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Top Gear (BBC) season opener raced 5 'super' cars around their track on a gallon of fuel to see which car had the best mileage; they didn't drive conservatively, the cars averaged between 1.7 and 5 miles. The winner being and Audi R8.
Then they drove a Prius as hard as you could around their track and obtained 17 mpg:eek:. And pointed out that how you drive matters a lot about the mileage you receive. I was surprised they could suck the mpg down that far.

They really had to be trying to get the mileage that low! I haven't seen a number that low on my wife's fcd. I drove it last night and raised the fcd # over 8 mpg on the tank.

I never saw numbers that low when I took my Prius to the drag strip, (and raced a few heats)

They must have floored it from cold?? I know I've seen 20's in Jud's when I had to drive it cold... but only for a little while! :eek:

Oh, I had to drive 15 miles to get to the track.

It's like the time they drove the Prius around the track with a 335 or an /m3 and the BMW got better gas. It's all in the situation.

It must have been wide open for the 1.7 mile run. What's that prove????

It must have been wide open for the 1.7 mile run. What's that prove????

That some people are truly idiotic?

Sorry. I must be cranky today...

Glad you said that Sean. How can anyone remotely respect any of Jeremy Clarkson's reviews by such an idiotic biased treatment and review of any car?

That some people are truly idiotic?

Sorry. I must be cranky today...

Clarkson did specifically state that "the driver matters more than the car" when mileage is concerned.

I'm gonna start my own show....

"The Porsche 911 has an advertised top speed of 500 million miles an hour. But if you set the cruise control to 55 mph, it doesn't even come close to that top speed!"

I'm gonna start my own show....

"The Porsche 911 has an advertised top speed of 500 million miles an hour. But if you set the cruise control to 55 mph, it doesn't even come close to that top speed!"

and it doesn't even come close to getting 13 mpg at 55mph. It only gets 26 MPG.

Should check out the first episode of Season 12, which has already aired in the UK. They did a fuel economy race between Basel, Switzerland and Blackpool, England (around 750 miles, I think.) They each got a diesel-powered car, filled up the tank, then sealed the gas cap with tape. No refueling allowed. May and Hammond tried to do some hypermiling, Clarkson threw caution to the wind in his huge Jaguar sedan. The end result was interesting....

Should check out the first episode of Season 12, which has already aired in the UK. They did a fuel economy race between Basel, Switzerland and Blackpool, England (around 750 miles, I think.) They each got a diesel-powered car, filled up the tank, then sealed the gas cap with tape. No refueling allowed. May and Hammond tried to do some hypermiling, Clarkson threw caution to the wind in his huge Jaguar sedan. The end result was interesting....

That was a fun episode and was interesting like you said.

Glad you said that Sean. How can anyone remotely respect any of Jeremy Clarkson's reviews by such an idiotic biased treatment and review of any car?

I don't think you get the gist of the show if you're taking Clarkson seriously. Top Gear is about entertainment. It's not the place to go to for insightful reviews unless you think Demolition racing motorhomes and bendy buses falls into that category.

Sometimes they have interesting revelations while conducting bizarre experiments though. If you want to see some more serious programming by these blokes, check out James Mays Big Ideas.

I love Top Gear for it's sheer entertainment value and quality of show which only the BBC and the British mind are capable of creating.

Top Gear is about entertainment.
And nothing more than that indeed. But what good entertainemant it is sometimes...