Top Gear (2014 TV series)
2014 Chinese TV series or program
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Top Gear is a Chinese television series about motor vehicles, primarily on cars, and is an adaptation of the British television series Top Gear.[1] The show premiered on 13 November 2014 on the network Shanghai Dragon TV. Series 1 was hosted by Cheng Lei, Richie Jen, and Tian Liang, Series 2 by Cheng Lei, Ma Dong, and Ou Han-sheng. The show also features a segment similar to Star in a Reasonably Priced Car (Ford Focus in Series 1 and Volkswagen Lamando in Series 2) and a Chinese Stig, whose identity is currently unknown.
Richie Jen
Tian Liang
Ma Dong
Ou Han-sheng
"The Stig"
| Top Gear | |
|---|---|
| Presented by | Cheng Lei Richie Jen Tian Liang Ma Dong Ou Han-sheng "The Stig" |
| Country of origin | China |
| Original language | Mandarin |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 20 |
| Original release | |
| Network | Shanghai Dragon TV |
| Release | November 12, 2014 – December 21, 2015 |
Episodes
| Total | Episode | Reviews | Features | Guests | Air Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Series 1 | |||||
| 1 | 1 | Porsche 918 Spyder | • Drive 310 kilometers from Zhangye to Jiayu Pass with a battery/fuel range of exactly 310 km left (Tesla Model S • Ford Mondeo) | Qiao Zhenyu • Michelle Ye • Tiger Hu • Ma Tianyu • Alan Ko • Cica Zhou • Jiang Wu | 12 November 2014 |
| 2 | 2 | Ferrari F12berlinetta | • Drive from Dali to Geladan (Jaguar XF • DS 6WR • Polaris RZR) to watch the night sky | Chopstick Brothers | 19 November 2014 |
| 3 | 3 | Jaguar F-Type R | • Climb to Bilutu Peak in the Badain Jaran Desert (Toyota Tundra • Arctic Cat Wildcat) | Zheng Kai • Gülnezer Bextiyar | 26 November 2014 |
| 4 | 4 | McLaren 650S | • Race near West Lake (Volkswagen Golf • bicycle • public transit)
• Parkour vs. BMX vs. Chevrolet Cruze |
Zhang Liang | 3 December 2014 |
| 5 | 5 | Bentley Continental GT V8 S | Gary Chaw | 10 December 2014 | |
| 6 | 6 | Aston Martin Vanquish Volante | 17 December 2014 | ||
| 7 | 7 | KTM X-Bow GT | 24 December 2014 | ||
| 8 | 8 | Maserati GranTurismo MC Stradale | Kevin Cheng | 7 January 2015 | |
| 9 | 9 | BMW M235i • Mercedes-Benz CLA 45 AMG • MINI Paceman JCW | • "Triathlon" in a zoo with Land Rover Discovery | Wu Chun | 14 January 2015 |
| 10 | 10 | Ford Mustang | 21 January 2015 | ||
| Series 2 | |||||
| 11 | 1 | N/A | • Race across Shanghai during morning rush hour (public transit • bicycle • boat • Toyota Reiz)
• Wingsuit flying vs. drifting (Subaru BRZ) in Tianmen Mountain |
Aarif Rahman | 19 October 2015[2] |
| 12 | 2 | N/A | • Drive ¥300,000 (about $45,000) sports cars (Porsche 996 Carrera 4 • Mercedes-Benz SL500 • Ferrari 360) across desert | Wong Cho-lam | 26 October 2015[3] |
| 13 | 3 | BMW i8 | • Farewells to a to-be-decommissioned 14-year-old Volkswagen Polo | Ming Dao | 2 November 2015[4] |
| 14 | 4 | Caterham Seven | • Package delivery challenge (Arctic Cat utility task vehicle • Fengxian (奉贤) bus) | Christy Chung | 9 November 2015[5] |
| 15 | 5 | N/A | • London tour (Jaguar E-Type Roadster • Peel P50 • Abbot self-propelled gun)
• Travel to the Top Gear test track and Waddesdon Manor in vehicles with Chinese connection (Benelli electric bicycle • TX4 • Chang'an Eado) • Race to Goodison Park in British lightweight sports cars (Morgan 3-Wheeler • Caterham Seven • Radical SR3) |
Pan Xiaoting • Jeffrey Kung | 16 November 2015[6] |
| 16 | 6 | N/A | • Uber driver challenge in ¥400,000 (about $60,000) cars (Audi A6 • Chevrolet Camaro • Ford Taurus (Chinese version)
• hot hatch face-off (Volkswagen Golf R • Renault Mégane RS) |
Kelly Lin • Ho-Pin Tung | 23 November 2015[7] |
| 17 | 7 | N/A | • Race across Chongqing (Volkswagen Lamando • NIU eScooter • public transit) Part 1 | Jimmy Lin | 30 November 2015[8] |
| 18 | 8 | Porsche 911 GT3 | • Race across Chongqing Part 2
• Off-road SUV challenge (Toyota Land Cruiser Prado • Ford Everest • Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara) on the Hulunbuir Prairie |
Stephen Fung | 7 December 2015[9] |
| 19 | 9 | Lamborghini Huracán • Volkswagen Golf GTI | • Train for the CTCC | Lynn Hung | 14 December 2015[10] |
| 20 | 10 | McLaren 625C | • Race to Mount Putuo (Peugeot 308 • Roewe E50 • Maserati Quattroporte GTS) with ¥500 (about $75) for gas and tolls | Chang Chen | 21 December 2015[11] |
History
The first attempt at a Chinese Top Gear was in 2011.[12]
In May 2014, BBC announced that it has signed a deal with Honyee Media to produce a local version of Top Gear in China.[13] On 13 November 2014, the first series of the Top Gear China premiered on Shanghai Dragon Television, presented by Cheng Lei, a veteran Chinese TV presenter, Richie Jen, a Taiwanese singer and actor, and Tian Liang, a former Olympic gold-medalist in diving.
Production started in July 2014.[13] Filming took place in various locations, such as: Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang, Chongqing, Guizhou, Shanghai, Beijing, and Wuxi.[13]
Reception
Season 2 has had a total audience of 217 million with 5 episodes.[1]