Renowned Car Expert Donald Osborne and 10-Year-Old Protégé Kyrie Hosier Talk Classic Camaros and New Lamborghinis
To commemorate Black History Month, Robb Report is publishing a series of conversations between Black designers, thinkers and other creators whose work is shaping the luxury sector across generations. This is installment four.
One of the things I most appreciate about working and living in Newport, R.I., is the vibrant and enthusiastic car community of southern New England. It’s most readily apparent in the Audrain Cars & Coffee events which fill the season between April and November each year and attract friendly, knowledgeable people of all ages and wildly varied automotive interests.
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Attendees come from far and wide to participate, and include Conroy and Davina Hosier and their son, Kyrie. I was standing at a Cars & Coffee event last spring when Conroy and Davina came up to me, introduced themselves and explained that they had driven from their home in central Connecticut with their nine-year-old son who wanted more than anything else to meet me.
I was very flattered and, after introducing myself, Kyrie and I began to chat about cars and why he cared so much about them that he could convince his parents to drive more than an hour to come look at them. After a moment in conversation I realized that I was having an almost out-of-body experience. It was as if I was speaking to myself at the same age—a massive trick of time traveling.
Searching through the more than 50,000 images on my phone, I found a photo that had to be shared with Ky and his parents. The photograph was of me and my oldest brother in the backyard of our home when I was eight years old and he was 16. We had just finished building a model of the Lotus 29 race car and I was over the moon. The pure excitement and unbridled enthusiasm I’m displaying in that photo was now right in front of me, decades later, embodied by Kyrie. It was an incredible moment for all of us.
I would see Ky at other Audrain Cars & Coffee events during the summer, and it was not at all surprising that he and his parents came to the Audrain Newport Concours & Motor Week in the fall. He was, of course, dressed for the occasion, with a smart blue bow tie. Unbeknownst to me, and before I saw him on the field that day, he encountered Jay Leno.
Immediately taken with Ky’s intelligence, charm and passion for cars, Leno decided on the spot that he had to introduce the young man to the world—as my successor. Leno brought him up to the awards podium, introduced him to the crowd and loudly proclaimed, “I’ve found my new co-host! He’s smarter and better looking than Donald, and so much younger! Everyone, meet Ky!”
I recently chatted with Ky, now age 10, to explore a bit more about what cars mean to him and how he came to have such great enthusiasm at such a young age.
When did you begin to love cars?
As long as I can remember, maybe when I was one year old? I know that by the time I was four, I was crazy about them.
What was the first car that caught your eye?
It was on Jay Leno’s Garage, it was a 1990’s Camaro. First it was the design and the paint—it looked really cool. Then I heard the engine, and that really caught my ear! On my fifth birthday, my parents took me to five dealerships—Lamborghini, Ferrari, Bentley, Mercedes and a muscle-car tuner. I got to see the cars and sit in some. It was fantastic.
Do you want to work in the automotive industry when you grow up? If so, doing what?
It would be great to work at the Audrain Museum, showing cars to people, telling them all about them and what makes them special—how fast they go, their horsepower, their history. That would be great.
Why do you want that as your career?
Because I would be sharing my enthusiasm!
Do you prefer classic cars or modern models?
A little of both. I like cars going back to the ’60s and the ’70s through ’90s; A little in the ’50s. In Forza [the video game], there are some older cars, including some from the ’20s. For me, the most memorable was a 1953 Corvette. From the ’60s, I like some of the Camaros, the Aston Martin DB5 and Porsche 911.
In general, do you think kids your age have an interest in cars?
Yes and no. There are some, maybe 10 or so of my friends who really like cars. We see cars in games and also at events. A friend who is 16 knows about cars from the ’30s and the ’40s up to the modern cars, and he inspired me to learn more about the really old cars.
How do you feel about electric versus internal-combustion power trains?
I like gasoline, for sure. They [internal-combustion-powered cars] are more fun, because of the noise. Teslas are cool, but I need to hear the engine . . . it’s like music, a soundtrack.
Who are your role models and why?
Donald Osborne, because he works with Jay telling the history of cars, and of course, Jay Leno. It has been great to meet Donald and Jay! And I really like drift drivers—Tanner Foust, Ken Block, Chelsea DeNofa. I think it’s really great what those guys can do with a car.
If you could have any car, what would it be and why.
First, a Lamborghini Sián. And second, that’s tough, probably a Nissan 350Z. The Lamborghini is about style, and it’s their first hybrid. The 350Z has a really great-sounding V-6, and there are lots of body-kit parts available to make it look different . . . and it’s a great drift car.
What do you hope to contribute and accomplish in the car world?
I want to test-drive and feel the cars, to experience the cars, like the ones in Forza. Maybe have a channel on YouTube, to let people know what they can drive in games and what they are like. Then real cars, like Donald does on the Audrain Museum Network, and what Jay Leno does on Jay Leno’s Garage.
Editor’s note: Perhaps most recognized from his regular appearances on Jay Leno’s Garage, Donald Osborne is an esteemed appraiser of classic and exotic cars, a television host, automotive journalist and the CEO of the Audrain Auto Museum and the Audrain Newport Concours & Motor Week. As for Kyrie Hosier, it seems he is on the road to becoming Osborne’s protégé.
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