- 6 months ago
Top Gear Season 1 Episode 2 – Full Classic Episode (2002)
In this action-packed second episode of Top Gear’s debut season, Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and Jason Dawe bring more thrilling reviews, epic challenges, and iconic moments.
🚗 Car Reviews & Challenges:
Ford Focus vs Peugeot 307 – Which family hatchback comes out on top?
Toyota Land Cruiser – Put to the test in extreme, off-road conditions.
Helicopter vs Car Chase – Can a fast car escape an aerial pursuer?
🎬 Special Segments:
Star in a Reasonably Priced Car: Comedian and actor Harry Enfield takes the wheel on the Top Gear test track.
Jason’s Used Car Tips – Smart advice for buyers on a budget.
Plus: early Stig lap times and automotive news from 2002.
This classic episode is a nostalgic return to the early days of Top Gear, filled with humour, head-to-head showdowns, and proper motoring journalism.
📌 Watch now for a blend of practical car advice and outrageous automotive fun. Perfect for longtime fans and curious newcomers!
👉 Like, comment, and subscribe for more full Top Gear episodes and retro car content!
Top Gear Season 1 Episode 2
Top Gear S01E02 full episode
Ford Focus vs Peugeot 307
Toyota Land Cruiser test
Top Gear helicopter chase
Harry Enfield Top Gear
Top Gear 2002
classic Top Gear episodes
Top Gear used car tips
Jeremy Clarkson early Top Gear
Richard Hammond first season
The Stig lap times
Top Gear full episodes
British car reviews
Top Gear UK
In this action-packed second episode of Top Gear’s debut season, Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and Jason Dawe bring more thrilling reviews, epic challenges, and iconic moments.
🚗 Car Reviews & Challenges:
Ford Focus vs Peugeot 307 – Which family hatchback comes out on top?
Toyota Land Cruiser – Put to the test in extreme, off-road conditions.
Helicopter vs Car Chase – Can a fast car escape an aerial pursuer?
🎬 Special Segments:
Star in a Reasonably Priced Car: Comedian and actor Harry Enfield takes the wheel on the Top Gear test track.
Jason’s Used Car Tips – Smart advice for buyers on a budget.
Plus: early Stig lap times and automotive news from 2002.
This classic episode is a nostalgic return to the early days of Top Gear, filled with humour, head-to-head showdowns, and proper motoring journalism.
📌 Watch now for a blend of practical car advice and outrageous automotive fun. Perfect for longtime fans and curious newcomers!
👉 Like, comment, and subscribe for more full Top Gear episodes and retro car content!
Top Gear Season 1 Episode 2
Top Gear S01E02 full episode
Ford Focus vs Peugeot 307
Toyota Land Cruiser test
Top Gear helicopter chase
Harry Enfield Top Gear
Top Gear 2002
classic Top Gear episodes
Top Gear used car tips
Jeremy Clarkson early Top Gear
Richard Hammond first season
The Stig lap times
Top Gear full episodes
British car reviews
Top Gear UK
Category
🚗
MotorTranscript
00:00In tonight's programme, a supercar from a shed in Leicestershire.
00:10A rock star in our reasonably priced car.
00:14And how many motorbikes can you jump with a bus?
00:22But first, the 1960s.
00:25Now, it was possible to go fast back then, if you had enough money to buy a Ferrari or a Maserati.
00:32But then one day, Ford thought, hang on a minute, we've got all these cars flooding down our production lines,
00:38why don't we fit some of them with big engines?
00:41Now, if you think about it, this was an incredibly important moment,
00:44because suddenly everyone could afford to go fast.
00:47They actually created the boy racer.
00:51Suddenly, Mr Barrington Smythe was going down the motorway, he got overtaken by Barry Smith.
00:55And we've actually been joined tonight by several members of the Ford RS Owners Club.
01:01Here they are.
01:03Now, let me give you a flavour of the kind of people who drive RS Fords, OK?
01:08Your name is...
01:09Lee.
01:09Lee, OK?
01:11Now, standing at the back there, we've got Wayne, OK?
01:14Now, Wayne's girlfriend...
01:16Anyone want to hazard a guess what Wayne's girlfriend is?
01:19Tracy!
01:19Lee!
01:20Lee!
01:20Sorry.
01:21A word of warning, though.
01:29A word of warning, OK, which I've learned over the years.
01:31Never, ever slag off a fast Ford.
01:35Because these people don't write polite letters saying,
01:37Dear sir, I strongly disagree with what you said on Top Gear the other night.
01:41It's like a brick.
01:41Yeah, a brick with git written on it comes through your window.
01:46And bearing that in mind, Ford should be worried.
01:49Because when they dropped the RS Escort Cosworth here,
01:53they said there would be an RS version of the Focus.
01:56They promised us it would have 300 horsepower and four-wheel drive.
02:01And here it is.
02:02Now, it is quite a looker.
02:06Well, it's better looking than your hair, actually.
02:07Sorry, mate, but have you got an RS?
02:10I have, mate, yes.
02:10RS hairdo, that.
02:12Fantastic.
02:13Anyway, disappointingly, this doesn't have 300 horsepower and four-wheel drive.
02:17It has front-wheel drive and only 212 brake horsepower.
02:22Still, we're going to be testing it out on our track,
02:24but first of all, we thought it'd be a good idea to have a look at the competition.
02:28Most obvious contender is this, the Subaru Impreza.
02:32So, we fitted it with the Stig and launched him onto our test track.
02:37Whereas the Ford is a jumped-up road car, this is a scaled-down rally car.
02:44Turbo-charged engine, four-wheel drive.
02:47Not the best-looking car in the world, I admit.
02:50And he crosses the line in...
02:52Here we come now.
02:54One minute, 39 seconds.
02:58Next up is the Honda Civic Type R.
03:01Well, what you need to know about the Civic most of all is that my mother has one.
03:05It's a motherly sort of car, except, of course, for this one, which is a mother of a car.
03:12Is it going to beat the Subaru?
03:14Is it going to be faster?
03:15Crosses the line in...
03:16One minute, 38.06.
03:19So, the Honda was faster than the Subaru.
03:21Much to the disappointment of the Subaru Owners Club here, all five of them,
03:25who have been pointing out that if it was raining, it all would have been different.
03:27But it wasn't.
03:28And you're lost.
03:30You're lost.
03:31Anyway, now is the time to find out how the watered-down Ford gets on.
03:37Direction control switched off.
03:39On the left there, we've got a map of the circuit.
03:52On the right, in the centre there, there's a G meter that shows us how much G we're getting.
03:56Down for acceleration, up for braking.
03:58Right and left, obviously, for cornering.
04:00And that was nearly one G through there, the first corner.
04:03It's amazing.
04:04That's about as much as you could possibly generate.
04:06Corvettes used to generate that much.
04:08Now, he's going through the steady straight corner, 45 miles an hour.
04:1350, 60, 66 on the exit.
04:16Foot hard down.
04:16Now, a really fast car is topping the ton before he has to brake.
04:2090, oh, 99.
04:23He didn't quite make the ton as he brakes hard and into the hammerhead.
04:27To the left and then a really hard right.
04:29It's going to make understeer.
04:30Everything understeers, except the Honda didn't.
04:32And, oh, wow, he's gone a bit wide, though.
04:35He's wide on the way out.
04:36That's OK.
04:37Now, flat out.
04:37Is he going to reach 100 here?
04:39Is he going to lift?
04:40Is he going to lift for the follow-through?
04:42Changed up into fourth.
04:43And, yes, lifted there.
04:45Down to 80 miles an hour for the follow-through.
04:47So, he didn't follow through.
04:48Into Bentley Bend.
04:50Into Bentley Bend.
04:51And, again, this is going to be the fastest part of the track.
04:54He's flat out through there.
04:56Flat out still.
04:57100 miles, 102 miles an hour.
05:00That's very quick.
05:00The Suzuki Liana's only doing 87.
05:02Through Bacharach.
05:04Into the really tricky one where you spin all the power away.
05:07Is he going to waste all that power?
05:10How tidy is he?
05:10Let's look.
05:11That's very tidy.
05:13Well, there's one thing for sure.
05:15The RS Owners Club won't be poking dog mess through the Stigs letterbox after that performance.
05:20One minute, 33.8.
05:23That's nearly four seconds faster than the Honda.
05:26Four seconds.
05:28That's a week.
05:29If you're a dog.
05:31So, plainly, I had to go and drive this car in the real world.
05:36But where?
05:37Obviously, it had to be somewhere with miles and miles of empty roads.
05:41And that means finding somewhere on there where no one wants to live.
05:45Whales.
06:13Sheep.
06:15There are so many empty roads out here, it's hard to know where to start.
06:25Welcome, then, to RS Country.
06:29Nothing but the odd woolly maggot to spoil the fun.
06:38Sitting here, there's no evidence that I'm in something which can nuke a Subaru Impreza.
06:43Apart from the sporty seats and the start button in this hideous steering wheel,
06:50which appears to have come from a Southall motorist discount store for £9.99,
06:55it just feels like a normal three-door Focus.
06:58And, um...
06:59Sounds like one, too.
07:02And, like a normal Focus, there's no cup holder.
07:05There's nowhere to put my can of piping hot coffee.
07:08Even when you bury the throttle into the Dagenham deep pile, there are still no real clues.
07:23Obviously, it's fast.
07:26I mean, anything with a two-litre turbocharged engine pumping out 212 brake horsepower
07:33isn't going to mooch around like a Saturday shop girl.
07:36But it doesn't have the same straight-line oomph as a Subaru Impreza.
07:46In fact, from 0 to 100 miles an hour, this is two seconds slower.
07:51The reason why it was so fast round our track is simple.
07:57This thing corners like it's in a cartoon.
08:02Between the front wheels, there's a new type of differential.
08:06I won't bore you with how it works, but I will tell you this.
08:09You can turn into any corner at seemingly any speed, and the front just goes.
08:16Boof!
08:17Boof!
08:18There's no fuss, no drama, no understair.
08:20Just endless grip.
08:25It's rather like one of those American marines in a Hollywood movie.
08:30No matter how suicidal the order, no matter how stupid, it just obeys.
08:34Sir, yes, sir!
08:36Run in front of all those enemy guns over there.
08:40Sir, yes, sir!
08:42Go round this hairpin bend at 150 miles an hour.
08:45Sir, yes, sir!
08:47And it gets away with it.
08:48That's the joke.
08:49It does go round hairpin bends at 150 miles an hour.
08:55I have never driven a front-wheel drive car that drives so well.
08:59I can't think of any car that grips so well.
09:01And yet this one is yours for less than £20,000.
09:04So, once again, Ford has delivered a supercar for supermarket prices.
09:10This car does what all good RS Ford should do.
09:13It brings power to the people.
09:16I mean, look at the badges you get in this one tiny area.
09:20Brembo, RS, all's racing.
09:22In clothing terms, that's like going around in a pair of trousers
09:26that have been jointly designed by Oswald Boateng, Alexander McQueen and Paul Smith.
09:32So, a fantastic car in every way, then.
09:37No, afraid not.
09:39It's not the very firm ride.
09:48I don't mind the very firm ride.
09:52In fact, the only people who are going to mind the very firm ride
09:55are people with osteoporosis.
09:57And people who are old enough to have osteoporosis
10:00will never buy a car that has a steering wheel like this.
10:04Especially as it won't pick up Radio 2.
10:11The horror.
10:13I might have to listen to Radio 1.
10:17The radio and the ride, though, are nothing
10:20compared to what happens when you turn off a nice smooth A-road like this
10:24and head for somewhere like...
10:26On a bumpy, twisty road like this one,
10:30the differential causes the front wheels to squirm and writhe.
10:34It's awful.
10:35It's like riding around on an angry horse.
10:42That's not me making it duck and weave.
10:45It's doing it itself.
10:48Relax your grip or your concentration for a second
10:51on a rural road
10:53and you'll end up in a sheep.
10:57I used to have an Escort Cosworth.
10:59I'm a huge fan of RS Fords
11:01and I respect what they've done with this.
11:03As a piece of engineering, it's brilliant.
11:06It's so good, in fact,
11:07that I'm going to let the cameraman
11:09take it back to the Top Gear bunker.
11:11And me, I'm going to go in the Subaru.
11:15Or, as they say in Wales,
11:16where, of course, they're allergic to vowels,
11:18the...
11:19What's wrong with it?
11:28I'll tell you what's wrong with it.
11:29Is that the diff, OK,
11:31when you accelerate,
11:33say, to pull out to overtake someone,
11:34you're going round a corner,
11:35and you give it full throttle,
11:36the diff just grabs the front wheels
11:38and you go in whatever direction they're pointing.
11:41You're joking.
11:41No, you have no control.
11:43You just sit there and go,
11:43I'm not strong enough to turn this wheel.
11:45And then, if you run over a camber change
11:48or even a white line,
11:49it grabs the wheels and pulls you the other way.
11:50Super torque steer.
11:51Yeah, so you lift off,
11:52and then it goes,
11:53oh, I'm not doing that anymore.
11:54And you just wobble up out.
11:55Honestly, if you had one of these, OK,
11:57and then someone said,
11:58where do you work,
11:59you'd have to say,
12:00well, wherever it takes me.
12:01The thing is,
12:01no dealers in the UK have got these as demos.
12:03So if you want to buy one,
12:04if you go into an RS,
12:05you know,
12:06I want to buy an RS Focus,
12:07but before I give you the money,
12:08I want to drive one,
12:09you can't.
12:10But I saw an app the other day,
12:11someone was saying,
12:12buy an RS Focus,
12:13what, 1,200,
12:13something like,
12:18I can't see that happening.
12:19It wouldn't have been a Ford dealer for sure,
12:20because talking to the Ford dealers,
12:21their Ford's sold till March, April.
12:24That's probably a broker.
12:25And to be honest,
12:26that's a spoof ad.
12:27It's what we used to do all the time.
12:28Really?
12:29Yeah, advertise something you haven't got.
12:30The phone will be red hot.
12:31Oh, I'm phoning.
12:32So he hasn't got any focuses to sell.
12:34I can't comment on the specific incident,
12:36but I'd be very surprised.
12:38Yeah, how does it work?
12:38You phone up and say,
12:39I want the car.
12:40What's he going to say?
12:41Oh, thanks very much for phoning.
12:42Yeah, let me take your name and number.
12:44I'm very busy.
12:45I'll phone you back.
12:45Then they've got you.
12:46And then they'll phone you back.
12:47Oh, phone you back the RS phone.
12:48OK, right, OK.
12:50Take your credit card deposit,
12:51and then we'll phone you back with a shat,
12:53all this kind of stuff.
12:54Basically, all they want you to do is phone them.
12:55And at that point,
12:56as it gets closer and closer to delivery,
12:58chances are they'll say,
12:59oh, well, actually, we've got a slight delay,
13:00and that car's been put back.
13:01But I have got the option on another one,
13:03but it's going to be close to the list price.
13:04You're not going to lose the car for £1,000, are you?
13:07And that's it.
13:07You suck it in.
13:08What are you going to do March, April,
13:10when they say,
13:10we've got your new car,
13:11but it's list price.
13:12You take it.
13:12You take it,
13:13because you go somewhere else
13:14and you're back of the queue again.
13:15Yeah.
13:16In the news this week,
13:17more news of Americans
13:18becoming very, very gullible.
13:21This is a bit worrying, actually.
13:22I'm going to quote direct from the press here.
13:24The popularity of television broadcasts
13:26of live high-speed car chases
13:28has led to a dramatic rise in criminals
13:31trying to out-race pursuing officers.
13:33This is in Los Angeles.
13:34In other words,
13:35they're surprised
13:36that when you put these guys
13:38stealing cars and driving really fast
13:40on the telly,
13:41more people do it.
13:42You know, you can buy a beeper
13:44and it goes off
13:45when a chase is happening.
13:47Yeah.
13:47You'll be,
13:48what?
13:48There's one hour
13:48that I turn over and watch that.
13:50And the Americans are surprised
13:51that more people are stealing cars to this.
13:53They've actually got people,
13:54there are cases of offenders,
13:56waving to helicopters,
13:57filming the pursuit
13:58and attempting spectacularly,
13:59get a load of this.
14:00Oh, you're untelling.
14:01And the thing is, of course,
14:02they've got those big, powerful police cars.
14:04They won't work here.
14:04I don't think.
14:05Because it would be like your beeper going off.
14:07There's a medium-speed police chase.
14:10Captain and Astra.
14:11Anyway,
14:11other items in the news.
14:13Car news.
14:15Vauxhall.
14:20I love Vauxhall.
14:22The one I particularly like
14:24is the Zephira.
14:26It's the sort of
14:27Astra-sized estate thing
14:28with seven seats
14:29and you can fold the back seats
14:30into the boot.
14:31Well, now they've done it again
14:32with an even smaller one.
14:33It's called the Meriva.
14:36An unpronounceable, meaningless name.
14:38There it is.
14:39That's a Meriva.
14:40Only got five seats,
14:41but the ones in the back
14:42will fold into the floor
14:43completely
14:44or you can take the middle one out.
14:46Oh, there's some shots of it here.
14:47Look, from the motor show
14:48which is happening at the neck
14:49in Birmingham.
14:49Apparently so, yeah.
14:50Long cars.
14:51Look, they just fold into the floor
14:52and you can take the middle ones out.
14:53It's a fantastically clever piece of design.
14:56Vauxhall,
14:56hopeless at everything,
14:57but very good at seats.
15:00No, they are.
15:01Really, I would...
15:02Family cars.
15:03These are very good.
15:04Zephira and that,
15:04very, very good.
15:05Maybe they should just
15:06make a range of furniture
15:07and forget the whole car thing.
15:09Because your seats
15:10could fold into your floor
15:11in your living room
15:12and you'd have loads of space
15:13and then if loads of people
15:14came round,
15:14you could fold them all out.
15:16That's a very good idea,
15:18Vauxhall seating
15:19in your dining room.
15:20I've got a nice car coming up.
15:21Mazda RX-8
15:23which is going to be glorious.
15:25It's a rotary engine again
15:26which of course means
15:26it's only 1.3
15:27and it develops 250 brake horsepower.
15:30Of course it's...
15:30Yeah, no.
15:31So, well, I know
15:32it's a Wankel thing, isn't it?
15:33It is.
15:35That's a Wankel thing.
15:37Just get the whole school bit...
15:37There's nothing funny about Wankel.
15:40Wankel's cool.
15:41It says here
15:42that as a safety measure,
15:45a safety measure,
15:45the rear doors,
15:47because it's got these
15:47rearwards opening doors,
15:49the rear doors
15:50can only be opened
15:51when the front doors
15:52are open
15:53as a safety measure
15:55which if you think about it,
15:57that's not a safety measure.
15:59That's a really nasty design fault.
16:01Because it's shiny side down
16:03in a ditch.
16:04You want to open
16:05all the doors pretty quick.
16:07What I like is the optimism here
16:08in the press release
16:09it says
16:09it's talking about the engine, right?
16:12With a name derived
16:13from the word Genesis
16:14derived from
16:15so not similar
16:16they've called it
16:17the Renesis.
16:19I mean, what are we going to do?
16:21Start with A.
16:22Oh, Enesis, Benesis.
16:24Could have started with a P.
16:26Could have been bad, couldn't it?
16:27How fake?
16:27That's right.
16:28That close.
16:29The VW...
16:31Tuareg.
16:33We did evolve a technique
16:35for actually saying.
16:35Yeah, yeah.
16:37Tuareg.
16:38Can you not know
16:39it's a Saharan tribe of people?
16:42The Tuareg.
16:43Yeah.
16:44I don't want to say it,
16:44but that's what it is.
16:45It's the...
16:46Tuareg.
16:48The Tuareg.
16:49I'll tell you what it is.
16:49It's a Porsche Cayenne
16:51with the word Porsche
16:52crossed out
16:53and Volkswagen
16:54written in in crayon.
16:55The most amazing thing
16:56about that
16:56is a V10 diesel engine.
16:58Yeah.
16:58Oh, I've nodded off.
17:01I've just not said diesel.
17:02Oh.
17:04That'll be fun.
17:04Oh, wait a minute.
17:05Can you say the word diesel
17:06and my seat goes
17:07into reclining?
17:12You're not going to get
17:13that fixed again now.
17:14You need...
17:15Stop everything.
17:16At the NEC this week...
17:18Actually, stop everything.
17:20I'll tell you what I saw
17:20this morning.
17:21Go on.
17:21Ready?
17:22I saw a bus
17:23on the M4 bus lane.
17:26An actual busing?
17:27First time in five years.
17:29It was an airport bus
17:31taking some stewardesses
17:32for a little light sex
17:33in London,
17:33but...
17:34It was a bus.
17:37Oh, that was...
17:37It's a bus.
17:38You can see everyone
17:39crammed into those two lanes,
17:40been there for four and a half years.
17:42Finally, one comes by.
17:43That's worth the money, then.
17:44I mean, it's being used.
17:45Yes, exactly.
17:46It's a million quid, that cost.
17:47Anyway, listen.
17:48The most important thing
17:49of the week,
17:49apart from the bus,
17:50is...
17:51MG, okay?
17:54They have got a new car
17:55at the motor show
17:56this week.
17:57Here it is.
17:59God, it's smoking badly.
18:00It's like an earlier...
18:01Anyway, this is it.
18:03Now, I think that
18:04is a fabulous-looking car.
18:06I think it's desperately,
18:08desperately ugly,
18:09but, hey,
18:10that's my view.
18:12You know those glasses
18:12you wear occasionally?
18:15Where are you on?
18:15No, I'm...
18:16Jeremy's there.
18:17There.
18:18It's all lanky fella over there.
18:20Do you like it?
18:21Uh...
18:22I don't have to see it on flesh.
18:24You see?
18:25There's too many grills.
18:26Look at that.
18:26It's like something
18:27designed by a heating engineer.
18:28It is.
18:29Anyway, it's a fantastic-looking car.
18:31It's...
18:31It's a fantastic-looking car.
18:34Let's have a show of hands.
18:36Where are we?
18:36Here's a show of hands.
18:37Who thinks it's a fantastic-looking car?
18:39Yeah.
18:40Who thinks it's ugly
18:41and got too many radiator grills?
18:43That's kind of a split, Jeremy.
18:44That's 50-50.
18:45Anyway, okay,
18:46well, I'm going to bring them round.
18:47Would you like to know
18:49about its engines?
18:50Yes.
18:51Yes?
18:51Well, it's got a Mustang V8 under there.
18:54Not...
18:55No, it's not a very good engine, that.
18:56However,
18:57you can get one,
18:58standard tune,
18:59and there's about three different levels of tune, okay?
19:01You can get one,
19:03410 horsepower.
19:04Wow.
19:05That's plenty.
19:0665,000 pounds, 410.
19:07This is MG coming back.
19:09However,
19:10they are selling a range of accessories
19:12which will allow you to take that power up to...
19:15Anyone want to guess?
19:17965 brake horsepower.
19:21That's a hundred more than Michael Schumacher has in his Ferrari.
19:25In an MG.
19:27In an MG.
19:28This is astonishing.
19:30Do you know what they...
19:31I mean,
19:32what staggers me about that car
19:33is they can't possibly have designed it
19:36in the time it's taken...
19:38since BMW left.
19:39No, they must have been.
19:40They must have had an underground production line
19:42that BMW, when they were running it,
19:44never knew about.
19:46What are they doing in separate grounds?
19:48Oh, keep it quiet.
19:49Not doing anything like it.
19:50Just...
19:51What is this vaulting horse you have here?
19:57They're all underneath.
19:58They're knocked underneath as a stove.
20:01They had one there.
20:01And it was just about BMW leaving.
20:03You know,
20:04the day where we have tried
20:05and we have failed with you people.
20:07And they're like,
20:08so-ra, mate.
20:08Take care, be good.
20:10Thanks for coming.
20:11Right.
20:12Break out that V8.
20:13Get the supercharger.
20:14Kick the nitrous.
20:15We'll get some...
20:15We're going here.
20:16Let's finally get it started.
20:17They had that lot.
20:19All those cars they've done.
20:20The ZTs and the ZRs and the ZSs.
20:23They have that lot ready to go
20:25as soon as BMW were out the door.
20:29Good on them.
20:30Right.
20:31I feel the need for some science coming on now, okay?
20:34Now, how many times in our lives
20:36are we going to have to watch
20:37some insane loon
20:39jumping over buses on a motorbike?
20:41You know, the buffer ramp.
20:42It would be much more interesting,
20:44rather than jumping buses in a bike,
20:46big wow,
20:47to see how many bikes you can jump
20:50with a bus.
20:51So we did.
20:53We must nearly all of us remember
20:55in 1978,
20:56Eddie Kidd,
20:57legendary stunt motorcyclist
20:59and the inspiration behind
21:00a million scuffed elbows
21:02and bent pushbikes,
21:03jumped 14 buses.
21:10But we wanted to do it differently.
21:12We wanted to see
21:13what would happen
21:14if you jumped a bus
21:15over 14 bikes.
21:17Now, that would be something.
21:2214 bikes.
21:23That's about 30 feet.
21:26Okay, Eddie Kidd's jump
21:28was nearer 200 feet,
21:30but then he wasn't doing it
21:31in a bus.
21:36It's a 1970s Daimler Fleetline,
21:3911-litre engine
21:40in cream and green,
21:42the Ipswich livery,
21:43and it's a beauty.
21:50And that's the setter.
21:51We honestly have no idea
21:53what's going to happen.
21:55But then that's often
21:56the way with science.
21:57Sometimes you've just got to
21:58have faith in your ideas.
22:00Ah, the joy of prolonging that.
22:12We're going to do it.
22:12We're going to do it later on,
22:13okay, so we'll put you out
22:14of your misery.
22:15But I just thought,
22:16I mean, how many bikes
22:17do you actually reckon it cleared?
22:18I reckon...
22:19I reckon...
22:20A million.
22:21A million.
22:21No, I reckon...
22:23I don't know this, actually.
22:24I reckon five.
22:26Five?
22:27Okay.
22:27Let's have a couple more
22:28suggestions.
22:29There were 14...
22:31There were 14...
22:32It was a struggle.
22:34But it went back
22:34and did them again.
22:35That wouldn't count.
22:36Right, well, look,
22:36we will take your bets
22:37over the next few moments.
22:39We'll write some down.
22:39And you can win a...
22:41something.
22:42A packet of Werther's Originals.
22:43Nice.
22:44Yeah, exactly.
22:45Now, this down here
22:47is the Noble M12 GTO.
22:50Its plastic body
22:52is made in South Africa
22:54by a company
22:54that makes plastic replicas
22:56of ACs
22:57for the American market.
22:58It's then flown
22:59in an aeroplane
23:01to Leicestershire
23:01where it's taken to a shed
23:03where a man
23:04called Lee
23:05fits it
23:06with a Mondeo engine.
23:08Not a particularly
23:09promising start, then.
23:11But it's not a bad car.
23:14It's not a bad car at all.
23:30It's quite a dainty-looking
23:32little thing
23:32but that huge wing
23:34on the back
23:34suggests it's no fairy cake.
23:36It's much the same story
23:44in here.
23:45It's very comfortable.
23:46Lovely ride.
23:47I've got tons of space.
23:49I've got air conditioning.
23:50Steering wheel adjusts.
23:51It's nicely trimmed.
23:52Look, they've even
23:53covered the roll cage
23:54in Alcantara.
23:56But listen.
23:57Sounds like Darth Vader's
24:06in the boot.
24:09Where are the bloods
24:10of the rebel base?
24:13Sister!
24:16Obi-Wan was wise
24:17to hide this from me.
24:21What an extraordinary noise!
24:24Oh, I like that!
24:28Actually, that's the sound
24:30of two turbos
24:31which have been glued
24:32onto the Mondeo engine
24:33to give it
24:34a bit more punch.
24:37A lot more, actually.
24:39If you floor the throttle,
24:40there's a bit of a pause
24:41while the turbos build up
24:42and then...
24:43Whoa-ho-ho-ho!
24:450-60.
24:46Takes 4.4 seconds
24:48and then it'll wheeze
24:50its way to 165 miles an hour
24:52which it's doing now!
24:56This is a quick car.
24:59But actually,
25:00it's not the power
25:01or the looks
25:02which set the Noble apart.
25:04It's the way
25:05it goes round corners.
25:06You've probably heard
25:19people prattling on
25:21about the Ferrari 355
25:24or the Lotus Elise.
25:25Well, you've probably heard
25:26me prattling on
25:27about them, actually.
25:28But this is in a different league.
25:31It doesn't feel like
25:32the steering wheel
25:33is connected to the tyres
25:34by anything so mundane
25:36as mechanics or engineering.
25:39It's like driving
25:40using the force.
25:43Use the force,
25:44journey!
25:45Use the force!
25:50And it absolutely
25:52will not understeer.
25:55There's just tons
25:56and tons
25:57and tons of grip
25:58and then
25:58when it does let go
26:01it's the back
26:02which just gently,
26:04calmly
26:04steps out of line.
26:08You know,
26:08I've driven
26:09some pretty good cars
26:11in my time.
26:13Well, to be perfectly honest,
26:14I've driven every car
26:15in my time.
26:15But this,
26:17as far as handling
26:18is concerned,
26:19purely as a driver's car,
26:22I think it's my favourite.
26:24I really do.
26:25Listen to that sound.
26:37I don't know
26:38another car like this.
26:40Just so love it.
26:43I shall go after Skywalker.
26:46Get me my noble.
26:49It's better than stuff
26:50costing ten times as much.
26:53£40,000?
26:53It's a bargain.
27:03Now, you may have noticed
27:05in that film just there
27:06that the brake lights
27:07were flicking on and off
27:08all the time.
27:08That wasn't me
27:09left foot braking.
27:10I don't know how to
27:10left foot braking.
27:11If I tried,
27:12I'd crash.
27:13So there's obviously
27:14a loose connection.
27:15And there are some
27:16other things wrong with it.
27:16Look at this, for instance.
27:17To open the front
27:18or the back,
27:18you need a screwdriver.
27:19Then we've got the window.
27:21That's noble's idea
27:22of down.
27:24And you should see
27:25its turning circle.
27:27Right.
27:27This is a, well,
27:28the V word,
27:29the double V word,
27:29in fact,
27:30doing a U-turn.
27:31There we are.
27:31That's how much space
27:32it needs.
27:33Here's the noble.
27:35Full lock.
27:36And...
27:37Oh, Lord.
27:38That's not completely
27:42brilliant, is it?
27:43You need Belgium
27:44to turn round in.
27:47Jeremy, stop it.
27:49That's dirty.
27:50Sort of not very nice
27:50to look at, actually.
27:52Seriously,
27:52apart from the turning
27:53circle,
27:53which is disastrous,
27:55is it really that good?
27:57Yes.
27:57Do we all like it?
27:58Yeah.
27:59Everyone?
27:59Anyone not like it?
28:01Fantastic car.
28:03It's that good.
28:03Well,
28:04every fast car
28:05that we test here
28:05is going to go around
28:06our test track
28:07and set a lap time
28:08so we can evaluate
28:08them all against
28:09one another
28:09and it's all fair
28:10so the Stig drives them.
28:11The times go up there
28:12on our power car
28:13lap time board
28:14so let's see
28:15what the Stig did with it.
28:18The problems
28:19of the British weather.
28:20Look at that track.
28:21It's absolutely soaking wet
28:23but the Stig
28:24has no fear at all
28:25as he heads on down
28:26to that nasty little jump
28:28just before the first corner.
28:30It really unsettles
28:31a bad chassis
28:31but it won't
28:32unsettle that.
28:32Believe me.
28:33Look at it.
28:34When he goes,
28:34how fast was that?
28:35That was 100 miles an hour
28:36pretty much.
28:37No, it wasn't.
28:38Yes, it was almost
28:38100 miles an hour
28:40through that first corner
28:41down to 60.
28:41Coming up through here
28:42this is going to be tricky
28:43because the back's
28:44going to go very,
28:45very light.
28:46Great lights on.
28:47That doesn't mean anything.
28:48Through there.
28:49Look, not even...
28:51What is he listening to
28:53in there?
28:54You want cash there?
28:56Sound of silence.
28:58And here we go
28:59down the main straight
28:5997, 100, 102, 105.
29:01That was 105 miles an hour.
29:04Let's remember
29:04the Ford Focus earlier
29:05was only doing 99
29:06and that was on a dry track.
29:08Right, through the Hammerhead
29:09no need to worry
29:10about understeer there.
29:11It doesn't do that
29:12even when it's raining.
29:13And down the main straight
29:14great hard
29:15because he's never
29:16going to get through
29:16the follow-through
29:17flat out.
29:17Is he?
29:18Is he 94?
29:19No, he's lifted
29:20but he's got 100 miles an hour.
29:22That is seriously quick.
29:25That is so fast.
29:26This is going to be
29:27a fast lap time
29:28even on a wet track.
29:33Now he's on to the main straight.
29:35And what speed
29:36we're going to do
29:36at this speed?
29:37106.
29:38That was 106 miles an hour.
29:39And the braking time
29:40that's three times
29:41the braking distance.
29:42To turn it to Bacharach Bend
29:43he's going to have to brake
29:45again for Carpenters.
29:46Is he going to get that tail out?
29:47Is he going to keep it
29:47nice and smooth?
29:48Maximum power?
29:49And across the line
29:50in one minute
29:5232.9
29:54on a wet track.
29:55Do you think it's brave
29:56the Stig
29:57or just a bit stupid?
29:58It's a racing driver.
29:59It doesn't understand fear.
30:00I really wouldn't do that.
30:02Just that's...
30:02I'm going to round that up
30:04because I'm going to put it
30:05to 133
30:05but I'm going to put a W
30:06because it was wet
30:07and then we'll remember.
30:08And you know
30:09the extraordinary thing is
30:10wet
30:10and this is a 40,000 pound car
30:12and the Zonda
30:13that was
30:14a 310,000 pound car.
30:16It's not at all bad, is it?
30:18It's quite an achievement.
30:18Now, let's talk about rock stars.
30:20Most of them today
30:21wouldn't know a good car
30:22if it offered to pleasure them
30:24in the back of a limo.
30:25All they want really
30:26is to get invited
30:28on Anton Lard
30:29and be picked up
30:29in a sponsored Citroen.
30:31They're pathetic.
30:32But my guest tonight
30:33he's a proper rock star.
30:35You gave him
30:36a car like this
30:37he'd probably lose it
30:39or drive it into his moat.
30:41Ladies and gentlemen
30:41Jamiroquai front man
30:43J.K.
30:48How are you?
30:52I'm very well.
30:53Have a seat.
30:57Actually, you are
30:57quite a car fan, aren't you?
30:59Just a bit.
31:01Really serious.
31:01Yeah.
31:02Because we were going
31:02through the office
31:03the other day
31:03and I was working
31:04on my perfect garage
31:05and it would have
31:05a Mercedes Pullman
31:07Ferrari 550
31:09Lamborghini Miura
31:11SV.
31:12SV.
31:13Of course.
31:13You got any of those?
31:14Yeah.
31:15All of them.
31:18And what else?
31:19There's a 360 Spyder
31:21which is outside
31:22DB5
31:23Concourse 2002 Turbo
31:2674.
31:27That one actually
31:28interests me.
31:29What have you got?
31:30A 2002.
31:31I've always had
31:322002s.
31:33I started off
31:34my first car was a 1602
31:35which is a little
31:36underpowered job.
31:37Well, your very first
31:38ever car.
31:38My very ever first car
31:39which I brought off
31:39two old ladies
31:41with some letters
31:42with it
31:42and said
31:42we did 1500 miles
31:44in it this year.
31:45We're going to do 1500
31:46miles a week,
31:47you know.
31:47And that was a 72
31:49car.
31:49I had all the original
31:50stickers and everything
31:51and then I went up
31:52to TI's
31:53Touring International,
31:54Touring Injection
31:54Internationals.
31:55Then I had a dog
31:56of a turbo
31:56because some of them
31:57are real dogs.
31:58I only did about
31:581572 of them
32:00and now I've got
32:02a concourse
32:02XBMW car club
32:04winner.
32:04Oh, a really good one.
32:05Because you're more
32:06of a fan of like
32:07the 3 litre
32:07CSLs.
32:09I used to have
32:10an original Batmobile,
32:11yeah.
32:11Oh really, a 3.2?
32:13I had a 3.2 CSL,
32:14yeah.
32:14See, how boring
32:15can we get
32:16on numbers here?
32:17Yeah, yeah.
32:17Where did it all
32:18come from,
32:18your love of cars?
32:20My mum had
32:21a Triumph Herald
32:241360
32:24convertible.
32:26Best turning circle
32:28of any car.
32:31Well, there was
32:32something in its favour.
32:33Yeah, no, it was
32:34I just spent
32:35most, I spent
32:36all my life
32:37on the road
32:37and, you know,
32:39when you're in the back,
32:40I mean, in those days
32:41they didn't really,
32:41you know, not everything
32:43had a motorway
32:43and, you know,
32:45I spent the whole time
32:47on the back of the car
32:47and just looking
32:48on the car
32:48and I knew every car
32:49on the road.
32:50But this is when
32:50you were a kid?
32:51That was when I was tiny.
32:52I mean, I was about
32:53four and five.
32:54I knew every car
32:54on the road,
32:55everything.
32:55Because your mum
32:55was an entertainer.
32:56Now I don't know
32:56anything because
32:57they all look the same.
32:57Your mum was an entertainer
32:58as all, wasn't she?
32:59Yeah, yeah.
32:59Mum was just saying
33:00it was a lot of miles
33:01all the time.
33:02Anyway, listen,
33:02we've got a little game.
33:04Yes.
33:05I haven't seen this
33:06because I'm going
33:06to play it with you
33:07because I was,
33:08I could say Maserati
33:09before I could say Mum.
33:10Right.
33:11But we're going to put
33:11some pictures of bits
33:12of cars on the screen.
33:13Oh, I like these games.
33:15Don't join in, okay?
33:15I love these games.
33:16We're going to see
33:17if we can see
33:18what sort of car it is.
33:19Okay.
33:19Because I'm such a sucker
33:20for this.
33:20I sit and watch
33:21old 70s movies
33:22like the Sweeney.
33:23Oh, oh, oh, look.
33:24Okay, then.
33:25Here's one for you.
33:26What's that?
33:26That's part of a Ferrari Enzo.
33:28It is.
33:29It's the rear wing
33:29on a Ferrari Enzo.
33:30We right?
33:32Yes?
33:33I thank you.
33:35Yes, you can speak.
33:37Ferrari Enzo.
33:38Yay, all right.
33:39One nil to you.
33:39Go on, then.
33:40Second one.
33:40Coming soon
33:41at a highway near you.
33:43I've got to have it.
33:44Anything go...
33:44Why?
33:45Why?
33:46It's not a pretty car.
33:47It's a stunning looking thing.
33:49You know why?
33:50I mean, because...
33:51Because, you know,
33:52that's...
33:53There's going to come
33:53the day they won't
33:54make cars like that anymore.
33:55So let's not even go there.
33:56Let's bring up the next one.
33:57What is it?
34:00Zzzz.
34:02It's a Mini.
34:03The new Mini.
34:04If that is...
34:05He's so good at this.
34:11I told you I like this game.
34:13You didn't believe me, did you?
34:15No, no.
34:15Do you know something
34:16really funny?
34:17Absolutely true.
34:18We didn't tell you
34:19we were going to do this.
34:20It's not prepared.
34:21I didn't know
34:21we were going to do this.
34:22Come on, let's have another one.
34:25Oh, that could be lots of things.
34:26It's a golf.
34:27Oh, my word.
34:28Actually, that's not a golf.
34:29It's not a golf.
34:31What is it?
34:32A what?
34:35If that's a vectra,
34:36I said the word.
34:40Oh, I still don't know.
34:42It is.
34:42It's a vectra.
34:44That is a phenomenon.
34:46It's a phenomenon.
34:47It's a phenomenon.
34:47It's a phenomenon.
34:47Oh, hit it there.
34:48Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
34:48It's a phenomenon.
34:49Ladies and gentlemen.
34:49Ladies and gentlemen.
34:50I believe this car is a phenomenon.
34:52Phenomenon.
34:53Yeah.
34:53It's not really a phenomenon, is it?
34:55I mean...
34:56It's rubbish.
34:56It's...
34:57It's...
34:57It's not as bad as the other one.
35:01It's just rubbish.
35:02Anyway, last one.
35:04I'm on nought, which means we will be swapping jobs.
35:06That means we swap cars, houses, and have your Enzo.
35:12And have the Enzo.
35:13And have your house with a moat.
35:14And have a moat, which you, too, can drive your G-Wagon into.
35:18Have you driven your car?
35:18You have driven a car into a moat?
35:20I did, yeah.
35:21I got it all wrong.
35:21Oh, this is fantastic.
35:23Well done.
35:24I came round the corner in the G-Wagon, and I said to the two guys I was taking round the land.
35:28It was 80 acres, you know.
35:30And I got...
35:30I started off really nicely, and I said, well, you want to go?
35:32And he said, no, it's all right, you know the land.
35:34I mean, famous last words, you know, you know the land.
35:36It's all right, I'll let you do it.
35:37Came round the corner, 60, G-Wagon, and a big old thumping great Vermax G-500.
35:43And I looked, oh, 60, oh, oh, oh, dear.
35:45Oh, understand.
35:45Oh, oh, oh, oh, look.
35:46Splosh.
35:47Bank.
35:47Oh, river.
35:48And the guy looked round at me, he just went, what are you doing?
35:58And then I looked round again, and then everyone went to the big big building and went, we're
36:01sinking.
36:03And that was that, you know what I mean?
36:06Let's have a look at this picture.
36:09That's just a black hole.
36:11What's that?
36:12What's that there?
36:13I don't know.
36:14I'm trying to work this out.
36:14Is anyone here, you know, this is Top Gear, they all come to a gardening program.
36:19What is it?
36:20What's that?
36:22What?
36:22Lamborghini.
36:23What?
36:24Lamborghini what?
36:25Mercielago.
36:26Mercielago.
36:26I must say, that did cross my mind.
36:28It's something to do with the vents that come up, isn't it?
36:30What, the slidey things?
36:31Can you pull back?
36:32Let's have a look.
36:32Oh, yeah, all right.
36:33Yeah, yeah, yeah.
36:34Clear as day.
36:35There's that little, there you go.
36:37There it is.
36:37There it is.
36:37Mercielago.
36:38Oh, God.
36:40I tell you what, he did well, though, with the little square.
36:42He did.
36:43I'm impressed by that.
36:44That's a great car.
36:45Don't show us up next time, yeah?
36:47Well done, you.
36:48Have you driven one?
36:49No, I haven't yet.
36:50Because you are a fairly wicked driver.
36:52You know, because of the work, you know, and the type of job I do, which I want to get
36:56rid of and swap for this one, now.
36:58I'm going to swap it for your job.
37:00Anytime.
37:00Yeah.
37:01I'll swap with you anytime.
37:02You wouldn't like it, I can assure you, but, you know.
37:04No, your fans wouldn't like it.
37:06No, yeah, that's true.
37:07They wouldn't like it.
37:11Who's that croaking?
37:12What's that?
37:13Um, no, um, you know, I don't get as much track time as I'd like to, you know, and I mean...
37:20What's the fastest you've ever been, then?
37:22I don't like to say this because everybody thinks I'm just some thug on the road, but I
37:25did do Rome to Calais in 13 hours, isn't it?
37:27190.
37:29Interesting.
37:30That's really good, actually.
37:32Did the mental...
37:32Yeah, Rome to Calais.
37:34That's really properly fast.
37:35The needle didn't drop below 140, really.
37:38Even in the petrol stations.
37:39Yeah, in the petrol stations.
37:41I presume you visited a few.
37:42I visited a few, yeah.
37:44Well, it's always that balance, isn't it?
37:45Do I go a bit slower and not visit so many?
37:47No, go faster.
37:48And then you wonder why that bloke in the Morris Minor is ahead of you still.
37:50Yeah.
37:51You know, because the other thing is that every petrol station you stop in Europe, you go,
37:55oh, I'll have that cuddly toy, and there's an interesting interior light thing on the
37:58thing, and I'll have one of those, and even though I've got ten of them at home, and something
38:01to stick on the window, and all this rubbish.
38:03Anyway, of course, as you know, you haven't just come down here to chat and play silly
38:08kids' games.
38:08No.
38:09The reason that we have a celebrity guest every week is so that they go out and play
38:14star in a reasonably priced car.
38:16They drive round our track in our Suzuki Liana.
38:19Now, you did that earlier today, yes?
38:21I did.
38:22Tell me something quite funny.
38:23We had Harry Enfield here last week.
38:24He drove the car in standard tune.
38:27Heard it was JK.
38:28We put a roll cage in it.
38:30We're going to be seeing later on how you did.
38:33Yes, okay.
38:33Actually, have you driven the RS Focus?
38:36I have.
38:37I was given one just last week, yes.
38:40Did you like it?
38:42I can't say I did like it much.
38:45Really?
38:46No.
38:47You found all that...
38:48Oh, yeah, I mean, it was like, oh, oh, oh, there he goes.
38:51Oh, there he goes again.
38:52Absolutely terrifying.
38:53It's quite, you know, I mean, nicely put together.
38:57Nice thing.
38:58Looks nice.
38:59I like the wheels.
39:00It's RS's.
39:01We're going to go on and talk a bit more about RS's.
39:03We were talking about them earlier, because what interests me, by putting those big
39:06engines in, like, normal family cars, it was like when Marks and Spencer started selling
39:11pumpkin and ricotta soup.
39:13You could go in there and think, I can afford this exotic food.
39:17That's great.
39:17I can do it.
39:18And that's what it was like with RS's.
39:19If you think about it, whenever a TV producer wants to sort of portray his detective as
39:25soft and gentle, like Bergerac gets that old triumph and Morse gets the jag, but then
39:30when he wants him to be a hard, gritty, you know, tough guy...
39:33Professionals type guy.
39:33Yeah, you get the Professionals and you get Spender.
39:36The thing about the Professionals is that I still maintain, even now, over many years
39:48down the line, it still has an effect.
39:49If you put someone in an RS Ford, horns grow out of their...
39:54Look, I'll tell you what happened, okay?
39:55All these RS people, they came down here this morning.
39:57We said, no, no, we're going to have a drive around the track, if you like.
39:59This is their idea of a drive around the track.
40:10Look at this.
40:10What's this?
40:11Is he going to drive through here quietly?
40:13No.
40:14No.
40:14No.
40:15Minor amount of square.
40:17It's quite funny how we never said drive fast.
40:20We said, we just want to get some soft.
40:21No, just drive around.
40:22This is their idea of normal driving.
40:23Just in here.
40:24Look at that.
40:24Look at that.
40:29Excuse me.
40:29This is your Capri, isn't it?
40:31Yeah.
40:32You're wanted on the phone.
40:34Yeah, it's just over there.
40:36Just...
40:36Okay, I'll...
40:36Oh, thanks.
40:40He's never driven one.
40:42Do you actually get...
40:43Jeremy, that's the men's car!
40:45He's looking for the phone!
40:47Jeremy, you didn't drive this, the RS200, did you?
41:01No, I didn't.
41:02No.
41:03Probably just as well for it, really, because they're quite rare.
41:05And you have driven one.
41:07I did in the summer, actually.
41:08Yeah, for a video I was making, I did.
41:10Didn't go so well, did it, Jeremy?
41:12Would you like to have a look?
41:13I think we should.
41:14Yeah!
41:15Let's have a look.
41:17The RS200 was always a tricky car to drive.
41:21It's never real.
41:24It feels like you're in control.
41:29Here comes the power.
41:30Here it comes.
41:30Oh, wow, that's...
41:31Awesome.
41:32You can't clap him.
41:52You can't clap him for that.
41:54There's a secret thing.
41:55I've been humiliated by JK.
41:58Now you've humiliated...
41:59And how long after setting off did you do that, Jeremy?
42:02Not long.
42:03No, it was the first corner, wasn't it?
42:04It was the first corner.
42:06And you broke it.
42:06I did break it.
42:08Anyway, we're going to move on now, okay?
42:09We're going to humiliate some other people.
42:12When we were putting this series together,
42:14we were looking for new...
42:15God knows how we ended up with you, actually,
42:16but we were looking for a lot of new presenters.
42:18People send their tapes in, right?
42:19Now, this one is from a chap called Gaz, okay?
42:22Let's show you what Gaz's tape looked like.
42:24Hello, and welcome to Gaz on Motors.
42:27Today we're going to be looking at instrumentation.
42:30Speedos in particular.
42:31You can tell this isn't...
42:32Oh, he's still going off.
42:33Because, apart from, this one only has the odd meter.
42:37Whereas the Mini Cooper had both odd meter and tread.
42:40It actually has two spools mounted.
42:42In the case, one here and one here.
42:46Gaz was heroically dull, wasn't he?
42:50So, you see, you just got the job, but it was close.
42:53And this week's Insider Dealing got a couple of real bargains for you.
42:56What are they?
42:56Ah, well, last week's Jeep Citroens.
42:58We've got another one for you.
43:00Um, C5.
43:01Not a bad car, but it's up against a lot of really good ones.
43:05And, um...
43:06It is quite a bad car.
43:07It's not that bad.
43:08It's not.
43:09It's great spec.
43:10Well, it's like treading in dog dirt.
43:11It's not as bad as having your leg chopped off,
43:13but it's still pretty unpleasant.
43:15Okay.
43:15Well, the base model, the petrol-based model,
43:17just isn't selling.
43:18The car's about 14 and a half grand new retail.
43:21I was offered one this week, brand new, for 10 grand.
43:2410,000 quid?
43:25Yeah, 10 grand.
43:261.8.
43:27You've got air-con, you've got CD,
43:28electric windows, power steering, trick suspension.
43:3110 grand.
43:33Rover 75.
43:34Not a bad car.
43:35Probably the best Rover they've made for a number of years.
43:37Not much competition.
43:38Not much competition.
43:402-litre V6.
43:41Good engine, but they've just dropped it.
43:42They've replaced it with a 1.8 turbo.
43:44It's a little bit more efficient on fuel,
43:46lower emissions and so forth.
43:48What it does mean is dealers with 2-litre V6s
43:50are out there doing a deal.
43:52So if you want a cheap Rover 75
43:54and you can find a 2-litre V6,
43:56you're going to get a bargain.
43:57How much of a bargain?
43:58Talk to your dealer.
43:59There's no official figures,
44:00but they will do a deal, guarantee.
44:01Big deals.
44:02Big deals.
44:03Oh, nice.
44:03Used car bargain.
44:04If anybody here fancies a supermini,
44:06now is the time to buy one.
44:08Things like Citroen Saxos, Fiat, Syngentos,
44:11it's all the kind of small stuff.
44:13And there's a very good reason for it.
44:15Because this is the time of year
44:16that the dealers change their courtesy cars,
44:18the loan cars,
44:19the kind of thing you get
44:19when your car's in for service.
44:20And they tend to run superminis.
44:22They're normally...
44:23Why do they change them this time of year?
44:24Well, it's a good reason for it.
44:26They build those cars in Europe.
44:28Most of them are built in Europe.
44:29And in July and August,
44:30they shut the factory and retooled
44:32to prepare for the new models,
44:34next year models.
44:36This is the time of year
44:37the new models hit the UK.
44:39So basically what they're doing is changing.
44:40So they bought them a year ago.
44:41Yeah.
44:42Now they're flogging them on.
44:43Yeah, flogging them on.
44:43There'll be base cars,
44:45three doors, non-metallics
44:46and that kind of thing.
44:47But you can get a 12-month-old car
44:49for four grand.
44:51Four grand.
44:52Four?
44:52That's seriously cheap.
44:53That is cheap, actually.
44:55Another used car bargain at the moment,
44:57BMW 7 Series.
44:58You know what the new one's like.
44:59Pretty ugly.
45:01New sales on that are not good.
45:02But the impact of that is
45:04the new one's made the old one
45:05look really, really old.
45:06Really old-fashioned.
45:08So the prices are dropping big style.
45:09Really?
45:10Really, really dropping massively.
45:12If you've got one, it's bad news
45:13because it's going to be worth peanuts.
45:15But if you want to go and buy one,
45:15it's great news.
45:16Give you a little example.
45:17This car was offered this week,
45:187 to 8i,
45:19with a bit of spec on it,
45:202001 on a Y.
45:21So that car's 18 months old.
45:23The guy paid nearly 46 grand for it new.
45:26Today he's selling that car,
45:27without doing a deal,
45:28without even negotiating,
45:29he'll take 24 grand for it.
45:31It's a half-priced car.
45:33Yeah.
45:34Do we feel sorry for him?
45:35No.
45:36No.
45:37What a bit of luck.
45:38And final thing,
45:39a bit of a used car tip, really.
45:41If you're a person that does low mileage,
45:43the chances are,
45:44when you go to look for another used car,
45:46you're kind of fascinated.
45:47You want to buy another car
45:48with low mileage.
45:50It's absolutely the wrong thing to do.
45:51If you do low mileage,
45:52the thing to do is actually buy a car
45:53with massively high mileage.
45:55Reason being,
45:56the cars with over 60,000 miles at the moment
45:58are being hit in the trade big time.
46:00So they are so cheap,
46:01it's untrue.
46:02Give you an example,
46:03you could go out and buy a 97 P-plate,
46:05Mercedes estate car,
46:06C200,
46:07something like that,
46:08with average mileage,
46:0950,000 miles,
46:10it would cost you nine and a half grand.
46:11Yeah.
46:12Okay, not a bad car.
46:13Yeah.
46:13Or you could buy one with higher mileage,
46:15say 80,000 miles,
46:16and you could get a 2,000 model year,
46:17a car three years newer,
46:19for the same money.
46:20Really?
46:21Absolutely.
46:21So if you're doing low mileage,
46:23you run it for a couple of years.
46:23Because those engines will last 150,000,
46:26probably even 200,000 miles.
46:27Absolutely.
46:28This is the thing.
46:28So don't be afraid of the mileage,
46:29basically.
46:3080,000,
46:3190,000 mile car,
46:32you're still going to have 60,000 miles left in it.
46:33So that means,
46:34in the last two minutes,
46:35you've saved everyone
46:36about 25,000 pounds.
46:38Hopefully, yeah.
46:39Thanks very much for that.
46:40Now, Jay,
46:42good news.
46:43You were once told
46:44that you could be a rally driver.
46:46Now we're going to find out
46:47how good you are,
46:48or bad,
46:49on a track.
46:49We've got the tape.
46:50Okay.
46:51You want to see it?
46:52Might as well.
46:53Run it.
47:01Okay.
47:03I like this third gear business.
47:05I like this third gear business.
47:07I must get this right.
47:11I must learn to drive properly.
47:16And it's a turn in there.
47:18It's there.
47:18It's there.
47:19That's better.
47:20That's better.
47:21That's better.
47:23That's better.
47:24That's there all the way.
47:28That's the one.
47:29Ooh.
47:32Don't be punished.
47:33Don't be tempted
47:34to put too much power on.
47:36That's beautiful.
47:38I'm going to get this down
47:39even further.
47:40Getting out of reach
47:41of Clarkson and his henchmen.
47:44This is the one.
47:45This is the punisher.
47:4876, 80, 80, 80, 82.
47:51Bang it in there.
47:54And flat we go.
47:57That's flat in third.
47:58Come on.
47:58In third?
47:59Yeah, but...
47:59Right in the fourth gear corner.
48:01Yeah, but then you'd never keep the revs up.
48:03No, you keep speed up.
48:05And flat through there.
48:05Flat!
48:06Flat through there.
48:06Flat!
48:08Okay, how fast did you get along here?
48:10This is a crucial bit.
48:11Well, I think...
48:12I don't know.
48:13I'm tired.
48:1387, I once hit there.
48:15Have you ever driven anything as cheap as this?
48:17Listen, before we say this is cheap, okay?
48:20This is 10,000 pounds for that level.
48:229,995.
48:24Oh, I saw it.
48:24And here we go.
48:25And you're across the line.
48:26Across the line.
48:26In the 9,995 car.
48:28And I...
48:29Oh!
48:29Hold on.
48:30What are you doing here?
48:31I don't know.
48:31What happens?
48:32Have you lost it?
48:34Oh, look at that.
48:36Ladies and gentlemen, a handbrake turn.
48:37So I've beaten you today.
48:40I've beaten you, Tony.
48:41Pax and under tight.
48:43Now, these are the times so far.
48:47Can we get a camera nice and tight on, Jay?
48:49Because I've got your lap time, okay?
48:52Are we going to get nice and tight?
48:55Jay, Kay, okay?
48:58One minute.
49:0048.1 seconds.
49:09That's astonishing.
49:12Get it up there.
49:14Get it up there.
49:14Straighten it up.
49:15Straighten it up.
49:18Genuinely happy about that.
49:20It's not that I'm a sore loser or anything.
49:23You're just gutted.
49:25You're smarting inside.
49:27I'm hurt.
49:28I know.
49:28So hurt that I'm going to humiliate you by showing everyone a little clip
49:32of you doing some practice in the Suzuki.
49:35Ladies and gentlemen, Jay, Kay!
49:39Ladies and gentlemen, Jay, Kay!
49:47Right, right.
49:57I'm going to say it.
50:00I'm going to do this.
50:01I'm going to say it.
50:03I don't like all our S's.
50:05Okay?
50:06I'm sorry.
50:07I just don't.
50:08There were some I couldn't get on with.
50:10Let me explain.
50:10The whole 80s RS thing, huge bonnet scoops and spoilers.
50:32I don't know, it all kind of left me behind a bit, left me a bit cold.
50:36No, for me, the RS legend wears sideburns and a rally jacket.
50:40So I look back in lust at this, the Ford RS 1800.
50:46It was only made for two years and was killed off in 1977.
50:51Of course, you might have missed that.
50:5377 was quite a busy year.
51:07I was six and I howled with desire every time I saw one.
51:12God, I wanted one.
51:14And no, I didn't just want one.
51:16I really, really needed one.
51:19It had absolutely everything you could want.
51:21Alloy wheels, Recaro seats, tons of racing pedigree, even a wing on the back.
51:27Wow.
51:31If all that sounds a bit meek next to today's rather more spectacular stuff,
51:36let me put it into context for you.
51:40The RS 1800 is Ford's most successful rally car ever.
51:45It's still used today in clubmen and international rallies.
51:49And it's still used.
51:51This had proper credibility, real pedigree.
52:09It didn't earn its stripes joyriding,
52:11and you didn't judge its success by the size of the insurance claims.
52:14I always, always wanted to drive one, and I'm going to drive this one.
52:20Oh, boy.
52:20This is every bit as delicious as I thought it would be.
52:34It's a machine, a proper machine.
52:36It's got moving parts, and it's not ashamed of it.
52:39It may only boast 115 brake horsepower now.
52:43Sure, you can get scooters with that much.
52:45But underneath at the front, there's an 1800cc double overhead cam, 16-valve, ammo-blocked Cosworth engine.
52:52And in 1975, that was the equivalent of cruise missile technology.
52:56This was clever, high-tech stuff.
52:59Really, it was.
53:06Mind you, as soon as you go through anything like a chicane, you're well aware of the fact that we've got old car springs at the back.
53:12Body control really wasn't what it is today.
53:154.9 million escorts were sold in the UK, of which 109 were RS-1800s.
53:29That tells you something about the rarity.
53:31There are 25 of them left running today.
53:34Interestingly, two of the 109 made were red, of which one survived.
53:39So if you're digging around in your shed, and you find a red one, look after it.
53:44It's worth a couple of quid.
53:51See, mark my words, there is going to be a huge market for 1970s cars,
53:57because people like us grew up with them, couldn't afford them then, couldn't drive them then.
54:04Now we can, and if we're lucky, we can afford to buy them.
54:09Do you know, in an odd way, it's getting to feel like an antique,
54:27and I don't mean because of the age.
54:29I think it's to do with the controls.
54:32They're somehow finer, more delicate to operate.
54:34They haven't got that engineered-in chunkiness you get in modern car controls.
54:38But don't let the antique thing fool you.
54:40In its day, that was a potent force.
54:42That, if you ask me, is a proper RS.
54:48See, I like RSs as well.
54:51Can I explain something about that?
54:52I wasn't really going, well, I wasn't going very fast.
54:56No, you weren't.
54:57No, well...
54:57I thought you were being a bit light in your loafers.
54:59The guy who owned it was there.
55:01And he's really big and scary, so I drove like Sister Wendy.
55:05I'm sorry.
55:06Anyway, action, serious action now.
55:08Buses jumping over motorbikes.
55:10There's no particularly good reason why we did this.
55:12I don't think you need one.
55:13It's just a fun thing to do.
55:14So here's what happens, finally, we promise you this,
55:17when you try and jump a bus over 14 motorbikes.
55:50Oh, you're laughing.
56:05It's your license plate.
56:06Oh, that was almost too much fun.
56:14If anybody's interested, do you want to know how many bikes it cleared?
56:17I do.
56:17Yeah, how many did it clear?
56:18It did actually clear three.
56:21Three bikes.
56:22Who said three?
56:23Did anybody say that?
56:24Who said three?
56:25You said three.
56:26Werther's Originals.
56:28Well done.
56:30Three.
56:31Great.
56:32Clear them.
56:34Destroyed 14 others.
56:35Oh, no, I hate motorbikes.
56:37I do a load of them.
56:38If I'd have been driving the bus, I'd have backed up.
56:40Reverse them.
56:41There we go.
56:41That's got those three as well.
56:42And that, sadly, is all we've got time for this week.
56:49More motors next Tuesday at the same time.
56:52While up next on BBC Prime, will humans one day live forever?
56:56We'll examine the possibilities next.
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