brillo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YGFM...0gear%20review

This is hilarious, screw the car, this is so ethnocentric Hammond should get his own standup show.

saturn

Pretty good.

I guess I'm the only one who thinks the faux-wood crap that passes for luxury in Mercedes and BMW cars is the ugliest crap imaginable. I'll take "cheap plastic" over that any day.

And I like how Jeremy Clarkson says he hates all American cars when he owns a Ford Focus. What a poof.

Oh well, such are the Brits.

phxtravis

clarkson also owns a Ford GT

Rhawb

<SoapBox>
Seriously, slap Cadillac badges on a BMW and he'd bitch about the spartain interior, cheap materials, back-breaking ride, horrid shifter (complete with exaggerated throw motions), and body roll. Put the BMW badges back on and it's suddenly got a high quality cabin, supple ride, crisp shifter and it handles like a dream.

I've driven a CTS and I've driven several other cars in its class. We've even owned a BMW for a period of time and I found the CTS to be VERY competetive. In fact, I'd probably consider it over much of its competition. He just bashes lots of these cars for the simple fact that they are american.

Also, that knocking on the car and saying it's made of cheap materials...I'm pretty sure EVERY car I've EVER seen makes that same noise when you knock on its fender and hood - save for maybe a Corvette or a Saturn. It's called "metal," I guess British cars use some other wacky material that's way higher quality. Rainbows maybe? Perhaps they found a way to make hopes and dreams malleable? Or it could be something so fantastic that our simple American minds would implode at the mere mention of its existence.
</SoapBox>

That being said, that "Cadillac realized the average age of their owner was 112 years old," line was pretty damn funny.

picosrx8

When I wasnt laughing I was almost offended. Last time I checked, isnt like every British car now owned by someone else? Do they even make cars there anymore?

25k for the CTS over there? Im moving to Amsterdam! Guess he was talking pounds or euros.

hemanrulez

Umm no he was hosting a show in the UK for the UK and he was talking about 25K USD.

Duh!!! Of course it was pounds.

And ppl get over youselves. Most American cars are crap. His Ford GT has broken down more times than any other car in the world.

And BTW he also hates most BMW's and Porsches.

tazzydnc

Top Gear is entertaining and a blast to watch but I wouldnt take most of what he says too seriously. His opinions tend to be biased and exagerated at that. At one point he said the rx8 was the best car he drove this year but then he took it out in the rain and he changed his mind... This guy is about entertainment, not about providing you with the best car reviews, so keep that in mind.

saturn

Of course most American cars aren't that great. But, these guys, Clarkson particularly, bash American cars and seem to forget that they are by in large made for Americans. We have a different road system with different kinds of drivers and topography. We have different service costs for foreign and domestic cars. We have different needs, wants, and preferences. The CTS is perfect for some people and it wouldn't be a terrible thing if these guys would realize that not everyone is a middle-aged dude living in England.

I know it's a UK show, but maybe they could mask their hatred just a smidge. If they're not careful they're gunna get tossed in the Axis of Evil.

rotarygod

I think it's funny that anyone from England can insult any other country for the cars they produce. What kinds of cars come out of England again? You may not have to like American cars but I don't see the English doing any better, or even equal for that matter.

TODreamer

yeah... top Gear is purely for Entertainment... dont put too much stock in their reviews though

hemanrulez

They do hate on British cars too. The only "British" car I think Jezza likes is Aston Martin about which he too says it breaks down all the time.

If you dont like top Gear watch Motor trend TV which tends to be a just a tv ad for most manufacturers.

As for American cars being made for america, of course they are. Ppl its a British TV show for the British public, for them American cars are mostly imports and the cost structure is diff. So for them its crap.

Get it now???

saturn

Sounds pretty unpatriotic to me. You're either for us or against us. You're now in the Axis of Evil, by the way.

But seriously, Clarkson doesn't like America or its people. He's made that clear over and over again. Saying that all Americans are fat and lazy and want to drive pickup trucks is about as fair as me saying that all British people are arrogant poofs with bad teeth. He has no perspective from our point of view and makes outlandish statements on a show that is aired in America as well as the UK.

He's the British equivalent of the old man down the street complaining about the cost of "things today" and kids being on his property. I find it all pretty funny and enjoyable and that is why I watch.

picosrx8

No, seriously, do they build any cars over there that arent owned by a foriegn country?
I know of two. Rolls Royce/Bentley and Lotus. Both very affordable cars. Are there any others Im forgetting?

Aston Martin = Ford
Jaguar = Ford
Land Rover = Ford
Mini = BMW

Dont get me wrong, I really like British cars. But if we are calling American cars "crap", buy a DB9 and see how many days a year you a driving a loaner. There is a reason all those brands got into financial trouble.

Blue87Sport

Actually, the list is smaller than that. According to Wikipedia, Rolls-Royce is owned by BMW, Bentley is owned by Volkwagen and in 1996 a majority share in Lotus was sold to Perusahaan Otomobil Nasional Bhd (Proton), a Malaysian car company listed on the Kuala Lumpur stock exchange. So one could say that the sun has set on the British automotive empire.

I wonder why a Perusahaan Otomobil Nasional Elise didn't make it past the marketing staff?

yiksing

Although their cars are owned by foreign country, it doesn't mean they aren't great either. Its just most of these cars are super expensive luxury cars that don't sell like Toyota, however I do sense a bit of arrogance from some of the English out there in comparison with US, OZ, etc.

alnielsen

iTrader: (4)

For ages, we made jokes about their cars and the Lucas electric systems they used. Did you hear this one. Why do the British drink warm beer? Because they have Lucas refigerators.

RotoRocket

iTrader: (1)

Clarkston is an unadulterated *******.

At one point he knocks on the exterior of the Cadillac with his knuckles and then assuredly announced that "American cars are cheaply built."

What the hell does that prove? Did he detect something wrong with the harmonic frequency of the metal?

What an ***.

Edit - I just noticed Rhawb already addressed my bitch completely.

Dro

Idk that was pretty stupid. I dont feel offended at all b/c I really dont care about american cars or british cars or wtf ever, but at the same time it was not funny or mildly entertaining.

gansan

Don't take him too seriously, using crazy hyperbole is part of his British sense of humor. I find Clarkson to be hilarious.

New Yorker

Lighten up, people! You're supposed to find it funny. Apparently many here are taking Jeremy literally. He's a very funny, witty fellow—and a classic curmudgeon. A good part of his humor comes from "complaining" about things in a witty, exaggerated way. (See also: Andy Rooney, Rush Limbaugh, Bill Maher and others—all classic curmudgeons who are sometimes taken literally when, in reality, they're bitching and exaggerating to make a point in an entertaining and engaging way.) What's more, read Clarkson's columns and you'll quickly realize he has nothing but disdain for British vehicles. Just because he makes fun of America doesn't mean he thinks what's British is better—curmudgeons make fun of everything!

"A curmudgeon's reputation for malevolence is undeserved. They're neither warped nor evil at heart. They don't hate mankind, just mankind's absurdities. They're just as sensitive and soft-hearted as the next guy, but they hide their vulnerability beneath a crust of misanthropy. They ease the pain by turning hurt into humor. They attack maudlinism because it devalues genuine sentiment. Nature, having failed to equip them with a servicable denial mechanism, has endowed them with astute perception and sly wit.
Curmudgeons are mockers and debunkers whose bitterness is a symptom rather than a disease. They can't compromise their standards and can't manage the suspension of disbelief necessary for feigned cheerfulness. Their awareness is a curse.
Perhaps curmudgeons have gotten a bad rap in the same way that the messenger is blamed for the message: They have the temerity to comment on the human condition without apology. They not only refuse to applaud mediocrity, they howl it down with morose glee. Their versions of the truth unsettle us, and we hold it against them, even though they soften it with humor."
- JON WINOKUR

saturn

There's nothing noble or clever about him or any of the other people that you mentioned. They're complainers that like to self-congratulate themselves and hold themselves up to be martyrs because they say the world persecutes them for "telling it like it is" as if they're uniquely qualified to inform the world of its problems. They are never the ones who put feet to their words and help fix a problem, but instead hide their insecurities by spewing biased, misanthropic garbage. Their goal of exaggeration to make a point is no different from propaganda.

I am entertained by these people in the spectacle they create, but hold the information they give to be highly suspect.

Rhawb

I never said the guy isn't funny, but he never bitches so much about some piece of garbage British or Korean car. It could be the worst car in the world, but as long as it's not American he'll find some good points and rave about them. His reviews of American cars are lame - he just wastes all his energy trying to find everything he can possibly spin to be bad. Some of it's funny on occasion, but after a while I lose interest.

He's like a little kid - the kid will say something cute that'll make the adults laugh, so the kid will proceed to repeat that joke ENDLESSLY, making the joke less funny each time. Clarkson does the same thing with his reviews of American cars.

r0tor

iTrader: (1)

I drive a CTS at a Car and Driver Editor for a Day event and came to the conclusion it wasn't very well sorted out... the steering was in no way precise and the brake feel and more importantly the brake bias was completely f'd up as the fronts locked up really easily and the rear brakes weren't even doing anything

Rhawb

Weird. I've driven a couple different CTS' and they've all felt fairly comparable to BMWs and Mercedes. They seem to be suspended a bit squishier, but I really found it to be very similar to its competition. The interiors weren't bad either - provided, I've never really understood the big difference between having a high quality plastic dashboard versus a medium quality plastic dashboard. As long as the fit and finish is good (which has been my experience with the CTS), I don't see the issue. I suspect the "cheap interior plastics" is becoming more of a cop-out when reviewers don't really have anything major to bitch about. Sure, American cars used to have cheap interior parts, but they've been VASTLY improved lately.

picosrx8

Unless you have spent some sick dinero on a car that has a handstitched leather wrapped dash, then your dash is plastic. Some looks a little nice due to texture but if the fit is good, its all the same ****.