Top Gear (2002 TV series)/Series 8

Series 8 (2002 format)
Series 8 served as a calm before the storm.
Episodes	8
Originally aired	07/05/2006 - 30/07/2006
Original network	BBC Two
Resolution	576i
Aspect ratio	16:9 Widescreen
Preceded by	Series 7 (2005 - 2006)
Superceded by	Series 9 (2007)

The eighth series of Top Gear premiered in the United Kingdom on the 7th May, 2006, and concluded on the 30th July, 2006, after a run of 8 episodes. The series' main host was Jeremy Clarkson, and he was accompanied by Richard Hammond, James May and The Stig as co-presenters. The series was produced at Television Centre in Wood Lane, London, and aired on BBC Two in a 60-minute studio format. Series 8 attracted an average viewership rating of 4.45 million viewers per episode, with a peak of 5.27 million viewers for Episode 8, and a low of 3.66 million viewers for Episode 6.

Highlights from this series include the first phase of "ambitious but rubbish" challenges, such as the first Amphibious Cars Challenge, attempt at turning a Renault Espace into a convertible, a Mercedes-Benz S-Class into "Anne Hathaway's Cottage", and the second game of Car Football, this time between the Toyota Aygo squad and a team of the Brazilian-built Volkswagen Fox. Top Gear Dog, also known as "TeeGee", would make her onscreen debut this series, but would be relegated to a film-only role for Series 9 before being phased out entirely.

A new studio layout was built, owing to increasing audience sizes and the show's enlarged budget, and this allowed for better studio lighting, as well as a plethora of new setpieces. Unfortunately these would only last for two series due to the Hill End Barn Fire destroying the majority of these props in 2007.