Personally, when they do destroy the cars for a reason like the Hilux & Mercedes, I don't have such a problem with it. When they do things like when Top Gear fired those cars off of the cliff with the big catapult thing, I'd like to think that those cars were MOT failure, hence not roadworthy. Simply because they'd be the cheapest to buy and bound for the scrappy.
The 'Wreck my ride' cars on the other hand; they are cars that are still running, and to me that's a waste. I know plenty of people that could do with a car but can't find one that doesn't need any work for less than 1000 pounds. And I reckon these guys would probably be happy with the cars that have been wrecked.
The wrecking of the cars in Fifth Gear is IMO, a waste and a bit sickening. I work hard to keep my (older) cars on the road by looking after them and it's frustrating to see this happening to cars the same age in better condition. Give them to someone if you really don't want them!
What's more, getting parts is getting more difficult for cars from the early 90s (so far the predominant age of the destroyed cars). I could've really done with a couple of bits from that Pug they broke into pieces a few weeks back but had to pay a scrap yard 50 quid for them. Even if these cars aren't used on the road, they'd make good donor cars!
You can probably tell I have an issue with this. It's a huge waste to me and I really really do not see the point. At least when TG does it, it's a good laugh and it's not all the time. This was yet another reason why I've decided I can't be bothered to go downstairs and turn on Fifth Gear anymore...
And to answer an earlier question, the cost of scrapping a car is dependant on where you are in England, and what car you have. E.g., I could get money for my MR2 if I scrapped it (no chance of that as it's in mint condition and I adore it) and it wouldn't cost me anything to scrap my Pug as there's almost no 309s or 205s in the scrap yards in my local area (one of my course mates is at this point where he's having to scrap his 309 - why couldn't he tell me a week ago when I needed the parts!!!).
But when we scrapped our old Volvo estate a few years back it cost us ?100 in South London. The most I've heard of someone paying to scrap their car is ?125. This is partly how Top Gear did that cars cheaper than ?100 challenge (and possibly how I bought my Pug for ?100, though it was in great condition so that would've been a real waste anyway). There are instances where it can cost more than ?100 to scrap a car, so in these cases I'm sure most people are happy to just give them away - they are still ?100 better off!
Most of the cost is because older cars cannot be recycled that easily. And with current regulations, things like tyres cannot be sold on and have to be disposed of correctly. Chemicals have to be carefully dealt with. And the cost of labour to break parts off a car is high. If you have drained all the fluids from a car prior to scrapping you can sometimes negotiate a small sum of money.
Personally, if I ever have to scrap a car, I'm stripping and eBaying all the bits I can to offset the cost of getting the remaining shell crushed. Hopefully it's not something I'll have to worry about though...
(so much for quick reply!)