Clarkson and the GTO

Just returned from UK/Euro trip--on plane read the most recent issue of "Top...Whatever" has an opinion column by Clarkson.

Its pure "Clarky", ie, cheeky, less than flattering and indeed, a downright nasty perspective on the 599 GTO. He calls it a "pig", impossible to drive without spinning and if the trac controls are on, impossible to drive without being bogged down. In short, exept for the brakes, not at all likeable, and possibly the worst Ferrari made in many years. In his opinon the car wouldn't make the first round cut in their TopCar (or whatever) annual review.

On the other hand, he seems quite pleased with the 458...

Can someone please clue me in--

I appreciate he's been called a "rodeo clown" and that his show is pure kitch but this is sooo off the wall based on everything else written or said about the car that even for Clarkson it makes little sense?

 

Clarkson has never appreciated the 599 in any shape or form. If you saw the episode in which he drove the 599. he was especially unhappy with the computer aids and weight and not in his view a real ferrari. He has always preferred mid engine light weight ferraris and all exotics with minimal to zero drivers aids. He had nothing but praise for the 430 Scud and has a similiar love affair with the 458.

 

He calls them as he See's them no mystery at all.

A lot of people perfer mid engine cars.

 

Link?

It will never be as good on track as a comparable proper race car. So what? What does he like better?

My only difficulty with the car is that I can't imagine what I'd do with it to take advantage of the performance - a "complaint" having nothing to do with the car itself, but simply with my own declining interest in supercars for the street, as opposed to race cars.

Worst Ferrari in many years? Silly.

But I like Clarkson.

 

Clarkson aims to entertain, not to inform. He's a comedian first and foremost.

All the better known motoring publications (and some early owners on Fchat) have nothing but positive remarks concerning the GTO. I wouldn't worry about what Clarkson has to say.

I like Top Gear and Clarkson, but I take his show for what it is: a comedy show with cars.

 

I can imagine that the car is not to everyone's liking; I prefer the mid-engined Ferraris as well.

Having said that, I still think that the 599 GTO is a sensation, perhaps the greatest modern-interpretation front-engined supercar there is.

Clarkson's personal choice for cars, if anyone has kept up, has been:

355 Spider to SL55 to Ford GT to Gallardo Spyder to CLK63 Black Series and now he is said to be eye-balling the SLS AMG. He seems to have a variety of tastes and is comfortable being choosey.

As terrific as it seems to be, I just can't imagine spending over twice as much on the GTO as a low-mileage GTB. I'd rather go the F40 or F50 route instead if I had the means to do so.

 

Had the international press been critical of the GTO, Clarkson would have praised it....his business is entertainment and he does it so well that people pay attention.

As good as a 458 is, and it is very good, it isn't a GTO that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand on end and that puts a smile on your face that doesn't go away...

The GTO has a real XX heritage and, believe me, an XX is an amazing automobile...

 

For whatever it's worth, he loved the 612. So it's not just that he likes mid-engine cars.

However, I agree with Napolis-- he calls it as he sees it.

 

Not worried about the car at all...and soon will offer my own impressions .

But my question more goes to the thought: what kind of clown--his "show" and he are precisely that, suggests an informed opinion on a car with nearly universal praise from the motoring world (whether or not you like mid engined cars)--sees himself in a position where he could take it upon himself to suggest nearly everyone else has it COMPLETELY wrong?

I'm actually NOT suggesting one has to believe just because everyone likes it, you have to...or that you can't prefer a mid engine, rear engine etc, or that everyone needs to call it a "fantastic...blah blah blah...".

And to be fair, I have no issue with "calling it like you see it". But blindness or inability to drive--which he apparently had developed in spades, is not an excuse for random borish and clueless prose.

If he can't drive the car without spinning it--or doesn't know how to brake hard, hit an apex and power out without losing control, maybe he needs to spend less time at the TV studio or high street parties and a bit more at a driving school?

 

mid engine for me

 

... Spot on Peter. No matter what Clarky says ... the smile the GTO gives me won't go away because of what he writes about it. Having said that, I've always appreciated him and the show for what it is: pure entertainment with typical British humour. Perfect Sunday night TV stuff to end the day after an exhilarating drive in the GTO

 

Hmmm, Interesting..
Im not Defending Mr Clarkson in anyway, shape or form.. But!

This is a guy whos TV programme destroyed the reputation of a car in the early 80's, almost to the point of extinction.
There are, in the UK, viewers who hang on his every word as gospel, you or i may not agree with everything that he writes or utters, however we are in a small minority in comparison to his 'Public'..
and to qualify this i think i need to point out that he has had access to the worlds supercars, and an open airfield or race track, for some 25 years.
i dont think you'll find many people on the planet that have driven a more varied collection of supercars for as many miles as he has.. i think that experience counts for something, doesnt it?
In fact he, together with a well known professional racing driver ex collegue of his, did a 24hour race in a BMW diesel at silverstone, Mr Clarkson was not that far off the pace of his collegue, its not driving lessons he needs, its lessons in decorum and self control of his mouth... a fact thet he will probably admit himself!
However he knows thats his biggest asset too, so he makes the most of it.

 

He did the same thing for the Alfa 8C, which to anyone who has driven one, other than Clarkson, is a pure marvel!

 

Hes always been a hypocrit towards the 599, on the show he wasn't so fond but then on a DVD he made where he tested it at the Ascari race resort he didn't want to get out of the thing! Controversy gets far more attention...

 

Clarkson is a complete hypocrite and his views and opinions are full of personal agendas.

I'm always shocked how many people take anything he says seriously. Considering how much the guy has driven, he has shocking driving skills and technique, so why anyone would listen to what he has to say about a car's handling is beyond me.

The reason the only guy on top gear who can actually drive, the Stig, is not allowed to say anything, is due to Clarkson in past hating that "real" drivers with talent have much more genuine and valid opinions then he ever could.

 

Clarkson is like that crazy uncle that we all like to be around, fun, and best taken with a grain of salt. The tricky part about him is that he evaluates based on his criteria du jour. Sometimes it's looks, sometimes it's value and opportunity cost, sometimes is weight and power. I think it will be fun, and based on that criteria I don't see how Clarkson can disagree.

 

I find him very entertaining as well but his reviews are often a bit confusing. He loves a "proper", as he always says, manual gearbox over anything else but still if he drives a car he likes with an autobox (SLR for example), he gives praise to it because it's so comfortable with an auto..

 

I thnk you'll find the reason they don't have race drivers on is because they are dull for 99% of viewers. We on this forum might find their views interesting but few others do. That's why Top Gear employs journalists who pull together a varied show with the focus on entertainment and cinemaphotgraphy - it wouldn't have made them the most watched show in the world otherwise.

There's always Fifth Gear for people who want to see race drivers on TV.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qvSUg_W_18

 

Also loves the F40 over the Enzo.

He exaggerates for entertainment value, but overall I agree with him that cars have gotten too big and heavy, and that the computers have begun to steal the show.

 

Interesting point... But then why love a 458 that weighs almost as much as a GTO (50kg difference) and has far more electronic gizmos...

Then again, take a fast drive in a GTO and I defy anyone to find it anything but exhilarating

 

Technically a 599 is a mid engined car...

 

Anyone but Clarky...he says neither he nor the Stig (which I find VERY hard to believe--but then he'll never tell ) were able to drive it without spinning it hopelessly

 

Having a highly popular tv show does not mean its a quality show, you just have to look at something like the Pop Idol franchise to see that.

But top gear being one of most watched shows in the world is what potentially makes Clarksons biased and shallow reviews so dangerous. Peoples livelihoods and reputations can seriously damaged by a bigoted review, due to the program being so wide reaching.

I feel if a person doing any review does not have ability to fully test the product to its full potential, and what what it was designed for, they are the wrong person for the job, no matter how entertaining they are.

Ferrari will not suffer much from a bad reviews from guys like this, but everyday mainstream products can.

When you consider that the knowledgeable car fans on a specialist forum like this are discussing his views, you need to think about what influence Top Gear has the everyday person who knows very little about cars, but watches the shows, which due to the massive viewing figures must be the vast majority of viewers.

 

Nope, technically it's "Front Mid Engine/FMR".

 

I am with Clarkson on the 8 C...I owned mine for 6 months. By far the most beautiful car I ever had (current car included) but also one of the worst to drive. Great engine, glorious noise, rubbish gearbox, downright scary handling... If they got that right it would have been one of the best cars ever made. The looks justify everything though...