It seems that Matt LeBlanc and Chris Evans aren’t the best of “friends” on Top Gear.
According to The Sun, LeBlanc is threatening to quit Top Gear if Evans is allowed to stay on for season 24.
LeBlanc has become increasingly frustrated with Evans’ rude behavior toward the team and has issued an ultimatum to BBC officials, according to The Sun. The BBC has already agreed to pay LeBlanc for two seasons, meaning that they must choose between the two co-hosts. “The big question now is who goes and who stays” a show source told The Sun. “The team does not gel at all, and the atmosphere between the presenters is decidedly frosty. It’s very much a picture of him — Chris — and them.”
While the new Top Gear has been off to a shaky start, both Chris Harris and Rory Reid, hosts of Top Gear: Extra Gear, have received lots of praise. According to the report: “[Evans] also seems to be jealous of the attention and praise which has been heaped on Chris Harris and Rory Reid in particular since the show began. You would have thought that with his experience, he would help out those new to studio recording. But he doesn’t encourage them in any way. He just isn’t interested. He doesn’t even hang out with the others backstage and firmly keeps his distance from all of them at the aerodrome.”
The Sun has been a bit salacious with its reporting of past Top Gear incidents. One report claimed Evans yelled profanities at the audience, which was never substantiated.
Top Gear isn’t just the most popular motoring show, it’s the most popular show in the world, period. In 2015, it had an estimated global audience of 350 million viewers. Former presenter Jeremy Clarkson was quickly fired after a “fracas” with a producer. A new cast was assembled, but they lacked the same chemistry that many viewers had become accustomed to over the years. Ratings for the new Top Gear have been slipping, hitting a record low, although the latest episode saw a slight bump.
The current state of Top Gear is uncertain, but for fans who have missed the original trio, Amazon’s The Grand Tour should premiere sometime later this year.
BYD has launched the third-generation Qin Plus DM-i in China, and the first thing that caught my eye is its price. According to CarNewsChina, the plug-in hybrid sedan starts at 79,900 yuan, which is about $11,980. That’s an incredibly low price for a brand-new car, especially by US standards.
What’s even more impressive is the range. The Qin Plus DM-i can drive up to 137 miles on electricity alone, which should cover most people’s daily commutes without using a drop of gas. Once the battery runs out, the 1.5-liter engine takes over. Thanks to its 17-gallon tank and roughly 91 mpg with a drained battery, the combined range reaches up to 1,423 miles.
Apple won the PC market’s worst quarter, but that’s not the entire story. It won the race by stumbling less than everyone else.
PC makers shipped just 57 million computers worldwide in Q3, which might look good, but it’s a 21% year-over-year plunge (via Counterpoint Research). And despite Apple’s Mac shipments falling by 11%, to 5.6 million, its market share rose from 8.7% to 9.8%. How did that happen?
Update (October 22 23:54 PT): In response to our query, GM clarified that offline recording support is already available on eligible vehicles. Like Tesla's Sentry Mode, it requires owners to connect a USB drive to save incident recordings, which can be viewed on the vehicle's infotainment screen. The upcoming Connected Cameras feature will build on this by giving owners remote access to these recordings via the revamped OnStar app, allowing them to check footage without walking out to their car.
General Motors has announced plans to add a new Connected Cameras feature to its OnStar service starting next year, giving drivers a way to monitor parked vehicles remotely and capture footage of certain incidents.