as a regularly featured panelist, and sometimes host, of MotorWeek's podcasts. As humble as he is modest, Brian says what he lacks in talent and ability, he makes up for with hard work.

Brian lives in Carroll County, Maryland with his wife and son. If you stopped by his house, you would find a 2000 Toyota Celica GT-S, 1979 Harley-Davidson FLH80 and 1974 Harley Davidson Super Glide in his driveway.

Combining her love of cars, travel and people, Stephanie enjoys telling entertaining and educational stories that viewers can use to make informed decisions about automobiles. As the producer and reporter for the show’s consumer-oriented FYI segment, Stephanie will cover trends in the automotive industry that directly affect car ownership, such as evolving safety technology and the integration of personal digital devices into routine car operation. On a lighter note, she will also explore the backroads of America’s automotive love affair to visit special destinations that no car enthusiast should miss. Her segments will continue to follow a fun- and fact-filled format that has both entertained and enlightened viewers for decades.

Prior to joining MotorWeek, Hart was a general assignment reporter and fill-in anchor at WUSA9 in Washington, D.C. Before her tenure with WUSA, she appeared on-air at KMSP in Minneapolis, Minn. Prior to that, she worked at TV stations in West Palm Beach, Fla. and Fort Myers, Fla. as a reporter, anchor and host. The Society of Professional Journalists and the Associated Press have recognized Stephanie for her outstanding long form feature reporting. 

Stephanie's dream car would be a rare vintage convertible. In her free time, she loves to exercise, go to the beach, watch documentaries and check out new restaurants.

Audra Fordin is the founder and CEO of Women Auto Know (WAK), a membership-driven company, with a primary focus on women, which provides automotive education and resources to empower people of all ages to be safe, confident and knowledgeable drivers, passengers and automotive consumers. 

She has made it her mission to take the fear out of auto repair. A certified mechanic, fourth-generation auto shop owner and a pioneer in the automotive industry, she founded Women Auto Know in 2009 to do just that. 

Audra’s professional licenses and certifications include ATTP (automotive training program), New York State Department of Motor Vehicle Inspector, NYS DMV Automotive Excellence Program, New York State Motorcycle Inspector, Certified in Air Conditioning Refrigerant, ASE certified.  

She has been featured on The Today Show, Good Morning America, ABC News, New York Daily News, Despierta America, NY1, Huffington Post and many others. She has formed partnerships with leaders in industry, government, and education and serves on many advisory committees and expert panels.

Since she was five years old, Audra has been fascinated by cars. Her great-grandfather founded Great Bear Auto Repair and Body Shop in 1933 and Audra started out working alongside her father in the family garage. She soon realized that she was different from most other girls. Instead of playing with dolls, Audra was playing with car batteries and oil filters. She started in the office answering the phone. As soon as she was old enough to count, she got moved to stocking parts and inventory control. When she was old enough to drive, she discovered that she knew more about her car than her driving instructor. Her next step was to become a certified auto mechanic.

In 2007, Audra became the first female full owner of her family’s business, which had become a fixture in the Flushing, New York community.  A true family operation, her father, uncles and cousins have all worked as auto mechanics there, and over the years, Audra’s family has provided service to thousands of drivers.

Although the automotive world was part of her DNA, Audra realized that many other women were oblivious to their cars’ issues. She determined that she had to find a way to encourage other women to be accountable and responsible for their vehicle maintenance. She began to take the time to educate them. 

Audra lives in Roslyn, New York with her husband Ed, whom she met at the shop, and their three children Sammy, Olivia, and Andrew.

Dan Maffett is a lifelong auto enthusiast and runs his own resto-mod shop and design studio, Maffett Motorwerks, in Middletown Delaware. 

Dan’s father was quite artistic and encouraged his interest in drawing from a young age. Dan was inspired to begin drawing cars by watching the TV series Overhaulin’, and credits a chance meeting and sketch session with host Chip Foose in 2012 for leading him down the creative path to where he is now. 

Dan was hired as an automotive concept designer for a hot rod shop in 2012, and just two years later, his design for a 1969 Camaro SS won first place at the Detroit Autorama.  After Detroit, he was invited to premiere the vehicle on Powernation TV as a guest host, and shortly after that Dan started Maffett Motorwerks. 

Since then, he has designed many SEMA builds and has been a part of two Great 8 award-winning Ridler-contender builds. Guest hosting on TV shows such as Engine Power and Truck Tech has brought his design knowledge and expertise to builders across the country. Dan co-hosts an Amazon Prime series, with his friend Andy Sheppard, which documented their restoration of a Barn Find 1941 Plymouth coupe, and a web series which showcases all of the builds and projects of Maffett Motorwerks. 

Dan has a Bachelor’s degree in Film and Studio Production, with a minor in Multimedia Design, from Wilmington University in Delaware.

Logan is no stranger to on-camera car care. He has been creating online video content for over a decade, starting with BMX bicycles and video gaming, before turning his attention to the automotive car care space five years ago, focusing on general maintenance topics and DIY performance upgrades.  It’s no surprise that Logan’s personal fleet leans toward high performance, currently in the form of a 2016 Scion FR-S drift car, along with a 2017 Toyota 86 that he is upgrading with a Mazda REW 13B rotary engine.  

When he’s not wrenching or making enthusiast content in his own garage, Logan puts his camera talents and social media savvy to work for noted rotary engine specialist Rotor Piston Motorsportz in Hagerstown, MD. He recently earned an Associate degree in Criminal Justice and is pursuing a Bachelor’s degree.