I was falling asleep a bit during it, I have said it before but I have no interest in the silly super cars. I enjoyed the larking about with the caravans etc but they I think they should ditch the star in a car, it drags on too much and that time would be better spent test driving a car normal people can buy.
Most the so called stars I have no idea who they are.
Ian would say probably my best one is the ability to bleed the brakes on a motorbike to get them spot on, or being happy just to sit in the garage and clean oily parts for him to fit back on.
>> My talents are endless Z:)
>>
>> Ian would say probably my best one is the ability to bleed the brakes on
>> a motorbike to get them spot on, or being happy just to sit in the
>> garage and clean oily parts for him to fit back on.
>>
>> Whatever more could a man want?
>>
>> Pat
He's quite wild looking Sheikha... but who was that fellow who used to swing out over the audience on the end of a rope with some sort of blazing candelabra on his head? I seem to remember him in the old primitive Roundhouse, but he did well like the Pink Floyd (although not as well as them) and appeared in other venues, theatres and such. Wish I could remember his name. Tip of my tongue... droool... cough... some of these youngsters in their forties and fifties may remember.
The first time Arthur Brown did that hair on fire schtick, his father, who hadn't seen it before, was in the wings. He saw his son with his head on fire, and as Arthur went on stage his Dad threw a glass of water over his head.
>> It was a bit worrying that the Mazda could
>> be rendered undriveable after such a light knock, though.
Was it though, or was that just to fit in with the story? I've enjoyed stuff like this in the past, but for some reason I didn't enjoy this one.
BTW big story in DM the other day about the hovercraft stunt in previous episode being staged; to be fair to DM readers, the best rated comment is:
"So? It was pretty flippin' obvious! It was one of their comedy sketches, (which I found 'hilarious'). Top Gear is not a documentary. Some might say the DM is no longer a reputable newspaper..."
>>
>> Precisely. The caravan test was excellent. It was a bit worrying that the Mazda could
>> be rendered undriveable after such a light knock, though.
>>
To be fair, it was actually the tow bar of the VW that caused the damage.
>>The Mr Angry's of the caravan world are complaining that TG suggests they're all dogging fans.
Well, it doesn't actually say that though, does it? It says that some bloke thought it was "disgusting & offensive" but it didn't say he was as a caravanner, he was just going on about his son watching it.
>> Well, it doesn't actually say that though, does it?
It did say something along those lines, but just like the BBC website it looks like they've reviewed and updated it.
However it does still say "Viewer Matthew Urquhart raged against the sketch"
So, he's obviously angry because he's raged, and being a he makes him a Mr.
i.e He's Mr Angry ;)
Ian Gritt added: “My 11yr old son is watching #TopGear. I’m pleased to say the dogging scene left him looking baffled.”
So, Mr Gritt, what's the problem then? Your son didn't understand what was going on so no harm done. The sketch was done in such a way that only adults understood the gag.
>> Shades of the Mary Whitehouses. I never could find all the porn she could, and as a 14 yr old buy I did try quite a lot.
In her heyday I saw myself proudly as a representative of all that Mary Whitehouse execrated: modern, laid-back, rational, radical and all the rest.
Later I came to realise that in the sixties with their events and changes there was also a fair amount of thoughtlessness, smugness, immorality and depravity, not to mention a sudden explosion of discreditable diseases, and that I had played my part in that. Psychoanalysis is extremely valuable and beneficial.
By the time the old bat died I was quite sorry to see her go.
Reminds me - talking to a senior colleague one day, dogging came up in the conversation (in a very professional sense) and there was quite a lengthy discussion and I took my leave. This guy had had an expensive education and I thought he was a man of the world. Anyway I went for a chin-wag and a brew with his PA the next day (as one does) and she was laughing her middle class, coiffured head off - he'd waited until I'd gone that day and gone into her office and aske din his ever so plummy voice...."Can you tell me what Dogging is ?"
>> and she was laughing her middle class,
>> coiffured head off - he'd waited until I'd gone that day and gone into her
>> office and aske din his ever so plummy voice...."Can you tell me what Dogging is
>> ?"
I hope she told him it involved a spaniel and a park.
>>
>> Ian Gritt added: “My 11yr old son is watching #TopGear. I’m pleased to say the
>> dogging scene left him looking baffled.”
It left me baffled as well until about halfway through when the light dawned, as it were. It left Mrs C entirely baffled and I certainly wasn't going to enlighten her! But then, Top Gear in its entirety leaves her baffled anyway.
I thought that tonight's show was the best in a very, very long time. I had a lump in my throat towards the end as I realised how great the British motor industry still is.
Brilliant - no silly japes, a known person in the reasonably priced car - Not sure whether I want a Rangie or an F Type after that. Nice to see the humble little Street-Triple amongst the Best of British. I am very proud to own a British bike.
i work at caterpillar, my job is to supply the back hoe line with an assortment of pins etc etc, we build a machine every 13 minutes ( 31 per shift) im feeling pretty proud at the mo :)
Can't help feeling the Top Gear and Das Auto shows were planned to appear back to back.
That F-type looks a cracking piece of kit, feel the RR Sport bit was a tele-commercial telling people the car you've got is a crock, buy a new one and you will feel so much better.
How many current owners would feel the benefit of ragging it up the slopes shown or around Donnington ? They've had the car long enough now to know if the car does what they need or are the car buying public so shallow now as to believe they "need" this new vehicle even though they know the car in the car park does everything they ask it to do ?
>> Love the RR, although I'm not sure I'd pay that much money for it.
>>
Yes, lovely to own it whilst all the electronic gadgetry is working but I wonder what it will be like 10 years down the line, or am I being naive in thinking that anyone would contemplate buying cars of that age?
In a very long ago TG, the team went out to buy whatever they could for £6995, that being the price at the time of a Pixo, the cheapest new car on sale in UK. Clarkson paid that for a 9 year old Merc S class which had cost £150k new, he said. Not a fair scenario as he wasn't buying it for himself nor with his money; however, there are some cheap cars out there. May got a 22 year old Bentley Mulsanne and Hammond got a 5 litre BMW 6 series coupe for that money.
>> Clarkson paid that for a 9 year old Merc S class which had cost £150k new, he said.
>> Not a fair scenario as he wasn't buying it for himself nor with his money
IIRC it 'was' their own money and Clarkson and the Hampster were going to run them for a while to see if anything dramatic happened. IIRC in a later episoode May mocked Clarkson as the coil pack (or something like that) had failed and it cost a small fortune to replace it.
EDIT - just found a couple of articles on said cars
>>as I realised how great the British motor industry still is.
One of the highlights of my job is finding out where ex-students get to.
It's surprising just how many automotive companies there - especially when you begin to drill down to supplier level. As an example, some of the "nice to touch" switchgear on VAG cars is made in South Yorkshire!
During the course, I try to broaden their ideas about what automotive engineering means, using examples from commercial vehicles instead of the formula one cars which they spend far too long dreaming about.
One of my best students from last year has gone to a job making dustbin trucks!
On Anglesey ? They still make them here - Historical links are from A V Roe who had a seaplabne factory on the Menai Straits (the massive hangers are still there) they turned their swords into plough shears by making specialist trucks - their succesors now have a base some miles away and you occasionally see bare chassis coming here - I passed a couple the other week with German trade plates.
>During the course, I try to broaden their ideas about what automotive engineering means, using examples from
>commercial vehicles instead of the formula one cars which they spend far too long dreaming about.
>One of my best students from last year has gone to a job making dustbin trucks!
Thanks for those links. I know the men are rich but I thought the licence payers paid for everything that was bought, Italian supercars under £10K etc. In any event, I was amazed at what could be picked for very little money with a catastrophic downside if they go wrong.
40,000 miles and a steering wheel worn to the rim? Either Mercedes are built like Ladas are there is a few digits missing before the 40,000 miles!!! Also the odo displays 49,000 miles. One to avoid.
>> 40,000 miles and a steering wheel worn to the rim? Either Mercedes are built like
>> Ladas are there is a few digits missing before the 40,000 miles!!! Also the odo
>> displays 49,000 miles. One to avoid.
>>
2002 was the height of their "iffy" period. Some of the rustiest, shabbiest looking cars you see on the roads today are late 90's to early noughties Mercedes.
Either they've had it quite some time, and want shot of it by dropping the price by some £2500 or those are library pictures and not actually the car for sale.
You are all being far too negative, One glance of the picture showing the outside of that fine establishment convinces me they are honest trustworthy and reliable people....
The lack of information on service history to me also suggests it has been clocked. If it is a one owner car (which I suspect may also be wrong) there must be some service history. I suspect they don't want you know that because it would reveal its true history.
Looking at the old MOTs may also reveal the truth.
I think they use Wales a lot but there were too many lakes near the road and I'm reckoning Scotland; there was snow on the mountains but we don't know when the segment was shot. Maybe the Borders, Clarkson did his minimal shopping for the Jag's very small boot in what looked like Wooler or Borders country. Interesting stats re British input in manufacturing; Sunderland builds more cars per annum than Italy, and, if I heard it right, 1/3 rd of all Ford cars in the world have engines built in UK! Perhaps it was cars in Europe and not the World.
>> Clarkson said "And that road in _____shire, we must go back there soon"
Hertfordshire, it was an in-joke referring to an earlier episode where they'd had complaints that the scenic roads they use for tracking shots bear no relationship to the roads the majority of the population can drive on within striking distance of home.
I believe the F-Type shots were taken on the road to Braemar. My little claim to fame is that half-a-dozen of our trade plate drivers were behind the 'wheels of the Land Rovers coming over the hill, and later crossing Tower Bridge. Clever filtering means you can't see the drivers in the cars - although a few guys can be spotted in the background of the slow tracking shots in the Mall.
I think I recognised the roads as being local to Pitlochry. Could anyone with more recent experience of the area confirm? It's been almost 30 years since I was there last!
The scenery is right for Pitlochry I think, lakes and water by the main roads, unlike the Welsh roads they use which are, I think, around and to the West of Bala, going towards Barmouth, wild country and empty roads. I think this clip re Aston Martin was filmed there with a nice Brian Eno soundtrack = The Ending www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Q0Svvdrx_E
>> I think I recognised the roads as being local to Pitlochry. Could anyone with more
>> recent experience of the area confirm? It's been almost 30 years since I was there
>> last!
>>
My thoughts when I saw the clip was "Scotland". It could have been many areas.
I'm not a Top Gear fan but someone directed me to this which almost bought a lump to my throat. tinyurl.com/mhsmafm
I don't doubt the authenticity of hte facts but an amazing bit of coordination to get it to happen - could it have been photoshopped, or whatever the equivalent is with moving film? Very quiet in The Mall so I guess early on a Sunday or similar.
According to Richard Porter (aka @sniffpetrol - very funny stuff) they started to arrange the vehicles at about 10pm on a Saturday night. The Mall is closed to traffic every Sunday anyway if I remember rightly so they had all day to get the shots they wanted.
The only fault with the film is they didn't mention Vauxhall at Ellesmere Port - maybe GM didn't want to cooperate.
Bah. Was vaguely looking forward to the "traditional" Christmas Top Gear special.
Anyone got any idea why it's been postponed to March 2014? Seems like that'll be after the next series.
On one hand the BBC seem to say "this is our top selling multibillion wondrous audience grabbing global phenomenon" and on the other they seem to be saying "oh that thing, the quicker we get rid the better".