Jeremy Clarkson hits back at Chris Harris' comments on Tesla controversy on Top Gear

Therefore, the unveiling of a Tesla Roadster (first generation) in an episode of Top Gear was a great opportunity to attract attention. However, it did not go as the company's management had hoped, as Clarkson was heavily critical of the model.

Particularly notable were brake failure, engine overheating and a battery drain after less than 55 miles. Given Clarkson's reported 16-hour charging time, this was a significant annoyance.

Tesla disagreed with the ruling and sued Top Gear for defamation and malicious misrepresentation, arguing that the review was dishonest, but this claim was dismissed by British courts in 2011.

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However, future Top Gear host Harris seemed to ratchet up the tension even further when he appeared on the Joe Rogan Experience last week, saying Clarkson's Tesla review was “naughty.”

Rogan claimed that Top Gear “pretended [Musk’s] Car died and they made it a sketch,” with Harris claiming that the show would sometimes “backward engineer an outcome” for certain segments.

Clarkson has now refuted these comments in a column for The Sun.

He writes: “There are many made-up stories about what happened when I presented Top Gear… And in the grand scheme of things, it doesn't matter.

“But it really annoys me when Joe and Chris spread the myth that my Tesla driving test was unfair.

“And the fact is that Elon Musk took the BBC to court over this issue and lost. He also lost the appeal. I know nobody believes me… But it's true.

“At Top Gear we've done a lot of stupid things and upset a lot of people over the years. But our road tests have always been scrupulously fair.”

Top Gear has been taken off the air indefinitely following a serious accident involving former presenter Freddie Flintoff, in which he suffered serious injuries.

At the time, the show was presented by former cricketers Harris and Paddy McGuinness, a team that gradually came together after the retirement of Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond.

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