New Top Gear magazine out now: R.I.P petrol

Nobody knows what the fuel of the future will look like. All we do know is that fossil fuels are less than a decade away (in the UK at least) from becoming persona non grata. Which puts us in a unique position. On the one hand we at Top Gear are genuinely pumped for this brave new tech-filled world... we strive to be your guiding light every step of the way in a sea of kWh this and DC that. But on the other hand our hearts are soaked in super unleaded.

There will be future generations who will laugh at this explosive liquid we used to hose into our vehicles, who will know only the sensation of silent insta-torque motoring, but not us. Our passion for cars was forged in the fires of angry cylinders and the clunk of oily transmissions. The noises, the smells, the vibrations, the crescendo of power, that’s what first made our hairs stand on end as we watched a racing car tear past, or something exotic burble by on the road. Still does.

So forgive us if we get a little emotional to see the combustion engine on its way out. We know it’s inevitable, but that doesn’t mean we can’t mourn. Except here at TG moping about isn’t really our thing. That’s why, for this month’s issue of Top Gear magazine, we took a 273mph, 1,578bhp Bugatti Chiron Super Sport to the Nürburgring and sampled Ferrari’s highest-revving road-going V12 at Fiorano in the form of the 812 Competizione. Quite the wake, that…

Fancy joining us on the journeys? You can order the December 2021 issue direct to your door by clicking these blue words. Or perhaps you’d prefer to download it straight to your phone or tablet? You can do that by clicking here if you’re an Apple user and here for Android users.

Plus, try a Top Gear mag subscription today and UK-based readers can grab six issues for just £17.50. That’s a saving of 44 per cent. You’ll receive subscriber-exclusive collectable covers delivered direct to your door every month with free delivery to boot – click these blue words to take advantage. Oh, and if you live outside the UK you can still save 25 per cent by clicking here.

And of course it’s not just the Bugatti and Ferrari on our pages this month. You'll also get a free TG guide to watches supplement, the full brain download on the all-new Range Rover, and a Volcano-hunting trip around Iceland in a purple Bentley Flying Spur. Blimey. Plus there's full reviews of the Audi RS3, the Peugeot 308, the Abarth 595 Competizione and much more. Enjoy.