It’s time again for Top Gear’s annual Speed Week and this year features new cars and a brand-new testing facility. Here’s a rundown of what cars are going head to head, which ones are missing out on the fun, and at least one that seems to have been snubbed altogether.
For the last two years, Speed Week has taken place in Top Gear’s home country, the UK. Now that many Covid restrictions are a thing of the past, the TG team decided to hold Speed Week in the Czech Republic at the Autodrom Most. The 2.61 mile (4.21 km) racetrack features a series of technical high and low-speed turns along with a single long straightaway.
The cars competing for the top spot at Speed Week start out with some obvious choices. Those include the Lamborghini Huracan Technica, the Ferrari 296 GTB, the Maserati MC20, the Porsche Cayman GT4 RS, and the McLaren Elva (this time with a windshield). That lot is joined on track by a few cars that might not keep up around the track but might be just as fun.
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Here are the performance cars taking on Top Gear's Speed Week 2022 → https://t.co/zWDhzmeBI3 pic.twitter.com/PxKzhuU2bo
— Top Gear (@BBC_TopGear) October 7, 2022
Those cars include the new BMW M4 CSL, the Morgan Super 3, the Audi RS3 (the only sedan in the competition), and the Aston Martin DBX 707 (the only SUV). The list of just nine cars might seem a little light compared to previous years and Top Gear addresses that somewhat.
According to host Jack Rix, the Lotus Emira is absent because the production version isn’t quite ready. The McLaren Artura isn’t making an appearance due to technical issues with its development. The Mercedes-AMG SL 63 simply wasn’t available and the Toyota GR 86 has been subject to some powertrain problems that kept it from competing.
What we don’t get is an explanation on why exactly there’s no Chevrolet Corvette Z06 in contention here. As what seems to be the best performance bargain in the world it might have proven to be far above the rest of these contenders. We suspect that it wasn’t quite ready in time. Who do you think will win the overall competition? Let us know in the comments below.