[06x11] August 7th, 2005

Y8tes said:
Jail80 said:
Great ep.

I would have loved to hear something about the new Aston Martin V8 Vantage. Top speed, something about the ride or about the engine noise.

My girlfriends dad is on the design team at AM, and he's taken me for a ride in his (early production) V8 Vantage, and yes yes YES JC aint lying about the noise! :mrgreen:

:shock: My God! That's unfair! :cry:

But, It's too bad you just can't tell if JC's right or how amazing the sound from that V8 really is. I would have just loved to hear that.. :D
 
gtrietsc said:
I won't take the American bashing personally, because he bashes everyone, but I do find it amusing that people from Finland and beyond think they know everything about a car because a 5 minute segment on a television show told them it was crap. :)

Hey! Do you really think that the F150 was the first American car ever seen by these Finnish people? Well, not really.

I'm sorry, but I really think they're all rubbish. Except the Corvette maybe.. and the '65 Mustang. I've been in many American cars and even driven some. I don't make my oppinnion based just on something said in tv-program. The quality and the handling just isn't what it should be, and as Jeremy pointed out the F150 is no different. And even the Americans know it, because all the big American brands are struggling around the world and even in the US.. They're outsold mostly by Japanese and some European cars too. Actually, some American car firms have to advertise that they're using German parts..

Except this F150- thing, which I just don't understand. BUT, maybe it's the backbone of US motoring, made to fit in your surroundings and avarage-Joe's lifestyle in America.. I quess it just doesn't work here in Europe.
 
Here's the thing:

- first, Jeremy's short on the F-150 was a bit misleading to say the least. The insinuation is that all F-150's are Lightning's... that they're all somewhat expensive, big motor, crap interior, all the rest.

- the problem is that he's treating it like a car (and for the Lightning, I think that's a legitimate take). However, most F-150's are reasonably cheap, very reliable, and most importantly, aren't bought for quite the same reasons cars are.

People in the States buy F-150's because they need to haul lumber, tile, flooring, landfill, etc. etc. And that's just your average homeowner. Contractors use them for all kinds of similar stuff, just more of it and heavier.

Like someone else said, the F-150 is more akin to the Ford Transit that was on TopGear earlier than any car, and it's bought for those very reasons... it's a work vehicle, plain and simple. And yes, it's got a horrid interior, poor build quality, and the steering is vague at best. The people driving it could care less, because those aren't the qualities they were looking for when they bought it.
 
I understand why there is a big deal about saying bombshell on the show, but when does Jeremy Clarkson say he would stop saying it? Did I miss this in a previous episode?
 
From what I can tell, and I haven't watched the ep yet, comparing the F-150 Lightning to a standard F-150 is like chalk and cheese. You can't do it.

One is a 2x4 sports truck, the other, a 4x4 workman's truck. Bit like back here at home, comparing say, the Commodore SS Ute to the One Tonner, for starters, the SS Ute has a payload of about half the one tonner (guess how much the one tonner's payload is :p )

Mind you, the SS interior is quite nice, good build quality, whereas I gather the build quality/interior of the Lightning ain't too good. One is a sports ute/truck, the other is a real workhorse, you can't say that all are going to be like the sports version, it's just not fair.

When I have watched the ep, I'll let you all kow what I think of the review.
 
OMG, won't this never stop??? Everytime there is an American car on the show, it gets laughed at, and then over here the fighing starts...

Lets just say, we all can see the point of buying such a vehicle (I would maybe if I had a boat for wakeboarding... Unfortunetly I don't...) and it can be really fast in a straight line, but handling wise its flawed...
Can't we all agree??? If anybody takes one of Jezzas comments serious, he should be shot in the head (and thats not my words, I pretty much guess he would say it this way, so don't be offended, unfunny people...)

BTW. whats the F150 like compared to a Dodge RAM 1500 5.9? Just to start a bit of real discussion here... I actually drove one of them.

Buba
 
Buba said:
OMG, won't this never stop??? Everytime there is an American car on the show, it gets laughed at, and then over here the fighing starts...

its true... and its rather amusing :lol:
 
Buba said:
BTW. whats the F150 like compared to a Dodge RAM 1500 5.9? Just to start a bit of real discussion here... I actually drove one of them.

To continue some real discussion, do most of the American manufacturers sell a hotted up version of their most popular trucks? How does the popularity of these hot versions compare to the basic workhorse versions??
 
awesome ep! :thumbsup:
the powerslide part was awesome, james's top gear theme was terrible (terribly funny.. first time james gets to drive an Enzo, he gets up to speed and says... "dada... daaaaaaaaaa" :D), the bullrun part was lol (didn't expect hamster to do something like that :)), and the Murci?lago part was awesome. by the way, hamster should have mentioned that both the Diablo (which is the best car in the world) and the Murci?lago are named after famous bulls. :)
 
watto said:
Buba said:
BTW. whats the F150 like compared to a Dodge RAM 1500 5.9? Just to start a bit of real discussion here... I actually drove one of them.

To continue some real discussion, do most of the American manufacturers sell a hotted up version of their most popular trucks? How does the popularity of these hot versions compare to the basic workhorse versions??

Yes, it seems all American manufacturers are making hotted-up versions of their standard full-size pickup truck.

Ford has the SVT Lightning: which with a chip and pulley will DESTROY in a straight line and is currently out-of-production

Dodge/Chrysler has the Ram SRT-10: Viper V10 shoved in it and claims title as fastest truck

Chevrolet/GM Silverado SS has a pumped up V8 with ~350bhp, rumors about supercharged version abound.

--> All of these trucks are very low volume and pretty much absolutely pointless. Even American reviewers say they're fairly pointless, but that's the charm of a hot rod truck. Or any hot rod for that matter...

The Japanese do not have specialty full-size trucks in the segment yet, but they do have some mid-size hot rod pickups in the pipeline. Toyota has the Tacoma X-Runner (supercharged V6 with ~300hp) to be built. No word from Nissan as of yet. I don't think Honda is coming out with a Ridgeline Type-R unless hell freezes over and they start making RWD longitudinally mounted V8s. Mitsu currently is not in the market but wants to return.

EDIT: before you mock American automotive engineering any further, Borg-Warner makes the DSG and diffs, axles, transfer cases, etc for all the European car companies. You're driving on an American drivetrain. That's just ONE example.
 
watto said:
Buba said:
BTW. whats the F150 like compared to a Dodge RAM 1500 5.9? Just to start a bit of real discussion here... I actually drove one of them.

To continue some real discussion, do most of the American manufacturers sell a hotted up version of their most popular trucks? How does the popularity of these hot versions compare to the basic workhorse versions??

yes, dodge has several versions, the srt-10 with a v10 from the viper, plus they've got the lower end rumble bee and daytona models

11dodge_ram_srt10_01-med.jpg

dodge_rumble_bee.jpg

2050217.006.1M.jpg


chevy has the silverado ss
silverado_ss.jpg


ford had the lightning, now they have concepts for another truck
%7B84096202-6EED-4A9D-95CC-8510D4CB874B%7D_2004SVTLightning_03-normal.jpg


even toyota has a sport truck here (the tacoma x-runner)
05_Tacoma_X-Runner_03.jpg


and nissan has this concept out:
nismo_at_willow_28.jpg


there may be more that I'm forgetting...

they sell well, but the sport trucks hardly have a solid market share compared to the 'bread and butter' trucks bought by the population.
 
kanderson said:
whats the F150 like compared to a Dodge RAM 1500 5.9?
The Dodge RAM 1500 is more like the Ford F250. The Ford F150 compares more to the Dodge Dakota.


?

Ram 1500 = F-150 (both quarter-ton trucks)


Ram 2500 = F-250 (both half-ton trucks)

Ford Ranger is in the same size class as the Dakota.



btw is anyone else having problems downloading this episode?
 
Saracen said:
kanderson said:
whats the F150 like compared to a Dodge RAM 1500 5.9?
The Dodge RAM 1500 is more like the Ford F250. The Ford F150 compares more to the Dodge Dakota.


?

Ram 1500 = F-150 (both quarter-ton trucks)


Ram 2500 = F-250 (both half-ton trucks)

Ford Ranger is in the same size class as the Dakota.



btw is anyone else having problems downloading this episode?

quarter and half-ton trucks?? wtf? a quarter ton (256kg) is about the weight of a superbike!
 
GodGell said:
quarter and half-ton trucks?? wtf? a quarter ton (256kg) is about the weight of a superbike!

I'm guessing they mean that's the payload... the maximum amount of shit able to be carried in the back without doing serious harm to the truck.

Finally got the ep d/l'd and really enjoyed it. Thought Jezza's review of the F150 was fair enough as it isn't the ideal car for the UK... Loved the drifting, especially the Monaro, I love that car... Lambo review was good although running of the bulls was a tad pointless me thinks... Laughed my head off with James' version of the theme, that was great.

Can't wait till next season returns!!
 
watto said:
GodGell said:
quarter and half-ton trucks?? wtf? a quarter ton (256kg) is about the weight of a superbike!

I'm guessing they mean that's the payload... the maximum amount of shit able to be carried in the back without doing serious harm to the truck.

oh, ok then, that makes sense. :) so you can carry a superbike on the back of an f150... just not in england, where it'll get nicked :D
 
Those trucks are all 3 tonne shopping trolleys with rockets in them. They are all one trick ponies. They can go fast in a straight line but if you want to turn a corner you'll have to take a wide berth and go up into Canada. I'm orginally from rural Australia, and you do see farmers with private imports of those things occasionally(not necessarily the performance versions) and yes, compare them to our local product the Commodore Ute and the Falcon Ute (which when it comes to build quality are only the upper end of average) and these things are poo poo poo. You can fit fingers between the panel gaps, and the plastics and interior design is from the '80s, and that's on the more recent models!! You want a vehicle that can do a 13 second quarter, then haul a speedboat, buy a Clubsport. At least you won't look like a redneck then, and you'll be able to turn corners without needing a passport. Or maybe incest is your kind of thing?
 
Ram 1500 = F-150 (both quarter-ton trucks)
Ram 2500 = F-250 (both half-ton trucks)
Ford Ranger is in the same size class as the Dakota.

It would probably make more sense if they did it that way, but it's not the case. The Ranger is a piss-ant small truck that's not nearly the power and capacity of the Dakota. The Dakota can use the big 5.9L Hemi engine, and matches more closely the F150 in power and capacity. The 1500/2500 come in all sorts of sizes and capacitys, as do the F250 and F350, so they are not so easily compared. Frankly, this whole discussion is really irrelevant so I'll shutup now.
 
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