Ben Collins built a second career after leaving the role of The Stig on Top Gear by becoming (among other things) a test driver for car companies. The key difference is that he’s no longer hidden behind a white suit and helmet now. This is giving him a chance to do something he couldn’t before: talk and express his opinions freely, without editorial control. And, well, he definitely had something to say about electric cars and hybrids. A brief timeline of The Stig on Top Gear Most people are now familiar with some behind-the-scenes details about The Stig that were never really revealed until Top Gear ended. Created by Jeremy Clarkson, The Stig was a mysterious racing driver who’d never speak and would never appear without his helmet. This also gave the production team the chance to create one of Top Gear’s most iconic segments. In each episode, The Stig would be introduced with variations of the quote: “Some say that he is… all we know is, he’s called The Stig.” BBC The first Stig was portrayed by Perry McCarthy, and he was sometimes referred to as ‘Black Stig’ because of the driver’s all-black overalls with a black helmet, black shoes, and black suit. The reason why McCarthy left was never clarified, but it allowed the BBC to rebrand The Stig, giving him new overalls and, more importantly, a much bigger role on the show. The new Stig was portrayed by Ben Collins, easily the most popular and recognizable Stig, who left the show in 2010 after revealing his identity in an autobiographical book. The BBC replaced him with Phil Keen, who kept working on Top Gear until the show was canceled. Praga Ben Collins revealed the real reason why EVs and hybrids aren’t ideal performance cars We recently had a chat with Ben Collins, who revealed why electric cars and even hybrids aren’t the best possible option if what you’re looking for is performance. Last year, Collins set a lap record around Dunsfold Park, the former Top Gear track, at the wheel of a Praga Bohema. And when we had a chat with him about this particular record (the fastest pure combustion car around the track), he revealed that with a few tweaks, this car could become faster than the Valkyrie, which is a hybrid. Ale Renesis/Supercar Blondie “Electric cars are too heavy, and even hybrids are too heavy,” he explained to Supercar Blondie. He further explained that even though EVs and hybrids are capable of immense power, the addition of an electric motor affects weight distribution and braking. “The brakes helped a lot with this record. They really give you that granular feeling when you’re braking. “This is generally a problem with EVs, because they’re heavier, and so that changes the way you have to brake,” Collins told Supercar Blondie. “This also affects weight distribution. Without getting too technical, think of a moving car around the track as a collection of weights that swing from one side to the other as you drive into a corner,” he explained. And you can tell he feels passionate about it. Ben Collins Drives In Collins’ view, the weight always has to go somewhere, and you have to balance it, which means that having the extra weight [from the electric motor] creates a pendulum swing effect. This effect affects everything from braking to handling, as well as, of course, fuel consumption and brake wear. Fortunately for Ben Collins and car fans who are on the same page – and that’s a sizable crowd – things aren’t changing as dramatically and quickly as people initially feared. From the aforementioned brand Praga to Nilu27, several automakers are still prioritizing pure combustion.
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