Top Gear - Why Convertibles Suck

[pacman599]

The S2000 was designed to be open top and it handles like a champ.

[NASIMNASIM]

How about indy cars?? they dont have tops

[Martyn4291]

@NASIMNASIM you can widen that out a bit to include pretty much any single seat open wheels racing car, F1, GP2, F3, F3000, Formula Ford, Formula and so on, the thing you forgeting though is these are specificaly desgined single piece monocock chassis most of the time made from carbon fiber, when you talk about convertable road cars its a completely different ball game

[CaptainPlanet355]

@Martyn4291 lol you said monocock!

[Neojhun]

@NASIMNASIM They are a cacoon design. They do not have door openings which provide no structure strength at all.

[fatzebra1]

Everyone who says that u just make the chassis stronger and it fixes the problem is retarded because that just makes the car much heavier.

[derbigpr500]

@fatzebra1 You've obviously never driven a modern convertible.

[bavarianers]

@derbigpr500 And I think you´ve never compared the weight of a normal car with a convertible ( of the same model). I´m right ?

greetings from germany

[sigfrid]

This guy is dumb, if he likes coupes, cool, but when you are designing a convertible, the engineers have to consider aerodinamics and phsyics response, if you are turning a non convertible to a convertible, you have to reinforce not only the floor, but a lot other places, this guy has never design a car in his life, and claims to know about design!

[CeasarII]

@sigfrid like what?

[stiksoldier]

@sigfrid and you have designed a car? well the only other places are the doors, and they need to open and shut so you cant have a massive re-enforcing beam through them. Furthermore aerodynamics IS a sub set of physics they are not separate.

[sigfrid]

@stiksoldier No, but i assure you, i've been closer (helped on the modification of one car to make it convertible), and no, the doors are not the only other place left to reinforce, you just have consider that changes you apply on one part of the body take effect on all the structure, and not just locally, sure the mod we made was not the best, but it met safety requirements.

[Hudsigar]

@sigfrid The viewers won't know anything about car design either. So he has to keep it simple. He may not know about car design but he does know how to market and produce a show for the target audience.

[1911harbinger]

not if you strengthen the chassis.

[mcignas]

@1911harbinger but then car is going to be much heavyer

[M4775K311]

clearly someone who has not driven a convertible



[Thefataussiekid]

LMFAO 0:24 KEEP PRESSING IT

[MaxeMouse]

More women prefer to ride in a convertible in the summer then not. Therefore, if you do not like a convertible, you do not like women.

[jml8841]

@MaxeMouse Most women like to wear lipstick. So if you do not like to have lipstick on your face, you automatically don't like women?

[willwork4superpowazz]

Does he think he can overshadow the ENGINEERS thought in the process of manufacturing for this car, does he seriously think this is even a valid point as if professional engineers trained for this specific work and masters in their field oversaw that ? -____- he is dumb as fuck !

[Fredrinski]

@willwork4superpowazz You're dumb because you didn't watch the whole review.

[willwork4superpowazz]

@Fredrinski I did actually.

[Fredrinski]

@willwork4superpowazz Well, he is right. Cars get less sporty when they get converted into a convertable. Ask the engineers.

[royaloreca]

@willwork4superpowazz you really need to see that whole video, this is only a small segment of what he was getting at,........

[Warrantti]

One seat sport car do not suffer from this problem like Bac mono.

[manlyman6392]

and with the roof its like two playing cards

[paintballgundown8]

@manlyman6392 incredibly stronger than just one.

[PS2Gameplays]

0:03 - the car is strong because it's a BMW!

[mehrdadr59]

I like to see if they put Jeremy as head of engineering department of car factory what type of junk will he come up with his idiotic philosophy !!

[Applegenius19]

What about the s2000 ? It beat a lot of things it shouldn't have in its time and was a convertible.

[Shuffle3956]

@Applegenius19

SERIOUSLY? S2000 IS A TOTALLY DIFFERENT CAR!!!!

1. S2000 is not a super car, it has much less power and hence the car won't be taken to its chassis limit for torsional force

2. It's not a rear engine car, it's rear wheel drive but front engine

3. it weights much less than the R8

4. It has a near perfect 50/50 weight distribution

5. It has much shorter wheelbase than the R8

[dekster14LP]

@Applegenius19

If you design a car to be a convertible, you have a big advantage.

(Note that the best convertibles (except from certain BMW's) are purpose build, not converted later in their lifespan)

[americanu197]

so they have to stick in big girders and stuff

[Inline6TwinTurbo]

@bloatedcarl Well you are right about top speed for other cars. But the Pagani is not a good example of this because Mr. Pagani and his team have tried so hard to cancel out the cons of a roadster car. But for most other cars the top speed is 2 or 3 mph less.

[xxlap2xx]

I read "why corvette suck"

[Shuffle3956]

@xxlap2xx haha cuz they do suck

[whiteribbonman1]

I TOTALLY agree!! 

[Inline6TwinTurbo]

@bloatedcarl You forgot one! The Pagani F Clubsport was another version of the F that Mr. Pagani added and extra 50 horsepower to, for a total of 650. Now, the case is closed :)

[Inline6TwinTurbo]

@bloatedcarl HOLY FUCK, THE PAGANI F, PAGANI F CLUBSPORT, AND THE PAGANI F ROADSTER ALL HAVE THE SAME FUCKING TOP SPEED!

[Inline6TwinTurbo]

@bloatedcarl So you've restored an old Chevy convertible from the muscle era and you still don't know why convertibles aren't as rigid as the hardtop brothers? This is the last comment I will be posting. You were saying that convertibles are slower because of aerodynamics so here's a fun fact, Pagani F top speed: 217mph. Pagani F Roadster top speed: 217mph.

[Inline6TwinTurbo]

@bloatedcarl I consider the bottom of the car the floor by the way. So what your telling me is that the chassis only has two parts to it the front and back, and that nothing is holding them together? Well I think you might be a weeee bit retarded.

[Inline6TwinTurbo]

@bloatedcarl He didn't say that the engine components are connected to the body. Incase you didn't know, the floor of the car is party of the chassis, NOT the body.

[Inline6TwinTurbo]

@bloatedcarl Yes it is, as well as aerodynamics! When did I say that the engine transmisson etc. was mounted to the body? The structure that holds up the windshield is apart of the chassis. All convertibles are about 30-40% less rigid then their hardtop versions, and that is why it weighs MUCH more.

[iamidiotic]

@bloatedcarl jeremy clarkson is as intelligent as a chimp. i dont know why he still has his job

[shobin05]

@iamidiotic he is a writer, and id rather watch a real chimp review cars than some dumbass kid on YT trying to talk big...

and you really live up to your YT account name dont you?

[iamidiotic]

@shobin05 you really are ignorant. jc is a good writer, why not, but it hes a complete moron with top gear and that questions his knowledge about automobiles in general. Hes always coming up with bs to feed his ego and his ratings. Any real car enthusiast will watch his show for five minutes and be able to point out that they arent making sense. trying to make the accusation that I'm "talking big" hahahah, I'm not calling a nwo or something so sit back and go drown yourself in your nonsense

[shobin05]

@iamidiotic i said i rather watch him review than you...how does that make me ignorant? all the 250 million people who watch top gear on TV, at least half of them watch because of him..if you think you are better than him, why dont you start youre own show then? maybe if youre lucky enough you could get two hits

since you claim yourself to be a lot smarter than most of us here that should be a piece of cake...

[iamidiotic]

@shobin05 once again ignorance floods the weak minded. I never explicitly claimed that I was smarter than anyone (though probably a lot more than you). i dont need to start my own show to prove I'm better than him (which i also never said i was) because i dont need to prove anything to a feeble minded neanderthal like you.

[shobin05]

@iamidiotic cant do it? thats what i thought..and cussing isnt going to help you get out of an argument, grow up...

[iamidiotic]

@shobin05 lmfao cite once instance where i repeatedly swore in this video, that's right you can't. Plus put your money where your mouth is, waste your time trying to become a host on a major publication or tv program. yt doesn't count as a medium. you really aren't very bright are you?

[shobin05]

@iamidiotic i never said that your success is based on youtube, if you can even be half as successful as he could then id shut up,

your right money dont just fall from the sky, which is exactly why he is a lot more successful than you could even dream of being..

[iamidiotic]

@shobin05 dude your not making sense. your really not good at making arguments are you? i dont need to be as "successful" as he is, im happy with where my life is and where its going. which sure as hell is a lot better where you're probably going.

[shobin05]

@iamidiotic haha, you're pathetic..lol, okay im sure you are, say whatever you want, in a world where money is everything, youre happy to be poor? adios..

[iamidiotic]

@shobin05 your stupidity is making my day hahah!! if i'm poor then you must be eating your own feces for breakfast!

if you want to make a sliver of sense, it would at least help to try and go against my argument that JC is wrong in this case and is a complete neanderthal (albeit a funny one) just like you.

[iamidiotic]

@shobin05 and going back to your comment where you said "all the 250 million people who watch top gear on TV, at least half of them watch because of him" yeah. people watch the show because hes funny. not because hes good at driving, not because hes a honest and factual journalist. and if you ask any of those 250M that have half a brain, you would be able to get them to agree that he has absolutely no journalistic merit whatsoever.

[shobin05]

@iamidiotic TLDR

[iamidiotic]

@shobin05 long story short you're ignorant.

you're a cool kid

[weewoodeal]

@bloatedcarl Do you even get the the points he was trying to make? ^^

[Inline6TwinTurbo]

@bloatedcarl You are the real IDIOT here. Why are convertibles slower and around a track then there hardtop cars? Because the manufactures have to put many strengthening beams so that the chassis is more rigid. Every convertible is much less rigid then there hardtop versions. Obviously the front and back ends of the car do not "wobble" like you think he means. Next time you're in a convertible car, put your hand on the top of the windshield and you will feel the car shift around as you move.

[sanders916]

@bloatedcarl This is from convertible people carrier, he's talking about why you can't turn an ordinary car into a convertible

[twomuchmonster]

allright, look at things this way. Subtract the roof. that takes away weight. Add the lost weight to strengthen the floor and chasis. A convertible is not all that much heavier than a hard top...

[Battlekell]

@twomuchmonster Wrong. Since there is a big gap between the roof and the floor in a closed-roof car, pushing and pulling forces are reduced (==> longer lever). That will increase stiffness. That is, by the way, the reason why sandwich-composites exist: A 4mm carbon-fibre sheet is not as stiff as two 2mm sheets with balsa-wood in between.

In other words: If you keep the amount of material used constant a convertible will always be on its backfoot when it comes to stiffness.

[Mystifiedromantic]

This is just a part of what he says in the program and is therefore misleading. What follows is Jeremy explaining how the floor is reinforced in convertibles, making them heavier.

[TheEvilPadawan]

Sometimes Jeremy just doesn't know what he's talking about

[PigsArseifyYou]

performance convertibles are just pointless. if you want a convertible, get a roadster. it is as simple as that.

[Molo9000]

And yet he owned a Mercedes SL55 convertible, a Ferrari F355 GTS (targa roof) and a Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder.

If you are going to buy a fast, loud 2-seater, you might as well have the wind in your hair and enjoy the engine noise unfiltered.

[xavcrack]

But it is stronger in the floor and you cannot tell the difference, only that the convertible is heavier than the coupe.

[thenwcreation]

My miata handles just fine :)

[JXAsfaar98]

hey that's a 2012 bmw m5 how did he get that

[savtho]

@JXAsfaar98 um its actually just a regular 2010 BMW 5 series

[JXAsfaar98]

@savtho maybe it is cuz it looks similar to the 2012 one

[boardernut]

The Pagani Zonda convertible is actually very good.

[MrBazpoker]

The title should've been: "Why coupes are better than convertibles".

[Badseed131313]

Given the miserable English weather I can imagine why he thinks convertibles suck...

[NoVideoxD]

Did anyone noticed Hybrid - Empire? The song at the beginning?

[kay8d]

No, the point is cars that were designed to be convertibles yes they are stiffer but that's how they allays where. But when they make a convertible version of a hard top it will always feel not as good and of course different .

[zabimaru1593]

@kay8d you and trocola said it perfectly.

[norabudgie]

its pretty obvious , the public isnt stupid

[Lukeisonutube]

This is very true, there are very few convertible cars that handle as good as hard tops but Mazda Mx-5, BMW Z4, Porsche Boxster and Honda s2000 are all good cars!

[whityjack]

@Lukeisonutube i think it's because they are rather small

[trocola]

@Lukeisonutube It is because all of these cars were designed to be convertibles on the first place, so they made the floor of the chasis strong enough to withstand the cornering forces without the roof.

[Lukeisonutube]

@trocola That is exactly my point of view

[12hiei21]

@trocola that's also why convertibles are heavier and just overall worse because of the compromises

[sekis9]

@trocola

also in modern cars (not just cabriolets, sedans and all), doors are designed to support the structure with internal beams and struts etc.

[TheProjektcc]

@trocola

yes that's true but at the expense of making them heavier and generally a bit slower than their roofed counterparts.

[TheKenjoje]

@trocola so we conclude that vw eos is the best

[trocola]

@TheKenjoje Ehem... No. The Eos is just a VW Golf CC with a slightly different front end and another name in the back. It has exactly the same problem.

[TheKenjoje]

@trocola WHAT SAME PROBLEM btw. I didn't mean literally it is 'the best' convertible when you have much more expensive cars but it is decent with roof down. and that reatrded argument 'it is just golf' come on, the fact it is based on golf doesn't make it average, it's more about quality of golf's base than undermining of eos. new tt is golf based and it's great, I don't like it but it is very good car

[trocola]

@TheKenjoje You know what i meant. It has the platform of the Golf, like an A3 or a Leon, one designed to have a roof and it hasn't. It does not have a bespoke platform like a MX5 or a Z4.

[TheKenjoje]

@trocola you are right, but its chassis must be upgraded since it's cabrio. I don't think there is a big difference between those original cabrios and eos in wobbliness

[jf61234]

@trocola Yes maybe but most of the time the convertible will be heavier than a non-convertible because they got to reinforce the floor. Look at the r8 spyder and a regular one

[rock3tcat]

I think that the uploader sucks big testies. :D

[1563544575]

ironic because jeremy loves convertibles

[ecsurvivor]

first... and he makes sense...