Top Gear Australia – Series 2, Episode 7

The real Top Gear has returned to UK screens, but that doesn’t mean we can’t still have our fun with the local guys. Sure, they may not reach the same lofty standards of the UK originals, but in isolation they’re not too bad.

Isolation is something the Steve and Warren find themselves surrounded by tonight when they take two city runabouts—Fiat 500 and Smart Fortwo—on an outback challenge. Tackling the 620 kilometre Oodnadatta Track probably seemed like a good idea before they left, but was it a great road trip or a disaster waiting to happen?

Does your car make you more attractive? We’ll be given an insight tonight with some scientific analysis measuring women’s responses to various cars.

James and Steve take a ’79 Land Cruiser to the Devil’s Alley 4WD proving ground and face it off against an ’09 Patrol.

Gary Sweet will be thrashing the Proton around the TGA test track.

So, will you be watching Top Gear Australia tonight, or, now that Jeremy, Richard and James are back on the air, will you give it a miss?

TOP GEAR AUSTRALIA – SERIES 2, EPISODE 7

Monday 22 June at 7:30pm

In this episode of Top Gear Australia Steve Pizzati and Warren Brown challenge the city dwelling Fiat 500 and Smart Fortwo to one of the toughest off-road tracks in the world; the Coober Pedy to William Creek mail run along the 620 kilometre Oodnadatta Track.

Packed to the brim with mail and delivery requests, the lads set off like a modern day Burke and Wills.

Steve notices his Fiat 500 is a “…little ripper (and) has a high safety rating for low impact collisions – how reassuring!”

However when Steve finds out that Warren could have avoided his outback tyre incident he is not happy, “…you were sideways for 140 of the 150 kilometres!”

“Another Pizzati furphy,” declares Warren.

Then the age old query ‘does the car make the man’ is put to scientific evaluation with Neuro-Insight. Using an Australian designed pulse generated cap Top Gear Australia rates women’s emotional responses to various male stereotypes and compare their attractiveness depending on which car they drive – and the winning results are surprising.

Steve assumes his beloved Porsche 911 GT3 will fare best even though he knows the Toyota Kluger to be one of Australia’s best selling family wagons, “…because it’s safe and reliable and a sensible choice…so its really the automotive equivalent to tofu – good for you but boring!”

Then at Melbourne’s 4×4 training and proving ground Devil’s Alley, aptly named due to being widely heralded as off-road hell, James Morrison and Steve pit old against new.

At stake is a prized Aussie meat tray and neither contestant is willing to lose this challenge or their steak. James drives the “…robust and simple to repair…” 1979 Toyota Land Cruiser and Steve tackles the turbo diesel comfort of the 2009 Nissan Patrol.

The always charismatic bad boy of Australian television, Gary Sweet (The Circuit) describes himself as “Very high on enthusiasm, very low on talent” is this week’s Star in a Bog Standard Car.

Catch Warren Brown, Steve Pizzati and James Morrison for your weekly dose of motoring entertainment, Mondays at 7:30pm on SBS.