I grew up driving a 1983 Toyota truck, a slow, four-cylinder 4×4 Hilux that was my parents’ answer to a question too many police officers asked me in my short 16 and a half years on this planet: “Son, do you know how fast you were driving?”
Although it was a lot slower than the sports car that got me three speeding tickets in the first six months of my provisional license, I grew to love the rugged, go-anywhere quality of that Hilux.
So it should come as no surprise which episodes of Top Gear I love the most. In episodes 5 and 6 of Season 3, Jeremy Clarkson and James May set about tormenting a well-used and rusted-out 1988 Toyota pickup. They run it into a tree, drive it through a shack, allow the Severn Estuary’s tidal surge to submerge it for hours, drop a travel trailer on it, bash it with a wrecking ball, and set it afire in an attempt at a mercy killing. Still, the sturdy Toyota keeps running. For the coup de grâce, they helicopter that poor, battered Hilux to the top of a condemned apartment block—before dynamiting the entire building out from under it. I won’t spoil the ending, but let’s just say that the Toyota emerges with little more than its reputation intact.
The ultimate collection of Top Gear is now available on the MotorTrend App, the only subscription streaming service dedicated entirely to the motoring world. Sign up for a free trial to start binge watching right now!
I’m not alone in my love of this episode or Top Gear in general; these Hilux clips have been viewed a total of 31 million times on YouTube. Top Gear’s YouTube channel has 6.4 million subscribers, just beating MotorTrend’s in popularity. Together, our brands have the two largest auto-themed video channels on the web, having served more than 12 million car-crazy subscribers roughly 4 billion video views.
Now, MotorTrend is joining forces with the creators of Top Gear, the British Broadcasting Company (BBC), to deliver all the Top Gear you know and love.
Starting today, seasons 2 through 25 of the original BBC Top Gear are available on our MotorTrend OnDemand video service. This means over 200 hours of Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, James May, and The Stig, along with more recent hosts like Chris Evans and Matt LeBlanc, plus all the celebrity guests. This Top Gear “Ultimate Collection” will serve up each episode full and uncut, without commercials, and with all the specials – including the most controversial road trips. It will be perfect for binge watching with your friends and family—or for playing in the garage while you detail your ride.
Never heard of Top Gear? Check out the exclusive “Best of Top Gear” compilations to get a quick overview of the series best shenanigans. It’s all available (free for 14 days) when you head to the app store, and download the MotorTrend app.
But that’s not all. In addition to unprecedented access to this archive, the MotorTrend team is partnering with the BBC to create a new American version of Top Gear. That’s right, a new Top Gear America is coming, with an all-new format, new name, new cast, and distinctly Yankee swagger.
Have a favorite Top Gear episode or suggestion on what cars we absolutely must have in our series debut? Drop us a line at MotorTrend@MotorTrend.com with “Top Gear” in the subject line, or shoot me a note on Twitter @edloh.
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