Fifth Gear discussion - not to be confused with Top Gear which has its own thread somewhere else.
Volume 2 is HERE:-
276717
Last edited by: VxFan on Tue 6 Nov 12 at 01:09
|
Just watching Fifth gear. They have just crashed a 10 year old Focus at 120 mph into a concrete block.
Much shock and horror that there is little left of the Focus
Is it me, or was that all very predictable and pointless?
|
|
Try crashing a new Focus into an immovable object at 120mph.... similar result probably. Sounds pointless.
|
They could well make a car that stays perfectly intact when it crashes into a block at 120mph.
You, however, as a passenger or driver in the car, would have your vital organs turned into mush and end up like tomato soup in a condom.
For that reason its a pointless test.
|
>> Sounds pointless
I don't think so. It's the kind of stunt that might actually get noticed by the kinds of drivers who think it's a good idea to try to drive an old Focus at 120mph - all the EuroNCAP test results in the world won't make an impression like this does.
As with some of Fifth Gear's other memorable crash tests (5-star Laguna into a tree, solid old Volvo 940 into clever modern Renault Modus, Vx Omega head-on into 5-series both doing 60mph) the overriding message is that crashing a "safe" car at an easily achievable speed is definitely going to hurt.
|
>> >> Sounds pointless
>>
>> I don't think so. It's the kind of stunt that might actually get noticed by
>> the kinds of drivers who think it's a good idea to try to drive an
>> old Focus at 120mph - all the EuroNCAP test results in the world won't make
>> an impression like this does.
everyone, and I mean everyone, knows that if you crash into a solid object at 120mph you are gonna die. Wont stop those who try tho.
Last edited by: Zero on Mon 5 Nov 12 at 20:50
|
>> I don't think so. It's the kind of stunt that might actually get noticed by the kinds of drivers who ....
....watch channel 5. So not many will see it then ;-)
It is possible to built a car that can crash into an immovable object at 120mph and the driver survives.... Well I'd think the crash structures in an F1 car would allow that to happen anyway. A family car? No.
Pointless test Dave_M6.
Last edited by: rtj70 on Mon 5 Nov 12 at 20:50
|
>> It is possible to built a car that can crash into an immovable object at 120mph and the driver survives
Depends if the car spins off the object rather than plough straight in.
Even an F1 car stopping from 120mph to zero over a few feet isn't going to be a happy ending - this guy was the exception rather than the rule and still suffered multiple fractures:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Purley
|
>>I don't think so
+1.
There are plenty of people who could use a reminder that speed is something to be taken seriously.
On that basis, a crash test dummy or maybe a pig cadaver on a motorcycle into the same block might also be a useful demonstration for some who must think they are immortal.
|
|
Nothing, but nothing will make an ounce of difference to Thickos. It is all just a waste of time.
|
>>On that basis, a crash test dummy or maybe a pig cadaver on a motorcycle into the same block might also be a useful demonstration for some who must think they are immortal.
Showing them pics such as the ones discussed here would likely have a similar effect and not waste 300lbs of good bacon.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikki_Catsouras_photographs_controversy
Do NOT go looking for the photos referred to here - You have been warned.
|
|
Read the article. Did not go looking - some people a SICK!!!
|
Was this test trying to show the impact of two cars travelling at 60 mph and therefore having a combined speed of 120 mph?
I seem to recall a Myth Busters TV programme where they tried this and the suggested impact was not twice as bad due various facts that escape me. Perhaps Number Cruncher could enlighten me? :-)
|
|
A car travelling at 120mph has 4 times the kinetic energy as one travelling at 60mph so that would be a big flaw.
|
>> Was this test trying to show the impact of two cars travelling at 60 mph
>> and therefore having a combined speed of 120 mph?
>>
>> I seem to recall a Myth Busters TV programme where they tried this and the
>> suggested impact was not twice as bad .............
Twice as bad as what? Two cars both travelling at 60mph and having a head-on collision isn't as bad as one car travelling at 120mph colliding with a fixed concrete block, because both cars crumple and absorb energy but the concrete block doesn't.
|
>> >> I seem to recall a Myth Busters TV programme where they tried this and
>> the
>> >> suggested impact was not twice as bad .............
>>
>> Twice as bad as what? Two cars both travelling at 60mph and having a head-on
>> collision isn't as bad as one car travelling at 120mph colliding with a fixed concrete
>> block, because both cars crumple and absorb energy but the concrete block doesn't.
>>
I think zippy is referring to the physics showing that a solid car hitting an unmovable object at Xmph has the same effect on its occupants as it hitting head on another solid car travelling at Xmph in the opposite direction.
In other words, the speed of the oncoming solid car/object is immaterial.
|
>> In other words, the speed of the oncoming solid car/object is immaterial.
Er, that's not actually true.
Assuming that both vehicles are of approximately the same mass, if both are going at the same speed, then both will experience the same deceleration as if they had run into a concrete wall. This is what the Mythbusters did.
If, on the other hand, one is going significantly faster than the other, then the slower one will be propelled backwards and will experience rather more deceleration than if it had hit a wall at its orginal speed, while the faster one will experience less than if it had a wall at it's original speed.
I suspect that the actual deceleration experienced by both would be that as if both were travelling at the average of the two speeds.
Secondly: "oncoming solid car/object". If the oncoming object were indeed solid, then again it gets nasty for the car. Its crumple zone is forced to accomodate both its momentum and that of the solid object, causing greater damage to the car.
This only works if both objects are of around the same mass, both are travelling at around the same speed and both are of similar construction.
|
Do NOT read the above (timed Mon 5 Nov 12 21:30) post by Lygonos.
I repeat, you must NOT read it.
You have been warned.
Last edited by: John H on Tue 6 Nov 12 at 08:12
|
Eh? It's a link to a wiki page that discusses the furore about pictures of a car crash victim that were leaked onto the net and then used by trolls.
There are no pictures on the wiki page.
I have seen the pics several years ago when they first came out and never want to see them again.
The internet being what it is, they will still be there if someone naive or stupid enough tried hunting for them.
Unless it's a general warning not to read my drivel, in which case that's ok.
|
>> The internet being what it is, they will still be there if someone naive or
>> stupid enough tried hunting for them.
>>
If you advise someone, naive or stupid, emphatically not to do something, they are bound to do so.
I have seen with my own eyes the results of tragic accidents a number of times when I lived in some third world countries, where incidentally the publication of graphic photos is not taboo.
|
|
Emergency services have to deal with the aftermath of car incidents.I've seen a few nasty incidents at sea and it has to be dealt with.
|
>> The internet being what it is, they will still be there if someone naive or
>> stupid enough tried hunting for them.
Helo there - < waves >
Found them, They are pictures, and at the end of the day perfectly harmless. One has to feel however for the people who had to investigate and clean up that mess. And its common place, the site I found them on had other, worse in fact, pictures of motorbike accidents.
>> Unless it's a general warning not to read my drivel, in which case that's ok.
The counselling and support group has helped a lot, and it has enabled me to cope.
|
|
Yuk! - put me right orf me bacon roll now :(
|
I was shown graphic photo's and film of road accident victims as part of a motorcycle training course when I was sixteen.
Concentrates the mind wonderfully!
|
|
I'm saucy enough m8 (so some byrd told me in the previous century)
|
|
I think the taboo on gruesome pictures is largely an Anglo-Saxon thing. In Singapore's Straits Times a couple of years ago, I remember a report of a fatal accident involving a van and a scooter, which (a) concentrated on the traffic disruption the accident had caused, and (b) was accompanied by a large picture showing the head and shoulders of the unfortunate scooterist protruding from under the van. Not pleasant, but arguably a more honest account of the effects of an accident than we might get here.
|
Dead motorcyclists lying in the streets here, whilst not an everyday thing, is something both childen have seen.
And it tends to be shown pretty accurately on the TV. As per a coach/truck head-on which happened in Antofagasta last night and featured on the news this morning.
I have no particular objection, although I worry about people who seek out these pictures.
Nonetheless, I'd find it very distressing if it was one of my children and photographs of her dead and maimed were being hosted on the internet.
Last edited by: No FM2R on Tue 6 Nov 12 at 11:34
|
|
Last edited by: VxFan on Tue 6 Nov 12 at 13:56
|
People in the UK seem to want life to be portrayed as non brutal and sweet.. Death is not like that often - and we should accept that.
But as many people think food is supplied and grown pre-packaged in clingfilm and shudder at the thought of abattoirs...
I've seen lots of dead bodies in third world Africa...the pictures referred to above are really tame by comparison..
|
|
Of course Manatee speed does matter.At 70mph drive a car into a solid wall will also kill you.
|
Forgot to mention the new series started on Mon 11 Feb on the Discovery Channel (repeated @ 12pm on Sky on Thurs)
Sky 520 (521 + 1 hour) (536 HD)
Virgin 212 (213 + 1 hour) (214 HD) - I think
Anyway, yes, it's got an element of TG about it with cars that Joe Public can only dream about, but it also had some consumer advice about tyres and the like.
Tiff tested 3 different sets of tyres on the same car:- the factory fit Continental Eco, Maxtor, and some part worns.
The Continentals did the fastest lap of the track, followed by the Maxtors, and lastly the part worns which were 10 seconds slower than the Continentals.
Then onto the braking test on a wet track. The Continentals came last (because they were Eco's and offered little straight line grip), the Maxtors came 2nd, and the part worns won.
I should point out the part worns were 4 different makes, and 2 of them were winter tyres. IIRC, 2 also had small cuts in the side walls - acceptable providing the cut doesn't exceed 25mm.
Tiff said he didn't feel comfortable driving knowing there were cut marks in the side walls. To be honest, neither would I.
Overall, far better to watch than TG at the moment IMHO.
Last edited by: VxFan on Wed 13 Feb 13 at 01:57
|
"Overall, far better to watch than TG at the moment IMHO."
Apart from the screaming banshee topping and tailing the programme - the joys of being able to fast-forward a recording.
|
>> Apart from the screaming banshee
Granted, VBH can be annoying and could do with a bigger silencer.
|
>> Tiff tested 3 different sets of tyres on the same car:- the factory fit Continental
>> Eco, Maxtor, and some part worns.
youtu.be/5pj2lRCblz8?t=13m50s
|
They were Matadors, not Maxtors - aren't they hard drives?
I had some Matadors on the caravan - never had a problem, but they had disturbingly uneven sidewalls. Swapped them at 5 years old on age grounds.
|
>> They were Matadors, not Maxtors
Oops! No wonder the tyre garage directed me to PC World when I asked if they had any ;)
|
Have to say I was far more impressed with Jason Plato's review of the Pagani Huayra than I was of Hammons effort on TG a couple of weeks ago. A better explanation for the clutch was given too. Also included was an indepth tour of the factory, and what it was like to drive on the road, as well as on the track.
Vid will probably be available from Thurs on youtube for those who can't get Discovery.
And that new Chrysler 300 was horrid.
Last edited by: VxFan on Tue 19 Feb 13 at 00:23
|
>> Jason Plato's review of the Pagani Huayra
>> Vid will probably be available from Thurs on youtube for those who can't get Discovery.
youtu.be/kukL5axcL1g (part 1)
youtu.be/SSYqZgifyr0 (part 2)
youtu.be/kDXlP9dsNWE (the full episode)
And here's Hammond's review of it on TG
youtu.be/gD6SzWbPGpE?t=3m
|
New series starts tonight @ 8pm on Discovery.
Sky 520 (521 + 1 hour)
Virgin 211 (213 + 1 hour)
www.discoveryuk.com/web/fifth-gear/episode-guide-new-series/
|
|
With a lot of cars now having 6 gears, it's about time the programme title was updated to Sixth Gear.
|
I watched last night, and impressive as the Range Rover was, you have to ask if it isn't unnecessarily over-engineered given that 99.99% of them will never get anywhere near the limits of what they can do.
I guess it's just like buying a divers watch that is water-proof to 200m when you will never go deeper than 2m, except incredibly more expensive!
|
Now at its 3rd home on the History Channel (as mentioned by RP the other day) its nice to see they've kept the format the same, as well as the presenters.
www.history.co.uk/shows/fifth-gear
However, I'm a bit puzzled as to their announcement of "testing BMW’s first ever front wheel drive car, the Active Tourer"
They've seem to have forgotten that the BMW Mini is also front wheel drive.
They also tested Fiats new 4x4, the Panda Cross and put it up against the Land Rover Defender. It was kinda obvious though that the Defender was going to get bogged down because of the extra weight of the thing.
I must admit to quite liking the Morris Minor Restomod. A 2 lt engine, upgraded brakes and suspension.
For those without Satellite, fear not, you can catch up with the episodes on Youtube
Episode 1 - youtu.be/Z7FWu94yvgQ
Episode 2 - youtu.be/QrGfk5LmJNw
Episode 3 - to follow
footnote, episodes are subject to deletion at any time.
Last edited by: VxFan on Mon 23 Mar 15 at 21:25
|
>> They've seem to have forgotten that the BMW Mini is also front wheel drive.
No such thing as a BMW Mini.
MINI is a subsidiary of BMW. (Note the capitals....)
|
>> MINI is a subsidiary of BMW. (Note the capitals....)
Capitals or not, it's still a BMW.
(or part of the same group who owns BMW, Rolls-Royce, and Motorrad)
|
Why still name it as thought it is a small "mini" car?
These days they are not only ugly but BIG!
|
|
Basic Mini has a wheelbase longer than a Landrover Defender 90. Small car it is not.
|
>> Now at its 3rd home on the History Channel (as mentioned by RP the other
>> day) its nice to see they've kept the format the same, as well as the
>> presenters.
Perhaps if they had changed the format and or the presenters, it might still be pulling in audiences big enough to keep it on mainstream tv.
|
|
I have forgotten it existed, And did not miss it.
|
|
Would it get new life if they unexpectedly had a new presenter, I wonder?
|
>> Would it get new life if they unexpectedly had a new presenter, I wonder?
Did you have anyone in mind?
|
|
Ah, what wouldn't you pay to see Floella Benjamin fling an Ariel Atom round the track.
|
|
...or Lesley Judd making a Vauxhall Astra out of a wire hanger and a Fairy Liquid bottle (with the name carefully scrubbed off, of course.)
|
|
The chuckle brothers, to me - to you
|
Well that's just Top Gear then.
May: Nice cakes, Clarkson. Sponge Finger, Hammond?
Hammond: Oh, I'm sorry to hear that...
etc etc.
|
Is VBH still on it?
That lissom lass who helps present F1 for the Beeb would be an asset!
Last edited by: Roger. on Mon 16 Mar 15 at 12:05
|
>> Yes. Brian Cant.
>>
They need someone who can.... ;-)
|
Holy thread revival Batman!!
I stumbled upon a new series of 5th Gear at the weekend. It's now being broadcast on Quest.
A combination of old and new presenters. Jason Plato, Tiff Needel, Vikki Butler-Henderson, Jonny Smith, plus Jimmy De Ville, Ronnie O'Sullivan and Karun Chandhok.
Tiff And Vikki are beginning to show their age, and Jason now wears glasses.
Jimmy De Ville presents a section on car modifying. Bit like a shortened version of wheeler Dealers.
press.discovery.com/uk/quest/programs/fifth-gear-21/
I think the official first broadcasts go out Thursday evenings at 9pm, and then repeated Saturday @ 5pm, and Sunday @ 3pm. And obviously an hour later on the Quest+1 channel.
Channel 144 on Sky.
Channel 37 on freeview.
Probably on Virgin too.
Worth a watch, IMHO.
|
|
Been watching it. I rather like it, surprisingly it's all about cars !! The track shots are filmed at Ty Croes circuit within ear-shot of where we lived on Anglesey. We treated ourselves to a track day there a few years ago. Fantastic little circuit - really good day out.
|
I watched an episode.
It's ok. Quite informative and interesting, but it's a little "slow", even when doing an interesting article. Lacks energy, I think.
|
>>Channel 144 on Sky.
Channel 37 on freeview.
Probably on Virgin too.
And Freesat: www.radiotimes.com/tv-programme/e/g26swy/fifth-gear--series-27-episode-5/
|
|
Watched a couple of episodes that had backed up on my recorder. Great stuff...it's about CARS ! - seems to be a good team effort. Great articles on things of interest to a petrol/diesel head. Didn't fast forward through any bits.
|
Fully agree with you. They have the right balance of presenters, and no silly star in a reasonably priced or fast car.
Unlike TG, it's primary aim is to be a car show, not an entertainment show.
|
>> Unlike TG, it's primary aim is to be a car show, not an entertainment show.
You mean it is using the original Top Gear format. Which was good but not a popular entertainment show so the BBC changed their format.
Silly name Fifth Gear now it's not on Channel 5.
Last edited by: rtj70 on Mon 8 Oct 18 at 08:52
|
>> You mean it is using the original Top Gear format. Which was good but not
>> a popular entertainment show so the BBC changed their format.
Yes, but the presentation, IMHO, is a lot less boring than how the BBC did it. That makes the difference.
>> Silly name Fifth Gear now it's not on Channel 5.
It's just a name at the end of the day.
The same could be said of something like Wheeler Dealers, which was once a show buying cars for up to a couple of grand, and sell on for a couple of hundred quid profit. Now the format is to buy a car for 20 to 30 grand (I refuse to quote dollars like they do), and then sell it on for 5 to 10 grand profit. Those expensive cars aren't "wheeler dealer" cars.
|
>> Silly name Fifth Gear now it's not on Channel 5.
Well no-one is going to call it Quest Gear are they.
|
>> >> Silly name Fifth Gear now it's not on Channel 5.
>> Well no-one is going to call it Quest Gear are they.
>>
In some cars I have driven, it was a quest to find ANY gear, let alone fifth gear!
|
>> it's primary aim is to be a car show, not an entertainment show.
Well they've certainly achieved that.
|
Flicking through the channels for some Friday night motorsport on Sky I see that Motorsport TV has gone. I wanted to catch up on Rally Wales (Lombard RAC for those that remember). There was usually a 30 min slot every night during Word Rally Championship events throughout the year.
Its probably on Eurosport or something but I'm not paying anymore.
|
|
It's on one of the free channels, forget which. When you find it, make sure you press "record series" on the thingy.
|
Oooh thanks!
Will have a look see on Catch Up. Was away on the motorbike in Scotland over the weekend so the only thing I could do was search who the finishers were.
Certainly not as well covered on the mainstream channels as it was 'back in the day'. William Wollard anyone?
|
I've just watched one I had recorded. Yes it is a real car show but not totally immune from TG-itis. Taking a £160k Bentley SUV off road was the main example. At least they didn't wreck it but I don't think press offices will be as lenient with this obscure programme as they had to be with TG who delighted in car abuse.
Also a review of 10 year old 4x4s was very light on the potential eyewatering expense of running an old Discovery or Volvo xc 90.
On the other hand I liked the guy replacing the diff on a BMW. Its a job I'll never do and I'm sure its not as simple as the item suggested but it was interesting nonetheless.
I did wonder who the old fella was.......its Jason Plato as a silver fox!
Anyway its worth a look.
|
>> www.wrc.com/en/wrc/media/tv-guide/all/page/992-2407-80--.html
I am glad Wales is not in the UK. I have long suspected it, mind.
|
>> Tiff And Vikki are beginning to show their age, and Jason now wears glasses.
Fellow racers in BTCC have been saying for years that Plato needed glasses.
|
I watched a few episodes of Fifth Gear today on Quest channel.
First I have watched it in years.
Found it very good, not all just racing cars round a track or fully rehearsed road trips.
Last edited by: VxFan on Mon 31 Dec 18 at 01:48
|
Stumbled upon a new episode of Fifth Gear Sunday night. It's now into it's 28th series.
Not well publicised, but then again it's not really a top motoring show. It's still being broadcast on Quest, and I think each new episode goes out at 9pm on Thursdays. But like most things nowadays, it gets repeat broadcasts throughout the week as well. Plus you can watch it on Freeview.
Tiff Needle has gone, which wasn't his choice apparently.
"Unfortunately someone @DiscoveryUK has decided @FifthGearTV will be a better show without me. Sad time for me as I was pivotal in the creation of the programme"
www.motoringresearch.com/car-news/tiff-needell-axed-fifth-gear-tv/
Anyway, there isn't someone from Bolton presenting it, who isn't shouty, and loves the sound of his voice far too much, so not such a bad thing.
Can also be watched online, if you can put up with the adverts.
www.questod.co.uk/show/fifth-gear
Last edited by: VxFan on Mon 7 Oct 19 at 02:21
|
|
They were filming at Ty Croes circuit a couple of months ago
|
Is that the Anglesey Circuit? I think they've used that for quite a while now.
I think they also do some of their filming at the Millbrook Proving Ground in Bedfordshire.
|
I was involved with some stuff there last summer and the owners were saying that they were coming back.
Try to find the episode on catch-up..at least I've series linked from Ep 2 onwards
|
>> Try to find the episode on catch-up..
Err, have you tried the link I posted earlier?
www.questod.co.uk/show/fifth-gear
|
|
Caught the second episode, can't get episode one to play on the link you gave. My choice of the cars shown...Up GTi...Land Cruiser....and the Defender, although I would be tempted by the Jimny's modernity and potential for reliability. Ty Croes looked wonderful, not that I'm experienced it is a great place to watch races and the management make nice tea ;-)
|
>> Caught the second episode, can't get episode one to play on the link you gave.
Haven't seen episode 2 yet. Just tried that link again and works fine for me. Both episodes there.
|
|
Still showing "General Error" for me. I'm on a Chrome browser on a Mac if that makes a difference !
|
|
Ha, works on Safari. Will watch it tomorrow.
|
Just discovered there is an App for Quest called QuestOD (changing to dplay at the end of October)
So, not only can you watch 5th Gear, but old episodes of Wheeler Dealers, and what ever else they broadcast on their other channels (Quest Red, DMAX, Food, REALLY, & home)
|
Really enjoying this current series of 5th Gear. The App works well, btw.
Some consumer affairs stuff, some fun bits, and mostly the presenters are ok. Well, apart from VBH, and unless I'm mistaken, her voice has become even posher than it used to be!
I particularly liked the article on the 1990's 2.0 litre Escort Cosworth, vs a 1.5 litre Fiesta ST. Just goes to show how engine technology and handling have advanced. The Fiesta was 3½ secs quicker around the Anglesey test track. To be honest though, I'd still have the Escort. It's got more character and looks sportier.
youtu.be/djaDAAP_Hac
|
|
Yes - great series. Heart would say Cossie, Head would say Fiesta. Heart would win though.
|
Often wonder what agreements are in place for the likes of Fifth Gear to use cherished cars like this Cossie.
I am guessing its privately owned and I would also guess that the owner probably hasnt driven it flat out like Plato did.
Wonder if its just a bond in place for damage? And a hire charge?
|
>> I am guessing its privately owned
A quick google of the number plate (N192 FTW) shows that it lives in the Ford Heritage Centre in Dagenham, Essex.
www.diecastxchange.com/forum1/topic/227171-if-you-have-norevs-capri-280-brooklands/#entry4167933
It's loaned out to various car shows, including Top Gear, to name but a few.
pics.imcdb.org/0is146/102du.1336.jpg
They must know it's going to get thrashed, otherwise they wouldn't lend it out. At the end of the day, it was built for that kind of environment anyway, and not for pootling down the shops.
|
|
IIRC a certain Quentin Wilson managed to destroy a 'C' or 'D' class and hasn't been seen since!
|
I see 5th Gear is back once more, and found yet another home to broadcast from, The Discovery Plus channel.
www.discoveryplus.com/gb/show/fifth-gear-recharged-uk
But it's also being shown on Quest for those who cant get the other channel.
Not sure why it needs so many presenters though?
Jason Plato, Vicki Butler-Henderson, Rory Reid, Karun Chandhok and Jimmy de Ville.
VBH is more irritating than ever, with that hideous laugh.
They now seem to be concentrating exclusively on electric, hybrid and hydrogen vehicles, hence the updated name.
|
Fifth Gear Crash Test - mikeyb
