Top Gear/Season 8 Episode 2

Season 8 Episode 2
Season 8, Episode 2
Airdate	May 14, 2006
Written by
Directed by	Brian Klein
← 8x01 Season 8 Episode 1	8x03 → Season 8 Episode 3
Top Gear — Season Eight

Episode Two of the eighth season of Top Gear, and is episode sixty-eight overall.

Guest Stars: The Stig, Gordon Ramsay

Information

Chevrolet Corvette Z06

Jeremy Clarkson reviews the Chevrolet Corvette Z06. It has a 7.0 L V8 that is the most powerful motor General Motors has ever made, producing over 500 bhp. Its bumpers are made of carbon fiber, the cradle the engine sits in is made of magnesium, and the whole space frame is made of aluminum. Clarkson remarks that the Z06 isn't the most sophisticated handling car in the world, but there's so much brute force that it doesn't matter. The best thing about the car is its price. The Chevrolet Corvette Z06 costs 60,000 GBP (about 111,000 USD), whereas the Ferrari 575M Maranello is 160,000 GBP (about 296,000 USD). They both look the same, are both front-engined, are both about the same size, both develop 500 bhp, both can top 190 mph, both can go 0-60 in under 4 seconds, so why is there a 100,000 GBP (about 185,000 USD) price gap? After a whole day on the track, Clarkson couldn't work it out at all. However, back at the studio, Clarkson says the reason for the price gap is that the 575M Maranello works on both the track and on the road. It's an astonishing car, but as something to live with every day the Corvette Z06 isn't it.

The Stig takes the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 around the test track in 1.22.4.

Jet-Powered Kayak Race

Richard Hammond travels to Iceland's Iceberg Lake to take on Shaun Baker, the world's leading extreme kayaker and holder of four official Guinness World Records, and his jet-powered kayak. Iceberg Lake is where a glacier meets a lagoon, breaking into numerous icebergs. The race is two miles from one end of the lake to a bridge where the lake meets the ocean. Hammond's vehicle of choice is the Tomcat 4x4. It has a 4 L TVR-powered V8 engine on a Range Rover chassis with plastic bodywork. The Tomcat can outrun a Subaru Impreza WRC rally car. However, Shaun Baker and his jet-powered kayak beat Hammond and the Tomcat.

Star in a Reasonably Priced Car

This week's Star in a Reasonably Priced Car is Gordon Ramsay, one of the UK's most famous chefs. Gordon Rmasay races the Chevrolet Lacetti around the test track in 1.46.3.

Jaguar XK

Jeremy Clarkson reviews the Jaguar XK. Clarkson exclaims that the XK is an impossibly pretty car from every angle. It has a modern, crisp look to the interior. It feels nimble, quick and agile. The convertible XK is 64,000 GBP (about 118,500 USD) and the coupe is 59,000 GBP (about 109,000 USD). However, Jaguar is in the middle of a deep financial crisis, and their owned by Ford who are in an even deeper financial crisis. It shows in the radio antenna which looks like it came from an early 90s car, the 4.2 L engine is practically the same as the older XK, and there isn't a single gagdget on it that's new or amazing. When you try passing 130 mph, you can feel the front-end wanting to lift and the steering becomes light. Clarkson says it's not the end of the world until you find out what's causing it — golf. The trunk is big enough to hold a bag of golf clubs, but to give it that much space they fitted a small rear window. If it were bigger, then it would take up too much space when the roof was folded down. Then comes in the European Union, who says the center rear brake light must be fitted within a certain height of the rear window. Since the rear window is so small, the brake lighted had to be fitted to a tall rear spoiler which pushes the rear down and lifts the front up.

And then come the Germans: the Mercedes-Benz SL350 Roadster and the BMW 650i. Neither of these cars lift when they go over 130 mph. The SL350 has an electric folding hard-top roof and a brand-new engine. With the Jaguar XK you get 300 bhp, but in the BMW 650i you get 367 bhp which makes a difference. Not only is the 650i quicker than the XK, but it's cheaper as well. However, the Mercedes only works well if you get a super-charged V8, but you don't get much in the power department for the same price as the Jaguar XK. And the BMW 650i may be very fast and very well-priced, but Clarkson exclaims that it's incredibly ugly.

So, in the end, you're back to the Jaguar XK. Which is fine to Clarkson. It's not the most advanced car in the world and not much was spent on building it, but it doesn't matter when it looks, drives, and sounds fantastic.

The Cadillac CTS and Southern Counties Radio

Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May take over a 3-hour drive-time radio show on BBC Southern Counties Radio in Brighton. But Clarkson wonders why Hammond is driving them to the radio station in a Cadillac CTS. May asks Hammond if he knows if the CTS is really a Saab underneath, and Clarkson points out that the indicator stalk, steering wheel, gear lever, handbrake, and more are all Saab. May chimes in that the CTS' 2.8 L V6 is a Saab engine. Clarkson points out that the CTS costs 32,000 GBP (about 59,300 USD), which is the same as a BMW 3 Series. Clarkson and May both wonder why anyone would want to buy the cramped and expensive Cadillac CTS with its bad clock and soggy suspension. Once at the radio station, the boys make a mess of things.

Stig in a Reasonably Priced Car

The Stig races the old reasonably priced car, the Suzuki Liana, around the test track in 1.44.4. The Stig's time places him at the top of the old leader board, quicker than even the Formula One drivers.

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