With an audience and budget as big as theirs, and with a reputation for increasingly over the top end-of-season antics, it might have been expected that Top Gear’s final episode of the 20th series would be a corker.
And most TV pundits would agree that it was just that. After a series that went decidedly off-car at times (think yachts, caravans and hovercraft, for instance), it was good to see a programme dedicated to the automobile, and more specifically, the British automobile.
The team organised a gathering in the Mall in London, to which every transport maker in the country was invited to show off an example of its wares. It was an illustrative reminder of how much transport design and manufacture still goes on in the UK, and how many autos are of the high-end, won’t-be-needing-car-breakdown-cover variety.
Before this though, there was a comparison of the old Range Rover Sport to the new one – by Hammond – who likened manoeuvring the latest version to “driving a luxury hotel room through a swamp”. He found it far superior to the previous version.
And Clarkson gave emphatic thumbs up to the new Jaguar F-Type, praising its handling and wide range of engine noises. He did, however, highlight the car’s “unbearably harsh ride” and lack of boot space. But overall, a very positive review – though one can’t help thinking that Clarkson really wants British cars like the F Type to be amazing, which slants his view a tad.
The episode also featured May on the latest London bus, driving it through the Somerset countryside rather than the streets of the capital. A very funny section that, along with the uplifting and totally over the top final Mall piece, has ensured that Clarkson and Co will be invited back into our homes again fairly soon.
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