Top Gear host and The Sunday Times columnist Jeremy Clarkson has stirred up controversy yet again after pushing a new car he was reviewing through an intersection, because of what he said was a failure of the stop-start system, and giving it a generally bad review. This time it wasn't a Tesla on the receiving end of his wrath, but the Chinese-owned, British-assembled MG6 Magnette.
Clarkson claimed the MG6 isn't actually a British-built car because it was just assembled and styled in Britain, complained that booking a test drive was more of a chore than it had to be, opined that the steering wheel cuts the webbing between your fingers and, of course, the stop-start system doesn't work properly. He also said the car "didn't do especially well in its Euro NCAP safety tests."
MG UK, not taking the review lightly, wrote a response to it in the China Car Times, rebutting his criticisms of the car and raising questions about the legitimacy of the review. MG UK claimed that it was not contacted about any problems with the car while it was on loan to Top Gear producer Andy Wilman, and that it drove perfectly when it was collected after the loan period. MG also pointed out that it received four out of five stars in its Euro NCAP safety tests. Soon after the review, MG invited local journalists to its UK Design center so they could judge for themselves the direction of the British car maker.
When Clarkson and the Top Gear crew criticized the Tesla Roadster after draining its battery and then pushing it through an intersection, the electric car manufacturer filed a libel lawsuit against Top Gear – and lost – but it remains to be seen whether MG will take any legal action.
