The Top Gear Thread [Mixed Reviews]: Matt LeBlanc quits Top Gear

In the latter years of the Clarkson era, it just became a vehicle (ha!) for the celebs to plug their latest movie/book/show, which was always boring.

They need the celebrity bit because the production companies pay the BBC to let them plug their new film or album or whatever.

My favourite bits are always the challenges. In particular when they are each given £X to
Buy old ______ car and then compete or race etc. These are fun but also within reach of the average viewer. I mean that Alfa looks lovely but not many people can afford the £60k price tag so we will never get to experience it, but a 1998 E class Mercedes or 2001 Volvo V70, sure we can actually appreciate what they are talking about.

Basically this series is a huge step toward what made old top gear great. The presenters are good and unlike last year they feel part of the show rather than pre recorded sections in the background to Evans and his ego.

I like Chris and Rory and I'm warming to Le Blanc.

But yes the celeb section is a huge drag as always.

FatDaz wrote:My favourite bits are always the challenges. In particular when they are each given £X to
Buy old ______ car and then compete or race etc. These are fun but also within reach of the average viewer. I mean that Alfa looks lovely but not many people can afford the £60k price tag so we will never get to experience it, but a 1998 E class Mercedes or 2001 Volvo V70, sure we can actually appreciate what they are talking about.

Agreed. It’s nice to see and hear about the amazing expensive cars, but I also like to see them trying to drive 500+miles in a shitty car that is falling apart. Any of us that have ever had a banger on its last legs can appreciate how nerve racking it is when all the warning lights are on and smoke is pouring out of the engine. :slol:

Other challenges are fun though, like when Clarkson would take a supercar and May and Hammond would race him using a train or a plane. Those sorts of challenges felt more real, fun and exciting than the current Grand Tour idea of scripting “wacky” adventures where they make cars out of mud!!!LMAO!!!

I thought the Ferrari FXXK segment was fantastic as it's nice to actually see these cars in real life with a driver who seems like he really likes cars and hasn't become jaded. That single segment was better than anything on The Grand Tour which shows just how much the old presenters have done to dampen my enthusiasm for their stuff.

I echo FatDaz's and Moggy's sentiments above.

FatDaz wrote:My favourite bits are always the challenges. In particular when they are each given £X to
Buy old ______ car and then compete or race etc. These are fun but also within reach of the average viewer. I mean that Alfa looks lovely but not many people can afford the £60k price tag so we will never get to experience it, but a 1998 E class Mercedes or 2001 Volvo V70, sure we can actually appreciate what they are talking about.

Moggy wrote:
Agreed. It’s nice to see and hear about the amazing expensive cars, but I also like to see them trying to drive 500+miles in a shitty car that is falling apart. Any of us that have ever had a banger on its last legs can appreciate how nerve racking it is when all the warning lights are on and smoke is pouring out of the engine.

Agree 100%. I always look back fondly on the cars that had their own 'quirks', ie were a bit gooseberry fool.

I actually like the celeb bit now - the switch to a decent RWD car is a vast improvement. My only comment would be that they could have taken the instructional bit further, and made it something that you could learn from. Not just Harris shouting at celebs, but talking about weight shifts, brake points, gear changes, racing lines, etc.

Just watched the first episode and preferred it over the Grand Tour.

Watched the first two episodes of the new season and think it's very good so far, the race in the second episode I thought was fantastic

I really enjoyed the drifting through the he wall thing, had me chuckling away.

I am actually enjoying them so far!
But I skipped both of the celeb segments.

Good series getting better. Toned down the silly "my car's better" a bit, and the Golf overtaking supercars was fun, as was shredding the Volvo.

getting better this series the celeb bit with chris harris does seem rather forced for comedy value imo other then that i'm liking what have seen so far

Just seen the 2nd episode. Better than the "first" series and better than TGT. So good not to see/hear the same recycled penis jokes and "a bit of poo came out".

Three for three so far!
The celeb bits are as dull and tedius as always but I can put up with them when the rest of the show is this good.
They should just replace that bit with Sabine driving the celeb around the Nurburgring for a lap, I'd watch that every week.

One thing I was thinking today was that they should include motorbikes more often and so I was really pleased when they said that they'll be doing an actual review of the Ducati 1299 Superleggera next week.

I preferred the first two episodes of the series, the police chase thing was shite (Matt Leblanc is a terrible actor :lol:

) but that was another decent episode. They really seem to have worked out how to make a decent car show.

Another good episode last night. The power of that Bugatti :dread:

The episode left me wanting to play real life Pac-Man though. That looked amazing fun. :lol:

This just keeps getting better and better.
I think the team are gelling really well and I hope they stick with them for a while.

Aye, Im liking the new series, though I do record and skip the celeb bits, cant stand couch banter or anything like that. I know theyre a necessary evil in some way but I still think theres more they could do with a celeb appearance than a pointless chat.

I wasn't so impressed with the last episode but that was more personal taste than the show being bad. The whole buggies in the desert thing just didn't appeal to me.

The Top Gear Thread [Mixed Reviews]: Matt LeBlanc quits Top Gear

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