This script downloads a week's worth of podcasts onto a thumbdrive.
This uses a file in the same folder called "RSSFeeds.txt" to determine what gets loaded. This file is formatted like:
# The first item is the folder on the thumbdrive.
# The next item is the "tag" for the MP3 file
# (i.e., files will be like "JS_25_Nov_17.mp3")
# The last item is the RSS feed for the podcast.
JS,JS,http://textfiles.libsyn.com/rss
Checkout RSSFeeds.txt for an example I use. Lines starting with "#" are ignored. Usually if you google "Podcastname RSS" and look for a URL ending in rss or xml, that's it.
The script pulls up a feed, and downloads all shows with a pub date since the previous Saturday. If you update your thumb drive more often, you'll want to tweak this. Note the thumb drive must be labeled AUDIO (on the Mac) or have a folder at the root level called MKTPLC (for Windows) to be recognized by the script.
I've stopped maintaining this for the time being. I now own a phone that works well enough with Android Auto that it's easier to use an app (such as Pocket Casts) to manage the podcasts. The screen interface for listening to MP3s in my Honda is so horrible it's worth the trouble to plug in the phone on every drive.
It's still useful as a worked example of how to manage podcast feeds with Python, so feel free to loot the code for that.