Top Gear S21E05

Top Gear S21E05

In the fifth episode of Top Gear Season 21, we see Jeremy Clarkson comparing new hot hatches such as the new BMW M135i and the new Volkswagen Golf VII GTi. After minutes of reviewing both of these hatchbacks (and in the moment Jeremy got spun off in the M135i), The Stig handles both of these hatchbacks and the BMW M135i did it in 1:25.1 and the VW Golf VII GTi did it in 1:28.6.

Meanwhile, Jeremy and James are on a hilarious challenge to create a PSA about safe cycling. From bomb-defusal to religion, attempts of making a PSA are ended in failures and then...there's the PSA that goes...give them an inch because they've given you a mile.

Aaron Paul from the concluded Breaking Bad TV series and the upcoming Need For Speed movie is the SIARPC and at the time of 1:44.7, his need for speed made him at the top of the leaderboard. A new record in an Astra!

Lastly, Richard Hammond returns to the Abu Dhabi to try out the brand new Porsche 918 Spyder and takes it to the spin at the Yas Marina Circuit. Well sadly, that ultimate showdown will have to wait this summer.

Next week is a brand-new 2-part Burma Special where the boys drive second-hand trucks in Myanmar and build a bridge at some river.

Forza Motorsport 5: The Lotus E21

With the addition of open-wheelers in Forza Motorsport 5, the lineup got expanded not just to track toys but also IndyCars and F1 racers and nothing's more extreme to drive as the Lotus E21. This is Lotus' entry to the Formula One 2013 season but what is it? Let's find out...



Being the first of the F1 cars launched for the F1 2013 season, the E21 is designed and built by the Lotus F1 team. It was driven by Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean. As a response from 2012's E20 for having difficulties with the DRS, this machine comes with a built-in passive DRS device. It was powered by Renault's RS27-2013 2.4L V8 engine developing 750HP of power and 221lb-ft of torque.



The chassis features a moulded honeycomb composite monocoque made of carbon fiber and aluminum for added strength and less weight. It comes with carbon-fiber top and bottom wishbones where in the front, it operates with a pushrod setup, and in the back, it comes with a pull rod operated torsion springs and transverse-mounted damper units mounted in the top of the transmission casing.

This car placed 4th in the F1 2013's World Constructor's Championship whereas Kimi Raikkonen placed 5th overall and Romain Grosjean 7th overall in the F1 2013 season.

 

Cars GT6 Should Put (Volume 21)

Earlier this week, I dug deeper to the car knowledgeum to see if there are some CARS GT6 SHOULD PUT...



5) Chevrolet Corvette C7 Z06 '15

The latest ZO6, based on the new C7 Corvette, is the most advanced C7 Corvette ever made. With its enhanced aerodynamics, race-focused technology, and the new superchaged V8 engine developing almost 20 less than the Corvette C6 ZR1 but some say, it can set lap times quicker than the old ZR1 but who cares? Since Gran Turismo were involved in the development of this car, we're hoping that the new C7 Z06 would make it to the limelight because the C7 Corvette still has some Gran Turismo exclusivity.



4) McLaren MP4/4 '88

It's one of the most successful Formula One cars in ages and this turbocharged V6 F1 racer completely dominated the 1988 F1 season. It garnered the Constructor's Championship for McLaren and the Driver's Championship for the legendary Ayrton Senna. Since the Senna-related content may come in GT6 this summer, I'm sure it will turn up at this point.

3) Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 '13

The facelifted Gallardo LP560-4, launched at the 2012 Paris Motor Show, started the countdown that the baby Lambo is coming to an end but for this final Gallardo, along with its revised exterior looks, it surely won't let go without a good fight. Let's hope the 2013 model will make it to the GT6 car list if it kills me. Like the pre-facelifted model we had in GT6, it still comes with the same 5.2L V10 engine developing 560PS of power.

2) MINI Cooper S '14

The new F56 Mini has now became less of a Mini, more of a Wumbo (well, it's all BMW's fault because somebody has a field of Wumbology) but it still retains its fun-to-drive character for a luxury compact car with a British blood coursing through its veins. It runs on a brand new UKL1 platform that we may expect this to use on FWD Bimmers and it has a host of new engine choices, all with Mini's TwinPower Turbo Technology. I just hope that the new Mini makes it on GT6 because I just wanna see what's like to drive the New Mini virtually.

1) McLaren 650S '14

Set for its premiere at the 2014 Geneva Motor Show, the new McLaren 650S looks kinda confusing because it looks more of a MP4-12C with the P1's face in it, just like the Sileighty where the 180SX has a Silvia S13's face in it. It may have the same V8 turbo engine from the 12C but as the name implies, it produces 650PS of power output. This is the track weapon I'm surely want to have one...

The results please? So when one of these cars showed up in future updates on GT6, you can't say I have a little bit to do with that.

Take that to Kaz Yamauchi!

Some of my favorite Draw Perry drawings by celebs

Celebs from the wonderful world of Disney draw themselves their very own drawing of Phineas and Ferb's Perry the Platypus and those digital featurettes that you can find it on the Disney website is kinda more of our liking watching internet videos of Disney celebs drawing their own Perry the Platypus. They're all did very well on drawing our favorite semi-aquatic, egg-laying, mammal of action but I decided myself to pick some of my favorite Draw Perry drawings as drawn by Disney celebs...

1) Bridgit Mendler from Good Luck Charlie

2) G Hannelius from Dog With A Blog

3) Caroline Sunshine from Shake It Up

4) Raini Rodriguez from Austin & Ally

5) Laura Marano from Austin & Ally

6) Calum Worthy from Austin & Ally

7) Karan Brar from Jessie

8) Zendaya from Shake It Up

9) Stefanie Scott from ANT Farm

10) Blake Michael from Dog With A Blog

So there you are, these are some of my favorite Dray Perry draws as done by the Disney celebs. If I had to choose one, I bet it's either Bridgit's or G's. Don't tell me why but hey, at least celebs do had a liking for Perry the Platypus.

Courtesy of: Disney

Gran Turismo 6: An Australian sports machine you might like

This is the Holden Monaro. When the first Monaro came out in Australia in the 1960's, they want to refer this as Australia's first sports machine and as the jingle says...It's Going To Be Very Monaro. In the 21st century, the Monaro returns with a sleeker profile, well-lavished interior, and a choice of either a Supercharged V6 or a Gen III V8. This is the CV8 model and it was powered by a Gen III V8 engine, the same kind of engine you can find in the C5 Corvette. It develops 327HP of power and 342.8ft-lb of torque, making this a purebred cheap V8 monster.

Even though it has an international following and the fact that it was sold in the US as the Pontiac GTO, the Monaro is a world-class muscle car until its discontinuation in 2006 with no direct replacement.

This Monaro will run through the Goodwood Hill Climb but at what time will the Monaro post?









It posted a 0:59.658 lap time!

Namely one of the best Australian-made cars in ages, the Monaro is still a cult following even after its 2006 discontinuation. The Australian motor industry maybe on the verge of a collapse, with news about plant closures from both Holden and Ford Australia as well as foreign ones, but it's done to honor the cars made in the Land Down Under. This one's for you, mates!

Holden Monaro CV8 - An Australian sports machine YOU MAY LIKE on GT6.

What is a platypus?

He's a platypus. He don't do much...

In honor of the so-called Platypus Day, don't know why but fans of Phineas and Ferb won't mind about it but paying tribute to Perry the Platypus (a.k.a. Agent P), there's so much to explain about what is a platypus and even a little 47 second science won't work to describe about this semi-aquatic, egg-laying, mammal that some thought it was just a product from a duck and a beaver apart from noticing the bill of the duck and the tail of the beaver. So...gyururururu.....

Some essential facts:

- Scientific name for platypus is ornithorhynchus anatinus. Maybe that's why a lyric that goes Our Ornithorhynchus anatinus brings smiles to the both of us.

- Platypuses have a beaver-like tail, bird-like beak or duck-like bill (whatever you called it), walks like a reptile, and they had webbed feet.

- They can be found at different locations, especially Australia, and their favored habitats are lakes, ponds, rivers, and streams.

- Male platypuses are poisonous, meaning they have a spur of toxins that can kill a dog or cause severe pain to humans. I'm not sure why...

- Platypuses are nocturnal, meaning they're are active at night just like hamsters but unlike hamsters, platypuses sleep in their burrows.

- The reproductive cycle of a platypus is rather unusual because male ones tend to chase their female and grabs the tail of the female platypus before mating. Two-to-three weeks later, the female platypus lay about two or three eggs and incubates it for about 10 days before hatch.

-  Platypuses sweat milk...like what you saw from a Phineas and Ferb episode where Candace and Perry swapped bodies by one of their inventions.

- Platypuses eat frogs, fishes, or insects taken from the aquatic surface with their beak, which is also useful to dig up invertebrates from stream or lake beds. They don't eat underwater but store their food in their cheeks and then eat it at the surface.

- Baby platypuses grow a temporary tooth, which is essential to hatch their way out from their eggs.

- The remains of the ancient platypus species were found in the Patagonian region of South America.

- Platypuses belong to the family of animals called monotremes.

- Some studies pointed out in prehistoric times, humans trapped platypuses for their skins but in the year 1912, there is a law that prohibits the harvesting of platypuses for skins, therefore keeping the platypuses population very very far from extinction.

Sources:

Platypus Facts and Pictures (NatGeo Kids) - http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/animals/creaturefeature/platypus/

BBC Nature - Platypus - http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/life/Platypus

Platypus Facts For Kids (Animals Time) - http://animalstime.com/platypus-facts-kids/

Platypus Facts (Conservation Institute) - http://www.conservationinstitute.org/platypus-facts/

So, there we go. Some of the good stuff about what is the platypus and that left me a good mystery that goes...how does a platypus made a gurgling sound like Perry? You know, gyurururururururu...

What's in our Car Town garage today? (March 2, 2014)

What's in our Car Town garage today?

1975 RWB Ducktail

This creation from tuner RWB, based on the classic 930, uses a narrow RSR styling which, in RWB tuning fashion, takes about two months to convert it into a full-on track weapon featuring the notable ducktail spoiler. That spoiler maybe more of a throwback to the enthusiasts, but overall, this 1.4 million Yen conversion kit is more than enough to give sense with its throwback looks.

1975 RWB Ducktail

1992 Jeep Jurassic Park Wrangler

Based on the 1992 Jeep Wrangler, it features some Jurassic Park livery, making it look like the exact machine as seen from the Jurassic Park franchise. Because the Wrangler is famed for its off-road capability, it should be enough to escape from huge dinosaurs chasing after you!

1992 Jeep Jurassic Park Wrangler

2012 Mazda 3

When the second-generation Mazda 3 or Axela in the Japanese marker was launched in 2009, this car reinvented the idling stop system by featuring the i-stop. For the 2012 model year, the facelifted version of the second-generation Mazda 3 is the first to come with SKYACTIV-DRIVE gearbox for seamless gear shifting unlike any other. You know the Mazda 2 or Demio is the first Mazda to feature SKYACTIV Technology in the form of the SKYACTIV-G petrol engines but when these two updated versions launched in 2011, Mazda signalled the start of SKYACTIV TECHNOLOGY; a new kind of technology that balances impressive fuel economy and fun-to-drive characteristics. It has been applied to other Mazdas as time goes by.

2012 Mazda 3