There are a few basic truths every car lover must uphold, and we owe all of them to BBC’s long-running auto program Top Gear: You can’t be a petrolhead without owning an Alfa Romeo. “Nissan” sounds better pronounced the British way. And road signs are the bane of our existence.
As news surfaced Tuesday that show cohost Jeremy Clarkson—easily the most stubborn and contentious of the trio rounded out by the charming Richard Hammond and lovable James “Captain Slow” May—had been suspended by his producers after a “fracas,” the Top Gear fans in our newsroom began to panic. We’re more reliable with our Sunday-night habit than most Americans are about going to church, so naturally, we needed to get our fix somehow. (Besides, if the license plate scuffle and racist slurs didn’t tip them over the edge, we’re on the edge of our seats to learn what he’s done to piss off his producers this time, and there’s no word yet when or if the show will resume.)
Fortunately, a few recent seasons of the show remain on Netflix, and the bulk of the back catalog—we’re now in season 22—is available on Hulu. If you’re looking for somewhere to start, let these YouTube clips of some of our favorite Top Gear moments be your guide.
1) Introducing the Ariel Atom
Top Gear is known for its love affair with supercars, and this tiny monster is no exception. Even though it’s based on a Honda Civic's engine, the Atom packs more power than a Ferrari. Watching it manipulate the corners of the track like a toy car and Clarkson’s face like Play-Doh never gets old.
2) Bugatti Veyron vs. Euro Fighter Typhoon
The 1,000-horsepower Volkswagen (let’s be honest) is a favorite of all three of the hosts, but Hammond’s turn with the car was a drag race with “the cutting edge of what a plane can do,” and it truly puts the sky-high ambitions of the show on display, no matter who comes out on top.
3) Audi R8 review
This glowing review gives us the delightful description “about as high off the ground as a badger’s badger,” but it also made millions of people fall in love with the German automaker’s street-legal luxury supercar entry. No wonder the world lost its collective shit when it learned there’s an electric version available too.
4) Squeezing into the Peel P50
By now it’s clear how much Top Gear worships its supercars. But fear not, regular Joes. Every now and again, usually prodded by their producers, the team takes on a more economical brand, usually with a classically British sense of humor about it all. This P50 review is no exception, and we dare you to watch 6-foot-5-inch Clarkson zoom through the halls of the BBC without giggling.
5) Down in Africa
Over the course of its 13 years on air, Top Gear has jetsetted all over Europe, up to the Arctic Circle, and across the pond to America. But this series 19 special in Africa sees the team at its best and worst, driving practical estate cars (read: sedans) from Uganda to the source of the Nile. (Extra credit: Keep an eye out for the special edition of the show’s credits as the roll at the end of part 2.)
6) Aquatic cars
Necessity, as they say, is the mother of invention, and there’s no stopping these three stooges when they set their hearts on some bizarre task—like, oh, say, crossing the English Channel in automobiles. This episode ultimately airs less as a car show and more as a triumph of human endurance, but that’s perhaps an even more admirable achievement for Mssrs. Clarkson, Hammond, and May.
7) Reliant Robin rocket
Here, too, the schemes are wild and the premise absurd, but the fact that these guys got even close to making a successful minivan space shuttle is impressive. Move over, SpaceX.
8) Alfa Romeo challenge
It takes a true car lover (or, in show parlance, petrolhead) to appreciate the love/hate relationship of owning an Alfa Romeo. The Italian carmaker is known for its beautiful creations and electrical failures, but Clarkson, Hammond, and May insist it’s worth every trip to the shop. Here, they try to justify that position to the producers, who sensibly maintain it just doesn’t make good cars.
9) The Stig, revealed
The identity of the silent fourth host of the show—“tame racing driver” the Stig—is a long-running debate among fans (and, indeed, the hosts themselves, as they introduce a new bizarre factoid about the Stig each week). A few different men have undoubtedly filled Stiggy’s shoes over the years, but in this very special interview, the man/myth/legend himself pulls off the helmet in front of a live studio audience.
With 174 episodes to date, it’s difficult to play favorites. In the inevitable event that those nine have whet your palate for more, check out this preview of the current series. Depending on how long this standoff between Clarkson and the producers lasts, it may be the last, best clue of what the season’s final three episodes have in store.
Photo via Alfa Romeo 8C Spider/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)