Top Gear (Australian TV Series)

''Top Gear Australia'' was an Australian motoring reality television series, based on the British BBC series ''Top Gear''. The programme first premiered on SBS One on 29 September 2008. A second season was ordered following the high ratings for the premiere episode and positive comments from advertisers, and the second season began broadcasting from 11 May 2009. After acquiring the rights to broadcast the UK version in 2009, the Nine Network started airing their own version of ''Top Gear Australia'' in September 2010. ''Top Gear Australia'' returned for a fourth season in 2011. The show was cancelled on 28 April 2012 due to declining ratings.

''Top Gear Australia'' is also the name of a licensed version of the British ''Top Gear'' magazine. The Australian magazine is produced by ACP Magazines (Australian Consolidated Press). The magazine features articles from many writers including Steven Corby, Craig Jamieson, Bill Mckinnon, James Stanford, Ben Smithurst, Jason Barlow, Sam Phillip, Ollie Marriage, Dan Read and Paul Horrell.

Presenters

Prior to filming SBS made an open casting call for presenters, resulting in over 4000 applications. The original hosts chosen for ''Top Gear Australia'' were cartoonist and motoring columnist Warren Brown, MotoGP commentator Charlie Cox, and race driver / driving instructor Steve Pizzati.

Marketing prior to the first episode stated that the presenters would be joined by The Stig's "Australian cousin", but in the first episode the driver was introduced as just "The Stig". Steve Pizzati suggested that The Stig have an "Australian" name, such as "Stiggo", but the other presenters refused. The season 2 opener clarified that ''Top Gear Australia''s Stig is not intended to be the same Stig from the UK series.

On 19 December 2008, Charlie Cox announced he was leaving the program as he felt he was unable to offer enough time to the show. SBS subsequently announced that trumpeter James Morrison would be his replacement, joining Warren and Steve for season two. Morrison had previously appeared as a guest in the sixth episode.

For the third season, early reports claimed that former Australian cricketer Shane Warne would take over the hosting of the show alongside original ''Top Gear'' host Jeremy Clarkson, although the BBC ultimately ruled out Clarkson's involvement in the Australian version. On 20 June 2010, it was announced that actor and comedian Shane Jacobson and ''Top Gear Australia'' magazine editor Ewen Page would join a returning Steve Pizzati to present the show for the Nine Network, which premièred on 28 September 2010 with a 75-minute The Ashes special, in which the hosts faced off against their Top Gear UK counterparts in a series of motoring-related challenges. The UK presenters won after cheating in the final challenge by using a professional race driver instead of James May.

Production

Mirroring the UK series, the studio segments were recorded at Bankstown Airport in Sydney. An exact copy of the UK studio at Dunsfold Park was constructed in a hangar (Hangar Building 581). The power laps and "Star in a Bog Standard Car" were recorded at Camden Airport with parts of the runways and taxiways used as a test track.

''Top Gear Australia'' uses the same theme music as the UK series, a version of The Allman Brothers Band's " Jessica".

Episodes

Segments

''Top Gear Australia'' features segments that mirror those seen on the BBC series, including build challenges and test drives. A significant difference is that speeds and power are quoted in metric units and prices are quoted in Australian dollars.

Power Lap

A test track around Camden Airport is used for power laps. The initial track used in the first two seasons consisted of nine corners running in an anti-clockwise direction. The first corner was The Question Mark followed by Clarkson Corner then The Crest and Turn 4 which was followed by the Main Straight before coming to a series of Chicanes then 06 Corner (named after the direction of the runway) then the Short Left Hander and the Bus Stop Entry and Exit followed by the finish line.

At the start of Season 3, Top Gear Australia revealed a new test track. Still situated at Camden Airport, the new course built upon the old one by adding a new section, thus looping into a figure of eight. It contains twelve corners, a total length of 2.3 km and moves the Start/Finish line from between the Bus Stop and The Question Mark to the end of the Back Straight, ahead of the Bus Stop. The direction of the course is now clockwise, turning the main runway into the first straight. The first corner leads into a Hammerhead-like corner called The Blowout, followed by another straight which crest a small hill into a couple of Left Handers, turns 3 and 4. Exiting turn 4 leads back to the main runway and turn 5, Brocky's Corner. The track then crosses over The Blowout into a right then left hander called The Flipper. The next turn is the Question Mark hairpin from the old track. Finally, after a short straight, the course reaches the signature Bus Stop which is then followed by two right hand corners (including the old 06 Corner) back into the Start/Finish.

Lap times

:* The Nissan GT-R was listed as 180 km/h speed limited for its run in Episode 1 of Season 1, it was subsequently run without the limiter in Episode 7 of Season 2.
:** Pizzati placed it at the top of the board despite being in the bottom three.
:*** In keeping with the theme of the car, the Ford Model T's Power Lap was presented in a black-and-white silent film format.

New Track Lap Times

Star in a Bog Standard Car

The Star in a Reasonably-Priced Car segment is mirrored with the name "Star in a Bog Standard