Kris Culmer

Kris Culmer
Title: Chief sub-editor

Kris Culmer is the chief sub-editor for Autocar, meaning he is responsible for editing and fact-checking all articles published both online and in print. 

He has more than eight years of experience of reporting on the car industry, having joined What Car? in 2016 and then moved to sister title Autocar in 2020. 

Kris also frequently writes news and reviews for Autocar, his specialist subject being motorsport. He trained as a journalist at the Brighton Journalist Works, where he earned his NCTJ Gold Standard in 2016. 

Having a strong passion for history, Kris also manages Autocar’s office archive, which dates back to 1895, and regularly produces retrospective insights. 

Prior to joining the automotive media, Kris was a freelance contributor of news and sports reports to local newspapers in his home county of East Sussex. 

Kris is an expert in:

  • Motorsport, particularly Formula 1
  • The history and development of the global car industry
  • New car news
  • New car reviewing
  • Smaller and more obscure automotive companies

Kris Culmer Q&A

What was your biggest news story?

Long gallery-style pieces on the histories of car brands’ emblems and the dates of brands’ introduction on the UK required a lot of research but were rewarding, digging a lot of interesting information out of obscurity. And travelling to 2022 pre-season testing in Spain to get an exclusive view of the new Formula 1 cars also resulted in an interview with Esteban Ocon and a scoop on the F1 aero of the Alpine A290.

What’s the best car you’ve ever driven?

I adore bespoke sports cars, especially if they’re light, don’t go overboard with power and allow me to do the gear changes. The Subaru BRZ, Toyota GR86, Alpine A110, Porsche 911 and Mazda MX-5 therefore all stand out – but the best has to be a BMW M2 on track at Goodwood.

What will the car industry look like in 20 years?

Everyday cars will all be battery-electric, bloated with connectivity and driver-assistance technology, and all will look very similar indeed. Almost all of them will be crossovers and SUVs, sadly, and none of them will stir an old soul with their driving experiences. Thankfully, though, there will be an even more thriving old-car scene than there is today to keep us petrolheads happy.

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Muck Rack

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