Top Gear 13: preview

If you’ve spent the last week in a hermetically sealed underground bunker and have somehow missed all the Big News, we’ve got some Big News for you: Top Gear is back!
Here’s all the stuff that’s coming up in over the next month-and-a-half, with clever link-things to click for more information. But first, take a look at TG Exec Producer Andy Wilman’s series preview blog.

Remember: every Sunday at 9pm after the telly show TopGear.com will have exclusive behind the scenes content from the show - blogs, galleries and video clips. And we add more through Monday and Tuesday too... 

You’ve probably heard of Ken Block. If not, head straight over to our Gymkhana blogs and watch the man in action. He’s astonishing. But we thought he’d be ever better with Top Gear’s famed cinematic skills, an ace motocross rider…

...and our very own Travis May Jnr (aka Captain Slow) to keep an eye on proceedings. Let’s just say that James gets very, very close to the action...

A nice easy challenge for the boys: buy a proper rear wheel drive sports car for less than £1,500, and set off for a nice road trip through France...

...finishing up in the Alps for an ice race against a bunch of fearsome Andros Trophy racers. Doesn’t look quite so easy now, does it?

After successfully using the crucible of motorsport to solve the issue of what the best bus would be for London in the last series, this year the boys tackled the thorny issue of... airport vehicles.

See, apart from the speed of the plane, all the rest of air travel takes an age. Deciding the whole operation needed a good hurry up, Top Gear brought in a bunch of touring cars and every sort of airport vehicle you can imagine. Let the carnage begin.

Top Gear gets a lot of letters asking us to find out if a car is faster than another thing that’s not a car. But is a car faster… than an actual letter? More specifically, is the new Porsche Panamera faster than a 39p stamp and the logistical might of the Royal Mail?

To find out, James and Richard were challenged to race said letter from the Scilly Isles at one of Britain to the Orkneys at the other. Who’s your money on?

This is James and Jeremy in the Top Gear office. They are doing actual research. Research into what car is most suitable for someone who’s just passed his or her driving test...

...so quite how they ended up camping with a bunch of rusty old bangers is a little unclear. It all ends in a bunch of excellent consumer advice, obviously.

You’ll have seen this one on Sunday – and if you haven’t, get straight on over to iPlayer, you fool – but let’s remind you nonetheless. Top Gear turns the clock back half a century...

...with James in a Jaguar XK120, Hammond on the Vincent Black Shadow and Jeremy in a massive old steam train.

The are more classic car clubs in Britain than any other country in the world, so Top Gear decided it was time to investigate the phenomenon in depth...

...so armed with a few quid apiece, our trio trundled off to a classic auction, got some wheels and set off for a pukka classic rally. Just one small problem: the office chose their co-drivers.

In these troubled economic times, can you get a small car that doesn’t make you depressed enough poke chopsticks in your own eyes? Jeremy, James and Richard were sent to find out...

...which they did by haranguing the government until they got told off by some police. They then ran off to the track for a series of challenges. Warning: if you have kids, they may watch this item and then immediately start pestering you for a dog.

Don’t worry, we haven’t forgotten the power tests. The outrageous Mercedes SL Black is the prime candidate...

...along with the awesome Focus RS and plenty more. Make sure you tune in every Sunday at 8pm on BBC2 to catch all the tyre-smoking fun…