Top Gear Xmas Special 2014 (Esprit in Patagonia)

[Choppa]

Tisk tisk Mr C 

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2777693/Jeremy-Clarkson-sparks-fury-Argentina-driving-country-number-plate-H982-FKL-provocative-reference-Falklands-War.html?ITO=1490&ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490

 

Third car back in the photo looks like an Esprit to me (and it's red!) I wonder how it gets on in Patagonia!

[Vanya]

Ok seriously, this ought to be independently verifiable - and there's no way in hell this is a coincidence, but it had to have been cleared by the BBC prior to purchase... anyone would have noticed.

[Advantage]

Even if this 928 was specifically sourced for its number plate (and the plate has been on that car forever) just so Top Gear can poke fun at Argentina, so what? Why should we care about whether or not a country is upset about a reference to an illegal invasion of British Overseas Territory soil they undertook over thirty years ago?

 

Actually, turn that around. Why can't we enjoy the fact that Top Gear is poking fun at a country whose previous illegal actions caused the death of 255 British lives? If the Argentines are so sensitive to criticism they shouldn't have started a war on an island whose sovereignty was defined 20 years before the present day Argentina even existed as a nation.

 

 

 

Oh and scroll down to post #539 onwards Top Gear Thread clicky

[Mark Blanchard]

Stuff the Argies, we own the Falklands.  Well done Clarkson.

[Andy Esprit SE]

Ah its just a number plate...... im hoping they dont destroy the esprit with bolt on stupid things, cutting holes, stealing parts and being silly... it will be like the morris marina community complaining when the flattened a couple of them, it will be slaughter if they trash it, someone on heres gonna probably know the car too

[Mark Blanchard]

Storm in a tea cup.

 

Anyway, looks like the V8 has tyre problems as they swap the wheels to X180 rims.  And it's towing something . . . 

 

 

 

[Andy Esprit SE]

Oh know !! Maybe they saw value in the oz wheels and sold them? It maybe a cheap v8 when it comes back with a tow bar too

[Vanya]

What the? It's harder to find tyres for the regular V8 wheels than it is the X180 ones no? Plus the 15/16" don't fill out the wheel wells enough. Makes the car look off...

[Mike6]

Imagine that car is a wreck now and probably residing in Douglas Valley breakers waiting for some mug to pay a fortune for bits.

[Bibs]

It's still in Argentina. I could tell you why it's fitted with those wheels, you'd not be 'jumping' for joy... 

[Advantage]

[hedgerley]

Their trip has been highlighted over on the Esprit thread but its just got ugly. Cars attacked by stone throwing veterans of the Falklands conflict. Just seen a photo on BBC News of the Esprit with its windows smashed in.

 

I wonder of they have gone too far this time?

 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/top-gear/11137879/Jeremy-Clarkson-stoned-as-Top-Gear-crew-abandon-cars-and-flee-Argentina.html

[Mark Blanchard]

Their car's have been confiscated too.  That poor Esprit .

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2779236/Jeremy-Clarkson-Top-Gear-team-forced-leave-Argentina-early-police-escort-inciting-Falklands-outrage-H982FKL-number-plate.html

[Advantage]

Local councillor Juan Manuel Romano said the digits 269 on the number plate of the Ford Mustang Mustang Richard Hammond was driving were close to the 255 Britons killed during the 1982 war.

He added that the numbers 646 on James May's Lotus could be taken as a reference to the 649 Argentinian casualties.

 

What complete and utter tenuous tosh. It's impossible to reason with that sort of misplaced logic, so why even bother trying. If only the Lottery worked in the same way as Romano's thinking.

[Mark Blanchard]

Here is the before and after.

 

It was for sale at Murray Lotus in Edinburgh.

 

 

[Mark Blanchard]

the Top Gear Film crew told officers at the first checkpoint: "We're leaving the cars, we don't want more problems. Burn them if you want but we're getting out of here."

[shawty_82]

Even if this 928 was specifically sourced for its number plate (and the plate has been on that car forever) just so Top Gear can poke fun at Argentina, so what? Why should we care about whether or not a country is upset about a reference to an illegal invasion of British Overseas Territory soil they undertook over thirty years ago?

 

Actually, turn that around. Why can't we enjoy the fact that Top Gear is poking fun at a country whose previous illegal actions caused the death of 255 British lives? If the Argentines are so sensitive to criticism they shouldn't have started a war on an island whose sovereignty was defined 20 years before the present day Argentina even existed as a nation.

 

 

 

Oh and scroll down to post #539 onwards Top Gear Thread clicky

Here here!

[Simon350S]

Poor car......

Can't wait to see the episode though, that's if it ever gets aired now.....!!!

[Jacques]

What an idiotic episode/conflict/whatever.

What a Waste of especially the Esprit.

 

When one travels to somewhere else far away it may be wise to keep a Little bit of a low profile.

I don't think there's any justification to what the locals have done or may do at all, but similar stories pop up elsewhere in the World, one of them being in my own country, where some cartoon drawings were seen as some kind of holy war or insult. That started something far far worse than this.

Stupidity sometime goes hand in hand with poverty or ignorance.

 

I think Clarckson et al would have been wise in changing plates before this developed into headlines. While I like most of their shows, it kind of develops into something else than about cars. And honestly they do take the piss on a lot of Things, when going around the World. They seem to have forgotten, that someone else, somewhere else on the planet, may not share their point of view or humor.

Btw. I think they have overdone the "let's buy something and hacksaw it into something absurd" theme, wayyyy too many times.

Personally I like the "find the best road in the World" episodes - way better than the silly episodes where they smash a lot of things.

In this light, I begin to appreciate Chris's shows, despite his stupid habit of sliding through every corner, except for the Testarossa clip, which is nice because it shows a big heavy piece of junk fine Italian Machinery, being thrown around. I like that car far more than later models.

 

I remember as a small boy, me and my friends threw stones at german tourists (sorry) on Bornholm, which suffered quite badly during wwII. Where I Work now, the same people tortured and executed and threw the bodies of my Fellow countrymen around, in that same period. Things not forgotten. No excuse, but I was brought up that way, and then these reactions showed (past tense).

A bit later, I knew very well that todays people are not to be blamed for historic events. But it kind of stays in the national soul, if one can say so. I think a similar thing plus the local poverty (maybe) added up to this happening in South america. Still stupid after all. In my view, from all sides.

 

Maybe everyone should think of forgiveness?

 

Poor Esprit.

 

Kind regards,

jacques

[iamjimmi]

Hmmm... not convinced that TG weren't fully clued up about that 928 reg...

 

Hopefully the episode will still be aired... like it or not this incident will now forever be a part of the Esprit story.... 

 

I agree that the TG formula is getting a little tired. And do we want to see that weeks celebrity guest's track time... not really.

 

But it's still an entertaining watch and I would rather more of the same than nothing at all.....  

[Andy Esprit SE]

Oooor i really liked the look of that car when it was for sale, what a shame, hopefully it will come back over here to be saved? I wonder what happened to the wheels?

[johnpwalsh]

Has anyone read JC's line on the number plates and confirmed by the Beeb, one of the directors was sent out to buy all 3 cars, the 3 stooges never knew what they were getting and had no input so Aunty Beeb is the bungler this time but of course JC will automaticaly be lambasted as an idiot once again.

[Bibs]

[Simon350S]

Is that the Porsche with I different number plate?

H1 VAE? Looks like what could be vertical sticky pads either side where another plate may have been on top?

Yup, that's a 2006 model Porsche that's supposed to have that plate on it according to the dvla....

Edited October 3, 2014 by Simon350S

[OwenGT3]

DVLA details for Porsche

 

Edited October 3, 2014 by OwenGT3