125-689: The Citroën C6 is an executive car ( E ) produced by the French car maker Citroën from 2005 to 2012. Production started up again in China in 2016, before ending in 2023. The Citroën C6 was inspired by the Citroën C6 Lignage concept car with fastback - saloon like styling. The C6 was inspired by the Citroën C6 Lignage prototype, which was first shown at the Geneva Motor Show in the spring of 1999, but can be differentiated due to
250-452: A Top Gear "Christmas Special", with the last three split into two parts. These specials are listed below: At the end of each autumn series, hosts Clarkson, Hammond, and May presented an award ceremony in which they picked out cars on various aspects. While some were serious, others were meant as jokes against cars that the presenters hated. One award given was to one of the presenters, referred to as "Cock of Year", in which they had conducted
375-447: A rear spoiler which automatically adjusts to speed and braking. The C6 was the first car to obtain four stars in the pedestrian test rating of EuroNCAP , due to the inventive design, where the bonnet pops up by 65 mm using a pyrotechnic mechanism if a person/animal is hit, thus increasing the gap between the deformable bonnet, and the non deformable engine components below. On an episode of Top Gear , Jeremy Clarkson tested
500-512: A "spaceship that rides on air", "charmingly idiosyncratic" and "refreshingly different". Citroën hoped that the C6's selling point would be its innovative technology, including a heads-up display , a lane departure warning system , xenon directional headlamps (also available on the Citroën C4 and Citroën C5 ), Hydractive 3+ suspension with electronically controlled springing and damping, and
625-509: A 2.2 L HDi producing 170 PS (125 kW; 168 hp) with FAP , four cylinders, and a dual turbo was introduced. Land Rover used the DW12 engine in the Freelander 2 and Range Rover Evoque , where it generates 150–190 PS (110–140 kW; 148–187 hp). In June 2009, the new 3.0 L V6 HDi diesel producing 240 PS (177 kW; 237 hp) replaced
750-526: A 2.7 litre V6 on its long term fleet and rated it for its "waftability" and comfortable interior, but felt it was a car that the driver needed time to adjust to. In isolation, the car's acceleration was regarded as "effortless" but not up to the standards set by similarly priced and equipped vehicles, such as the BMW 5 series of the era. The Citroën C6 Lignage concept formed the basis of the Citroën C6, which
875-612: A 3G connectivity solution for the car that is little more than a MiFi box and is unrelated to the onboard telephony of the car. In May 2012 Citroën ceased production of the C6 in right-hand drive . Rumours suggested the C6 was to be replaced by the Citroën DS9, based on the Citroën Numero 9 concept car , which would eventually go into production in 2020. The replacement of the Citroën C6 is the DS 9 . Citroën ceased production of
1000-412: A Rally-Cross Car". While it stuck to the same format as "Reasonably Priced", it featured a number of changes. The first change was that the interview, conducted with Evans, was much longer, with the celebrities involved discussing what was their favourite car in a certain field and the studio audience voting on which one they preferred. The second change, which was the primary reason for the change in name,
1125-439: A Rally-Cross Car". The most negative feedback received for the 23rd series was towards Evans' involvement – his presentation style was largely criticised, along with the lack of chemistry he had with LeBlanc. In addition to feedback, several newspaper articles highlighted the fact that the new series struggled to make reasonable viewing figures, with this partly blamed on its broadcast schedule putting it up against live broadcasts of
1250-426: A back-up car would be provided for the celebrity to use to continue practising, and/or to do their timed lap in. Although only one celebrity is involved in this segment, in a number of episodes, including the majority of the eleventh and twenty-third series, it sometimes featured two celebrities taking part, with footage of each timed lap shown one after the other. From the first series to the twenty-second series, when
1375-402: A bit like one of those Yes albums from the 1970s where side one is just one track – so we're trying to calm down the prog-rock side. We'll inevitably still have big films, because it's the only way you can enjoy the three of them cocking about together, but they'll be shorter overall, and alongside we'll be inserting two- or three-minute punk songs." The success of the programme soon led to
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#17327823365301500-500: A bridge, when Clarkson, seeing an Asian man crossing it, remarked that the bridge "had a slope on it". As a result of these matters, the broadcaster issued a "final warning" against Clarkson. The programme then suffered another incident, when production of its next special in Argentina was dogged by major issues that placed the team at serious risk of harm, as one of the car licence plates had read "H982 FKL" in an alleged reference to
1625-480: A car and another form of transportation – and completing a variety of challenges, mostly with cheap, second-hand cars. In early 2006, the BBC made plans to move the programme's film site from Dunsfold to Enstone, Oxfordshire , in preparation for its eighth series . These were later cancelled, after West Oxfordshire District Council strongly objected to the planned move, on the basis of noise and pollution concerns. As
1750-400: A course specially-designed for the relaunched programme. The programme drew acclaim for its visual and presentation style since its launch, which focused on being generally entertaining to viewers, as well as criticism over the controversial nature of its content. The show was also praised for its occasionally controversial humour and lore existing in not just the automotive community but in
1875-498: A different part of the world for a road trip using second-hand cars, with a number produced to be aired as a Christmas special. Despite growing popularity, an interview made with the Radio Times by Wilman revealed that future programmes would have less time devoted to big challenges, stating the following: "We've looked back at the last two or three runs and noticed that a programme can get swallowed up by one monster film –
2000-441: A direct result, the broadcaster ordered that filming continued at Dunsfold during May of that year, despite having no permit to do so, with the eighth series unveiling a revamped studio set. In addition, the "Star in a Reasonably Priced Car" segment was modified with new rules along with a new car, while Hammond included one of his dogs for the series throughout its studio segments, along with a number of films made for this series and
2125-499: A few minor details (such as the lack of suicide doors , which were present in the concept model). The C6 was intended to serve as a replacement for the late Citroën XM , and the company was intent on launching it before the end of the year 2000. At the time, it was hoped that the C6 would go into production by the end of 2000, serving as the replacement for the ageing XM , which was first produced in May of 1989. In July 2007, Car ran
2250-454: A film that had been shown prior to footage of their timed lap, and viewed footage of a practice lap in which Harris tutored them on how to get around the circuit in the new car, before the footage of their timed lap. This was altered slightly in Series 25, with it returning to only one part with the training run still shown. The segment was dropped in Series 29 to maintain social distancing during
2375-413: A lap time in the new car. Up until the eighth series, the rules of the segment were that celebrities were given a set number of laps to do, with the fastest amongst these being recorded, but from the ninth series onwards, the rules were changed so that they were now given a few practice laps to get to grips with both the car and the track, before conducting a timed lap. In some episodes, the invited celebrity
2500-682: A live-version format being created called Top Gear Live ; produced by a former producer of the programme, Rowland French, the touring show aimed to attempt to "bring the TV show format to life... featuring breath-taking stunts, amazing special effects and blockbusting driving sequences featuring some of the world's best precision drivers". The Live tour began on 30 October 2008 in Earls Court, London, moving on to Birmingham in November before being performed in at least 15 other countries worldwide. As
2625-416: A new motoring series, The Grand Tour . After the group's departure, others were appointed as hosts for the programme, including Chris Evans and Matt LeBlanc , both joined by four co-presenters for the twenty-third series: Rory Reid , Sabine Schmitz , Chris Harris and Eddie Jordan . After negative feedback on this series, Evans resigned from the programme, with LeBlanc joined by Harris and Reid as
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#17327823365302750-424: A number of series – because the new car was often different, in terms of engine specifications, power, speed, handling, and other factors, a new leaderboard would be created a direct result. In addition, the introduction of a new car would be reserved for the opening episode, with the celebrity segment pre-recorded before the series began – it featured no interview, and involved a group of celebrities taking part to set
2875-418: A nun driving a monster truck. However, these later changed into situations in which the presenters were either competing against each other with a car they chose in a series of tests, or working together to accomplish a goal, with the tagline "How hard can it be?" becoming a common phrase for the introduction of some of the challenges featured on the programme. Challenges that appear in episodes, mainly fall under
3000-410: A place. On 17 June 2008, Hammond and May revealed during an interview on BBC Radio 1 's The Chris Moyles Show , that the eleventh series would feature a new "host" in the line-up, who was later revealed on the programme as "Top Gear Stunt Man", an individual who made few, occasional appearances on the programme. From the twelfth series, feature-length specials were created for the show, each visiting
3125-399: A positive reception compared to the mixed reviews of the previous few series. During the broadcast of the twenty-eighth series in early 2020, it was announced that, from the twenty-ninth series , the show would move channels to BBC One following the positive reception of the new presenting lineup. The twenty-ninth series itself, which was broadcast in late 2020, also saw some changes as
3250-428: A race circuit for use on the programme that would be situated at the fixed location, while editing of films that were recorded for each episode, focused on extending the runtime of the programme to one hour. Wilman took on the role of the show's executive producer, while Clarkson became part of the hosting line-up. Because those who had worked with Clarkson on the original programme had left the BBC to work on Fifth Gear ,
3375-518: A result of filming and broadcast during the COVID-19 pandemic , including the show moving out of the studio and onto the runway, in a 'drive-in festival' style, to enable the audience members to remain physically distanced, and the dropping of the Star in a ... Car segment to maintain social distancing. Further changes were made to the thirtieth series , broadcast in early 2021, due to restrictions as
3500-474: A result of the COVID-19 pandemic : studio segments were recorded during a two-night shoot outside Television Centre, London , instead of the previous location at Dunsfold Aerodrome , with no full audience, and all of the films in the series were recorded in the UK. The new outdoor studio at Television Centre was retained for the thirty-first series , which was broadcast later that year. The revamped show fronted by
3625-432: A small number of segments were dropped, the studio received a revamp to its layout, the celebrity segment was redesigned to feature a rallycross-styled challenge, while Evans and LeBlanc would front the show with the other co-presenters appearing "when required". On 27 April 2016, BBC Three announced that a spin-off programme to Top Gear had been commissioned, entitled Extra Gear . Designed to be aired after each episode of
3750-604: A timed lap, the episode either shows the film of each car one after the other, or alongside each other. After the film is shown, the presenter reveals the time to the studio audience and the viewer – abbreviations next to lap times, such as "W" for "wet", highlight if they were conducted under certain track conditions. In order to qualify for a place on the Power Lap Board, cars that undergo a Power Lap must fulfil certain requirements: As such, vehicles that do not qualify have their times mentioned, but do not get included on
3875-455: A vehicle through its paces in an arranged scenario, or to demonstrate and showcase an exceptional quality that it exhibited. An example of this comes from the "Toyota Hilux Destruction" film, divided between two episodes of the third series – to prove the strength of a Toyota Hilux pick-up truck, presenters Clarkson and May set about subjecting it to various, mainly destructive tests to see if it could survive against them and still run, allowing
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4000-409: A week later on 20 December, Wilman admitted that the three presenters were now "playing to their TV cartoon characters a bit too much". His statement included referring to "this incarnation of Top Gear " being close to its end, and that the production team would be working towards keeping its "dignity still intact", while experimenting with new ideas for the programme. Nevertheless, a one-off special of
4125-408: A week later, Evans revealed that both men would also be joined by Eddie Jordan , motoring journalist Chris Harris , German motor racing driver Sabine Schmitz , and motoring journalist Rory Reid . Filming for the twenty-third series soon began in early 2016. While the show still retained the use of the show's presentation style and its test driver The Stig, the format received a number of changes –
4250-549: Is " Obere Mittelklasse " (lit. upper-middle class) as defined by the German federal authorities. Luxury cars larger than this are referred to as Oberklasse ("upper class"). Mercedes-Benz has produced large luxury cars since the early 1900s. Following World War II, Mercedes Benz's first all-new models were the Mercedes-Benz W120 executive cars. This lineage continues through to the present and has been marketed as
4375-490: Is a revival devised by Jeremy Clarkson and Andy Wilman of the 1977–2001 show of the same name for the BBC , and premiered on 20 October 2002. The programme focuses on the examination and reviewing of motor vehicles, primarily cars, though this was expanded upon after the broadcast of its earlier series to incorporate films featuring motoring-based challenges, special races, timed laps of notable cars, and celebrity timed laps on
4500-478: The Aston Martin DBR9 Le Mans racer. Another major segment in the programme, featured in the majority of episodes broadcast, the format for this involves a celebrity being invited to take part in a timed lap around Top Gear ' s test track in a car provided for the segment. They then join the presenters in the studio for an interview, mainly about their car history, their performance in
4625-422: The COVID-19 pandemic , and did not return in later series. As part of Top Gear ' s format, every episode has contained at least a number of segments involving challenges. In the first few series, these were focused on novelty challenges and stunts that were typically based on absurd premises, such as a bus jumping over motorcycles (as opposed to the more typical scenario of a motorcycle jumping over buses) or
4750-759: The Chrysler 300 was marketed in Europe as the Lancia Thema. Maserati's first executive is the Maserati Ghibli , which has been in production since 2013. Toyota has been producing large luxury cars since the 1955 Crown was released. The Crown remains in production today and is currently in its fifteenth generation. In 1991, the Crown-derived Aristo began production, and from 1993 until 2020 were marketed under Toyota's luxury sub-brand as
4875-485: The Falklands War of 1982. The controversial incident it created was covered by international news media, but despite the issues faced, the special was later aired as part of the BBC's Christmas schedule for 2014, though with amendments to its ending and the inclusion of an introduction for it. On 10 March 2015, the 22nd series of the programme was abruptly put into hiatus by the BBC. The broadcaster's actions were
5000-817: The Ford Scorpio was released, being sold in the U.K. as a Ford Granada until 1994. Vauxhall entered the executive car market with the 1978 Vauxhall Carlton and related Vauxhall Royale/Senator , which were based on the Opel Rekord E. In 1986, the Vauxhall Carlton Mark II switched to the German-built Opel Omega A, which was replaced in 1994 by the Vauxhall Omega (a rebadged version of the Opel Omega B). In
5125-521: The Honda Legend and had a front-wheel drive layout. In 1999, the 800 series was replaced by the Rover 75 , which was produced until 2005. The 75 straddled the executive and compact executive categories due to its size, although a long wheelbase version was available. The first executive car to be badged a Triumph was the 1946–1954 Triumph 1800/2000/Renown versions. Triumph's next and final entry to
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5250-791: The Lancia Lambda , Lancia Artena , and Lancia Aprilia . The Lancia Flavia was an executive car that began production in 1961 and was replaced by the Lancia 2000 in 1971. The 2000 was replaced by the Lancia Gamma , which was released in 1976. In 1984, the Gamma was replaced by the Lancia Thema , then the Lancia Kappa in 1994. The Lancia Thesis , produced from 2001-2009 is the last executive car produced by Lancia. From 2011–2015,
5375-587: The Lexus GS . Nissan's longest-running executive car began production in 1959 as the Prince Gloria , which was later renamed the Nissan Gloria, following the merger of Nissan and Prince. The Gloria was produced for 12 generations until 2004. Another Nissan executive car was the 1960 Cedric , which was produced until 2004 (although a taxi/fleet version remained in production until 2015). The Cedric
5500-583: The Mercedes-Benz E-Class since 1993. The Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class four-door fastback was added to the company's model range in 2004, with a shooting brake body style also produced from 2012-2017. BMW's first large luxury car was the 1936–1941 BMW 326 . After a hiatus of 21 years, BMW's next executive car models were the 1962 New Class Sedans . In 1972, the New Class was replaced by the BMW 5 Series , which remains in production today. Over
5625-850: The Sentia , which was produced until 1999. The Millenia , also sold as the Xedos 9 and the Eunos 800, was produced from 1993 until 2002. Honda introduced their first executive car, the Legend (sold as the Acura Legend in the United States) in 1985. The Legend was produced until 2012, and then from 2014 until 2021. It is believed that the standard of Korean Executive Cars came from the 3rd generation Hyundai Grandeur model launched in 1998. Previous models, Kia Potentia and Hyundai Grandeur, belonged to
5750-493: The UEFA Euro 2016 championships. On 4 July, following the series finale, Evans announced his resignation from Top Gear , based on feedback. As a result, the BBC announced on 26 September that, among the remaining five presenters, LeBlanc would be joined by Harris and Reid to become the main hosts for the next series. To make amends for its dismal performance, Top Gear underwent a more thorough revamp, which included redoing
5875-533: The Volvo 760 in 1982 and then the Volvo 960 in 1994. The 960 was renamed the S90 (sedan models) and V90 (wagon models) in 1996. The Volvo S80 was released in 1998, and was replaced in 2016 by a new generation of Volvo S90 / V90 sedans and wagons that presently remain in production. Daimler Company produced luxury cars in various sizes starting in the late 1890s. The lineage that led to their executive cars began with
6000-445: The 14th series was being broadcast in late 2009, the programme began to attract criticism from some viewers, over its predictability through the over-reliance on stunts and forced humour at the expense of serious content. On 13 December 2009, controller of BBC Two Janice Hadlow appeared on the BBC's Points of View to reject such comments, purely on the evidence of Top Gear ' s ratings and audience appreciation figures. However,
6125-517: The 1923–1929 Daimler 16 and Daimler 16/55 models, which were followed in 1932 by the Daimler Fifteen . The Fifteen was replaced by the 1937 Daimler New Fifteen and then the 1939 Daimler Consort (originally called the "Daimler 2½ Litre"). The Consort was replaced by the 1953–1958 Daimler Conquest . In 1962, the Daimler 2.5 V8 (later renamed the "Daimler V8-250") was released, based on
6250-506: The 1930s. Peugeot began producing large cars in the early 1900s. Following the Peugeot 601 being discontinued in 1935, Peugeot ceased production of large cars until the Peugeot 604 was introduced in 1975. The 604 was replaced by the Peugeot 605 in 1989, which in turn was replaced by the Peugeot 607 in 1999. Following the end of the 607's production run in 2010, Peugeot no longer produces any executive cars. Citroën's first large car
6375-588: The 1990s. Audi , BMW and later Mercedes-AMG have recently offered hatchbacks as separate models for their executive cars since 2010s. One of the first Chinese-built executive cars was the 2006 Roewe 750 , based on the Rover 75 . In 2012, the Roewe 950 was introduced, which is a re-bodied version of the 2010 Buick LaCrosse . In 2020, BYD Han officially goes on sale in China. Several overseas brands have produced long wheelbase versions of cars specifically for
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#17327823365306500-568: The 2.7 L V6 HDi. The C6 has a fastback saloon profile, which is due in part to the concave rear window that resembles the Citroën CX . However, the C6 is a conventional saloon with a traditional trunk , and not a hatchback like the XM , its predecessor. The C6 was aimed as a stylish alternative to executive cars , like the BMW 5 Series and the Audi A6 , and it has been described as
6625-425: The 2007 Britcar 24-hour race at Silverstone , using a race-prepared, second-hand diesel BMW 330d , fuelled by biodiesel refined from crops they had sown as part of an earlier feature. With popularity for the show rising to considerable levels, the waiting list to get a ticket for a recording became extensive – an individual seeking a ticket, found that they would be required to wait for 21 years before securing
6750-501: The 22nd series. Clarkson's forced departure soon had a considerable impact on the programme, beginning with that year's Top Gear Live – as a result of the BBC's decision, the tour's name was changed to "Clarkson, Hammond and May Live" and announced on 1 April 2015. Wilman later revealed on 23 April that he would be resigning from the programme, along with Clarkson's co-presenters May and Hammond, having stated that they would not continue working on Top Gear without Clarkson; however,
6875-469: The BBC aired a special edition episode entitled Top Gear: Polar Special . It was one of the first episodes of the programme to be shown in high-definition , and the third special to be produced, focusing on a race to the North Magnetic Pole , at its recorded location in 1996, between a "polar modified" Toyota Hilux and a dog sled. Considerable planning and co-ordination for the filming of
7000-400: The BBC announced that Top Gear would not return on TV for the "foreseeable future" following Flintoff's accident, though the statement left open the possibility of the show resuming production in the future. Each episode of Top Gear focus a series of segments, switching between those filmed within the programme's main studio before a studio audience, and pre-recorded films conducted before
7125-487: The BBC later announced that Top Gear would not return for the "foreseeable future". Top Gear has been one of the BBC's most commercially successful programmes since its relaunch. It has become a significant show in British popular culture , with episodes also broadcast internationally in many countries in Europe, North America, Southeast Asia and more, making it the most widely broadcast factual television programme in
7250-595: The C6 in December 2012, after 23,384 units had been built. A new car named C6 was sold in China since 2016, and is based on the PSA PF3 platform . It is a sister model of the Dongfeng Fengshen A9 . Prices in China started from ¥189,900 yuan to ¥279,900 yuan. The car is no longer for sale since 2023. Executive car Executive car is a British term for a large car, and is considered equivalent to
7375-413: The C6's Hydractive suspension by mounting a camera on it and driving it on the infield of England's Towcester Racecourse while filming a horse race . Despite the bumps and potholes on the infield, the C6 managed to provide a comfortable ride and stable video coverage of the race while moving at 60 kilometres per hour (37 mph). At the same time, a BMW 5 Series (with the M Sport package) performed
7500-730: The Chevrolet Impala was launched, but was discontinued. Renault Korea sold the SM7 based on the Nissan Teana from 2004 to 2020. In the Korean market, semi-large cars boast significant sales volume as a symbol of the middle class, and the Hyundai Grandeur ranks high in sales in the Korean automobile market. Currently, the semi-large business sedan models sold in the Korean market include Hyundai Grandeur and Kia K8 , and
7625-469: The Chinese market, due to the preference Chinese owners have for being driven by a chauffeur. Examples include the "XF L" version of the 2016 Jaguar XF (X260) , the "Li" version of the 2017 BMW 5 Series (G30) and other models from Audi, Mercedes-Benz, and Volvo. In France, executive cars are known as " Routière ", a class of comfortable long-distance cars that first emerged on the French market in
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#17327823365307750-528: The European E-segment and American full-size classifications. Executive cars are larger than compact executive cars (and the non-luxury equivalent mid-size cars ), but smaller than luxury saloons / full-size luxury sedans . The term has also been adopted by Euro NCAP , a European organization founded to test car safety. The term was coined in the 1960s to describe cars targeted at successful professionals and middle-to-senior managers. It
7875-649: The Exeo, which is basically a rebadged Audi A4 on the B7 platform, with some minor modifications to the front and rear fascias. Although it was not an E-segment vehicle but a segment D. It remained successful as a company car until 2013. Also, it was used as a police cruiser for the Guardia Civil highway corps. It was available in sedan and station wagon variants. It was the first vehicle from the brand equipped with diesel direct common raíl injection. Saab's first executive car
8000-671: The Jaguar Mark 2. In 1966, the Daimler Sovereign was introduced, based on the Jaguar 420. The Sovereign and V8-250 were produced alongside each other until they both ended production in 1969. Jaguar began production of executive cars in 1935 with the first of the Jaguar Mark IV models. These were replaced by the 1948–1951 Jaguar Mark V . The Mark V's successor increased in size to the full-size luxury car segment, so
8125-688: The Lapboard. Examples of this include the Renault F1 car (0:59.0) and the Caparo T1 (1:10.6), which were disqualified for failing the speed bump requirement; the Ferrari FXX (1:10.7), which was disqualified for using slick tyres ; and the Pagani Zonda R (1:08.5), which was disqualified for not being road legal. In addition, non-production cars are also disallowed from the board, such as
8250-637: The United States, executive cars are referred to as full-sized cars. The first executive car produced by a Vietnamese company is the VinFast LUX A2.0 , which debuted at the 2018 Paris Motor Show. Production started in 2019 and it achieved success in the Vietnamese domestic car market. Top Gear (current format) Top Gear is a British automotive magazine and currently inactive motoring-themed entertainment television programme. It
8375-468: The accident, with filming later resuming on 5 October. The opening episode of the ninth series, aired on 28 January 2007, included footage of Hammond's crash; while it was not repeated like other episodes in the programme, it attracted higher ratings than the finale of Celebrity Big Brother , providing one of the highest ratings for BBC Two for a decade, alongside the series finale, which attracted around 8 million viewers. Later that summer, on 25 July,
8500-530: The board depending on how cool the car was perceived to be. The segment was introduced in the sixth episode of the first series and was mainly presented by Clarkson and Hammond. The two presenters often argued with each other and members of the audience about which category a particular car should be placed in. Clarkson based some of his arguments on how well the car would impress actress Kristin Scott Thomas , and later, BBC newsreader Fiona Bruce . There
8625-697: The brand was dissolved in 1967. Rover entered the executive car market in 1948 with the Rover P3 . The P3 was replaced by the Rover P4 in 1949, which was produced until 1964. The 1963 Rover P6 was the next executive car produced by Rover, which was replaced by the Rover SD1 in 1976 (marketed as the Standard 2000 in India). The SD1 was replaced by the 1986 Rover 800 series , which was a jointly developed with
8750-400: The broadcast of an episode – these films primarily cover major segments of the episodes, with studio segments often used as links or breaks between them. The most common forms of segments used in the show's history are "Car Reviews", "Power Laps", "Star in a ... Car", "Cool Wall", "Challenges" and "Races". A major segment of the programme, happening at least once in most episodes, it focuses on
8875-421: The broadcaster securing the right to use Dunsfold Aerodrome , an airport and business park in Waverley, Surrey , as the programme's fixed location – while its runways and taxiways were allocated for reviews and other films, one of the site's large aircraft hangars was transformed into Top Gear ' s new studio. To match the proposed ideas for the new format, the BBC gained assistance from Lotus to design
9000-415: The car and a look back to the highlights from their practice laps. After viewing footage of their timed lap, their time is stated and recorded onto a leaderboard, much in a similar fashion to lap times for Power Laps, including the use of abbreviations to denote track conditions the celebrity faced. In the event that the car being used was put out of action by serious mechanical damage during practice sessions,
9125-404: The car driven by The Stig. Often used after the main review of an episode, it mainly involved the car or cars from the review, though it sometimes featured vehicles that either had been reviewed in a previous episode but couldn't be put on the track due to problems or unfavourable conditions on the track, or were special models (such as racing versions of the car). On occasions when multiple cars did
9250-599: The cars for the programme; and the participation of celebrity guests who would be invited to take part in an episode, undertake an interview over motoring matters, such as their car history, and take part in a special challenge to do a timed lap in a designated car. Following the pitch, the BBC decided to green-light the new format, in order to create a programme to compete with Channel 5 's new motoring show Fifth Gear , to which several original Top Gear presenters including Tiff Needell , Vicki Butler-Henderson and producer Jon Bentley went. Production began in mid-2002, with
9375-408: The common theme was that the presenters conducted a road trip, mainly using a series of second-hand vehicles that they put through a series of challenges along their journey. The format often saw the presenters conduct a small filmed segment to provide an insight of what they were doing; the exception to this format was Top Gear ' s Polar Special . A number of specials were designed to be aired as
9500-401: The departure of Clarkson, and the subsequent departure of May, Hammond and Wilman, the BBC began searching for their replacements. On 16 June 2015, Chris Evans was confirmed as one of the new hosts, with it later suggested he would be hosting the show alone as part of a new format, despite a previous announcement that the broadcaster was holding open audition for his co-presenters; this claim
9625-559: The episode was conducted by both Top Gear ' s production team and Toyota , with both Clarkson and May, driving the Hilux, being the first people to reach the recorded location of the North Magnetic Pole by car. It was one of a number of challenges in which the presenters had to be focused and serious, despite the comedic scenes shown, with another being on 9 September, when the presenters, including The Stig, participated in
9750-522: The executive car market was the 1963–1977 Triumph 2000 , which was a sales success in Britain. Ford Europe's first executive car was the 1950 Ford Zephyr . The Zephyr— and related Consul, Zodiac, and Executive models— were produced over four generations until 1972. The 1972 Ford Granada was initially built in the United Kingdom before switching to being imported from Germany in 1976. In 1985,
9875-749: The executive car segment in 1975 with the Renault 20/30 models. They were replaced, in 1983, by the Renault 25 which featured a fastback rear end. In 1992, the 25 was replaced by the Renault Safrane . The Safrane was replaced by the Renault Vel Satis hatchback in 2002, which in turn was replaced by the Latitude in 2010 and later the Talisman . The equivalent class for cars in Germany
10000-463: The following categories: Another part of the show's format was the inclusion of a race in every series by the presenters. Such races (which were sometimes referred to as "epic" by Clarkson) were mainly conducted over long distances, though each fell under a certain category: "The Cool Wall" was a board in the studio divided into sections titled "Seriously Uncool", "Uncool", "Cool" and "Sub Zero". Photographs of cars were sorted into different places on
10125-410: The form of internet memes and jokes. The programme was aired on BBC Two until it was moved to BBC One for its twenty-ninth series in 2020. The programme's first series in 2002 was presented by Clarkson, Richard Hammond , and Jason Dawe , with an anonymous test driver " The Stig ", an individual played by several different racing drivers over the course of the show's history, being featured; Wilman
10250-410: The group consented to making one final episode for the BBC consisting of the trio's final films, which was aired as a special on 28 June 2015. Following this episode, Hammond, May and Wilman joined up with Clarkson, and subsequently signed a deal with Amazon to produce a new motoring programme in the same vein as their former show, which debuted in 2016 under the title of The Grand Tour . Following
10375-724: The large car position and were shopper-driven, but were relegated to owner-driven from the XG model. Afterward, the launch of Kia Opirus and Daewoo Magnus formed the semi-large car market. In the 2000s, Daewoo Motors (now GM KOREA) sold the Holden Commodore under the name Daewoo Statesman from the Australian Holden company and sold the Holden Caprice as the follow-up model as the Daewoo Veritas. Afterwards,
10500-466: The long-running US news programme 60 Minutes featuring Clarkson, Hammond, and May, attracted 16 million viewers in October 2010. Towards the end of 2014, the BBC became concerned over Clarkson's behaviour on the programme, including its production. Their concerns were raised by two incidents that year. The first involved an un-aired take from the 19th series emerging on national news media, featuring
10625-625: The luxury brand is the Genesis G80 . SEAT's first executive car was the 1963–1973 SEAT 1500 , then in 1973, it launched the 132 which was the same FIAT 131 of the era since all cars from the brand were produced under license from FIAT. It was produced until 1982 when it was replaced by the Málaga in 1984, which was the first to be produced in-house entirely, to be replaced afterward with the Toledo, in 1991. Many years later, in 2009, SEAT launched
10750-481: The main hosts for the following three series. From the twenty-seventh series onwards (2019), the presenting line-up was changed following the departure of LeBlanc and Reid, with Harris joined by Andrew Flintoff and Paddy McGuinness as the main presenters. This series proved more popular with viewers. Production of the thirty-fourth series was halted in March 2023 after Flintoff was injured in an accident during filming;
10875-437: The model's lifespan were given as 20,000 per year. In July 2008, the C6 car configurator on Citroën UK's website no longer offered black as a colour choice for the popular Exclusive trim levels. By October 2008, the manual transmission and the intermediate Lignage specification were no longer offered. Polar white was added to the colour options (replacing Deep Red). The standard navigation system , named until then " NaviDrive ",
11000-400: The new series aired with only six of the ten episodes that it promised to show. The new look of the show received mixed feedback from critics and viewers alike – although praise was given for the inclusion of LeBlanc, Harris and Reid, the new format was panned for its sluggish pace, the lack of humour in the studio segments, and the length of time spent on the revamped celebrity segment, "Star in
11125-417: The new series was aired, its format focused on providing exclusive new content online – hosted by both Reid and Harris, the spin-off would consist of new footage, interviews, specially recorded films and behind-the-scenes access to the main programme. A combination of delays with production and conflicts with scheduling, led to the premiere date of the 23rd series being pushed back to 29 May 2016. In addition,
11250-493: The new trio helped Top Gear increase viewership to numbers not seen since the departure of Clarkson, Hammond and May. The twenty-seventh series has also been one of the most popular shows for British 16 to 34 year olds. On 4 August 2021, it was announced that production of the show would transfer to BBC Studios Bristol from the thirty-third series onwards; however, Dunsfold Aerodrome will still be used for filming. On 13 December 2022, whilst filming at Dunsfold Park Aerodome for
11375-581: The next executive car was the 1955 Jaguar Mark 1 . In 1959, the Mark 1 was replaced by the Jaguar Mark 2 . In 1963, the Jaguar S-Type was introduced and sold alongside the Mark 2. Both models were replaced by the 1966-1968. The Jaguar XJ series began in 1968 and received updates (with a redesign in 2010) until 2019. Following a 30-year hiatus from the executive car market, Jaguar returned in 1998 with
11500-511: The next. On 20 September, during production for the ninth series, Hammond was seriously injured while driving a Vampire turbojet drag racing car at up to 314 miles per hour (505 km/h), as part of a planned feature, leading the BBC to postpone the broadcast of Best of Top Gear until a later date, and delaying production on the series until the presenter had recovered. Both the BBC and the Health and Safety Executive carried out inquiries into
11625-407: The planned 34th series, Flintoff was involved in a second accident and had to be airlifted to hospital. In January 2023 The Mirror reported Flintoff chose to put his TV career on hold to allow himself time to recover from the crash. In March 2023 the BBC announced that series 34 production had been suspended to enable a thorough health and safety investigation into the accident. In November 2023,
11750-429: The presenter attempting to choose between two cars using the traditional rhyme " Eeny, meeny, miny, moe " but failing to censor the original version's use of the word nigger . The second involved an investigation into racism complaints by the regulator Ofcom , in regards to the show's "Burma Special", which led to the programme being found in breach of broadcasting rules: the presenters had been involved in constructing
11875-402: The presenters conducting a road-test of a car, looking at such factors as ride quality, speed, handling, practicality, and reliability. These reviews are conducted either on and around Top Gear ' s test track , or on the roads of Britain and abroad, and often focus on one car, primarily from well known car manufacturers. On a number of occasions, the review may feature more than one car from
12000-406: The presenters regularly destroying a caravan during the early series. After the first series, Dawe was replaced by James May . Having previously been a presenter on Channel 4 's motoring programme Driven and the 1999 series of Top Gear , May initially declined to be a part of the new format, until its growing popularity later changed his mind. At the beginning of the third series, McCarthy
12125-451: The production team arranged for him to be joined by Richard Hammond and Jason Dawe . A difficulty found during production revolved around the show's test driver – neither Clarkson nor Wilman could find a racing driver with experience at speaking on-camera. In discussions over this, the pair opted to make the driver silent, and later having their identity concealed. When they recruited Perry McCarthy amongst their possible candidates for
12250-484: The programme for television. This led to them eventually meeting the broadcaster to pitch the idea of changing it from a motoring magazine format to one that was studio-based. Amongst the ideas that were pitched included: the involvement of a fixed location for car reviews and other films, alongside locations across Britain and abroad; putting notable cars through a timed lap of a circuit; the involvement of test driver with veteran racing experience, who handles driving some of
12375-547: The result of them suspending Clarkson in order to investigate allegations made against him, over verbal and physical abuse he had committed against one of the show's producers, Oisin Tymon. On 25 March, Clarkson's contract with the BBC was terminated, with Director-General of the BBC Tony Hall announcing that the remaining episodes future were uncertain until the broadcaster could determine how to air them out and complete
12500-498: The retro-styled S-Type . The S-Type was replaced by the 2007 Jaguar XF (X250) and then the 2015 Jaguar XF (X260) , which currently remains in production. Humber's first executive car was the 1945 Humber Hawk . The Hawk was available with features such as two-tone and metallic paintwork, leather upholstery, wood trim, and a sunroof. Production of the Hawk, along with the similarly sized Humber Super Snipe and Imperial , ceased when
12625-457: The role, his input led to Wilman choosing to nickname the test driver " the Stig ". To date, there have been 12 presenters of the show: The first series of the new format of Top Gear premiered on 20 October 2002. In its early state, the programme's segments were based on elements of the previous format, such as interviews and viewers' letters, but also featured some new humorous elements, such as
12750-481: The same class, as well as include exotic/foreign models, and feature more than one presenter as a way of providing different opinions on the cars being reviewed and putting forth an argument over the model they believe is worthwhile to own. Although the programme operated in a standard manner in the early series to the original format of car reviews in the 1977 show, it soon began to adopt an unusual approach of reviewing cars, by conducting an unusual test(s) to either put
12875-418: The same test, but its suspension was unable to keep the camera upright. The C6 immediately became a prominent vehicle among the fleet of executive cars at the Élysée Palace . Former Presidents of France , Jacques Chirac and Nicolas Sarkozy , have chosen the Citroën C6 as their official car. Chirac, in particular, used a pre-series car before the model was introduced. At launch, sales expectations across
13000-474: The segment's format was revised, and renamed as "Star in a Reasonably Fast Car". While similar in format to "Reasonably Priced", in that celebrities were interviewed about their car history and did a timed lap around the test track, it featured a number of changes. Apart from the car being much faster the segment was split into two parts – the celebrity joined much earlier in the episode, discussed their car history with LeBlanc, Harris and Reid, gave some feedback on
13125-576: The seven generations of the 5 Series, it has been produced in sedan, wagon, and four-door hatchback body styles. The first large luxury car produced by Audi was the Audi 100 , which was released in 1968. The Audi 100 was replaced by the Audi A6 in 1994, which remains in production today. In 2010, the Audi A7 four-door fastback model range was added. The Ford Granada is an executive car produced by Ford Europe from 1972-1994. Fiat's first large luxury car
13250-448: The show was presented by Clarkson, Hammond and May, the segment was entitled as "Star in a Reasonably Priced Car" – its name was derived from the fact that the celebrities drove around the test track in an affordable car available on the market. The segment was often shown during the middle of an episode, and had the celebrities interviewed by Clarkson. The affordable car used in the segment was changed several times, each being replaced after
13375-463: The start of the tenth series and also due to show being able to produce more pre-recorded film and challenge content due to the bigger budgets of later series. The final appearance of the Cool Wall occurred in the last episode of the sixteenth series though it still remained as part of the studio set until the end of twenty-second series. The Cool Wall was removed from the studio entirely ahead of
13500-404: The studio, and redesigning the show's opening titles. The show's format was refocused on elements developed in early series, a deeper work on chemistry between the presenters, while also revising the celebrity segment – as the arrangement for the 23rd series had proven to be a failure, the segment returned to its original format. On 31 May 2018, LeBlanc announced he would be leaving the show after
13625-548: The twenty third series after the studio was refurbished following the departure of Clarkson, Hammond and May from the show. In 2006, Top Gear featured its first, feature-length, special edition episode, in which the presenters conducted a various challenges related to sporting events used in the Winter Olympics, in which cars took the place of athletes in each event. Following this special, the production team worked on creating additional, feature-length specials, in which
13750-469: The twenty-sixth series in 2019. Andrew Flintoff and Paddy McGuinness were announced on 22 October 2018 to be replacing LeBlanc and joining Harris for the twenty-seventh series. As a part of the reshuffle Rory Reid was announced to be stepping down as a main host to present Extra Gear and make occasional appearances on the main show; however, Extra Gear did not return and so Reid moved to ITV4 to present Speed Freaks . The new presenting line-up received
13875-420: The use of tools for repair but prohibiting the replacement of any components (with the exception of the windscreen). Other notable uses of this unusual approach have included: Another unusual approach with car reviews was to conduct them in the form of a challenge. Examples of such "review" challenges have included: This segment focuses on a featured car undergoing a timed lap of the programme's test track, with
14000-436: The world. Its success has led to various forms of merchandising, including live tours, special DVD editions, and books, as well as spawning a variety of international versions in various countries, including the United States, Australia, South Korea, China, and France. After the BBC cancelled the original format of Top Gear in December 2001, Jeremy Clarkson and producer Andy Wilman met together to work out ideas for reviving
14125-457: Was a F1 driver, with the segment referred to as "F1 Star in a Reasonably Priced Car" – while it stuck to the standard format, the only difference was that the F1 drivers were restricted to the use of the first car used in the segment, which was retained to maintain fairness with those invited. During Evans' short-lived tenure as the show's host, the twenty-third series saw the segment renamed "Star in
14250-461: Was later dismissed as untrue. Although former Formula 1 driver David Coulthard had been widely reported to be joining the programme as a host, this was dismissed as speculation when he was revealed, on 11 January 2016, to be the new host of Channel 4 's coverage for the 2016 F1 season. On 4 February, it was officially announced that American actor Matt LeBlanc was to join the show as Evans' co-host. On an edition of his BBC Radio 2 breakfast show,
14375-459: Was launched in November 2005, five years later than Citroën had originally planned. The XM ceased production in June 2000, and the first C6 rolled off the production line almost six years later. The C6 is powered by either a 3.0 L ES9 V6 producing 211 PS (155 kW; 208 hp) or a 2.7 L V6 HDi diesel producing 204 PS (150 kW; 201 hp). In October 2006
14500-412: Was no rule for how cars were to be judged; according to producer Andy Wilman, the criteria were not necessarily related to the quality of the car itself. Any car owned by one of the presenters was classified as "Seriously Uncool". The segment appeared frequently during early series acting as a low budget time filler segment but later appeared only a few times since the original Cool Wall was damaged at
14625-522: Was renamed "Concert Pack". The 3.0 V6 petrol engine was discontinued in February 2009 – only the 2.2 and 2.7 HDi options with six speed automatic gearboxes were offered, in base C6 or C6 Exclusive trim. In June 2009, the 2.7 HDi engine was replaced by the new 3.0 V6 HDi. As of 2010, only the 3.0 HDi (240) Exclusive trim was offered in some markets, such as the United Kingdom. Options were limited to Sunroof, Lounge Pack (TGV rear seats) and " WiFi on Board",
14750-516: Was replaced by Ben Collins for contractual reasons – the change in drivers was notable in the fact that for Collins' version, the Stig's outfit was changed from a black outfit to a white one. As the programme progressed, the format slowly began to transform, with a focus towards creating a unique presentation style for the programme, which included the addition of new segments, a more unusual approach to reviewing cars, road trips, and more specialised films involving races – either between cars or between
14875-673: Was replaced by the 2004 Fuga , also sold as the Infiniti M from 2003 until 2012, and the Q70 since 2012. Mitsubishi began producing executive cars in 1964 with the Debonair . The Debonair was replaced in 1999 by the Proudia , which was discontinued in 2001 and then returned from 2012 until 2016 as a rebadged Fuga. Mazda's first executive car was the 1969 Luce . In 1991, the Luce was replaced by
15000-481: Was that celebrities drove around a specially modified, rally-cross version of the Top Gear test track – while it used the majority of the circuit, it featured two off-road sections and a small jump – in a rally-spec Mini Cooper . After the series ended, the segment received negative feedback and criticism from viewers and critics, and was dropped from the programme as a result. From the twenty-fourth series onwards,
15125-529: Was the Fiat 24-32 HP , which was introduced in 1903. Other large luxury Fiats produced before World War II include the Fiat 510 , Fiat 520 , Fiat 527 , and Fiat 2800 . In 1959, the Fiat 1800 and 2100 executive sedans and station wagons were introduced. These models were replaced by the Fiat 2300 in 1961. Fiat's last executive car was the Fiat 130 , which was produced from 1969 until 1977. Lancia produced several large luxury cars prior to World War II, including
15250-463: Was the 1934 Citroën Traction Avant . In 1955, the Traction Avant was replaced by the iconic Citroën DS , which was replaced in 1974 by the Citroën CX and then the 1989 Citroën XM . The XM was discontinued in 2000 and for five years Citroën did not produce an executive car. The 2005 Citroën C6 was produced until 2012, and Citroën has not produced any executive cars since. Renault entered
15375-451: Was the 1984 Saab 9000 , which was produced in sedan and liftback body styles. The 9000 was replaced by the Saab 9-5 . In 2010 the second generation of the 9-5 switched to a platform shared with various General Motors models until Saab went bankrupt in 2012. Volvo began producing executive cars in 1968 with the Volvo 164 . In 1974, the 164 was replaced by the Volvo 260 , which was replaced by
15500-411: Was the show's executive producer. Following the first series, Dawe was replaced by James May , with the line-up unchanged until the end of the twenty-second series, when the BBC chose to not renew Clarkson's contract on 25 March 2015, following an incident during filming. His dismissal from Top Gear prompted the departure of Hammond, May and Wilman from the programme, who joined Clarkson in forming
15625-972: Was used by businesses as an incentive for employees in senior roles and to exploit Britain and Europe's tax schemes as a company owned vehicle. Early executive cars typically offered engines with displacements of 2.0–3.5 L (122–214 cu in), compared with 1.6–2.4 L (98–146 cu in) for an equivalent sized—but less luxurious—"large family car". Prior to the 1990s, executive cars were typically sedans , however in recent years they have also been produced in other body styles, such as estates ( station wagons ), convertibles , coupés , and five-door hatch versions. They typically need to be "comfortable, refined and display some form of driving pleasure" on occasion. In general, executive cars are 4-door saloons , though may include estate , 5-door hatchback or 2-door coupé variants. Rover , Saab , Renault and Citroën formerly have been known to prefer hatchbacks, with Ford also offering alternatives through
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