177mph

If you honestly dont know who Jeremy Clarkson is then we cant help you. He's the host of the best television show about cars ever produced - and a great host at that.

digger

Thanks for that enlightening post Bert and sorry to hear you think we British are so inept.

Anyway back on topic, love him or hate him he is a real character and no matter what he says about Porsche he knows the 911 is just about perfect

Wilder

So you actually read the article???

digger

As usual the devil is in the detail

"As the miles wore on, I started to think that maybe I could live with this car. And then I started to wonder how it would be possible to not live with it. I was falling in love"

Macca

Im afraid any way you look at it Clarkson is possibly one of the most clever "showmen" on TV. I dont always like him just like I wasnt a fan of Michael Jacksons music but I recognise he was a brilliant performer and I found him rewarding to watch/listen too.

Im not sure if the folk stateside are familiar with this guy and his cronies success but they front the most widely watched car show on the planet and have done for a long long time. They now have magazines named after their show produced by seperate editorial teams in 6 different countries and travel the world annually doing the BBC TopGear tour.

Clarkson because of his success also makes alot of money and Im sure could realistically be rated up their with Sienfeld and other top US entertainers for success and wealth.

As much as he uses crude but catchy phrases to shock and stun, there is also so underlying truth to these retorts. He called the 911 an *** ended **** car in a very early sow which became legend. A product of Hitlers reign. And lets face it hes right. I love my 911 like the next guy (ive kept it a decade which is much longer than any other) but when I think about it he has a point. Its not relevant to me but if I was Jew whos family were decemated at a camp in Germany in 1942 I might feel different.

Jeremy wont let himself like the 911 (perhaps thats changing) because hes British. And a self confessed snob. I understand that but it doesnt make him less rewarding to watch/listen to....

M

Leander

Pot - meet Kettle.

IXLR8

Just the opinion of one person.

I never put much weight in any evaluation, be it on the air or in a magazine and have never made a buying decision based on any.

IXLR8

Impossible!

IXLR8

Ain't that the truth!

A PhD Brit at work once asked me why I didn't buy a Jaguar instead of my BMW. "I want to drive it, not have to push it".

Leander

And when was the last time anyone drove a Canadian car, eh?

IXLR8

Lets see now...Honda, Toyota, GM, Ford are built right here in Ontario...that is in Canada by the way.

jenskleis

Jeremy Clarkson is, in my humble opinion, a brilliant showman who has understood the evolving desires of his audience over the years, and has adapted accordingly. He is very long on entertainment value, and at times a bit short on facts and knowledge, beyond the press pack he was given by the car manufacturers.

I realize that he does not like Porsche, preferring Ferrari and anything British, as long as it is expensive, loud and very dear to maintain. So what? He is entitled to an opinion, and the world would be a very dull place if we all liked the same things.

Ok, it is a bit annoying that his main argument for not liking the 911 is that, "the engine is in the wrong end". We all know it is nonsense. The successes of the 911, both commercially and on the race tracks, have proven the lay out to be a winning formula. Deep inside, even Clarkson knows it too.

And it is a bit silly, that he will always forgive the lack of practicality and reliability, plus the staggering maintenance costs and depreciation, of a Ferrari or an Aston Martin, just because they have so much "passion".

Maybe Jay Kay from Jamiroquai summed it up Clarkson's relationship with the 911 best. He was on the show, Jeremy started on his usual 911 rant. "Engine in the wrong end. Will stab you in the back without warning. Widow-maker. Impossible to handle, when driving fast" .... and Jay Kay replied: "Maybe you just don't know how to drive a 911, Jeremy"

Over the years, along with the BBC program he hosts, Clarksom has evolved from a simple, almost "anorak", offering, into a full-blown entertainment machine, with magazines, websites, co-ed's in newspapers all over the world, and a group of followers measured in the hundreds of millions.

Try to Google "old Top Gear" and compare the 20 year-old tests to today's Top Gear shows. It is really fun to see the difference.

In olden days, the Top Gear presenters used to spend more time on the technical specs of the cars, practicability and comments about build quality and fuel mileage. Today they spend more time driving the cars sideways, whilst making jib comments into a cabin-mounted camera. You hardly ever see them driving the cars on open roads anymore, which is a shame. Unless, of course, they set out on one of their Top Gear Challenges, which are fabulous adventures to watch for any petrol head. But again, long on fun and sometimes a bit short on real content.

And try to compare the first Top Gear shows, that were shot with a studio audience, to the shows of recent years. In the first years, the audience was all blokes. A bunch of petrol heads, with the looks to match. Today, the audience is a good mix of males and females, representing a decent cross section of ages, social group and ethnic origin. And, funny enough, if you look carefully, you will notice that there are always pretty, full breasted women, standing right behind the presenters. Always within camera range. A far cry from the early years of Top Gear.

Birol

Jeremy Clarkson is by far ok.

In his comments about the 911 you can always read an admiration between the lines.

Supposably he hates old 911s because they are reliable, firm and that good.