Men's Journal

The sitcom star has always had a thing for speed and the cars that deliver it. Just don’t ask him to fix one.

Interview by Jonathan Wilde

At the University of Washington, 6-foot-4 McHale ran a 4.6 40 and walked onto the football team as a tight end. A decade later he started hosting E!’s The Soup, and now he’s started school all over again, playing student Jeff Winger on NBC’s Community. As for his speed work, though, it’s safe to say that horsepower has replaced wind sprints.

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Favorite Drive
In L.A. I like to drive from Laurel Canyon to Mulholland, where you can really get into the curves. I guess I spend my time doing what most men do — driving a car with way too much power. But it’s there in case you get into a high-speed chase and need to run through a fence on the Mexican border….

First Car
When I was growing up, my dad bought my brothers and me an Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser, one of the largest station wagons ever built. Two batteries, four halogens. When I flipped the high-beams on, the other cars would drive right off the road.

Under The Hood
As an actor I do all my own driving, but I’m not trying to be Steve McQueen. If my car were to break down, I’m the guy who’d pop the hood open and say something useless like, “I think the flux capacitor is skipping.” I admire technology — but I only understand about 10 percent of it.

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See Joel’s Accomplished Renegades profile on IFC and inside 360 Sessions, Tuesdays starting September 7 at 9 pm ET/8 CT.

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This article originally appeared in the September 2010 issue of Men’s Journal.