“If Lladós has Lamborghinis, I have a Citroën C15,” jokes comedian Javito Rivas. A lover of ordinary people’s cars and those eighties vehicles that evoke memories of another era, the comedian from Madrid has become well known for his monologues around “the town baker’s van.” This is how he defines it in one of his most viral YouTube videos, where it already has around 400 thousand views.
It all started with a rogue review of the unique Fiat Múltipla during the first confinement. Thus, as a simple occurrence, Less than cars, a new thematic block that would serve to parody Gonzalo Serrano’s program, Más que cars, premiered. “Since then, I will have made about five hundred videos of five hundred models,” he says now, about an idea that he predicts will be “infinite.”
Currently, this comedian of Galician and Leonese descent is immersed in his show Recalculando Ruta, with which he immerses us in nostalgic memories of the 90s, such as our parents’ cars. Likewise, he prepares the arrival of other novelties aboard a recently purchased C15. Of course, with almost a million and a half kilometers travelled. All this, without leaving aside his presence on social networks (Instagram, TikTok and YouTube), with that characteristic humor and his witty quips.
Where does your passion for cars come from?
It comes from my family, since I was little. I have always been linked to them because of my mother, who has instilled the taste in me. In my house there have always been car magazines and we have always watched Formula 1 and other motor events in Jarama.
And how have you integrated it into your profession as a comedian?
There has been a transition there. I have been a comedian for nine years and I started on the internet long before the videos that really went viral.
Less than cars is a monologue that arose from the fact that there was a program called More than cars. It started as an imitation and three jokes about a specific car, but that made everything explode. I think the luck I had was due to the fact that I combined motor and humor; And that, captured on video, was very powerful and people found it funny.
One of those first viral videos was that of the Citroën C15 and now it is part of you as a comedian.
That’s how it is. At this point, I can say that I am an ambassador for the Citroën C15, without a doubt, because everyone knows me for it. I didn’t know that this vehicle was going to have so much pull and there were already previous jokes. In fact, when it went on the market it had a sticker on the back that said “it takes everything.” At that time, Citroën itself already knew that it was tough.
The C15 jokes are endless. Every time I upload a video of her, people respond a lot. If (Amadeo) Lladós has Lamborghinis, I have Citroën C15s.
Beyond the C15 and in general terms, what type of vehicles work best when it comes to stringing together jokes?
In the monologue I have now, Recalculating Route, I’m touching more on nostalgia than on cars. Among the ones that I usually take out the most is the Seat León, which was one of the first that worked well for me and, from time to time, I alternate. Sometimes, I talk about the DeLorean or legendary cars that the public can know. I will have already made 500 videos of 500 different models.
There are certain vehicles that have had more experience and evoke a lot of nostalgia. They are precisely the ones that achieve the highest number of video views. For example, cars from the 80s or 90s, like the R5 Copa Turbo or the Renault 4. The latter is a vehicle that sold a lot here and is what many people learned to drive with. The union of jokes and nostalgia is a media bomb.
Precisely, nostalgia is a key point of your show Recalculando Ruta, what is the reason for this interest?
Nostalgia is key in many things, it is what is selling now. Whenever there is an event with music from thirty years ago, people go; and that happens in the movies or with the cars of the 80s, which attract a lot of attention. They were times with a fairly good economic situation, when you were not connected to a cell phone and you had more experiences. You went with your friends from adventure to adventure and that has brutal value. Now it’s different, not worse.
You are of Galician descent, right? To what extent do you use this setback?
Well, I have a block that is not from “Less than cars”, but in which I talk about the Hyundai Kona. The truth is that it seems like they have put it in an egg. The curious thing about this car is that in Portugal and Brazil they removed its name and, of course, in my monologue I say: and what happens in Galicia? It came to the circular and it was like “well, it will be bad” and they left it at that. It is a car with many jokes.
In addition, from time to time I also put in a Galician GPS and that has a very good pull.
And not only Galician. Apparently, you have Andalusian, Cuban, Basque GPS… have you gotten lost a lot?
Well, yes, I have done many (ha ha) That all started as a joke. They were part of my monologue and then I made them more visible. When you take out the Basque GPS, Murcian GPS, Galician GPS and Chinese GPS, there is a very nice moment with the public.
And as with GPS, you have also made many versions of “Less than cars”: “Less than phones”, “Less than balls”… Where is the limit?
Well, it’s really infinite because, at least for me, I don’t have time to do more. I have even done “Less than the supermarket cart”. I think you can humor everything, right? If there is something very common to all people, there is room for a “Less than…”.
And now where can we see you?
Well look, I have several gigs in Madrid. I have been to the Teatro Sojo, I have Perro Paco this month and then I am going to Zaragoza and Seville, in May. In July I will be in León, in a town in Logroño and maybe in Barcelona. All this with the Recalculando Ruta show.
And then, there’s something I’m going to tell you from here: I bought a C15 with 1,488,000 km on it! And this is going to be the common thread of a talk show I’m going to do.
What type of interviews?
I’m going to pick up famous, well-known people, and I’m going to interview them about cars and their lives while we drive the C15, in principle, through Madrid. Then I hope we can take it to more cities. Also, I’m going to add a lot of nostalgia: we will go with cassettes and other things that were carried in cars in the 80s. I’m really looking forward to it because I think it’s going to be a lot of fun.
I will start recording at the end of May, I hope to make a batch of ten chapters. Eventually, it will be on YouTube and there will be pills on Instagram and TikTok.
And do you already have someone in mind you would like to interview?
Clear. In order of priorities it would be Fernando Alonso, Marc Márquez and Jesús Calleja.
