Top Gear Review of the GT86
 

Here's the actual clip:

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=4laY388IIV4"]Top Gear - Season 19 Episode 3 - YouTube[/ame]



‎01:31.3 Toyota GT86 (wet)
01:31.4 Audi TT Mk.II 2.0T
01:31.6 Honda NSX-R (wet)
01:31.8 BMW M3 E46
01:31.8 Nissan 350Z
01:31.8 Mazda RX-8

Not bad for Prius tires in the wet! :)

http://i.minus.com/ib1qxl2IiVBOJ.gif

‎That's not bad company to have when you're running 200hp. Color me impressed.

"He who shall be last, shall be sideways and smiling."
New tag line for this car.

I don't like it that he said "it doesn't look particularly interesting" but yea, smiles all around.

It's nice to take down the z.

Yeap that's the ridiculous smile I have on my face when I drive mine :happyanim:

Kind of disappointed they didn't get to test it out on a dry track. And that they didn't mark it as a wet lap. But oh well!

Someone make a sticker.

I had to make that GIF into my sig :D

Love how this just proves how much of a track car this is, taking down the z and m3 e46 which kill us in a straight line..

I'm more impressed it beat the old NSX Type-R than the 370Z and M3.

"He who shall be last, shall be sideways and smiling."

Sums up my night after watching the episode and taking my car out just because :)

And it's just behind the M5 despite the wet weather.Well done Toyota GT86 and Subaru BRZ.

Video gone...? :(

Search for a YouTube mirror or download the HD torrent from FinalGear.com

Especially if you take into account that the tires are seriously holding this thing back on the track. A new set of performance tires cuts off quite a bit of time on that track.

Anyone remember the best car of 2012 drag race? I think that is the tag-line exactly as he said it.

Is what James May said true? That the brz to gt86 ratio will be 1:9

It would make sense. I've always wondered why production has been so limited so far.

That NSX lap must've been through a downpour lol

You might be having the same issue I had when the BRZ section disappeared on me. Next to the FT86CLUB.com logo at the top of the page you'll see All, Scion FR-S, & Subaru BRZ. If Subaru BRZ is highlighted then you need to click on All and you'll get the FR-S section back.

hahaha

I'm sure our 'prius' tires would've been considered quite sticky 10 years ago. Although I'm not sure when did they test e46 m3. NSX-R test was in the wet.

I wanna watch this at work lol, anyway to add captions? :bonk:

That might be their U.K. sales distribution.

Someone seriously needs to make "He who shall be last, shall be sideways and smiling" into a window or bumper decal.

Or a BRZ startup screen superimposed over Jeremy Clarkson's smile from the segment.

loved this episode

I second this idea...definitely need one of these.

The 7.7 sec. 0-60 time was the slowest I've seen.

Probably because it's the 0-100kmh time.

Ah, and they probably had to shift to 3rd for that.

Jeremy Clarkson did say 0-60 mph.

For those that missed the video you can find it here: http://www.streetfire.net/video/top-...e3_2419350.htm

I can see why he said this. The trend for new cars styles now is very "sheet metal stretched tightly across the body of the car". What I mean by this is you tend to see a lot of sharp corners, very defined lines and curves. Think of a muscular person at very low body-fat-%. You see all the muscle fibers underneath the tight skin. The BRZ/GT86 is lacking in this department. It has that classic sports car look but lacks the sharp lines and defined curves that differentiate "new" cars from older generation styles. The car looks good and looks like a sports car but is messing the elements that make a car stand out and "interesting" to look at.

At the end of the day, it all comes down to personal preference.

Yeah, I would say it has very "safe" styling. It's a potpourri of tried and true classic sports car styling features. The whole point of the car wasn't to be groundbreaking on any one feature, but rather how effectively they were tied together. The thing about "interesting" cars is that they look great at first, but after about ten years it's hit or miss whether they'll still look fantastic or terrible. The e36 M3 and NSX still look fantastic. The e60 5 series and the first generation CTS haven't aged as gracefully even though their styling was brand new and "interesting" at the time. Still fantastic cars in their own rights, but they won't be remembered as much for their aesthetics.

The best thing I can say about the styling is that it's not offensive. It just blends in, it's no Mustang or Miata and will never be instantly recognizable, I confuse it for Nissan's Z's all the time, especially the headlights.

I don't believe there is anything wrong with the styling of the car, but I do believe it could have used a bit more "defined features", but thats just my opinion. As you said the car will age very well because of its appearance. Then again, thats why cars do/should go under a complete refresh every 4-5 years. When thinking about Clarkson's statement, one, also has to understand that he spends a lot of time around performance cars that cost 100k+. If every car looked like an exotic, exotics wouldn't be so exotic :bellyroll:. If the BRZ had gone further with its design, lets say something like the Genesis coupe, it tends to look tacky. Its all about finding the right balance.

As a side note, am I the only one that thinks the STI concept has sharper lines on the sides, moving up the rear wheel arch and the rear bumper seems a lot less round. If so, they definitly should have gone with something like this (minus the massive rear wing). It has the perfect balance of an updated look and staying classy...

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VQY3IHGgM1...rscoop04_1.jpg
http://roadnoise.tv/wp-content/galle...-brz-sti-5.png

Personally I prefer it showroom stock over the above, except for the wheels. The wheel arches look overcooked - especially at the rear. And quad pipes? That's writing a cheque this car can't cash.