Favorite Car Reviews

[DFB FGXR6]

When I was a teen, there was no such thing as Youtube. Anyone who wanted to see cars on TV needed a cable subscription and to tune in at a set time of the week. I LIVED for Top Gear and 5th Gear night. Of course, now the content on cars is literally never ending, and a lot of those episodes that I devoured are now on Youtube for endless viewing.

At one point, I tended to favor 5th Gear over Top Gear, mainly because they were more informative than entertainment biased. That doesn't mean I didn't enjoy Clarkson and Co at their peak.

The first video I want to share is this 2004 review of the then all-new, and Ford funded, Aston Martin DB9. This is the review that made me fall in love with the DB9, and Aston Martin in general.



The styling, one of the most beautiful and perfectly proportioned piece of automotive styling in the history of the car. That long bonnet, the organic shaped headlights the perfect sweep of the roof into the deck. The styling still holds its own nearly 20 years later, and the interior has aged better than expected.

But it's the engine that sold me on Aston Martin. It may have started life as a Duratec V6, but it's one of my favorite car noises ever. I especially love that slurred upshift sound from the 6-speed ZF automatic. Later cars got louder exhausts, but it's the induction note I crave. The part where the reviewer, Tom Ford, repeatedly goes up and down the gearbox, I would have listened to a 1000 times.

I fell in love with the DB9 in 2004, and still heavily adore it. The newer Astons don't seem to have the stylistic perfection or have the same purity of the naturally aspirated V12 in the DB9.

[DFB FGXR6]

The next video is this review of the BMW E60 M5 by Tiff Needel.



What a legend Tiff Needel is, someone who was once called the "Sultan of Slide". I think we would all love to have his crazy talented car control ability. I devoured his reviews, most of them of him on a track, going sideways in a cloud of tyre smoke and a howling engine.

This review of the then new 2006 BMW M5 is one of my favorites of all his reviews. The concept of driving a quiet, comfortable four door sedan across two countries, then taking it straight to the track and driving the wheels off the thing would be a dream for most car enthusiasts.

The drawcard for the E60 M5, like all BMW M-cars of this period, was the engine, a never-ending surge of revs, accompanied by the wail of 10 cylinders and the rorty induction note. At one point, he was sliding that car for like 3 corners at full opposite lock.

I of course would love to have a E60 M5. I was one of those who actually liked the styling of the E60...............but then I liked the AU Falcon too! But, like many I suspect, owing one would be terrifying. Time has not been kind to that era of BMW's, and the V10 cars are known to be money pits. But videos like this allow me to live my fantasy without having to endure the BMW reliability headache.

[DFB FGXR6]

Another BMW, and another Tiff Needel review. Or shoot-out.............



The E46 M3 is arguably the best M-car ever, the CSL is probably the best BMW ever!

Again, another video that made me fall in love, this time that stunning 3.2 Inline 6. The standard version sounds bloody fantastic, but the CSL with the carbon airbox was and still is, orgasmic! This would have to be the best inline 6 ever made. Sure, there have been more powerful inline 6's, but I would challenge anyone that didn't go weak at the knees for one of these. Skip to 1.55 and 2.26 and listen to that thing sucking air on the down shift, spine tingling!

I want one, I want one, I want one. Of course, the CSL was sold in limited numbers, in fact you had to have CAMS license or sign a wavier to buy one due to the Cup tyres. A standard M3 would do me, and I would likely fit it with carbon airbox like many others have done. And I would endure any BMW-ness for this car, that engine!

Sadly, these cars are still too expensive, even examples with the SMG gearbox and high km's. This engine also appeared in the Z4M, which I love for the styling as well, but those are still commanding big money.

[DJM83]

Having owned an XR5 Turbo. This one still strikes with me and its probably the best car ive owned. And im a massive Clarkson/TG/GT fan

Never really followed reviews in OZ.

[stock1991]

I was just telling a work mate sell his old car sitting around doing nothing he will never finish but he loves it and........ one day. Well come that day you can buy a decent example of what you want. It is a XR5, unregistered

[Sprintey]

This one comes from the world of myth and legend, before my time

https://www.whichcar.com.au/features...-down-the-hume

But my goodness, what a review!

[NX74205]

It's hard for me to pick a favourite, because a lot of different reviewers contribute in different ways to making absolutely brilliant videos that I like. I spend way too much time on YouTube for my own good, dreaming about cars that I can't afford.

One of my three 'money-is-no-object' dream cars is undoubtedly the Bentley Flying Spur (the other two would be a Rolls-Royce Ghost and a Mercedes-Benz V222 S-class). It is a lounge room on wheels that can hustle and embarrass quite a few performance cars and sports cars while transporting its occupants in exquisite comfort, and that duality of character is one thing that I really admire.

This reviewer takes the Flying Spur onto the Autobahn to drive at its top speed - 330km/h, in a 5.3 metre, 2.4 tonne luxury car.

[b0son]

I liked Clarkson's take on the M5. It was one of those cars that was a joy to drive in spite of the annoying tech BMW insisted on incorporating...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gRwR1WH0rR8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnZVkdzXzFQ

But the most influential was Plato's review of the MkV GTI. I went and bought one on the strength of that review...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kA7odlXCqMU

But the most memorable review for me, is Clarkson's take on the V12 Vantage...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Q0Svvdrx_E

[roKWiz]

Back to the future. by Peter Wherrett.

[Bossxr8]

Originally Posted by DJM83

Having owned an XR5 Turbo. This one still strikes with me and its probably the best car ive owned. And im a massive Clarkson/TG/GT fan

Never really followed reviews in OZ.

The Azbo lol. Loved that review from back in the day.



Tiff Needels driving on 5th gear was the highlight of that show. He was the drift king, pulled some ridiculous slip angles and managed it just hold it there in graceful slides. He was a master of car control.

Drifting the 3 wheeled Morgan was mental too. He was so worried it was going to roll, but he did it anyway.

[Cav]

https://www.carsauce.com/

[Mechan1k]

Originally Posted by roKWiz

Back to the future. by Peter Wherrett.

I remember plenty of Peter Wherret car reviews back in the day. They were great.

Recent times though .... I like the way SavageGeese does reviews across a wide range of makes.

[DFB FGXR6]

Originally Posted by b0son

I liked Clarkson's take on the M5. It was one of those cars that was a joy to drive in spite of the annoying tech BMW insisted on incorporating...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gRwR1WH0rR8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnZVkdzXzFQ

But the most influential was Plato's review of the MkV GTI. I went and bought one on the strength of that review...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kA7odlXCqMU

But the most memorable review for me, is Clarkson's take on the V12 Vantage...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Q0Svvdrx_E

LOVE all three of those for the same reasons you outlined!

[DFB FGXR6]

On the subject of Jason Plato, these were two of his earliest appearances on 5th Gear.

Ferrari 575 GTC -
(Sorry about the quality, I couldn't find anything better)



Ferrari 612 Scaglietti -



For those who don't remember, Jason Plato would make an appearance at Bathurst with HRT a few times.

I liked these two reviews, and the two cars, because of the older design V12 Ferrari engine. Those V12's seemed to have a nicer tone to them.

Loved this line about turning off the electronic nannies on the 612 -

"......., now I'm going to turn it completely off, however if you're a football player or TV chef, I suggest you leave that button alone."

And did he get that big Scag dancing.

The looped take off from the 575 was particularly entertaining.

Are people seeing a pattern here? Long bonnet Coupe's with large engines..................

[Jastel]

I first saw Top Gear in the UK whilst on holidays, back in the early 2000's, when you had to visit Internet Cafes and burn your 64Mb (not Gb) camera card to a CD.
No streaming or whatever back then...

Thought it was a great show and was trying to explain it to mates back here.
When it finally came here they all understood.

[DFB FGXR6]

BMW, and Clarkson, at their best............

[DFB FGXR6]

I found these videos waaay back in early 2008 while waiting for my XR6 to be built and delivered. At the time, the whole new car thing would be a new experience for me.

Have been a Chris Harris fan ever since.

[FlipXW]

Originally Posted by DFB FGXR6

The next video is this review of the BMW E60 M5 by Tiff Needel.



What a legend Tiff Needel is, someone who was once called the "Sultan of Slide". I think we would all love to have his crazy talented car control ability. I devoured his reviews, most of them of him on a track, going sideways in a cloud of tyre smoke and a howling engine.

This review of the then new 2006 BMW M5 is one of my favorites of all his reviews. The concept of driving a quiet, comfortable four door sedan across two countries, then taking it straight to the track and driving the wheels off the thing would be a dream for most car enthusiasts.

The drawcard for the E60 M5, like all BMW M-cars of this period, was the engine, a never-ending surge of revs, accompanied by the wail of 10 cylinders and the rorty induction note. At one point, he was sliding that car for like 3 corners at full opposite lock.

I of course would love to have a E60 M5. I was one of those who actually liked the styling of the E60...............but then I liked the AU Falcon too! But, like many I suspect, owing one would be terrifying. Time has not been kind to that era of BMW's, and the V10 cars are known to be money pits. But videos like this allow me to live my fantasy without having to endure the BMW reliability headache.

Mate before I finished reading the first sentence of this thread, this exact video popped into my head. What are the odds of that.

Another one was a Clarkson review on a Ford GTx1. Basically a targa top version of the ford GT. It was yellow and he was ripping it around a track, possibly willow springs. Can’t find it for the life of me.

[b0son]

Originally Posted by FlipXW

Another one was a Clarkson review on a Ford GTx1. Basically a targa top version of the ford GT. It was yellow and he was ripping it around a track, possibly willow springs. Can’t find it for the life of me.

https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x8o9hk

[NX74205]

Bentley Flying Spur review by Rory Reid. I thought I might add this one, because I'm a big fan of Rory Reid's car reviews. I think he's absolutely brilliant at it.

[XR Martin]

Mclaren F1 review by Tiff.
The look in his face the first time he "give it some stick" is a classic.(6min mark)

[DFB FGXR6]

Originally Posted by XR Martin

Mclaren F1 review by Tiff.
The look in his face the first time he "give it some stick" is a classic.(6min mark)

Great review!

Interesting to see so much body roll and nose dive under braking for such a focused super car.

[whynot]

For my money, Peter Wherrett did the best car reviews and reports on general motoring on ABC Torque.

This video (so old that it was recorded in black and white film) is a classic Wherrett dissection of some serious engineering problems with the then new Holden HQ.

https://youtu.be/UaI0BjaFoTI

Wherrett was not the only motoring journalist of the time who was critical of poor vehicle safety. But he was able to use TV as a medium to clearly demonstrate this to the public. The short section on roll understeer is brilliant, so too is the section on how to fix locking rear brakes with a load proportion valve.

Absolutely awesome how much great footage that the ABC was able to squeeze out of those very heavy 16mm film cameras of the era. Using film also meant doing as few takes as possible.

Sure, Top Gear and Fifth Gear are great entertainment. ABC Torque from the 1970's is pure motoring journalism.

[roKWiz]

Originally Posted by whynot

For my money, Peter Wherrett did the best car reviews and reports on general motoring on ABC Torque.

This video (so old that it was recorded in black and white film) is a classic Wherrett dissection of some serious engineering problems with the then new Holden HQ.

https://youtu.be/UaI0BjaFoTI

Wherrett was not the only motoring journalist of the time who was critical of poor vehicle safety. But he was able to use TV as a medium to clearly demonstrate this to the public. The short section on roll understeer is brilliant, so too is the section on how to fix locking rear brakes with a load proportion valve.

Absolutely awesome how much great footage that the ABC was able to squeeze out of those very heavy 16mm film cameras of the era. Using film also meant doing as few takes as possible.

Sure, Top Gear and Fifth Gear are great entertainment. ABC Torque from the 1970's is pure motoring journalism.

Yes agree, Peter Wherrett's Torque was a great motoring show we never missed growing up.

[GasoLane]

Originally Posted by whynot

For my money, Peter Wherrett did the best car reviews and reports on general motoring on ABC Torque.

This video (so old that it was recorded in black and white film) is a classic Wherrett dissection of some serious engineering problems with the then new Holden HQ.

https://youtu.be/UaI0BjaFoTI

Wherrett was not the only motoring journalist of the time who was critical of poor vehicle safety. But he was able to use TV as a medium to clearly demonstrate this to the public. The short section on roll understeer is brilliant, so too is the section on how to fix locking rear brakes with a load proportion valve.

Absolutely awesome how much great footage that the ABC was able to squeeze out of those very heavy 16mm film cameras of the era. Using film also meant doing as few takes as possible.

Sure, Top Gear and Fifth Gear are great entertainment. ABC Torque from the 1970's is pure motoring journalism.

Agreed. the 'Auto Expert' John Cadogan could learn a lot from Peter Wherretts style.

[DFB FGXR6]

Originally Posted by GasoLane

Agreed. the 'Auto Expert' John Cadogan could learn a lot from Peter Wherretts style.

John Cadogan could learn from a lot of people! What a moron!

[DFB FGXR6]

Originally Posted by whynot

For my money, Peter Wherrett did the best car reviews and reports on general motoring on ABC Torque.

This video (so old that it was recorded in black and white film) is a classic Wherrett dissection of some serious engineering problems with the then new Holden HQ.

https://youtu.be/UaI0BjaFoTI

Wherrett was not the only motoring journalist of the time who was critical of poor vehicle safety. But he was able to use TV as a medium to clearly demonstrate this to the public. The short section on roll understeer is brilliant, so too is the section on how to fix locking rear brakes with a load proportion valve.

Absolutely awesome how much great footage that the ABC was able to squeeze out of those very heavy 16mm film cameras of the era. Using film also meant doing as few takes as possible.

Sure, Top Gear and Fifth Gear are great entertainment. ABC Torque from the 1970's is pure motoring journalism.

The earlier Fifth Gear episodes were like that, more obvious car reviews than a TV stunt show. Fifth Gear ended up attempting to follow the same path as Top Gear.

[Wretched]

Big fan of Jonny Smith, but his MST reviews are my favourite.



Other reviews are from Harry's Garage, the guy can review a car. I suppose all the years heading up EVO also helped.

Then AutoTrader and JayEmm on cars.

[DFB FGXR6]

Originally Posted by Wretched

Big fan of Jonny Smith, but his MST reviews are my favourite.



Other reviews are from Harry's Garage, the guy can review a car. I suppose all the years heading up EVO also helped.

Then AutoTrader and JayEmm on cars.

Love Harry's collection of Jag's.................

[NX74205]

Harry's a legend. Loved his three part series on taking the Silver Shadow to the Arctic Circle. Loved watching the restoration of that Silver Shadow, too.