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Top Gear loves hybrid supercars

Discussion in 'Prius, Hybrid, EV and Alt-Fuel News' started by bwilson4web, Mar 11, 2014.

  1. bwilson4web

    bwilson4web BMW i3 and Model 3

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    Some of us have known for years that an electric motor can cure the weaknesses of internal combustion engines . . . weak, low-speed torque. Motor have instant, low-speed torque and don't have the spin-up delays needed to get significant power from an engine. Then two car companies finally made performance hybrids and:
    source: Clarkson drives P1 in new Top Gear mag - BBC Top Gear

    Also the 918:
    Source: Porsche 918: the definitive verdict - BBC Top Gear

    These are the same clowns who claim it is entertainment to:
    • shoot up a Prius with a 50 cal
    • report NHW11 acceleration times for the NHW20
    • driving to get 17 MPG in a Prius
    • pushed a Tesla claiming it ran out of electricity
    But put a hybrid super car in their hands and they go all 'Ga-Ga'. They are impressive cars:
    Bob Wilson
     
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  2. GasperG

    GasperG Senior Member

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    Top Gear loves anything with POWER. Yes there are some exceptions like small petrol fun to drive city cars (Twingo, Panda ...), probably their sponsors ;)

    They also loved SLS electric drive, maybe because it's German.

    Tesla Roadster was a little before time, so they were bashing it, but I bet if they drove Model S today they would like it. But we probably won't see Top Gear near Tesla for years ...
     
  3. GasperG

    GasperG Senior Member

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    Oh, they also liked BMW i8, but they were not driving it, it has a puny 1.5 3 cylinder turbo engine.
     
  4. WilDavis

    WilDavis Senior Member

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    That overgrown schoolboy Clarkson (yes, he has appeared (on radio) in one of the BBC Radio 4's "Jennings at School" dramatizations, complete with picture in the Radio Times) is one of the many reasons I won't have a television! The man is a prat of the first order, I realize he can't help it, but that's not my fault; I blame his parents - in Roman times he would have been left outside the cave for the wolves to deal with! - Wil
     
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  5. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    C'mon Bob!
    Shooting (almost!) ANYTHING with a .50-cal is fun!!!


    I drove my Prius with the specific intent to get LOW mileage one tank. The best (worst) tank I was able to achieve without cheating (idling the car for hours at a time) was around 30.
    I suppose you can get less in a G3 while actually 'driving' it, but I wasn't that dedicated......and my beloved employer probably would not approve.

    Some things are just fun! :D

    M2 Browning - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
     
  6. bwilson4web

    bwilson4web BMW i3 and Model 3

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    Well here is my 50 cal:
    [​IMG]

    I like to recycle campaign signs as target holders . . . and sometimes I put roundels on them.

    Bob Wilson
     
  7. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    The BMG has a higher rate of fire (probably...) but the muzzle-loader is also a LOT of fun to fire!
    Good use for the political signs!!!!

    One of the engineers that I worked with used to fire a cap and ball revolver in his back yard on holidays.
    Much louder than conventional fireworks and no worries about knocking holes into anything important....(kids, roofs, pets, ets.)

    Keep your powder dry!
     
  8. Robert Holt

    Robert Holt Senior Member

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    IIRC, Clarkson drove the Tesla vehicle so hard that he overheated and actually burned out the motor--they suspended testing until a new one was shipped to the Top Gear site from the factory and finally installed. But he was really beating the car on their circuit on the video I saw. That said, the show is unabashedly performance-oriented in evaluating automobiles.
     
  9. JamesBurke

    JamesBurke Senior Member

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  10. fotomoto

    fotomoto Senior Member

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    Who needs .50 cal when .30 is all you need!

     
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  11. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    You're right.
    It would be fun.....BUT....

    I'm fairly pro-choice where basic USC rights are concerned, but I'm thinking that as much fun as a Dillon would be to play with, it's probably best that these toys are limited to military use.
    Besides.....
    Daffy headspace and spec arguments aside the NATO 7.62x51 is essentially a Winchester .308 rifle cartridge dressed in cammo.
    Have you tried to buy ammo lately???? :eek:

    Even at 2,000 rounds per minute it's a little bit more fun than I can afford.
    (the M134 has a variable rate from 2,000 to 6,000, but is generally set to 4,000)

    Besides.....
    If you know how to shoot?
    A muzzle loader or a cap-and-ball revolver will get the job done, and if you miss you have a nice smoke screen to egress with. :)
     
  12. Sergiospl

    Sergiospl Senior Member

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