Yikes.
A lawsuit, vandalism and accusations of having an affair have all been plaguing the popular Top Gear host this week.
First, electric-only automaker Tesla has filed a lawsuit against Top Gear and Clarkson for allegedly rigging the test drive of the Tesla Roadster. Clarkson was at the wheel for the review back in 2008, and in the film, he claimed the Roadster was all fine and good, but was fairly useless since it only had a range of 88 kms; a far cry from the 320 kms Tesla claims the roadster can go between plug-ins – even if you drive it like you stole it. A shot of Clarkson and the Top Gear staff pushing it off the track, according to Tesla, gave the illusion that it’s fairly useless and has damaged its reputation. Top Gear has yet to respond but has said it will defend itself in court.
Secondly, apparently Clarkson’s summer home in the Isle of Man was vandalized. Clarkson’s fence by a nearby path was damaged/torn down. According to reports, Clarkson has been in a dispute with locals over the path and its proximity to his property.
And now comes word that Clarkson is allegedly cheating with his wife of 18 years with a 42 year old blonde staffer at Top Gear named Phillipa Sage. The two were allegedly spotted kissing in public several times and sharing the same hotel rooms in Australia and Norway. Sage has written to the press denying the allegations while Jeremy, um, hasn’t denied the allegations at all. All he said was that he was shocked to find himself “the next Tiger Woods”. That’s not an admission, but it’s definitely not a denial either. Which is a bit strange.
Anyway, here’s hoping the next week shapes up a bit better for Clarkson. I personally don’t care about his personal life (i.e the vandalism and the affair), I’m more interested in the lawsuit since it has to do with cars. Check out the desputed Top Gear review of the Tesla Roadster after the jump.
[Autoblog]
