The overtakes were scripted out of oblivion, it was like a B movie script car chase in Ny Yoyk with Nicholas Cage at the wheel.

I mean, obvz..

And gawd, what was the crap muck spreader bit about? That’s a pointless section f the programme.

I do like Sabine for her infectious enthusiasm, I hope they use her again..

I wish they would say woo hoo a bit more.

Bit meh about this week’s. Felt like not enough content stretched out to fill the hour.

I thought it was brilliant. Harris as the bond villain made me laugh out loud.

I thought it was great, on the right track. The studio bits are the clear weak link.

They really were.

Which one were you driving?

I’m assuming they were, as all things being equal any one of those cars should be quicker than the Golf. But all things weren’t equal, you had one of the quickest drivers of the ‘Ring versus complete unknowns in all the others. I don’t doubt there was selective editing at the very least, but I also don’t doubt that Sabine would have bags more confidence in the Golf than Franz in his 911 who’s just looking at the Armco and working out how much a crash will cost!

pondo – Member

I don’t think the overtakes were overly contrived

They really were. [/quote]

njee20

Which one were you driving?[/quote]

If there was any doubt, the fact that the white Corvette, white GT3 RS, red GT3 and TTRS etc were parked up beside the Golf during the pre-amble should give it away. Painfully scripted.

Not that Sabine couldn’t overtake most average drivers regardless of equipment, but it wouldn’t look like that. And in real life there’d probably plenty of track prep’d 1000bhp Porsches and BMWs blasting past.

Incidentally, professional racing driver Benny Leuchter took roughly 60 attempts over 6 months to get that lap time in the golf.

It’s obvious, the film crew would have had a word with the drivers in the other cars before they were let out on the track. Don’t they go off in groups of 10 or something ? A simple “oi Klaus, we’re filming a dark grey Golf for Top Gear, keep an eye out for it in your mirrors because we’ll be going flat chat” his response would be something like “Ya, das iz goot ya”

I’m surprised anyone thinks otherwise.

Different people like different things shocker!
Sabine has balls of steel 😀

Whatever… It was good Sunday night doing the ironing TV. Again.

So much better without Evans and Clarkson & Co.

I’m pretty sure it was a track day, rather than touristfahren, which would explain

a) the cars parked up together at the start
b) the lack of bikes (track days there are normally cars or bikes)

the overtakes would look exactly like that as people aren’t racing. once someone’s caught you on a track day, if they’re going quicker than you, you get to a place you can ease off, and let them past (on the left, if its a touristfahren).

The overtakes might have been scripted/repeated, but they’re not contrived. Sabine in a car like that would probably be quicker than any member of this forum, in literally any car. Just in the same way that Danny hart would be quicker than any of us down fort bill, regardless of the bike he’s riding – particularly if (as the analogy would follow) he’s just on a mid-spec enduro bike (so pretty reasonable, if not absolutely optimized for the track) rather than a £10k carbon bling spec dh bike (ie a 911 gt3 or turbo)

Given that neither TG or TGT are really car programs its all about, for me, whats entertaining without it feeling forced or overly silly.

Again for me, this current series of TG has TGT pipped. TG must have a much smaller budget that the TGT but seems to provide very comparable content suggesting TGT maybe have run out of ideas.

The star bit in TG, if it were to stay, needs to go back to the Clarkson 1 on 1 plugging type interview as then it was at least a little meaningful.

I really enjoyed it. In fact, I enjoyed it far more than I did the Grand Tour.

It’s beautifully shot – the chase scenes around the old factory somewhere in ex-Yugoslavia were really well done, plus the chemistry between presenters is working better. Rory gets on my nerves a little, as does Sabine but I can cope with both in small doses. Thankfully, there’s no sign of Eddie Jordan anywhere.

I loved it. Really, really loved it. As for Sabine’s piece, I reckon 5lab has it about right^

SIARFS still isn’t quite working for me, but Tamsin had a good stab at making it more entertaining than previous ones. I really rate Matt le Blanc on the feature pieces, even the muck spreader 😆

Jeremy who?

really enjoying the new top gear – back to basics for me and it works.

I thought last night was better than the Grand Tour I must say. I like Chris, Matt’s getting there, Rory’s a bit annoying, but it’s definitely got potential.

5lab
Sabine in a car like that would probably be quicker than any member of this forum, in literally any car

Pfft, hardly. I’ve over taken Sabs when she was driving the M5 ring taxi!

.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Although to be fair i was driving a full wings-n-slicks N24 car……. 😉

Just watched the first one.
Enjoyed it.

Was really looking forward to Clarkson free TG but Evans’ ego kyboshed that.
Much more relaxed without him.

Jeez H. C. on a pushbike. The new series is DULL.

I never thought that I’d become the sort of person to switch over from T.G. to The One Show out of preference . . . but, hey . . .

I very much lament Clarkson throwing that punch. But, if it wasn’t that, the PC brigade would have found something else . . . eventually. 🙄

PC gone mad, sacking someone for punching a junior member of staff for not having his tea ready.

Watched last night’s earlier. It was very good indeed some lovely cars being driven fast, great entertainment. Slowly Harris is improving in the studio so he might be allowed to stay if he continues.

I can’t believe we’ve never mentioned Clarkson punching someone before.

I had a 5 seconds glance at New TG not good, not good instantly put me off me meal coz something is really not right. 😆

Almost sums up reading your posts.

Cant say I really thought to much of last nights episode.
To many camera angles and trickery trying to give the cars an impression of speed.
Hardly ever saw a speedo shot or long distance view. They just don’t seem to be able to really enjoy themselves and get loose of the BBC leash.
Just my views but it’s still a damn site better without Ginger.

I really enjoyed last nights episode, previous ones were OK but the last one was definitely a step up. Chris Harris seemed a bit more natural and less forced with his acting. Mat seemed more comfortable in the studio. Overall there was more chemistry between the presenters and everything flowed better than the previous shows.

Favorite car in the episode?

For me the Fiat 124. The original one

I’m pretty sure it was a track day, rather than touristfahren, which would explain

a) the cars parked up together at the start
b) the lack of bikes (track days there are normally cars or bikes)

the overtakes would look exactly like that as people aren’t racing. once someone’s caught you on a track day, if they’re going quicker than you, you get to a place you can ease off, and let them past (on the left, if its a touristfahren).

The overtakes might have been scripted/repeated, but they’re not contrived. Sabine in a car like that would probably be quicker than any member of this forum, in literally any car. Just in the same way that Danny hart would be quicker than any of us down fort bill, regardless of the bike he’s riding – particularly if (as the analogy would follow) he’s just on a mid-spec enduro bike (so pretty reasonable, if not absolutely optimized for the track) rather than a £10k carbon bling spec dh bike (ie a 911 gt3 or turbo)
I totally get that she would be quicker by a big margin than the average ‘Ring punter, but it just didn’t strike me as real at all. Few things – some of those passes were on straights, think one might have been on a corner exit, and no matter how good she is, she can’t make a 300hp hatch (two up) accelerate faster than a hundred grand sportscar. Some of the pases she made were on the right, and there was at least one rear-looking shot of the Golf from one of the ‘target’ cars. More than anything, I think it was the in-car shots – would Rory really drop a loser sign on a total stranger as they go past, and would the Beeb show it? Would either of them be that excitable? Would they be working out on the fly the cumulative values of the cars they’re going past? Who even does that (unless you’re doing a piece about how fast round the ‘Ring a 30k hatch is)? Just had “scripted” written all over it for me.

Good… Le Bond, Sabine, muck spreader… (would have been good to have got some facts on the power of those blades)

Bad … leblanc’s comic timing and whole programme is a bit too long

Ugly …. The DB11 😥

I had a 5 seconds glance at New TG not good, not good instantly put me off me meal coz something is really not right.

Almost sums up reading your posts.

[/quote]

😆

About half way through, so far it’s def the best yet!

I’m pretty sure it was a track day, rather than touristfahren, which would explain
a) the cars parked up together at the start
b) the lack of bikes (track days there are normally cars or bikes)

the overtakes would look exactly like that as people aren’t racing. once someone’s caught you on a track day, if they’re going quicker than you, you get to a place you can ease off, and let them past (on the left, if its a touristfahren).

The overtakes might have been scripted/repeated, but they’re not contrived. Sabine in a car like that would probably be quicker than any member of this forum, in literally any car. Just in the same way that Danny hart would be quicker than any of us down fort bill, regardless of the bike he’s riding – particularly if (as the analogy would follow) he’s just on a mid-spec enduro bike (so pretty reasonable, if not absolutely optimized for the track) rather than a £10k carbon bling spec dh bike (ie a 911 gt3 or turbo)

I totally get that she would be quicker by a big margin than the average ‘Ring punter, but it just didn’t strike me as real at all. Few things – some of those passes were on straights, think one might have been on a corner exit, and no matter how good she is, she can’t make a 300hp hatch (two up) accelerate faster than a hundred grand sportscar. Some of the pases she made were on the right, and there was at least one rear-looking shot of the Golf from one of the ‘target’ cars. More than anything, I think it was the in-car shots – would Rory really drop a loser sign on a total stranger as they go past, and would the Beeb show it? Would either of them be that excitable? Would they be working out on the fly the cumulative values of the cars they’re going past? Who even does that (unless you’re doing a piece about how fast round the ‘Ring a 30k hatch is)? Just had “scripted” written all over it for me.

I agree – it was embarrassing to watch actually – loads of the giant killing was of rental cars including RSR, IE billies at 6/10ths (don’t blame them with a €20k excess) or guys on their in-lap/cooldown. The thing is it gave the impression the car was a giant killer. Good as it is it really isn’t. Plenty of punters are quicker than Sabine in a Golf CS there, they just decided not to show them. I quite like that Rory guy but he is into cars and he has waited that long to do 1 lap there : really ?

Plenty of punters are quicker than Sabine in a Golf CS there, they just decided not to show them.

Personal friends of yours? You go there often enough to know this for a fact? She lives there! Possibly knows the circuit better than any one single person, a professional racing driver, done more than 20,000 laps, increasing by around 1200/year! But I guess any random jackass with a fancy car can show her a thing or too…

Top gear has always been fake, the thing was that you didn’t care because of the interpersonal dynamic. If that is lost then they’re screwed

I think it was the in-car shots – would Rory really drop a loser sign on a total stranger as they go past, and would the Beeb show it?

Why wouldn’t they?

But I guess any random jackass with a fancy car can show her a thing or too…

Not a random jackass, but I’m sure a very good driver in a faster car could get round quicker (see Max’s post ^^^).

Why wouldn’t they?

Just seems out of character for the new face of the show – I could imagine the old mob doing it, this lot not so much. Don’t know if you could say it’s an insult but it seems derogatory, I’d wonder if the Beeb has guidelines about being mildly rude to strangers.

Plenty of punters are quicker than Sabine in a Golf CS there, they just decided not to show them.

Personal friends of yours? You go there often enough to know this for a fact? She lives there! Possibly knows the circuit better than any one single person, a professional racing driver, done more than 20,000 laps, increasing by around 1200/year! But I guess any random jackass with a fancy car can show her a thing or too…

Yes some personal friends will be quicker than her in their car if she is in the Golf but probably not if they are in the Golf too. I only go there 3 times a year but that’s only been for 8 or so years. I can’t remember saying that anyone can be faster than her, can you ? I said plenty of people will be quicker than her in their car. Just go to a DN event or even an evening TF and you’ll see other locals in action too. There is only so fast the Golf can go, isn’t there ? She might be worth 10s more than the average serious track pedaler there in the Golf but many cars are worth a multiple of those 10s. The program will have you believe that the Golf is quicker than a rental GT3. It really isn’t, and even Sabine can’t change that.
She is probably amongst the quickest drivers there but she is not a magician. I have only done 600 laps or so which means I only know 90% of what I need to know and I am fully aware that the other 10% would take me 500 years at this rate but the law of diminishing returns hit far earlier than you may think. You don’t find minutes by being a local. You find the last 10s, at best. Which isn’t enough to beat a GT3, unless my neighbour drives it!

Nothing against Sabine as I have been using her family’s facilities quite a lot but a little perspective will help understanding how embarrassing that feature was. Actually, that’s precisely the kind of attitude displayed that the Ring are trying to get rid off and the place has kind of become a little less loutish of late.

Enjoyed that tonight! 🙂

Yip, it’s a grower,

That’s entertainment…