Autoblog

It should come as no surprise that Jeremy Clarkson is pulling down more cash than his Top Gear cohorts. Not only does Clarkson own a stake of the show's rights, he's more of a figurehead for the series than either James May or Richard Hammond. Clarkson has become nearly an adjective to describe any auto pundit expressing a strong opinion in a certain manner. While May and Hammond seem happy enough with their slightly-diminished status in the show hierarchy, rumors about flat-out contract rejections and threats of departure are flying behind the scenes.

James May's people state that they're not looking for parity with Clarkson's £2-million yearly earnings, but they are aiming for the best deal possible. Arlington Enterprises spokesperson, Annie Sweetbaum, has commented that nascent negotiations are progressing, and that the BBC's first offer is never the one accepted. Hamster's people dodged commenting, but we're sure his representation also aims for the fattest checks it can secure. Nobody has yet publicly threatened to take his ball and go home, but one imagines that it could come to that if no agreement can be reached. Shoot, we'd love to see what the BBC's offering; perhaps we can weasel our way into Top Gear as cheaper alternative hosts – not that we'd be any good, but with the dollar worth about three pence, getting paid in Pounds or Euros sounds pretty good to us. Thanks for the tips!

[Source: BBC]

You may remember Alex Roy from his book, The Driver, about his team's record-breaking run across the U.S. in a BMW M5, but he's also a deep automotive insider that gets information from a number of cloaked sources who wear dark sunglasses and pass manilla envelopes under the yellow lights of parking garages. He's got some new information about Top Gear's plans for the U.S., and what's interesting is that it doesn't involve the TV show. It seems that TG hosts Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond may be developing a touring car show for the U.S. called Top Gear Live. If you're thinking it will be like the famous MPH car shows they do in the UK, you're wrong, so so wrong. According to a document Roy has seen, Top Gear Live will be Circue-Du-Soleil meets Stomp... with cars. We're thinking a stage, lots of ramps, people playing instruments made out of car parts, dancers, etc. So let's recap... the three greatest automotive TV personalities of all time want to do a live, traveling road show in the U.S. that marries theatrical production qualities with their famous brand of car humor and mechanical destruction. Of course, we can't say for certain that any of this is true, but Roy's sources tend to reliable. We're not exactly sure if we want them to be reliable this time, though. Can't we just get new episodes of the original Top Gear here in the U.S. in a timely manner? Is that too much to ask? Click the source below to visit Roy's site where he explains what he knows in his own words.

[Source: Gumball114.com, Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty]

They really are dragging out the introduction of the 11th season of Top Gear, and we don't mean in the tire smoking way, either. But a commercial like this one after the jump helps to pass the time. There is nothing we could say that could best the BBC trio in this first ad for the telly. As for the second commercial, well, you can't win them all. But tigers racing badgers more than makes up for it, so follow the jump to check them out. Thanks for the tip, Mobius_1!

[Source: Final Gear]

Grassroots support for Jeremy Clarkson to take the reigns as Prime Minister has been covered before, but the Top Gear presenter admits that he'd be a "rubbish" leader. During a speaking engagement in the UK, Jezza waxed about his life on Top Gear, his co-presenters, Hammond's crash and his opinions about the increased amount of government involvement in citizen's lives. Typical Clarkson fare.

But then he confirmed what many of us had guessed: the next season of Top Gear will feature a race in Japan against a Bullet train. While he didn't say what vehicle was pitted against that marvel of modern engineering, we know what it is and according to Clarkson, the race has already taken place. We're looking forward to seeing the outcome when Top Gear returns later this year.

[Source: BBC via FinalGear]

Remember when we told you that Top Gear would be returning on June 15? Well, um... Top Gear isn't returning on June 15. In fact, not only is Top Gear not returning on June 15, but there is no word on when it will return. And not only is there no word on when it will return, but there isn't expected to be a full run of episodes whenever it does come back -- six shows are supposedly on slate. And those six episodes apparently won't be in HD, for any of you 1080i-philes who rocked the plasma purchase hoping you'd get a better shot of The Stig. So it's not quite time for Taps yet... but we're going to go sit in a tub of chocolate to console ourselves for a while... Thanks for the tip, Viper007Bond!

[Source: Final Gear]

Formula 1 will hit the BBC air waves in 2009 after a long run on ITV. The move will require new figureheads to sit at the desk, and London's Times has said that Top Gear's Richard Hammond is the top man for the job. Economics at least partially drove ITV's decision to withdraw from F1 coverage. The coverage is expensive, so making money is challenging, even with newly rising star Lewis Hamilton making F1 more interesting for UK viewers.

Hammond's presence might help broaden the appeal beyond just racing fans, as would guest appearances by Jeremy Clarkson and James May, Hammond's cohorts on Top Gear. Letting Clarkson and May prowl the paddock could offer priceless moments of color commentary that would set YouTube alight. The BBC also plans to update the look, feel and pace of its coverage, and fans will be able to get at the presentation more easily with races going out across broadband digital outlets in addition to the standard radio and television. Thanks for the tip, Eric!

[Source: Times Online, Photo by Getty Images/Getty]

It seems that lately, Jeremy Clarkson just can't catch a break. Like some other Englishmen we can think of, Clarkson has never had a problem being brutally honest, despite the fact that his viewpoints get him into trouble every now and again... and again. This time, Clarkson was allegedly photographed talking on a cell phone while driving. While some of the more car-consicous among us may be more interested in the classic Mercedes Benz that he was piloting, talking on a mobile phone while driving is illegal in the U.K., and apparently the offense is taken rather seriously. Clarkson is currently being chided for thinking that he is "above the law".

We can't help but wonder if this is being made into a much bigger deal than it normally would because of Clarkson's fame. The fact that his stardom revolves around automobiles and driving doesn't do him any favors in this particular situation either.

Thanks for the tip, iSpec!

[Source: Daily Mail]

Bionic Woman. Knight Rider. And now....Top Gear? NBC, America's remake network, has ordered a pilot of an Americanized Top Gear. Expect to see all the usual Top Gear conventions, including three presenters; a masked Stig-like driver; a private test track; taping in a hangar before a live audience; and (probably D-List) celebs driving midsize cars. Unfortunately, you won't see the program's British hosts, Jeremy Clarkson, James May, and Richard Hammond. And this is where it gets dicey. You see, those guys are the reason Top Gear is what it is. They're clever and witty, and they endear themselves to gearheads with segments like Clarkson's hilarious Peel P50 "review" (it's pasted after the jump). NBC's going to have a hard time finding US hosts who can replicate that vibe without being relentlessly annoying in the process. As BBC remakes go, we truly hope that a US-flavored Top Gear succeeds like The Office, but we're concerned that it might just turn into another Coupling. Thanks to all who sent tips.

[Source: Reuters]

Jeremy Clarkson's often-misguided rants have, up until now, only cost him readers and respect, but after publishing his bank account details in his last column for The Sun, he's now out £500.

Clarkson's diatribe on why some 25 million people shouldn't be worried about two lost computer discs containing their personal information caused the lovable curmudgeon to print his own bank account details in the UK rag. He claimed, "All you'll be able to do with them is put money into my account. Not take it out."

As anyone who's been the victim of identity theft can attest, it doesn't take much, so when Clarkson checked out his bank statement a few days later, he noticed that a direct debit to the charity Diabetes UK was taken out of his account.

Top Gear's top presenter admitted that he made a mistake, and that "Contrary to what I said at the time, we must go after the idiots who lost the discs and stick cocktail sticks in their eyes until they beg for mercy." Beyond supplying said cocktail sticks, we think Clarkson shouldn't dispute the erroneous donation and chalk it up to a lesson learned while benefiting a good cause.

Thanks to all who sent in tips.

[Source: BBC]

For all of his popularity and sceptered isle wit, it's probable that Jeremy Clarkson hasn't kept anyone from buying a car they really wanted. Which is a good thing for MINI and those folks looking at a Clubman, because Jezza has this to say about it: "About as desirable as a packet of dung or a can of worms."

Most of his issues with the car are sensible: the third door is on the wrong side for the Brits, no rear visibility due to the split rear doors, massive torque steer, tramlining, and a (still) tiny boot. His other problem with the car doesn't really strike us as a problem: according to Clarkson, the car's natural cruising speed is 110-MPH. Um... that's what cruise control is for... or paying attention to the flow of traffic... because it's not like you could need a larger speedo to keep better track of your progress.

As always, it's an entertaining read, if full of digressions. But as we said, we don't think it will keep even one MINI Clubman from finding a good, private home. For all of its perceived and/or actual shortcomings, MINI is practically the entire reason that the noun "lifestyle" became an adjective, and lifestyle purchases operate on principles that have nothing to do with torque steer and boot volume.

[Source: London Times]