# Top Gear (2014 TV series)

Top Gear is a Chinese television series about motor vehicles, primarily on cars, and is an adaptation of the British television series Top Gear. 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.

## 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 |
| 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 |
| 13 | 3 | BMW i8 | • Farewells to a to-be-decommissioned 14-year-old Volkswagen Polo | Ming Dao | 2 November 2015 |
| 14 | 4 | Caterham Seven | • Package delivery challenge (Arctic Cat utility task vehicle • Feng Xian (奉贤) bus) | Christy Chung | 9 November 2015 |
| 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 SL) | Pan Xiaoting • Jeffrey Kung | 16 November 2015 |
| 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 |
| 17 | 7 | N/A | • Race across Chongqing (Volkswagen Lamando • NIU eScooter • public transit) Part 1 | Jimmy Lin | 30 November 2015 |
| 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 |
| 19 | 9 | Lamborghini Huracán • Volkswagen Golf GTI | • Train for the CTCC | Lynn Hung | 14 December 2015 |
| 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 |

## History

The first attempt at a Chinese Top Gear was in 2011.
In May 2014, BBC announced that it has signed a deal with Honyee Media to produce a local version of Top Gear in China. 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. Filming took place in various locations, such as: Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang, Chongqing, Guizhou, Shanghai, Beijing, and Wuxi.

## Reception

Season 2 has had a total audience of 217 million with 5 episodes.