“Top Gear” China special lures faux Reliant Robin

Thanks to the ubiquity of cameras and car fans in China, we should have enough still images of the "Top Gear" crew filming in Beijing to recreate it through stop-motion animation by the time the BBC actually broadcasts it. Which Chinese film stars will they recruit to tip their knockoff Reliant Robin back on its wheels?

According to CarNewsChina, James May and Jeremy Clarkson are pushing the HaoYun Electromobile (don't tell Tesla), one of several Chinese-built vehicles with vaguely familiar shapes, like a parking lot in Grand Theft Auto. The list of vehicles supposedly appearing in the show includes all the top Chinese makes, from Chery and BYD to the FAW Red Flag HQE Limo, a handbuilt parade car.

While Chinese forums claim the duo are shooting an entire Very Special Episode of Top Gear, the absence of one Richard Hammond suggests this might be just an extended portion of a typical show -- albeit one where Clarkson and May do just as much damage to their lungs with the cigarettes as they do breathing in Beijing's beige air.