So what do you reckon of Topgear Australia

[Gary Pearce]

Stop whining. It's better than the other crap on free to air and I think the boys are getting better. Claudia Carven was good too.

[Brad M]

ditto garry!

Considering the lower budget given the size of the audience the Aussie Top Gear is pretty damn good.

[Scott Farquharson]

I agree with 1750GT....I can't watch it.....it makes me cringe....i'd rather watch Simpson's re-runs...

[Brett]

Scott! Sacrilege! Blasphemy! Nah, you're probably right, although replays of Two and a Half Men appeal more than the Simpsons.  I guess no hosts had a chance against the English mob.

[GTAM1]

The show was steadily getting better (still a long way off the polished UK version) but last nights ep made me want to kick the TV.
Hopefully some new presenters will be on board next year replacing all of them especially that annoying little bastard.(Pizzati?)
Anyway the UK version is back on next week thankfully.

[hammer]

I'm certainly not a fan of the Aussie version but it has certainly improved as the series has progressed. You can't compare it to the recent series of UK Top Gear though. You have to go back and compare it to the first series of UK Top Gear which really was pretty ordinary. They had that fat git doing a round up of retail motoring bargains, they shot the star in a reasonably priced car and the Stig's hot laps on video with no more than two cameras and neither Jeremy nor Hammond were comfortable with their rolls. After two seasons the BBC must have clicked that they were onto something and they brought in James May, made massive improvements to the test track production values and starting shooting the locations tests on film. The result was a massive improvement. Hopefully a similar evolution may await out franchise.

As poor as it is, it beats the shit out of my wife making me watch Australian Idol on Sunday night!

Brent

[John Hanslow]

The show in itself is not too bad, stories are good, but it is just to scripted. 

The presenters seem to be always clearly reading off the monitor and not speaking 'off the cuff' when making opinions. This really spoils it.

[Davidm1600]

Gees Hammer, you poor bugger having to sit through Aussie Idol, which of course is another syndicated program world wide. 

As to the other recent comments, I too thought in overall terms that Aussie Topgear had improved as they progressed through the series.  Yes sure there were some awkward moments and I can't say I enjoyed every story but in overall terms I quite enjoyed it.

It was always going to be a hard task following in the footsteps of Clarkson et al, and I reckon the guys know it.  As I said from the outset of this thread, Warren is the natural in the team, he is talented, knowledgeable and a natural in front of the cameras, and yes he is also funny.  I still don't really like the little guy (Steve) and Charlie is a pain.  But they can drive, they do know something about cars albeit I don't think they are as critical of the cars as perhaps they should be.

And I am passionately disinterested in crapadores and chooks, in either bog standard or the HSV/FPV form.  Give me a decent Alfa any day.   I was also disapointed that in comming down to Tassie with the Lambo, Aston and Porsche that for comparative purposes they didn't exchange cars, let alone make any critical appraisal about them.  Left me feeling and yes what now......It was all a bit limp. 

I think part of the basic problem is that they simply havn't had the same level of experience in driving all sorts of exotica that the guys on UK Topgear have.  I also was starting to get a little tired of the Aussie Ute, 4WD thing. Hopefully if they get to do a 2nd series they might get to try out some more interesting cars, and hopefully also improve the camera work at the test track.  To see so much camera shake is crap, let alone it still seems like a dull track, with too many chicanes etc. 

Oh well at least next Monday it is back to what we all love. 

[1750GT]

OK Branko, and I quote "THEY ARE CRAP" and "THE WORST PIECE OF ASSIE MOTORING TV EVER".

1750GT

[Gary Pearce]

so.....you won't be applying for tickets to the live audience then?

[1750GT]

No I'll be watching the Simpsons with Scott and maybe Brett. And I am seriously thinking of going and watching the real deal in Sydney in february with Clarko and the boys.

I am not interested in going and watching a bunch of cringewortyh amatures.

1750GT

[Gary Pearce]

So 1750GT.... just so we have it right then, you don't like Australian grown Presenters or TV programs, you don't like Alfa Romeo Dealers, you don't mind telling the world about you biased opinions...........anything else?

[1750GT]

Lighten up Gaz, someones got to be controversial to get the juices flowing and some real exchange rather than the "niceties" of not getting others too heated. It certainly has created a flow of posts.

Actually there is something else I like doing, driving my alfa!!!!!!!!!!! thats why its taken so long to respond to your post.

1750GT

[Ash Gordon]

Did anyone else think tonight's (2/3/09) older  "never seen in Aust before" episode of UK top Gear, watched very much like the current Aussie version.. The camera work was average and the three presenters were clumsy at best, never really flowing at all..

It shows that even the "top notch" presenters Clarkson, Hamster and Captain Slow have taken several seasons to get their act together.

Give Top gear Aust, a chance I am sure they too will work it out...

[kartone]

SUCKS !!