Paddy ramped up some quite overbearing twattery IMO.    Much better car content this week, loved that Porsche.

Paddy ramped up some quite overbearing twattery IMO. Much better car content this week, loved that Porsche.

Yea, he’s the new Hammond. But then you kinda need that otherwise it would turn into a serious consumer show for the 52 lottery winners who’ll actually buy a Ferrari/911/vantage each year and dull for the other x million viewers.

Still feels like the production team are finding their feet, felt like a bad 90 minute edited down to a bearable 58. nothing happened at the track other than a few good shots of cars getting their wheels off the ground and the sat-nav challenge was just too scripted.

The iD-R segment was awesome though, genuinely looked like Harris was about to bin it at any moment, and the acceleration looking out the windows was just mental! Kinda how it looks/feels when normal people get into a go-kart and every corner becomes a twitchy nightmare!

McGuinness is killing it for me, he can’t help but comes across as the sort of bloke you’d go out of your way to avoid on holiday only to discover that he’s got the room next door. His showboating gets on my nerves to the point that I fast forward his segments to avoid him.

I thought I heard Christian as well, maybe Christian Klien, he was fast but maybe has time on his hands… didn’t ben collins sign up.for formula e where he was racing…..

Not seen last night’s yet as we had been binge-watching The Fall so only managed to watch last week’s episode and really enjoyed it – a shame about the retirement as it had the potential to be a great piece of TV. As they said, they are going to try it again and I hope they do.

Christijan Albers, maybe?

Christian Horner?

Liked Chris Harris before he was on Top Gear. The other two are just woeful really. Haven’t managed a full episode since Clarkson and co left. The Grand Tour was always a compromise. No Stig, no Star in a car etc. The best Top Gear ever was the 24hr race in the BMW 330D. Happy Days.

I was entertained by Flintoff shouting that he couldn’t stop while the onboard camera clearly showed that he wasn’t applying the brakes. Harris pointed this out at the end of the show but they just moved on. Someone must have just assumed that he would know that those lever things were brakes, but I don’t think it’s wise to assume that Freddie knows anything.

Didn’t Damon Hill just say, “let’s see if Chris can beat this” as in Chris Harris, when they swapped back? I didn’t pick up any slip up implying who the Stig was, but I’ve only watched it the once.

I enjoyed it. It was clear the Porsche was the best car. My only criticism was they need to get rid of the guest. When  you are down to having youtubers you really have run out of guests

YouTuber, singing and boxer KSI?

Even just as YouTuber he’s a pretty big star media has moved on.

They all met up at the lion Inn carpark above Rosedale. Brilliant riding round there.

I enjoyed it. It was clear the Porsche was the best car. My only criticism was they need to get rid of the guest. When you are down to having youtubers you really have run out of guests

Ok Boomer.

I’m not one of them, but his monthly viewing figures (~85million) kinda make him a big deal. Or put another way and in some sort of context, he’s bigger than Top Gear (~2.5-3 million/episode).

I didn’t have a problem with them having a YouTuber as a guest, but by god KSI was boring and his laugh made me want to punch him. And talking of punches – it appeared to me that Flintoff didn’t quite connect with his punch (he went over the top a bit – which is natural given his height) yet still punched harder.

Didn’t Damon Hill just say, “let’s see if Chris can beat this” as in Chris Harris, when they swapped back?

Ah, maybe, that’d make sense. I’ll maybe review it on the iPlayer later.

I’m mostly liking it, the presenters are good as is their chemistry, no gammony or bike hating stuff, though having challenges/trips every episode shows they are running out of ideas.

Some guests have been pretty dire too, Lawrence Fox FFS? (presumably filmed before his debacle).

Tried watching again this week… but didn’t get through much of it before giving up.

I’m not in to motorbikes ..but the clip of the night was that guy wheelie-ing his way down the track at two zillion mph ..
..oh and yeah the 911 all day long !

I’m not one of them, but his monthly viewing figures (~85million) kinda make him a big deal. Or put another way and in some sort of context, he’s bigger than Top Gear (~2.5-3 million/episode).

Bit unfair to compare worldwide viewing figures with UK ones though? Assuming TG is sold around the world still?

Bit more Damon Hill footage:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84gidMcwBF4

They all met up at the lion Inn carpark above Rosedale. Brilliant riding round there.

At the other end of the scale, the posh hotel where they all met in the morning is acutally a Hungry Horse pub car park, normally full of Carling drinkers and kids running riot. Must be quiet on a midweek morning though.

Watched a couple now based on the recommendations here. Utter garbage.
Harris is doing his best with a car review each week but other two just come across as chavs in white trainers. I’m just waiting for them to start shouting “Stag! Stag! Stag!” while jumping up and down.
Paddy seems to be trying to conform to a stereotype and Flintoff is just dull.

It’s such a shame Joey and Rory are gone. They had a good car show then. Now it just feels like another “entertainment show” aimed at the lowest common denominator.
I feel let down by STW.
I’m off to misalign my valve caps

Joey was shit, McGuiness still is. Warming to Freddie, though – catching up on the back of the “not so bad” reviews on here.

To be honest TG’s been light entertainment with cars chucked in for years. Looking forward to the McRea piece this week, I’ll end up looking online for early Imprezas again I’m sure.

Only caught bits of tonight’s as I’m working but seemed brilliant closing episode. Need to watch it again for the McRea section. Caught the end section though well what I can say.

McRea segment was brillaint, grew up watching Group A/Early WRC so brough back memories of going to Clumber Park as a kid

Enjoyed that series. Paddy seems to be the stooge, Freddie I’m liking as well as Chris.

The McRae piece was excellent!

Excellent series finale, back to a winning formula for me

I liked that – with the exception of Loud Paddy.  FFs him shouting everywhere is sodding annoying.

Anyway, I’d own that m8 in a heartbeat, it didn’t look as “old man” as the Bentley or Aston.  The McCrae piece was very good and to have watched Colin then later learned of his death in my younger years it was a little emotional.   I couldn’t have brought myself to sit in that seat though.

Where have 25 years gone since Colin’s 1 and only WRC win? Strange Derek Ringer wasn’t interviewed as he was his co-driver not Nicky Grist. I’ve mentioned it on here before but I played a minor part in his win on the Rally GB and thus WRC, I was spectating at a remote section in Kielder when he appeared with a puncture and was 1 of only about 3 or 4 at the spot. We helped change the wheel and get him back on the road, only losing about a minute. As was reported, he won the rally by 30 seconds. I was also on the last corner on the rally in Clocaenog, very emotional. All assumed it was the first of many wins, we didn’t reckon on Tommi Makinen and the Mitsubishi.

I had a little lump in my throat during the McRae piece. Up there with the Senna one that Clarkson did. I remember following the WRC closely in the 90s growing up. Along with the BTCC, it was a brilliant motorsport fix on TV every week.

Agreed that Paddy is the muppet in the group. I’ve warmed to Freddie, and Chris is just at the top of his profession when it comes to car journalism.

Enjoyed last night, Paddy seems to have found his place – jumping up and down an hugging Paramedics and failing to drift M8s.

I’ll stick my neck out and say that was the best series of Top Gear in YEARS.

The last couple of Clarkson series were stale and boring, I don’t care how thick your rose tinted are, every forum / sm post I saw about TG for years contained the words “scripted, repetitive, boring” I liked Matt, Chris Evans was and always will be a Git in my book and poor Rory bless ‘im just didn’t work.

You can’t pretend it’s all new, if you were being cruel you could say it’s the same old with new face, but for me it works again.

Lads having a muck about and cars thrown in. Works for me !

This is a great documentary on McRae, and features Derek Ringer quite a bit.

Only seen it up to the end of the McRae piece but enjoying it immensely. I didn’t realise Toyota had been disqualified the year he won it though. In 1988 (when the RAC was based in Harrogate) I was fortunate enough to get to a Toyota private event at the local dealership (my girlfriends next door neighbour was the owner of the franchise) so got to sit in the actual Celicas used in the rally. I also managed to blag a pass (again via my girlfriend) to the photographers enclosure at the end of the Rally (ie, the raised pavilion facing the Finish Ramp) so was stood there alongside all the national press with my little SLR and it’s 50mm prime lens.

A good end to the series that, especially the McRae piece. It’s at times like that that Chris’ car nerd comes to the fore and really works.

If they can keep the quality around this level for a few years they’re on to a good thing. Had a really good mix of daft, educational and historic stuff to keep it all interesting, just lose the SIARFC bit (or keep it for big celebrities once or twice a series) and keep the mix the same and they’ll be fine. Even McGuiness is good as he appeals to a different crowd to the other two, if the cameraderie between the three wasn’t there then he’d be a gonner but it’s there to see so he can stay.

In the early ’90s my father, who had been a pretty good rally driver in the ’60s and ’70s, decided to enter the Rally GB in a Ford Fiesta and run on a shoestring. Pre-event scruitineering was at Harrogate showground and there was a strict order of allocated times to do this. We were rather surprised to find our little car next in the queue to Juha Kankunnen, the current world champion in his Toyota Celica GT4. He was really pleasant, taking an interest in our car and chatting to my father who was then pushing 60. We joked that our entire budget for the rally would just about pay for 1 set of tyres on his Celica.

I know humour is very much individual, but I just don’t see where or how Paddy can be seen as being funny. I don’t mind loud and brash if funny, but he is just loud. He appears to have to shout to be heard, because no one really wants to hear his humourless quips.
I do really like the other two guys though. Chris really is the glue holding it together, his knowledge and enthusiasm is great to watch. I don’t know who would be better than Paddy, but there must be someone who actually has a modicum of talent and is both amusing and interesting to watch.
(Possibly me being middle aged and thinking back with rose tinted glasses to the main 3 presenters)

I actually don’t mind Paddy any more. Just sayin’…