Agreed. Besides, I have my own crappy comments about MINIs that I could make=P. I think the American Top Gear has been quite entertaining, especially because I owned an 87 Thunderbird. The moonshine challenges were pretty funny, especially the last one with the off road track. I also really liked the viper vs cobra and the celebrity laps so far. I've only seen a few episodes of the original Top Gear so maybe if that weren't the case I'd be singing a different tune but until I can see a marathon of those, I'll keep watching the American version

 

well there's one person that enjoys it.

i hate to pile on, but mercy that show suffered in translation I do believe.

I adore the original, and Tanner doesn't bother me, nor do the other gents, but the overall effect is a channel change...

 

I'm with you! I always thought Jay Leno would be the best choice for the Clarkson role in a U.S. Top Gear show. He has an encyclopedic knowlege of almost every motorized vehicle ever made. The fact that he's funny puts him one up on the three knuckleheads they got to host the U.S. show.

 

I like ALL car shows. I'm still in a mode where I can appreciate the fact that they see fit to air them at all, because not long ago there weren't any on at all here. I agree though that comparatively speaking, this Top Gear show leaves you a little ...flat. I also really like that Wheeler Dealer show, even with the doofus host (which I could just as easily imagine being the definition of irritating). I love the British-ness of it, right down to the funny (BUT ALWAYS BASED IN TRUTH) anti-American cracks in there.

As for Foust's comment on the '05 MINI Cooper S, I may be alone here, but I didn't take it the wrong way. To me, it was something along the lines of: "After driving some of the world's best supercars, if you want a recommendation on an everyday car, and you don't want to...or are unable to...sacrifice everything else in your life...including your family...to get a taste of true high performance, then of all the garden-variety cars that are out there, the '05 MINI Cooper would be the car I'd recommend."

 

You make a good point as in many of our cases family come first but you still want to have some fun at driving. About American Top Gear, at the moment for me is a "surfing" program: see 3 or 4 minutes, switch channels to something else. Love the original version, which I try to watch often.

Crashton is right, forget it and go out and drive

 

An overcontring wife would make one sell his 2005 mini..heck a MINI is like a blank check to mod!!

 

The shows do seems to be getting a little bit better as the cast "gels" a bit, but still quite a ways to go before folk find it palatable!!
And I second Jay Leno as a replacent cast member!!

 

--Well it's not like it's the first time someone has said something to me about my MINI to the degree that a MINI is a girls car, it's for homosexuals only(even though I have no homophobia and have gay friends, I am not gay), it's a toy car, it's slow yadda yadda yadda.

So to call me or anyone who didn't like Tanner's comments thin skinned is a little uncalled for, but certainly your right. We reserve the right to think someone's a putz for saying such things(Tanner) though.

Ironic too because the best drifting movie out there (Tokyo Drift) was filmed on none other than on top of a MINI Cooper rig. It was the only car that could keep up with all of those cars in tiny little parking lots.

But this new show was like meeting a friend of a friend and having them make a bad first impression. It's all downhill from there. I honestly wanted to like the show. I mean these are huge shoes to fill and I was hoping that with millions of dollars at stake they wouldn't fudge it up. Well so much for THAT.

But yes I agree the problem is with the hosts and the writing.

Our dream team:

Tim Allen -- older car guy crowd and mr. machismo
Matt Le Blanc --younger motorcycle fan
Mark Wahlberg --captain slow likes luxury

Need a host base that is fun to listen to and has something to say.

I'm already over the Tanner comment. I just don't like people who say such things on national tv. It would be different if they were talking about the car. But he actually stereotyped all MINI drivers. That's what I take issue with.

I love my MINI and am looking to buying another one in a few years.


~p

 

Hands down, the UK version is far superior. The original Top Gear has a lot of charm, thought, and production value. The US version just.... sucks.

I'd rather be a middle aged man with a 2005 JCW Mini, then the host of a crappy american knock off car show (with very poor ratings i might add).

Now this nonsense about the Mini being for homosexuals, and weak men and blah blah blah. NONSENSE! Regardless of any of that stuff, any person that slams down on that accelerator for the first time and takes a sharp turn at 40 mph will appreciate John Cooper's vision. I'm a 6'3" 260lb US Army Combatives instructor. I love when people mock my beloved small car.... then I get out.You've seen that sticker that says "It's not cute, It's mean." I had that changed slightly...

"It's not cute, It's mean"
"...just like the driver"

 

being in the younger generation and having watched both top gears. BBCs Top gear was great. Top Gear here isn't so great but it just started its gonna take a season or 2 to get great if it can last that long. They have clowned on all sorts of cars. so what people that don't have minis probably snickered while I myself just grinned cause he obviously is missing out on owning a mini.

some people take things to harsh.

food for thought

 

I am going to throw my 2 cents into this one. They are trying to copy a wildly successful show from the UK and they can't. Top Gear is 3 cheeky brits that even when they insult the car that is nearest and dearest to your heart, you laugh about it. They don't come off as rude or arrogant, we Americans can't pull that off. Just my thoughts.

 

The hosts don't add anything to the show unlike the UK version.

Rutledge seems like a Redneck Southern Belle Computer Geek.

Adam probably has mad urban tansport skills but he sure can't drive a stick.

Tanner's the only one of the three that has any car experience/talent.

 

The British are a more seasoned and sophisticated culture than we. That's why they can get away with comments and such that we cannot. Give us another 150 years or so (if we actually last that long) and we'll be able to do the same. We are an adolescent culture that (like adolescents) can't help stepping on each others toes and also can't help over-reacting when our toes get stepped on.

As for "insulting" others' cars, everybody's cars get insulted. Imagine finally reacing a point in your life where you go ahead and buy yourself a shiney new Corvette. For you this is a life-altering milestone; more than just a casual car purchase; a trophy you take nearly as much pride in as a child...you get the point...only to have some envious-minded (adolescent-cultured) redneck label it a "Plastic Pig". Girly-car-MINI comments are one thing, but imagine how THAT would feel, given the context I laid out. And that's just one (very expensive) example. There are so many others. I've been a victim of this with nearly every car I've owned (my last car was a Miata, for example).

Think I'm wrong? Look at this thread for example. We're all worked up with Tanner Foust, AND the whole Top Gear show, for one little comment about an '05 MINI Cooper S. Granted, the show is not great (although I don't think it's that bad either), but the subject of it (this thread) still would not have come up without that comment. Think how silly this must look to those on other car forums, not to mention the average non-enthusiast!

The bottom line is: real men drive what they like, without reguard to what others say. And, real men also don't poke sticks at others' prized possesions.

 

That Tanner Foust really is a loser:

2010 Gymkhana Grid Gold Medalist AWD Division [Rockstar-Etnies Ford Fiesta]
2010 Race of Champions Competitor
2010 X Games Rally Gold Medalist [Rockstar-Etnies Ford Fiesta]
2010 X Games Super Rally Gold Medalist [Rockstar-Etnies Ford Fiesta]
2010 Formula Drift Silver Medalist [Rockstar-Scion Scion TC]
2009 Race of Champions Competitor
2009 Formula Drift Sixth Place (with 3 podium placements) [Rockstar-Scion Scion TC]
2008 Formula Drift Pro Drift Champion [Rockstar 350z]
2008 Race of Champions Competitor
2008 X Games Rally Silver Medalist [Rockstar Subaru STI]
2007 X Games Rally Gold Medalist [Rockstar Subaru STI]
2007 Formula Drift Pro Drift Champion [Rockstar 350z]
2007 Rally America Series Fourth Place (with 6 podium placements)
2006 Formula Drift Championship third place overall [McKinney Nissan Silvia]
2006 Rally America PGT Class Championship Second place overall.
2005 Rally America PGT Champion.
2006 Summer X Games Rally Third fastest time in the Stadium Super Special.

And those Japanese Drift drivers really must be laughing at him for his Formula Drift Championship placing:

"Other than domestic drivers, the series also attracts many drivers, Japanese in particular, who have competed in D1 Grand Prix."

My sources are:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanner_Foust
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Formula_D

I wouldn't call Tanner a loser, but I will say that I don't find the American show quite as entertaining. As I watch more episodes, though, I find them improving.

 

This will now be a fast an furious Tokyo drift quote thread.

"my grandmother, she's blind in one eye and she drifts better than this guy (tanner foust)."

Lol

 

No, it's definitely not Top Gear BBC. That being said, I think the show is growing more entertaining by the episode.

 

I may be in the minority because I have never seen the BBC Top gear, but I quite like the american version. The crazy "races" they compete in are a lot of fun... plus getting to race against Buzz Aldrin is captivating!

I think Tanner is an AMAZING driver. I WISH I could drive as well as him!

Cheers!

Ryan

 

If you're a middle aged man with a controlling wife this is your car.. a 2005 MINI Cooper S.
In my case LOL this is true.... my wife is like that and my mini is my break from that. She hates my mini, i love it.
As for top gear US. i think i'll wait awhile to watch it.
as for the BBC top gear, has anyone seen the 60 minutes episode on it?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1sy_8rQksA

 

Well compared to the BBC version the American version is essentially 90% carbon copy. Save for the personality of the hosts and all the nuances that come with the fact that it's entirely British, the show is really pretty similar. Of course that 10% difference could be all that separates success from failure. I think it will continue to get better.

Tanner is pretty good behind the wheel--though he isn't as entertaining as Jeremy Clarkson (Top Gear) or Tiff Needell (5th Gear).

 

And really, whether you agree with the comment or not, there is some truth to it. I consider my self an example. Though I'm not middle aged (32 yo), I was strongly discouraged (wife) from spending my 40K on cars like the 370z or maybe a used Caymen. I can't even blame my wife for the fact that there will be another MINI in my driveway instead of what might be considered a real sports car (even though I think the JCW is). At the end of the day I want fun and some degree of practicality also. Truth is, there are very few other cars that fit the bill. And among those that do (135i, WRX Sti, GTI) none of them really captivate me the way the MINI does.

 

...what y'all said! Really disappointed with the US version, I thought Tanner Foust was gonna be the James May, turns out he's supposed to be the Jeremy Clarkson????????

Can't figure. Doesn't matter, Brits are always funnier, dry humor and pretty cheeky compared to our PC ruled personality's.

Jay Leno would be real cool, he's gotta be the most down to earth filty rich car guy you could think of... Oh well, if they do change hosts it'll just get worse. I'll just keeping watching the original.

 

I thought he was supposed to be the hamster. He's too good a driver to be Clarkson.

 

Sooo, Drifting is intentionally wearing out tires as fast as you can! What's the good in that?

Dave

 

I did hear this quote watching the first episode of Top Gear USA. And as a MINI owner, this didn't really bother me. I don't think it was meant to say the car is square, but instead that it's an equal mix of practicality and fun. Like it's the best car you could get if you needed something somewhat practical to please the wife, but something that's also a lot of fun.

 

I am so offended that anyone would vote that way for the Clubbie!