Jeremy Clarkson - Ford GT Smashed

[DBS]

I read an article in the weekends news, saying that after 5 weeks in the garage being mended he finally got the GT back last Friday, however a visitor to his house reversed into it smashing the front end to pieces.

He said that normally he would have been very sad about it, but as the driver responsible is a journalist famed for his love of the environment, JC did take a certain pleasure knowing that the driver would have to pay to repair one of the thirstiest, most planet ruining cars ever made.

However it made me wonder why his car was in for repair and for what exactly, must have been something serious to take 5 weeks to sort out. Looks like he will be without it for a while longer now.

 

[Jason Watt]

Just do a Clarkson search on this forum, and you will find the horror-stories on his car... It's truely HAUNTED!!! :eek

 

[dbk]

Just do a Clarkson search on this forum, and you will find the horror-stories on his car... It's truely HAUNTED!!! :eek

The only thing his car is haunted by is a fool, who for all his big mouth jibbering, doesn't have even the most basic clue of how to operate a vehicle.

 

[Jason Watt]

doesn't have even the most basic clue of how to operate a vehicle.

Ha ha ha... so true.. gotta love his acting skills though!! "This car handles like a dream, and is so easy to drift through the coners"

How the hell would he know?? He couldn't drive a greasy stick up a dogs buttom...

 

[K-P Garage]

Dbk dead on correct

DBK nails this idiot. 1 of 101 adds a laugh. Great work. Now if we could just get him to Dearborn in August to sit in the dunk tank. Three balls for a buck to sink the dunce! :thumbsup

 

[AZGT]

He couldn't drive a greasy stick up a dogs buttom...

Gee, isn't this forum great :wink

We get to share all of these sayings - makes us all more worldly. I guess it is all part of the educational experience. :thumbsup

That is a great one - love it :cheers

 

[Kingveloce]

However it made me wonder why his car was in for repair and for what exactly, must have been something serious to take 5 weeks to sort out. Looks like he will be without it for a while longer now.

I saw JC's car only yesterday when I took mine to Roush in Essex for a service. The damage is fairly minor, or at least it would be on an ordinary car. The right front wing (fender) has been pushed in ahead of the front wheel, but being aluminium the dent cannot be hammered out... at least not if you want the correct shape.

I'm told the bill for a new front wing alone is GBP 2,900 and that's before it's been painted, the old one removed and the new fitted. Moral of the story: park your car out of the way of others, or ensure your dinner guests can drive before you invite them around.

 

[DBS]

Has Clarkson actually caused some of these probelms himself?

 

[Kingveloce]

Has Clarkson actually caused some of these probelms himself?

Put it like this, his first problem was caused by a faulty alarm – a sensor was placed too close to his sat nav system and was regularly set off by heat soak. Not his fault.

Other problems, though, might be. Like the fact that his Tracker people would phone him to let him know the car had been stolen when he was driving it. It's never happened to me because I remember to take the separate Tracker key with me when I drive the car.

Like the fact that the battery goes flat after a period of inactivity. It's never happened to me because I remember to plug the car's battery into a trickle charger when I am unable to drive it for a couple of weeks. Starts first time when I get back into it.

In JC's defence, though, he can drive a bit. He's quick and safe and, yes, does know how to slide a car at the limit... but then, thanks to the BBC, can do all this in the wide open spaces of an old airfield, where there's nothing much to hit.

 

[flyingsniffer]

Has Clarkson actually caused some of these probelms himself?

There's no doubt that he has had some problems that were not of his making. The alarm did keep going off and from what I recall (allegedly) this was due to his Sat Nav radio (as offered in a series of options by Roush) blowing cooling air onto the tilt sensor, which then went off as the car cooled. This did result in a new sensor being fitted and repositioned and the 'brain' of the alarm being reprogrammed on all UK cars.

His tracker problem was a 'driver/technology interface issue' (ie, he forgot the transponder, so Cobra thought they ought to tell him it was being nicked). Not sure of the story on the charger...and there's the story of the new engine too, but that is just a rumour (promulgated by another UK TV journo)!

 

[Neilda]

I've met him - and he is a nice guy.

However he's said some very silly things about the GT 'it's the most unreliable car in the World' for example is just crazy. Letting the battery go flat and forgetting the (non-Ford) security routine does not make the GT unreliable.

He was also pretty damning about the Aston Martin Vanquish (which I also owned and rather liked).

Apart from the above..... He's alright really....

 

[DBS]

Neilda, do you know if his car has had an engine replacement. I did read somewhere that his engine light came on whilst driving.....

 

[Neilda]

I don't know the answer to that - but I'm seeing him mid-July, so I'll ask.....

I have heard the same rumour, that of an early fault and the offer of a new engine. But it might be one of those 'urban legends'. From what I hear he loves the car - but can't help throwing the occassional silly remark around.

 

[Jason Watt]

I rember the Top Gear episode with th GT Vs. the GT40... He got half way in the GT40, but his head was sticking up over the roof - and he went:

"I'm like a fat pig in a small hole... really"

:biggrin

And thanks to that episode I own a Ford GT today...

 

[Dr Robert Harms]

Initial poster stated:

"He said that normally he would have been very sad about it, but as the driver responsible is a journalist famed for his love of the environment, JC did take a certain pleasure knowing that the driver would have to pay to repair one of the thirstiest, most planet ruining cars ever made."


######## On what basis is this rather sweeping generalization made ?
I believe you will find uninimity that that Trabant likely holds the title for most environmentally unsound vehicle (and there are/were a piss pot pile more of them than GT's) and many many vehicles get far worse fuel mileage than a Ford GT

 

[EasyEric]

My GT gets about 15-16 MPG, which is about 4-5 MPG MORE than a Ferrari F430.

All car magazines that have tested the Ford GT AND the F430 show that the GT gets consistently better gas mileage than the F430.

Eric

 

[GTMark]

I really like Clarkson and his show - very funny. His 2 segments on the GT could not be more complimentary (GT ; GT40 and GT vs F430 vs Zonda). This is a guy who drives every supercar produced and declares his love, literally for the GT - think we should appreciate that. On the other hand I haven't seen all his recent grumblings.

 

[abolfaz]

Where can we see the show in the U.S. now?

 

[Kingveloce]

Neilda, do you know if his car has had an engine replacement. I did read somewhere that his engine light came on whilst driving.....

Spoke to the guys at Roush UK yesterday and asked whether Jeremy's car has had a new engine. The answer was a look of genuine surprise followed by a resounding 'no'.

 

[DBS]

Have Roush managed to fix his car yet so he stops moaning?

Once its repaired it wouldn't surprise me if JC decided to sell it.