Clarkson and cars have become inseparable concepts at this point, with the British TV host providing thousands of hours of entertainment to gearheads all over the world. Being that it’s his bread and butter, how much has Clarkson invested in cars?
Although there a few staples in his garage that never change, the amount of cars Clarkson has varies from year to year. Overall he has owned more than 25.
As you can imagine, if you are as deep into the world of all things engine as Clarkson is, you’ll have gone through a few cars over the years. Just like fashion, cars go in and out of style, and although there are a few cars that have made a permanent feature in his garage, there’s just as many that have been removed from his collection.
Clarkson’s Love of Cars and Technology
The coming and going of all different shapes and sizes of cars from Clarkson’s garage has been a story told over multiple decades of a career dedicated to the automotive industry. Although the amount of cars that he owns has changed over time, his love of technology has always remained constant.
We’ve seen Clarkson host shows and write articles about all kinds of engineering-related marvels, not only cars. Historical innovations in engineering, in particular, seem to be a huge part of where his interests in engineering lie.
He has talked at length about the industrial revolution and how important the engineering and engineers of the times were in transforming the technological landscape. In particular, Clarkson heavily endorsed engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel as the greatest Briton in history.
His endorsement of Brunel, and engineering as a whole, has been so focused and intense that he was actually awarded an honorary degree from Brunel University. A degree that would go hand-in-hand with the one he would later receive from Oxford Brookes University, again in Engineering.
Shifting into Top Gear
The reason to ask “How many cars does he own”, or even more importantly, “Which cars does he own”: His one true love, all things motor.
Clarkson’s rightful reputation as an overenthusiastic car junkie comes from his incomparable run on television series Top Gear. The series would see Clarkson and friends hosting a show that would do a deep dive into all things car-related.
Clarkson and the shows standout feature that separated them from a show that may have been potentially dry and uninteresting to the layman was made accessible and entertaining thanks to Clarkson and his co-hosts humor and controversial attitudes.
Clarkson in particular was often the source of the controversy, with his no-holds-barred style of reviewing and commentary. If he didn’t like something, he was going to let you know about it.
Cars and manufacturers would be subject to brutally scathing reviews, torn to shreds by Clarkson in comedy-laced tirades. The reviews were so severe on some occasions that they even prompted angry responses from the manufacturers themselves.
Clarkson’s Favorite Cars
Looking through his body of work on Top Gear and the cars that he keeps in his garage, you can see that Clarkson practices what he preaches when it comes to the cars that he owns.
There are some beautiful, timeless classics adorning his garage, from the stunning Ferrari F355 to the equally impressive Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder. His enthusiasm for Lamborghini goes beyond cars, as he even purchased one of their tractors.
One of the cars in his collection that he had something of a love-hate relationship with was the Ford GT. An amazing machine that instantly enamored Clarkson, it was unfortunately plagued with issues from the very beginning.
Clarkson had long been a fan of the classic GT40, but it would seem that his chance to enjoy the dream of owning one in the new GT was cursed from the very beginning. All manner of technical issues plagued the vehicle, and despite being repaired by Ford, Clarkson finally sold it.
One brand of car manufacturer that holds a special place in Clarkson’s heart is Alfa. Particularly for Clarkson, it was the Alfa GTV6.
In the interview, Clarkson talks almost romantically about the way that an Alfa will endear itself to the owner. The way that he talks about this car, in particular, goes a long way to demonstrating the life-long obsession that he has had with cars.
An obsession that is likely to go on for many years to come.