Ask any Top Gear fan what their top 10 best Top Gear episodes would be and you’ll probably get a different answer every time. With over 140 episodes produced and thousands of individual films contained within these episodes, there is an absolute gold mine of Top Gear out there.
But how does one go about finding the very best Top Gear episodes ever made? Well, luckily we can help. Below is a Top 10 list compiled by us, with the help of site visitors who placed votes on their favourite episodes.
So we present to you, the TopGearbox Top 10 Best Top Gear Episodes!
1. Series 12, Episode 8
The boys ride 1000 miles across Vietnam – from Saigon to Hạ Long City – on £500 motorcycles. Put simply, this is everything you could ever want in a Top Gear episode!
[Episode Guide]
2. Series 14, Episode 6
The boys travel 1,000 miles through South America from the rainforests of Bolivia to the Pacific coast of Chile, in £3,500 off-road vehicles.
[Episode Guide]
3. Series 9, Episode 3
The boys each buy a car for $1000 and go on an American Road Trip from Miami to New Orleans. This is Top Gear’s first American road trip – and the best!
[Episode Guide]
4. Series 10, Episode 4
The boys go to Botswana and buy a car for less than £1500 for a 1,000 mile challenge – driving from the Zimbabwean border to the Namibian border. Epic.
[Episode Guide]
5. Series 5, Episode 8
Jeremy races a Ferrari 612 Scaglietti against Richard & James in a plane / train to Verbier.
[Episode Guide]
6. Series 13, Episode 1
Jeremy, James and Richard race from London to Edinburgh in 1949.
7. Series 4, Episode 1
Jeremy races an Aston Martin DB9 against the Richard & James on the TGV from London to Monte Carlo.
[Episode Guide]
8. Top Gear Polar Special
Jeremy, Richard and James race to the 1996 magnetic North Pole.
[Episode Guide]
9. Series 7, Episode 4
Jeremy, Richard & James each buy an Italian mid-engine super car for less than £10,000, then face a series of challenges.
10. Series 8, Episode 3
Jeremy, Richard and James each attempt to make an Amphibious car, then face a challenge. Arguably better than Top Gear’s second attempt, when they crossed the English Channel.
[Episode Guide]
Just outside the Top Ten
Richard and James attempt to build a Space Shuttle, based on a Reliant Robin.
[Episode Guide]
Top Gear’s second attempt at making Amphibious Cars. Except this time they attempt to cross the English Channel.
[Episode Guide]
The boys each build a motor home and go camping to see how they perform!
[Episode Guide]
Jeremy, Richard and James each make a stretch limo and face a series of challenges.
[Episode Guide]
Jeremy, Richard and James go on a Super Car road trip to the Millau Viaduct in France
[Episode Guide]
The boys each choose a lightweight supercar and try to find the greatest driving road in the World.
[Episode Guide]
Jeremy races a Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren against Richard and James on a Ferry to Oslo, Norway
[Episode Guide]
Jeremy finds out if the Toyota Hilux really is indestructible. It ends up being true.
[Episode Guide]
How much Porsche can you get for £1500? The boys each buy one and face a series of challenges.
[Episode Guide]
36 comments
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This site is so good! Gives you everything you want without the fuss. Plus 2 DAYS UNTIL NEW EPISODES!!!!!!! They even did one in Australia! They should take more advantage of our limit free highway sections.
I like what you guys are usually up too. This kind of
clever work and reporting! Keep up the superb works guys I’ve included
you guys to blogroll.
Can’t forget the Polar Special! That was truly monumental and ambitious. Fantastic episode!
Honestly people.
Why are you all leaving out season 15 episode 6.
ive been trying to find an episode for a while, all i can remember is all 3 of them are at a track, jeremy has a lambo and the brakes set on fire or nearly do. and im sure he says something like “we were going faster than f1 car round that corner”… any help?
Series 18 episode 1 or 2 mate
Series 6 Episode 2, a great challenge, diverse car selection and minimal scripting. Probably not a top ten but worth a mention because it never gets one :p
Apparently they are going to split up and do separate tv shows
I love top gear so much that every night before going to bed I watch one episode .
I watched every single episode from every single season, I’m addicted
I absolutely loved the South America special and season 19’s Africa Special and keep replaying them. James May is hilarious(oh cock!!) Can’t wait for season 21.
great , loved it all
what about the episode that they went to africa in season 19
The top 4 are exactly the same ones that I would choose. I have seen the Vietnam special over 100 times and counting. When there isnt a new season going I play those top 4 on loop.
lots of good repkies, but don’t forget 18-07 where they try out rallycross, 18-02 is also brilliant fun. And of course the middle east special.
What about the episode were they built their own car?
We generally felt that the “Geoff” episode wasn’t TopGear’s finest hour.
It all went downhill after it “accidentally” rolled down the hill.
Thanks for responding, great list.
all of them are sick i agree about the car trains onw and the africa special that was recently. tht one is soooo funny !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
>best top gear episode ever
>doesn’t even have cars in it
I mostly agree with the list, but also strongly disagree with a few places. The American roadtrip definitely isn’t 3rd for me, maybe somewhere between 10-20, while the motor home challenge doesn’t make it into top 20.
The British Leyland challenge would deserve a place in top 5, Romanian roadtrip could be in top 10, and the convertible people carrier challenge in top 20.
I thought that the episode where they drive 3 British convertible sports cars through the midlands would make this list. A very good one though, always tough to name a favorite, same with music. The ones listed are some of my favorites as well.
The Car Trains film has to be added to this list now. My personal favourite. An absolute classic!
Vietnam was my absolute favorite. This list is pretty spot on. I agree with Dlbass, I come here to figure out which episode to watch… again.
Great list have seen them all! James May is really funny 😀
my absolute favorite is the caravan holiday one season 8 number 6 very funny thats for sure
Great list but there is one episode I would suggest you revisit for consideration.
Season 12 episode 1
Thanks for your suggestion Gary. It was a good episode but a bit too scripted for our tastes.
Great list. Started watching Top Gear recently this year and have been loving it, and after watching the top ten you just listed, I have to admit, the vietnam special was pretty amazing. It was like pure-extract Top Gear.
Great list! I love this site and visit it almost daily to help me choose which episode to watch for the forty-second time. Where is the Google+ button so I can easily post your articles for my friends to see?!
Thanks for your support!
Awesome list completely satisfied with most part
The ‘Vietnam Special’ was great.
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top gear watched every episode from series 1 to series 20 episode 6 thanks very much thanks