Top Gear or Fifth Gear?

[Geo 0]

I'd watch both for the cars but there is little doubt that Top Gear is the better television programme. I know lots of people who aren't car enthusiasts that watch it anyway because it is great entertainment. I can't say the same about 5th Gear.

[craigowl 0]

Wish the top gear exotic car footage did not use such over the top saturated colour and sky tinting gimmicks. Makes everywhere (including a pi$$ing wet moorland location in dreariest Britain) look like somewhere from a holiday brochure. Total con.

No disrespect to the IOM, by the way. I actually love these kinds of places but would prefer to see them in natural, subtler, realistic colours.

Today, everything, including natural beauty has to be tarted up for the 15-second-attention-span channel surfer.

[bcstudent 0]

Both shows are over-scripted (in my opinion) but I still watch them both, ultimately, because I'm a motoring enthusiast. I lean towards Fifth Gear though since I prefer the presenters. That Hammond really gets my goat and his Motorcycle News column is complete toss.

[SteveVPK 0]

Wasn’t knocking Clarksons driving really just pointing out that that’s he no better than Tiff (in my opinion anyway)

 

I just don’t think hooning around a track, screaming like a teenager at the power In what ever powerfull car they have this time tells you anything about it, although it is entertaining

[bcstudent 0]

My impression is that Clarkson is not in the same league as Tiff as far as driving skill goes. No better than Tiff? He could only dream of being that good.

[dinkus 10]

All the presenters on Fifth Gear can actually drive properly and have raced and done well.

 

The Top Gear presenters are just normal blokes that have done a few track days and can hoof the car around. I reckon Clarkson is probably the best of them, but even then he's no Tiff.

[Jim 2]

I've not seen the new series of Top Gear yet but its by far and large my favourite of the two by a country mile!

 

Same thing as H8RRA - I watch 5th Gear and i'm almost counting the minutes till the show ends. Top Gear.. the cars, the features, and the chemisty between the presenters works really well. 5th Gear just feels so.. forced.. and uninteresting to watch.

 

Top Gear for me - though a bit more of the £1,500 coupe challenges and cross country races, and less of the jumping double decker buses over caravans!

[Chris VR6nos 0]

Top Gear=Fun Fun Fun!

 

 

Chris

[Phil K 0]

I love both in but in different ways.. anything to do with cars is good IMO (so long as it's not that lax power dvd your gran bought you last xmas :lol: )

[Jim 2]

Just watched the Top Gear repeat.. yep, its still the best show out of the two without a shadow of a doubt for me!

[Valver 0]

Another vote for Top Gear from me, much better programme BUT I have to say that Clarkson is so up himself!!!.....If he was made of chocolate, he'd eat himself no doubt!! :lol:

[Jim 2]

The good thing about Clarkson being so high and mighty is that its even more funny when he gets taken down a notch or two. Like him taking the pee out of Hammond who'd apparently had his teeth whitened, and he came back with the comment about Clarksons teeth going green.. bloody brilliant.

[Blue_Joe 0]

I've met the said Mr Clarkson from a previous top gear shoot some 9 or 10 years ago and although he may well have changed I don;t believe he was ever "up himself!"

 

I was there with a friends company - Paramount Performance who somewhat modify jaguars with the first model of the XJ450 - http://www.paramount-performance.com/jaguar-xj.htm

 

And he kept coming to talk to me and my mate as we were sat on the grass at an airfield in Oxford having a cigarette and watching thhe world go by instead of trying to crawl up his ass like most of the suppliers were.

 

I think his Big Man persona is more of an on screen thing.

[TheWizardofOdds 0]

Yip,Topgear.

I prefer the decent driver/excellent presenter combo- to the accomplished driver/p**s poor presenter 'style'.Tiff does my head in.It's that whining,grating voice that rankles.VBWotsit for a january transfer window move to Topgear,just to break up the ever so slightly pompous,public schoolboy triumverate.Is the chubby geezer with the ginger manner,plato?..or am i thinking of another program? Either way,he's a knob.

As much as i like Topgear,it would be nice if they layed off the Aston DBoutofyourleague for just one program.And the Murcielago,gallardo et al for that matter.

[chrishill 0]

the chubby chappy isnt plato, this is

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jason_Plato

 

[Walesy 0]

just to break up the ever so slightly pompous,public schoolboy triumverate

 

 

Not sure if that's a sarcastic " ever so slightly " ...but it's an understatement if it is!> :wink:

[TheWizardofOdds 0]

Ever so slightly sarcastic. :wink:

[dinkus 10]

The chubby guy with the big hair is Tom Ford - he's also the editor of Car magazine

 

And yes, he is an opinionated dick.

[Jim 2]

He also writes for Top Gear mag too.. talk about getting around a bit!

[samm_cvr6 0]

Although some of the fifth gear presenters may be better drivers, I still prefer top gear, they seem to be more enthusiastic and fun. But fifth gear is still a good progrmme in it's own right.

[bcstudent 0]

I've just watched the Clarkson's Heaven and Hell video. If I hear that nobber rattle on about how great it is the the Aston Martin's exhaust can be heard two miles away once more, after publicly slating bikes for noisy exhausts, I'm going to put a contract out on him.

 

Don't get me wrong, I mostly enjoy his presenting style, but he needs to think a bit more before he engages his mouth.

 

Incidentally, has anyone seen the Heaven and Hell video? There's a nice feature about the Golf GTI.

[StuartFZR400 0]

One thing I have to say in favour of Fifth Gear is the fact that I'm enclined to believe what they're reporting on a little more than Top Gear. Did anyone see the supercar vs superbike episode? That was awesome to watch, seeing a motorbike getting the back end out under braking and having difficulty keeping the front end down when accellerating out of the corners! Incidently the superbike won this little battle. Compare that to the Top Gear version of Car vs Bike, where they had a porsche vs an R1, or something like that, where the guy on the bike didn't even seem like he was trying, half leaning into the corners etc. I don't know much about racing road bikes, but you can certainly tell the difference between the two pieces of footage, and the Top Gear version was set up for the car to win right from the start, it didn't prove anything.

 

I think Top Gear tend to do this quite a lot (I seem to remember another incident where an old Jag with NOS beat a 911 in a 1/4mile drag race with a time that the 911 should have been able to easily beat as standard). Its made for entertainment, and certainly succeeds, but as a result loses credibility in my opinion.

 

As others have said tho I still far prefer Top Gear, I find the new episodes of Fifth Gear cringe worthy, they're trying far too hard to be like Top Gear, and it now just looks like a cheap alternative with poor presenters...

 

Agreed.

 

TG is really just a laugh and it made ok when they take the pizz out of themselves. JC is a lanky middle-lane hogger but funny when not PC. One bad part is the long haired guy from the dark ages. Twonk! - cant wait to see him crash. Im also glad they do put stupidly priced car on there; I've got to dream about somthing and know what these business types drive around here.

 

5thG is pants in many ways, less fun etc, but somehow seems more real, yet im still unsure its all true; that ponce Plato loves his BMW's too much. V should carry a wideload ssticker - but she still 'gets it'. ;) Its the cars that make it worthwhile.

[chrishill 0]

i'd rather see supercars being hooned about than watch reviews of the new focus estate in the same way I'd prefer to watch a holiday program about sunning yourself on a private beach rather than a weekend at skeggy.

 

-edit-

and I'll second the comment that sticky-buttf*** henderson would still get it.

[VWci 0]

Both of them are great shows....

[Jim 2]

The only thing that irks me about Top Gear is that they just can't give credit to anything sensible.

 

I mean Clarkson always takes the mick out of Volkswagen (like in Sundays ep in reference to the Continental GT) yet goes on about how good the old Golfs are, the new GTI, etc etc...

 

The other thing that annoys me is when you get some rich tosspot celeb on who boasts about what cars they own.. Oh whats that Jeremy? You've only got the SL55? Oh, I drive the supercharged version and have a Humvee for the weekends and taking the kids to school.. haw haw. Goits.

 

The good thing is that all the presenters are quite modest about the cars they own, and the oft slated JK from Jamiroquai just enthuses about his cars so much that I can't hate him for it!