The Car Doctor Returns to WOR Radio
by Alana Quartuccio
Some things are just written in the stars.
That’s the way it’s always been for AASP/NJ Hall of Famer and former Mechanical Chairman Ron Ananian and his life on the radio as “The Car Doctor.” For thirty-plus years, motorists all around the country (and the world by way of podcasts and streaming) have been relying on Ananian for his enlightening car ownership advice and tales. Now, the nationally-syndicated show is making a long-awaited return to the New York market via WOR 710 AM, a clear-channel New York City radio station known for its talk radio programs.
Ananian never went looking for a career in radio. A tinkerer since he was a young boy, his career as an automotive mechanic was clearly a no-brainer. “I would take something apart, put it back together and then read the manual,” he says of his natural ability for the art of fixing things, which he gets from his father, “an old school mechanic” who gave him his “mechanical curiosity.”
He recalls those early days as a seven or eight year old sitting on the fender of his father’s car. “He’d say, ‘Ronnie, get me that wrench.’ I knew the numbers. I didn’t know what they meant, but I knew what a half-inch was.”
That early interest in mechanics would lead Ananian to open R/A Automotive (Waldwick) in 1978. His shop has earned multiple accolades over the years including AASP/NJ’s New Jersey Automotive/Mechanical Shop of the Year. For 46 years and counting, his business continues to provide vehicle owners with “quality, honest work with a smile” as per his company’s motto.
He admits that “never in my wildest dreams” did he imagine life on the radio. He already had a busy life with his shop, teaching mechanics how to fix cars and selling diagnostic equipment, but when a student and fellow shop owner asked Ananian to join him on the airwaves to lend his knowledge for an infomercial, he took the opportunity because “life is about the adventure.”
That small start on WFAS out of White Plains, New York – at a station so tiny “you’d have to step outside the control room to change your mind; it was just that small” – led to big things. When the advertising budget ran out, Ananian thought his radio career was over, but as chance would have it, the station liked the show so much they offered to make it a regular show, giving it the moniker of “The Car Doctor.” The show “took on a life of its own,” staying on the air at WFAS for six and a half years.
When the show’s reign at WFAS ended, he once again thought his radio days were over, but as fate would have it, “The Car Doctor” was only just about to get started. He found himself with an interest in continuing a life on the radio with aspirations to hear himself on WOR. As if someone somewhere were listening, the right people just happened to come into his life at the right time, opening the doors for Ananian to get to his goal. For starters, the mother of his daughter’s childhood friend wound up being a big name in New York radio and helped open some doors, and a chance meeting in a bagel shop with the marketing director for Castrol North America, paved the way!
Had his wife not thrown out his tattered raincoat, Ananian would not have been wearing a Castrol jacket in the bagel shop on that fateful Saturday morning, which led to a conversation with the man who just happened to comment, “You should be on radio” in response to hearing Ananian’s knowledge about the product. That discourse led to many more, resulting in Castrol investing in “The Car Doctor” on WOR, leading the show to become a quick success which resulted in syndication in hundreds of markets.
Over the years, Ananian has felt, “It’s God’s radio show because you can’t line all this up. It’s just all clicked into place. Everything just clicked into place one thing after the next.”
The show’s life on WOR would meet its fate due to corporate changeover with iHeart Radio in 2012, but the show has lived on as Ananian has continued to broadcast from rented studio space and since 2014, via his own at-home studio. Over the years, the show has continued to grow in affiliation most recently through the efforts of Talk Media Network. It’s currently syndicated in 187 markets but none within the proximity of New York City. Now fate has stepped in once again. He’s been asked to return to WOR!
The week before Christmas, Ananian received a phone call from the assistant program director of WOR Radio 710 in New York City. He thought the caller was in need of automotive advice but it turned out to be something very different and unexpected – it was an invitation to return to the New York airwaves. “He told me, ‘We know you’ll make the phones ring off the hook.”
After all these years and no matter where he’s broadcast from, “The Car Doctor” has only been focused on “talking about the industry and delivering the message. I don’t do it for work at the shop or to promote the shop. One caller asked about bringing the car to my shop, and I said ‘I won’t tell you that. If you want me, you have to find me. I’m here to answer your questions about what is a proper repair.’ I know there’s a need for this – whether it’s educating the public or helping those who work on cars.”
He’s excited to be back on WOR and looks forward to taking the ride and seeing where it leads. That’s the way it’s always been.
“That’s the universe. Throw out a raincoat, wear the Castrol jacket. I go places and meet people.”
Ananian has learned to expect the unexpected. “Never in a million years did I think I’d be back in the New York market. I get to go home again.”
Learn more about where to hear Ananian’s show by visiting cardoctorshow.com.
A Note from Ron
It is both a thrill and an honor to sit down once again with New Jersey Automotive and discuss The Car Doctor. However, no conversation about its origins would be complete without mentioning the following:
In 1987, New Jersey Automotive Publisher Tom Greco, a name we all know, came to the shop to interview me. During that conversation, Tom offered me my first opportunity to write a column for New Jersey Automotive – some may remember it as “No Brakes.”
The day-to-day operations and challenges of the time were covered over the next decade or so. As time passed, all things eventually came to an end, and I moved on.
However, I never forgot Tom and his generous offer, which – for the record – helped me reach further than I ever thought possible.
It must have been his prophetic words that day: “If we can get you to write like you talk, there’s no telling how far you can go!”
Thank you, Tom.
Want more? Check out the February 2025 issue of New Jersey Automotive!