Posted on 03/25/2025 9:01:26 PM PDT by Cronos
Jeremy Clarkson has "declared victory" 17 years after Elon Musk sued him for defamation over a candid review of a Tesla car.
Back in 2008 on an episode of Top Gear, Clarkson shared his thoughts on the Tesla Roadster, calling it "unreliable," "ridiculously expensive," and humoured it "weighed more than most moons" meaning "it didn't handle very well".
On Sunday (23 March) in The Times, Clarkson explained: "Musk was very angry about this and sued us for defamation, claiming I had a problem with electrical cars and had written the piece before even setting foot in the car. He lost the case, and the appeal, and he’s never really got over it.
"He still claims I was biased and that we pretended his car had broken down when it hadn't. Even though it had. I should really have sued him back, but I feared he’d call me a paedo, so instead I just waited on the riverbank for his body to float past. And now it has."
Clarkson went on to say that he was "always scrupulously fair with his car reviews" and was happy to see Musk being "pecked to death by the very people who put him on the pedestal in the first place".
Elsewhere in Clarkson's feature, he reflected on Tesla's downfall since Donald Trump appointed Musk, adding: "Things are so bad that a friend of mine who was trying to save the world (and a few quid on the congestion charge) has now fitted a sticker to his Tesla saying he bought it before he knew Musk was an idiot."
The Tesla boss' BBC lawsuit was dismissed in 2013, later sharing his thoughts to Newsnight months later.
(Excerpt) Read more at indy100.com ...
The Grand Tour presenter saves much of his scorn in the article for left-wing, environment-conscious consumers who bought Teslas before Musk’s political transformation from a save-the-world space enthusiast into a leading figure of the global alt-right.
“He was a hero to them, and I was hated for having been so rude about his early foray into the car market,” Clarkson wrote. “How could I have been so nasty to that kind and philanthropic Mr Musk? Yeah, and how do you feel now as you sit in your Tesla while an army of like-minded souls kick its door mirrors off?”
“...we pretended his car had broken down
when it hadn’t. Even though it had...”
-
Do what now?
Good for Clarkson.
Musk may, in some areas, be doing our bidding right now…
…but never forget: he’s a massive creep who will redefine in his mind his reality so that he’s always the hero.
-Yossarian
(who’s life has been massively negatively impacted by H1-B bull. And Musk loves H1-B.)
So, then:
Clarkson is now a hero to the left?
I can’t keep score of crazy.
/s
Jeremy is right but he could STFU too
#6 then Jeremy would not be Jeremy Clarkson.
James May: CLARKSON!!
You should not be sewed for a bad review.
Anybody seen Jeremy’s farm show?
We thoroughly enjoy Clarkson’s Farm. Mostly for Gerald, Charlie and Season 1 of Caleb. ;).
The car broke down. Musk claimed it didn't and further stated that Top Gear only pretented it had.
I’m glad he won. Businesses suing customers for leaving bad reviews would be terrible for freedom of speech.
Wow, someone else who remembers Musk’s comments about H1Bs! Everyone else on here seems to think Musk is the second coming. We do NOT need more H1B visas when there are more unemployed American programmers than programming jobs available.
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