It's been in the rumor mill for a couple of months, and we even saw photos of it from people who went to the new season's preview. But now, it's officially official. The new reasonably priced car that celebrities will be driving is the Toyota GT 86. To be precise, the BBC paid for a couple of 2017 models in red.
They bought two just in case one gets crashed or burns its clutch. Those things happened a lot with the old reasonably priced cars. God knows the MINI Cooper featured last year suffered a fate worse than death on the improvised rallycross track.
We're pleased to announce season 24 will have a standard race track. Toyota UK also made a few safety modifications to the coupes. The pointless back seats were replaced with scaffolding, and bucket seats with racing harnesses were installed.
The one thing I don't get is the manual gearbox when the photos I've seen suggested an automatic model. Considering how many rich celebs didn't know how to drive stick, it would have been better to with an auto. But considering it's heavier and less powerful, the auto model would have a lap time handicap.
This official video from Top Gear is presented by Jack Rix, the guy who's seen a fair share of criticism last year on YouTube for messing up drag races. Fortunately, the people who come on the show will get plenty of tuition from the Stig and Chris Harris, the reviewer who showered the GT 86 with plenty of attention over the years. In fact, why don't we share a few of his old reviews?
It seems hard to believe, but the GT 86 has been with us since 2012. The mid-life update introduces a new front-end design that's full of LEDs. Behind that sits a slightly revised 2.0-liter boxer engine with 5 more horsepower.
The manual models have a new intake and exhaust manifolds, while all versions get a stiffer strut brace. The shocks have been reworked, while the springs are 10% firmer at the front and 15% softer in the rear.
We're pleased to announce season 24 will have a standard race track. Toyota UK also made a few safety modifications to the coupes. The pointless back seats were replaced with scaffolding, and bucket seats with racing harnesses were installed.
The one thing I don't get is the manual gearbox when the photos I've seen suggested an automatic model. Considering how many rich celebs didn't know how to drive stick, it would have been better to with an auto. But considering it's heavier and less powerful, the auto model would have a lap time handicap.
This official video from Top Gear is presented by Jack Rix, the guy who's seen a fair share of criticism last year on YouTube for messing up drag races. Fortunately, the people who come on the show will get plenty of tuition from the Stig and Chris Harris, the reviewer who showered the GT 86 with plenty of attention over the years. In fact, why don't we share a few of his old reviews?
It seems hard to believe, but the GT 86 has been with us since 2012. The mid-life update introduces a new front-end design that's full of LEDs. Behind that sits a slightly revised 2.0-liter boxer engine with 5 more horsepower.
The manual models have a new intake and exhaust manifolds, while all versions get a stiffer strut brace. The shocks have been reworked, while the springs are 10% firmer at the front and 15% softer in the rear.