James May's Cars of the People

[Rusty Chrome (Malcolm Parker)]

This has to be the programme that they were working on at last years National rally, looks like it includes a KV Mini as well.

http://youtu.be/RVV_1fMRJiE

[Chris Thomas]

More information

Malcolm Thomas has sent me the following extract of an email from the BBC: -

I am writing to notify you that the long awaited BBC series, ‘James May’s Cars of the People’, will be transmitted on BBC2 and BBC2 HD (in the UK) on the following dates:

Episode 1: Sunday 10th August 2014. 9pm

Episode 2: Sunday 17th August 2014. 9pm

Episode 3: Sunday 24th August 2014. 9pm

The trail for the series can be viewed here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0240c55

Unfortunately, at present, we have not been informed of any international transmission dates for the series. ........................

Typical that it will be shown when most people are on holiday or traveling home from holiday. At least it will be better than most of the rubbish that is on the TV at the moment.

Chris Thomas

[Barry]

It should have my Microcar DX in it (ex Jean do) if it made the final cut.

[Chris Thomas]

Listening  to James May on the radio this morning it sounds like the Microcar element will all be in the second program with the exception of the Trabant which will be in the first program.

Typical of BBC programing as I will be traveling when the second program will be on. Let us hope that it will be on BBC I player or they repeat it on DAVE

Chris Thomas

[Bob Purton]

Hmmm. Just watched episode one. Its as I feared, if he slags off the VW Beetle, the Tradant and the Wartburg, what's he going to say next week about our beloved microcars? All those who pandered to him at the National last year to get there cars on the telly may regret it.

[milnes]

I quite enjoyed the programme. Yes he was less than complimentary about most of the cars, the beetle was more about the conception which nobody can really argue with.
As for our cars, well again he can say how terrible they drive, slow, poor handling and impractical, can we argue against that? I think not, but that's what i love about our little cars!

Bring on next weeks programme.

[Barry]

I enjoyed the historical social references, indeed , the program went a bit too far off track for me in places.
I never like to see a car destroyed for no reason and driven over pot-holes just for the sake of it.
It all went on a bit too long for me on one subject. They could have fitted a few more different cars in - Tatra, Moskavich etc. (and what about a highly tuned Wartburg?)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kQNgZiPvAk

[Big Al]

Was a Wartburg the peoples car? I thought it was for middle management. The workers got a Trabbi if they were lucky. The upmarket Wartburg was chosen as the best option to export into the West for currency. Here it might have been considered a peoples car, but all that proves is that the quality of products depends on the market forces and competition in a specific market.

 Looking back on many supercars it is easy to now see how poor they were, not just as cars, but as pieces of engineering. The best of the Microcars can hold up their heads and kick bottom, if the playing field is level, as they were, from concept to sales, well made vehicles for the market they were intended for. The number of survivors and the ability to still use them in their niche and beyond proves the point. To understand the answer, though, you first have to understand the question! Few do.

[marcus]

Some good points made. I watched about half of it, then had a phone call during most of the rest but was looking at it.
May gave a lot of praise to the design concept of VW, but to my utter amazement he made absolutely no mention at all about the Tatra designed by Hans Ledwinka which preceded the KdF Wagen.

The full truth is that Hitler and one of his henchmen (Speer perhaps) plus Ferdinand Porsche had become aware of the Tatra and asked Hans Ledwinka to show it to them. It had a beetle shape, platform chassis, air cooled boxer engine at the rear and was exactly the sort of thing that they wanted the KdF Wagen to be.

And so they copied it, thinking that as Germans they were superior to Czechoslovakians and could plagiarise the Tatra at will.

About 30 years after WW2 ended, VW FINALLY agreed a substantial out-of-court settlement to Ledwinka and Tatra, but Ledwinka died very soon later.

James May is a bright and well-informed man and apparently a pretty agreeable person too (despite a bias to cars rather more sophisticated than those we love!), so I was particularly disappointed that he failed to mention this shameful event, and yet again added to the unfairly-earned reputation and legend of Porsche and VW.

Incidentally, Hitler also decided that encyclopedias were wrong about who invented the motor car. Until then Siegfried Markus had always been credited as the first to make 4 wheeled, petrol powered cars, but Markus was far too Foreign and far too Jewish for Hitler's taste, so he ordered all references to Markus to be expunged from history and replaced with the much more German Mercedes Benz. Many other people and countries around the world have also accepted this "fact"; once created, propaganda and lies never die!

Actually, to me "Car" is short for Carriage and a car or carriage can have 3 or more wheels and be powered by any type of motor, therefore Cugnot's "Fardier" was the first car, and Trevithic's Puffing Devil was the first to drive on roads. Many steam, electric and even petrol cars preceded MB so their claims to have "Invented" the car are dishonest and preposterous. They were the first to put cars into production.

I love Germany and Germans (and their cars, ukuleles, drums, cymbals and percussion!) so I do not want to offend, but I just like to see the record put straight!

[Barry]

Well said Marcus.

[Rusty Chrome (Malcolm Parker)]

I did just about manage to watch it till the end but I thought it was awful. I haven't seen a lot of James May's previous output and I know it's only entertainment, but I did expect a programme slightly more informed and sophisticated than the usual sort of disparaging Top Gear diatribe. I'm very much looking forward to seeing the microcars, but might be turning the sound down. Thanks goodness it's only three episodes!

[richard]

I have only watched one or two half episodes of top gear ever - can't stand any of them . I didn't catch the programme , I forgot , but please remind me when the micro ones on - when it's on . I think possibly I will watch it with no volume as well

[DaveMiller]

I watch Top Gear and get annoyed, but find James May on his own to be excellent.

Given a stark choice, I'd listen, with the pictures off!  I've already seen the cars; I haven't yet heard James's sentence construction, and wondrous derision.  He's very adept at presenting niche facts for a general public - which surely is the game here. ( A sort of spoken Bill Bryson - I'll read anything of his, just to enjoy the structure of his sentences. )

We can hardly expect an encyclopædic rundown of technical issues - the programme is about the societal impact of cars, not their mechanism. (And, in a programme about people cars, he'll surely steer clear of Tatra, famed as a manufacturer of prewar luxury cars?)

[Bob Purton]

Why wouldn't he mention Tatra in context to it being an integral part of the VW beetle story?
I will be listening with the sound and picture up, I agree, he does have a good turn of phrase and wit but then tends to revert into idiot mode and starts dropping cars from helicopters!
Some microcar people are always trying to "raise the profile" of our hobby but forget there are often consequences. Remember all those Reliant owners standing there feeling privileged to be invited to the filming of a programme about there cars only to find there car being portrayed in a grossly dishonest way. OK, it gave the petrol heads a laugh but it wasn't so funny the morning after the showing when owners across the realm awoke to find there cars had been tipped over by mindless TG watching yobs.
I say lets keep a low profile and just enjoy our hobby.

[Big Al]

I agree with Bob up to a point. The issue is that the enthusiast needs to control the information as much as possible. That means creating the filming opportunity and inserting the right cars and coherent spokesman to force the director onto our path, not his preconceived idea. This was partly shown by Grant, the Peels being loaded onto a truck and sent along the IOM preserved railway line. That opportunity would not have been there if it had not created publicity for those involved. The cameras duly arrived and Grant made a good spokesman. That some other folk made some unwelcome remarks shows the need to control the camera while it is present and brief those attending to mind what they say.

The condensed part of that IOM item shows that by use of the media in a controlled environment we can put our agenda ahead of theirs and use their presence to get we we want, rather than the other way round. This is how to access premium venues otherwise out of reach to a normal event. THe bonus is it puts our cars in the best light and with correct information from people who know what they are talking about instead of shouting heads with a script.