knock the programme all you want, but that intro bit to the Range Rover film was beautifully shot.

We all know JC co-owns the production company behind TG but why do they always give lengthy spots to JLR products?

Conflict of interest?

he does love them. But to be fair, that was a cracking piece. Imagine using that truck’s tracking device in the peak on a bike. That’d be ace.

Good technology too. I’d love to see something like that LIDAR in affordable consumer use.

JLR are a good British brand. If they are good, let TG promote them.

Previously it was Merc Merc Merc

People were complaining about the amount of exposure Kia got last week. Now it’s Range Rover. Why would it be a conflict of interests? Does JC have controlling shares in LRJ? I don’t think so, and that’s really the only way there could be a conflict of interests.

The technology on the Terramax was amazing and the Range Rover was a very nice motor.

JLR are a good British brand.

Good, strictly speaking not British anymore.

good show this week, the Land Rover bit being a highlight.
even the crummy grannymobile re-hash was funny in places.

I’m awful for remembering what floor I’ve parked the car in multi story car parks, wonder if they could come up with something?

The Range was very nice but £100k nice…….

We all know JC co-owns the production company behind TG

Some of us know he doesn’t 😉

And was james may really ragging it round those corners like that?

JLR are actually an Indian company

I want an OAPmobile as long as it’s not an effin’ Multipla. Every point they raised was perfectly valid, when I had a mark 1 Panda, I loved it for it’s simplicity

I don’t quite understand those who moan about the programme promoting car makers from one week to the next.

“Too much this, too much that”. Do they not understand how TG works? It’s about cars. Same as when William Woolard was at the helm. Just better. If you don’t like it, don’t watch it.

Top Gear about cars? Oh dear, oh dear. The poor deluded fools….

There were a few moments last night that were funny. I know it was a rehash but the biddymobile was fun to watch (in parts). RH would fit right in here. Mild interest in boiks and collection of man size watches (Breitling and Roly on show last night).

PSA- The new Fifth Gear on Discovery starts tonight 8)

Bye Top Gear. I think its time I bowed out of such threads and watching that programme. Just before it was a great programme on cooking in Morocco 😀

The finish between the RR and the Terrawanktothemax was close wasn’t it?! Fancy that.

hora – Member
PSA- The new Fifth Gear on Discovery starts tonight

Actually it started last week.

Top gear humor is becoming increasingly dull, they’d do well to cut out much of the past-sell-by-date laddish humor and turn it into a hour long slightly more serious show for car enthusiasts.

I’ll mindlessly wander through top gear whilst actually waiting for Dexter to start TBH.

The finish between the RR and the Terrawanktothemax was close wasn’t it?! Fancy that.

No it wasn’t and they didn’t even try to claim it was.

they’d do well to cut out much of the past-sell-by-date laddish humor and turn it into a hour long slightly more serious show for car enthusiasts.

They tried that and it proved unpopular so it was scrapped in 1997, so it’s now about being silly with cars which has proved to be hugely popular. I watch it for it’s silliness, cheesey over the top larking around.

1997?

I liked the humour but then the programme became more about two mens ego’s and focusing on ridiculously expensive cars (200k+) whilst driving around a track taking upto 30m’s laterally to get round on a quick lap praising the handling. On any road the street furniture or kerb would wipe this cars out at any sort of speed. So they are hardly ‘great’ cars. Just expensive at the end of the day- toys for old rich, drink-addled men.

Quite often on Dave they’ll air TG shows from 2003 onwards to c2007- they are actually a brilliant mix of informative and entertainment.

The Clio182 drive by Clarkson from circa 03? (or was it 05?) was great. Same with the old Type R v the new Type R by Clarkson. Fast forward to the Renault Clio Twingo sport feature (with Grant Mitchell in the boot) and it was 90% silly/filler/pointless.

Its only in the last few years that the presenters have really gone over the top in self-indulgence, ego-stroking etc etc.

Saying all this Plato once shook down a Lotus Elise and comprehensively described every single bit of its handling and its failings. Brilliant to watch and boy did he drive the thing.

Recently- the only parts of TopGear I warmed to was the Ariel Atom V8 and Caterham R500 round the track.

So to summerise 2003-2007 (roughly) is where TopGear had it bang on.

Yes 1997 is when you had men looking very serious and talking about MPGs and how the kids had plenty of room to kick the back of the driver’s seat.

2002 is when it came back with 3 blokes messy around with cars, driving around the track as fast as possible, doing silly stunts and the likes.

JLR are actually an Indian company

Well, not really. JLR are a British company owned and financed by an Indian company – might be semantics but there is a difference (as in all the engineering and production is done in Britain by British engineers and all day to day running, marketing etc is as well – just the very very very very very top dogs who are from Tata)

And last night they told us about the 110bhp Up.

Now I want one.

It was ok to start with after the presenting team settled down a bit.

It’s never been original – pretty much everything was ripped off from the magazines of the time, but it was harmless fun for those who couldn’t read properly. 🙂

Switched over to the program on C4 about the DeHavilland Comet after the first cliche about old people and incontinence.
It was much more interesting entertainment for the post pubescents amongst us. 😀

2002 is when it came back with 3 blokes messy around with cars, driving around the track as fast as possible, doing silly stunts and the likes.

No you’ve missed the point of everything I’ve said about that period.

No it wasn’t and they didn’t even try to claim it was.

Oh dear.

No you’ve missed the point of everything I’ve said about that period.

No I haven’t they messed around then too but as the budget got bigger the messing around got bigger.

Oh dear.

Oh dear what? They didn’t utter anything about being close if anything they made a point it wasn’t by James talking about the RR for awhile before panning out to show the Terramax meandering it’s way over the finish line. I was fully expecting the usual ‘Oh I can see the Terramax it’s going to be close oooh I just made it’ but that didn’t happen.

you’re only grumpy cos you saw the benefits in the granny mobile grandad

I liked that Multiple’s beige paint job. No I actually did. I was going to google prices but then realised they’ll all be old now and no one wants an old Fiat to run 😆

I’ve got one on order.

JC would love this thread..

Load of blokes arguing about the pros & cons of TG..

I reckon that makes it 15-0 to TG & it’s fans..

Over to you, you dullard knockers of cheesy light entertainment.. 😉

They’re a bit light on racial stereotyping too these days. I imagine some folk miss that.

all the engineering and production is done in Britain by British engineers

…apart from the production that’s done in India…

Jaguar Land Rover are owned by Tata aren’t they? So it’s an Indian company, just with UK employees

I imagine some folk miss that.

Ooooohhhh terribly…bring back Alf Garnett!

🙄

JLR is UK registered company whose main share holder is an Indian engineering company. For many purposes there is a difference.

Thought TG was reasonable last night, try and watch most weeks as its usually entertaining. Mind you it can border real crappy. What I really like is reading all the professional moaners on here, if its rubbish use the off switch..

I like Clarkson because he is mostly an idiot but he is a least proof that its possible to say what he likes, even on the BBC while not being a fan of the Labour Party. The Guardian readers must get really pissed whenever he’s on the telly, especially as TG’s success is funding the BBC tax. Fancy that right wing nutter funds pinko liberal broadcaster. 🙂

Clarkson is just a BBC employee anyway, and the BBC don’t own any part of Jag/LandRover so how is there any sort of conflict of interest, Regardless of which Nation owns JLR ?

They’re a bit light on racial stereotyping too these days. I imagine some folk miss that.

I think you have it there DD.

I was wondering what the usual TG loverz were missing with their recent “it’s a bit tired now” posts.
They must be missing the laddish “edginess” where they mock the weak, patronise the poor and carefully insult foreigners. Cheeky scamps that they are!

Like moths to a flame, its ALWAYS the people who say they’re never going to watch it again, and its boring and stale, that are straight onto their nearest and dearest social media platform to have a whinge!

Don’t like it, turn it over. Or better still, turn it off, go outside, grab your bike, and do something entirely more productive instead!

Top Gear is light entertainment for the masses. In that respect its no different to a number of other programmes on our telly’s these days. The thing is, most of us that don’t watch Eastenders/TOWIE/Corrie/X Factor/Take Me Out or any other number of anodyne soaps or light entertainment shows, don’t constantly feel the need to moan about them in public!

FWIW, I thought TG was a bit meh last night. But I’d still rather it was on TV as its more entertaining than most other things, and it does occasionally provide the odd comedy moment in amongst the overly rehearsed stuff.