Top Gear series 20

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Top Gear (series 20)
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Top Gear
Series 20
Promotional poster
Starring
No. of episodes6
Release
Original networkBBC Two
Original release30 June (2013-06-30) –
4 August 2013 (2013-08-04)
Series chronology
← Previous
Series 19
Next →
Series 21
List of episodes

Series 20 of

Kia Cee'd with the Vauxhall Astra Tech Line as its "Reasonably Priced Car", effectively wiping the Celebrity Lap Board clean for new times. This series' highlights included a race between a car and a yacht around New Zealand, a budget convertible trip across Spain
, the presenters creating a hovercraft out of a van, and a tribute piece to the British motor industry.

Episodes

No.
overall
No. in
series
ReviewsFeatures/challengesGuest(s)Original air dateUK viewers
(millions) 
Sir Ben Ainslie
30 June 2013 (2013-06-30)5.55
Clarkson travels to
Kia Cee'd has been retired, and in its place is a Vauxhall Astra
Tech Line, leading Hammond and Clarkson to hosting a party and inviting celebrities to join it and see if they can get a fast time in the Astra.
1562
Ferrari F12 Berlinetta • BAC Mono
Best taxi • Tribute to BBC Television CentreRon Howard7 July 2013 (2013-07-07)5.31
Hammond once again sees if motorsport and a handful of touring car drivers can help solve the problem of which taxi in the world is the best. The contenders for this "test" are: the
BBC Television Centre by staging a race within the building between a duo of parkour runners and motorcycle champion Dougie Lampkin, and the director of Rush, Ron Howard
, talks about the background of his film before he finds out how fast he was in the reasonably priced car.
1573NoneSpanish road trip in "budget" convertibles: (McLaren MP4-12C SpiderFerrari 458 SpiderAudi R8 V10 Spyder)Benedict Cumberbatch14 July 2013 (2013-07-14)4.83
The trio head for
Ciudad Real Central Airport for speed test and drag race, before concluding their journey by making a street circuit in an abandoned housing project in Madrid to beat a lap time by a Jaguar XKR-S. Elsewhere, Benedict Cumberbatch
sees how he fared in the new reasonably priced car.
1584Mercedes SLS AMG Black SeriesMercedes SLS AMG Electric DriveFord Transit hovervanHugh Jackman21 July 2013 (2013-07-21)5.36
The boys decide to create a makeshift hovercraft out of a Ford Transit van, to see if a vehicle could be made to adapt to flooding. After their initial design sinks, the presenters redesign it and put their finished creation, the "Hovervan MK II", through the challenge of travelling along the River Avon in Warwickshire, getting it from Stratford-upon-Avon to Tewkesbury, with their ambitious idea causing chaos along the way. Elsewhere, at the track, Clarkson compares the petrol-powered Mercedes SLS AMG Black Series against the electric-powered Mercedes SLS AMG Electric Drive, and actor Hugh Jackman talks about his film The Wolverine and an embarrassing experience in Japan, while seeing how he fared in the reasonably priced car.
1595
caravanners: (Mazda CX-5Volkswagen Tiguan)
Steven Tyler28 July 2013 (2013-07-28)5.29
Clarkson and May find themselves forced by the producers to review different
Porsche 911 Carrera S and looks at a 911 tribute car built by Californian tuner Singer at the Track, and Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler
takes his turn to drive fast in the Astra.
1606Range Rover SportNew RoutemasterJaguar F-TypeTribute to British automobile manufacturingMark Webber4 August 2013 (2013-08-04)5.49

Hammond tests out the next generation of Range Rover Sport to see if it's worthy to bear the "Sport" name, while May sees if the New Routemaster bus can be as good to use as a car. Meanwhile, Clarkson takes a look at the Jaguar F-Type, and F1 Driver Mark Webber sees how fast he is in the Liana around the test track. The episode concludes with the presenters finding out how much contribution Britain has made to motoring, and discovering the country's impact in motor research, motorsport, Formula 1, and British-made equipment exported around the world, before inviting British motor manufacturers to bring their creations for a special meet on The Mall in London.

Note: The closing credits play out to panning shots of the motoring meet in London, with the programme's theme tune replaced with a musical piece combining Elgar's "Nimrod" and "Pomp and Circumstance" (aka "Land of Hope and Glory").

References

  1. ^ Eames, Tom (1 July 2013). "'Top Gear' returns for new series with over 4.7m on BBC Two". Digital Spy. Retrieved 2 July 2013.
  2. ^ Midgley, Neil (30 June 2013). "Top Gear, BBC Two, review". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 28 November 2013.
  3. Broadcasters' Audience Research Board
    .