Jeremy Clarkson is a legend in the world of automotive journalism. He is responsible for turning the Top Gear car show into a mega-popular one (it is officially watched by 350 million people, and unofficially - even more), and he was the first in history to reach the Earth’s magnetic pole in a passenger car.
And now Clarkson is a regular columnist for The Sunday Times, where he talks about the cars he had to drive.
We present you a list of the best and worst cars of the year according to Jeremy Clarkson.
The worst cars of 2019
3. Toyota GR Supra
Opens the list of losers by Toyota, which usually does not knit brooms, but obviously not this time. True, the main fault of Toyota GR Supra according to Clarkson is inexpressiveness.
And although the Japanese manages speed and controllability, the borrowing of technology from BMW could not but affect the uniqueness of the model. The car has no "own face" and is practically indistinguishable from the BMW Z4 or Toyota GT 86.
2. BMW X5 xDrive 30d M Sport
For Clarkson, the new all-wheel drive SUV was a real disappointment. Three-liter engine with a capacity of 249 liters. from. (or 340 in a different configuration) seemed to Jeremy not powerful enough. But the main problem of the car, in his opinion, was electronics.
Either the model was in a hurry to launch it on sale, or for another reason, but as a result, its electronic filling was cumbersome, awkward and difficult to use. Clarkson was so unpleasantly surprised by the car that he stated that the only thing he liked about her was the shape of the gear lever.
1. Audi TTS Roadster
Although the roar of the engine is more likely to add points to the car in Jeremy’s personal rating, this does not apply to cabin noise. And the new Audi supercar suffers from just that. The second drawback of the car is the suspension; shake the driver will be pretty.
And although this energetic car looks great, has a very comfortable interior and a powerful turbocharged engine, all these wonderful qualities could not change the opinion of the British car journalist for the better.
The best cars of 2019 according to Jeremy Clarkson
9. Suzuki Jimny
Although the SUZ from Suzuki has problems with driving and the braking distance is longer than the Trans-Siberian Railway, all this is more than redeemed by one quality - cross-country ability.
Off-road driving on the Suzuki Jimny can cause a wide smile to the ears. No joke, one-piece frame, spring suspension and alloy wheels. Although, as Clarkson says, only a masochist can enjoy driving a Suzuki Jimny.
8. Renault Megane RS Trophy
Speaking about this model, the famous British journalist did not hesitate in expressions. According to him, driving a Renault Megane RS Trophy is like riding a roller coaster, having eaten too much LSD.
We will not guess where exactly Clarkson gained such a vivid experience. Suffice it to say that the front-wheel drive hatchback from Renault is the new lap record holder at the Nurburgring. The car covered the distance of 20.6 km on this race track in just over 7 minutes.
Of course, we are talking about a heavily modified version of the machine (for example, it was lightened by 130 kg for speed). And the mass, which goes on sale, will have a six-speed gearbox, a 1.8-liter engine with a capacity of 300 liters. from.
7. Range Rover Velar SVAutobiography
In this SUV, the company's engineers managed to accommodate the real "eight." The car accelerates to 100 km in 4.5 seconds and is able to give out 170 km / h.
According to Clarkson, the model turned out to be so successful that the rational part of the driver’s brain is completely turned off. By the way, this is an exclusive car that will be available to customers all year. Come on, hurry up!
6. Peugeot Rifter GT Line
Jeremy was pleasantly surprised by the Peugeot compact van, although initially there was a low opinion of the car on the new platform. However, the test drive turned it all 180 ° - the “family man” turned out to be so beautiful.
First of all, Clarkson liked the suspension, which is so good that the driver does not even notice obstacles on the road. Among the other strengths of the model, the British leader called the simplicity and ease of operation and a small turning radius, even despite the length of the wheelbase (4400 and 4750 mm).
5. Mercedes-AMG A35 4Matic
Not only cars capable of delivering speeds of more than 300 km / h are participating in the personal columnist rating. Clarkson is omnivorous and is happy to consider a variety of cars.
Including the most inexpensive of AMG cars - Mercedes-AMG A35 4Matic. This all-wheel drive sedan in its appearance is more like a car for the middle class, rather than a sports car. And with capacities it is inferior to a typical sports car (under the hood there is a two-liter four-cylinder engine with a capacity of up to 306 hp). However, as Jeremy writes, the Mercedes-AMG A35 4Matic showed a class on the road: it raced so hard that "the stars flew by at breakneck speed."
4. Ford Mustang V8 GT Convertible
The car has two configurations and two bodies - a coupe and a convertible. Both the one and the other have a powerful five-liter "eight" in 421 liters. with a torque of 530 Nm. And both are distinguished by excellent handling.
Ford managed to get rid of the centuries-old Mustang disease - the demolition of feed. And even if the suspension is not too soft, then you can change the power steering.
3. Ferrari 488 Pista
Clarkson and the 2019 Motor Awards performed in unison: Jeremy named the Ferrari 488 Pista with an eight-cylinder engine in 711 liters. one of the best cars, and the show awarded him the title of best supercar.
Clarkson vigorously expresses his enthusiasm in the descriptions: his article is full of expressions in the style of "rocket on the road", "exciting", "exciting", "beautiful" and so on. The Ferrari 488 Pista even made him change his decision many years ago to never buy a middle class supercar.
3. Bentley Continental GT V8
Although the company Bentley in Russia is associated with luxury cars, Jeremy has awarded her the title of best people's car.
What is a "people's car" according to Clarkson? This is a four-liter eight-cylinder engine with a capacity of 542 liters. - It is believed that this is one of the most powerful engines in the history of Bentley. We don’t know about you, but Jeremy and I like such cars! True, it’s difficult to call them “folk” in our realities ...
2. Audi R8 V10 Performance Quattro
Speed, maneuverability and responsiveness are the three qualities of the new car from Audi that delighted Clarkson. As the ex-host of Top Gear put it, this car is the personification of a supercar.
That’s what a sports car should be like: devour miles like noodles, roar with a motor so that everyone can immediately hear who is driving and spit on the percentage of harmful substances in the exhaust. In general, the car is very “Clarksonian”, he loves such people - aggressively roaring V10 engine and price under 200 thousand dollars.
1. Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio
It seems that the Apocalypse has already come and hell has froze, because one of the best cars of 2019 according to Clarkson's version has become ... a crossover. This is surprising, given its antipathy to this class of cars.
Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio - the only crossover to receive the engine directly from Ferrari. In general, this first attempt at off-road vehicles from Alfa Romeo was extremely successful: an engine of 505 liters. and acceleration to 100 km / h in just 3.8 s.
But this car still has a Race mode, turning it on, you can disperse the “iron horse” in a childish way and enjoy its speed and maneuverability with might and main. According to company engineers, an eight-speed automatic transmission changes gears in some 150 ms.
