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00:00Υπότιτλοι AUTHORWAVE
00:30Some of them got stuck in the ashtray, some of them suffocated.
00:33In an accident, some of them died.
00:36We used to put the fat ones at the front to act as a sort of primitive airbag.
00:41But nowadays, you wouldn't dream of putting a child in a car unless it had its own monogrammed, personalised airbag and its own seatbelt.
00:51So that means each child needs its own seat.
00:56And that's where one of these comes in.
00:58A people carrier.
01:02This is the new Renault Espace.
01:06It's the latest version of the car which, in Europe at least, started the people carrier ball rolling.
01:12Like all new Renaults, it has odd, angular, futuristic styling which conceals an odd, angular, futuristic interior.
01:24But no amount of Star Trek trickery can mask the car's sole function, to be as practical as possible in the smallest possible space.
01:38There are endless permutations to the way you can arrange the seats, but the upshot is that all your children and all their friends can travel in comfort and safely.
01:52So there we are. The Renault Espace. Bit pricey, but the perfect family car.
02:00Except for one small thing. May I draw your attention at this point to our cool wall.
02:06We divide all cars into Sub-Zero, that stuff like the Vanquish, cool, uncool and then seriously uncool which is the Beetle, the Chrysler PT Cruiser and anything with a Skoda badge.
02:17with a Skoda badge. Now, this is a handful of people carriers, okay? And they all go in uncool. Doesn't matter which one you've got, Neospace, uncool.
02:27Citroen C8, uncool? Uncool, definitely. Seat, Alhambra, uncool. Peugeot 807, uncool. Toyota Previa, uncool.
02:39What's that? Chrysler, thing. Voyager, thank you, uncool. What's that then? Hyundai, what's the Hyundai people?
02:47carrier called? What? The Hyundai seriously uncool. You may have a point on that.
02:54Kia? Kia garbage. No, you're right. Put it there. What the hell? You see, the thing about people carriers is, they're not like normal cars.
03:03Normal cars, you buy one because you want one. These, they're like washing up bowls. You buy them because you need them.
03:09And that's where these come in. Off-roaders. You still get seven seats, so there's plenty of room.
03:15and you get cool looks. And it's as safe as travelling to school in Fort Knox.
03:21Just look what happens when you crash a 4x4 into a normal car. Look at that. The normal car, absolutely destroyed.
03:30You wouldn't want to be in that. If you were going to be anywhere, you'd want to be in the 4x4.
03:34So there we are. Big Tonka toy like that. The perfect family car.
03:39It is. Well, look, this one, obviously, it's a discovery. It'll break down.
03:42Well, quite, absolutely. Watch this, OK? I'm going to close this door. Watch the glove box lid.
03:46It opens.
03:47Hey, hey! It's like a clown's car. I reckon if you start it, the wings will just spring off.
03:51So, not this one. That one. Toyota Land Cruiser.
03:55In the leafier parts of Britain, the Land Cruiser has become standard-issue school-run transport.
04:08It has everything you could possibly want. Legendary Toyota reliability, eight seats, and enough boot space for a cameraman.
04:17I watched it this morning.
04:25This, however, is the new Toyota Land Cruiser. It's more of the same, only it's bigger, better-looking, and better-equipped.
04:37It also has a better ride. For a big off-roader, it's pretty comfortable.
04:42And if you go for the diesel engine, which you must, really, it's quite economical, too.
04:49Good boy. Well done.
04:51Come on.
04:52Morning.
04:55Inside, you get a blend of wood and metal.
05:00There are lots of knobs, too, and satellite navigation.
05:05Which means that for £36,000, it's not that value.
05:11So, there we are. The new Toyota Land Cruiser.
05:14Cool, strong, and dependable.
05:17The perfect family car.
05:19Except for one small thing.
05:22To find out what it is, we need to step inside.
05:25Where we find that it's got a low-range gearbox.
05:29Now, that's very useful in the Kalahari Desert, but pretty unnecessary in Guildford.
05:35And the same goes for the height-adjustable suspension and the locking discs.
05:39Basically, you're paying for a whole load of stuff that you'll never need.
05:42And that's where these come in. Grass and gravel 4x4s. The BMW X5 and the Audi Allroad.
05:49The point is, these things haven't got all that off-road kit, so you're not lugging around tons of excess engineering. Perfect.
05:56Except for one small thing.
06:00They've only got five seats, so you may as well have a normal family hatchback.
06:04So, let's recap. Okay?
06:06People carriers, uncool.
06:08Big off-roaders, wasteful.
06:10Grass and gravel off-roaders, impractical.
06:14So, we're stuck.
06:15Not anymore, we're not.
06:16This is the new Volvo XC90.
06:26It's such an important car.
06:27We had one shipped over from Sweden before it goes on sale in Britain to see what it's like.
06:40Well, in many ways, it's like a BMW X5.
06:44You get the four-wheel drive, you get the high-driving position, which is what you really want.
06:49But you're not burdened with low-range this and locking that.
06:55This means it'd be no good on the plains of Africa.
06:59The meerkats would laugh at it.
07:01It would fail in the Antarctic wasteland, too, and don't think it would get you out of Death Valley, either.
07:08However, here in temperate, undulating Britain, why should we care about any of that?
07:19What matters more is that it doesn't work terribly well here, either.
07:23Obviously, being a big, tall, heavy Volvo estate, it comes as no surprise at all to find that it isn't very sporty.
07:33The ride is fidgety and busy, and through the corners, being so tall, it handles like a giraffe.
07:41There's something else, too.
07:48It was designed in America, so it's huge.
07:52Now, that might work in downtown Houston.
07:58But here in Britain, driving around in something the size of a town hall can be a bit intimidating.
08:05Threading it through a village street, like trying to thread an elephant through the eye of a needle, it's enormous.
08:14Park this up for five minutes, and they'd want you to pay poll tax on it.
08:17And I haven't finished yet.
08:24This model has a 2.9-litre, twin-turbo, six-cylinder petrol engine, which chews fuel.
08:31You'd be lucky to get 15 miles to the gallon.
08:33So, really, you have to have the diesel.
08:38To conclude, then, it doesn't work off-road.
08:42It's vast, it's thirsty, and it's not very nice to drive.
08:47So, what's the big deal?
08:51Well, to understand, I've come to Jurassic Park in the Cotswolds.
08:56You see, this is the sort of place that families come to.
08:59And this, believe me, is the kind of car they'll want to come in.
09:03Let's start at the back, where we find a split-folding rear tailgate, such as you get on a Range Rover.
09:12Now, the advantage of this system is that you have somewhere to sit at point-to-points or ginkanas or whatever.
09:18And this is a Volvo estate, of course.
09:22So, the back is huge.
09:24They'll take anything in here, up to a horse.
09:27So, it has no problem at all with my lizard.
09:30OK, Sally, out.
09:32Out.
09:33Come on.
09:35Oi, come on, out.
09:36Sally, out.
09:37This is the trouble with monitor lizards.
09:39They are so disobedient.
09:41You can't teach them anything.
09:4217 years old.
09:45She doesn't even understand sit.
09:46I want to show everyone how the seats work.
09:49Guys, look, I'm sorry.
09:50Could you come and help me out here?
09:52See, that is a big boot.
09:54That's a really properly big boot.
09:56You can get a crocodile in there.
09:58No matter what sort of pet you've got in mind, you get it in the back of the Volvo.
10:01Easy peasy.
10:06Right.
10:07So, we've seen it's good for lizards.
10:08Now, let me show you how good it is for people.
10:12Right.
10:14This row of seats lifts up like so.
10:19And this one actually is particularly clever because there's a lever down here.
10:23And if I pull it, see, it converts itself into a child's booster seat.
10:27Which, should the child feel it's a bit left out back here, can be slid right forward so it's part of the action in the front.
10:34In fact, all these seats can be moved backwards and forwards.
10:40And that on its own is great.
10:41But, it's got more tricks up its sleeve because hidden under the boot floor are two more seats.
10:49And they're not occasional little chairs either.
10:52Look, they've got proper three-point seat belts.
10:55There's lots of cubby holes there and there.
10:59You can operate the air conditioning system from back here.
11:02And, look at this.
11:05This enables people sitting in the back to listen to headphones, to a CD or watch a DVD that slides down out of the roof.
11:13While the people in the front, the grown-ups basically, listen to Radio 4.
11:18They even get their own remote controller to operate the stereo from back here.
11:21This car is incredible.
11:24And, look, even with the back seats in place, let me pull this one up as well to show you, you still get a decent-sized boot.
11:35You know, most car designers are about 26 years old, black polo-neck jumpers, yellow rectangular glasses.
11:44And now, for the best bit, the price.
11:57The diesel is £30,000 and the petrol, £33,000.
12:01That's £12,000 less than a BMW X5.
12:08It's not like they've skimped on standard equipment either.
12:10I've got satellite navigation which slides in a James Bond fashion out of the dashboard.
12:17I've got mini-desk CD.
12:19It's like driving around in a branch of Dixon's.
12:25They haven't skimped on safety either.
12:28Even people in the back row of seats have their own airbags.
12:32And because it's a tall car, which is more likely to roll than a shorter one,
12:36the roof is made from specially strengthened steel.
12:46So, on the plus side, it's very, very safe.
12:50It's more practical than just about any car on the road today.
12:54It's well-equipped and it's good value.
12:56On the downside, it's not that nice to drive.
13:01You choose.
13:07Those seats really do look absolutely fantastic.
13:11Brilliant.
13:12They're a brilliant, brilliant piece of design there.
13:14But the drive, how bad is it, really?
13:16It's not bad.
13:17It's just, it's not as good as an X5.
13:19You know, an X5 does feel quite like a car.
13:21This just doesn't.
13:22It feels like a wild animal, really.
13:24It's very fidgety and rolls.
13:26So, no, not really, not really a brilliant drive, but a great car.
13:29Which is a disappointment.
13:30But I've got to worry about 4x4s generally.
13:33It's only a small one.
13:34I like them.
13:35I get them.
13:35I get the big thing.
13:36I like them big.
13:37And I like the height.
13:38I like high.
13:38You would.
13:39It's kind of a contrast.
13:40I can see why you like that.
13:41I do enjoy that bit.
13:43I'm used to it.
13:44Yeah.
13:44For me, it's a new experience.
13:46Sometimes quite scary, actually.
13:48But what I worry about, and I've got one.
13:50Drive around in it with my family, and I'm just always aware, it's a little guilty nag,
13:54that if I suddenly have to change direction, it could topple.
13:58They can.
13:58Tall cars can.
13:59And the fact that, as you said, they've reinforced the roof on this, makes it even more worrying.
14:04Because it's like a Volvo saying, yes, it really could.
14:07That worries me.
14:08It is.
14:08But there's two types of safety.
14:10There's active safety, which is like a small, nimble car in which you can avoid having an accident in the first place.
14:15And then there's passive safety, which is what this has got.
14:17You know, they say, you might have a crash.
14:20Yes, you might.
14:21Accidents do happen.
14:22We'll take care of you if that happens.
14:23So if you roll over, then it's got the reinforced roof, which is more likely to happen.
14:27But the fact of the matter is, as we saw earlier, big, tall cars are better in crashes.
14:31Frontal impact, rear impact, side impact, you're better off with one of these.
14:35Good passive safety.
14:36The simple fact of the matter is, if I wanted to put my children anywhere, I'd put them in one of these.
14:41Because basically the odds are better.
14:43Yeah.
14:44Right, weight.
14:44We've got to think about weight on top gear.
14:46We were talking about this the other night in the pub.
14:47We noticed that cars are getting heavier.
14:50And yet the fastest cars around our track were light.
14:53Clearly, the heavier they are, the slower they're going to be.
14:56And the more fuel they're going to use, the more they'll cost to run.
14:58So we thought, what if you took a normal heavy car and then took out of it all the spare stuff that you don't need to make it lighter?
15:05How much faster could you make it go?
15:07Well, we had to find out.
15:09Because of the unique way the BBC is funded, we had a budget of 500 quid and got us this.
15:14Yep, it's a 1985 Jaguar XJS V12, 5.3 litre engine, 300 brake horsepower.
15:21Now, earlier on, we sent the Stig out in this and he clocked up a remarkable 0-60 time of 8.6 seconds.
15:27This car wasn't slow in its day and it's still pretty quick.
15:47OK, but what would happen if we put it on a diet, if we strip out as much weight as we can?
15:52Will it go any faster?
15:53Well, that's what this lot are here for.
15:54Guys, they've come from Cornwall. That's your stamping ground, so you'll probably kind of understand what they're talking about.
15:59Yeah, I can translate if it gets messy.
16:01That's useful. Well, to start, can you just tell them to crack on?
16:04OK. Crack on.
16:09Right, we'll see how that gets on later on in the show, but for now we've got a problem.
16:14Go on.
16:15The Stig is saying he doesn't want to drive around because he wants to promote.
16:19He's done this CD, OK, a sort of Christmas hit, so he's easy listening.
16:23And he wants to promote it, and we've said, it's the BBC, you can't promote it, so he's having a strop.
16:29Ah, right, a cross stick.
16:31Yeah.
16:31Don't give him, fair enough.
16:32Anyway, let's do the news, let the producers worry about that one.
16:36And no new product really this week, it being Christmas.
16:40But there's plenty to talk about.
16:41Most important of all, of course, Jacques Cousteau opened a dealership in the English Channel.
16:46Yeah, this is the boat that's gone down.
16:55What, is it 3,000 cars, something like that?
16:57Yeah, 3,000 cars.
16:58Interestingly, mostly BMW.
17:00And you just knew it had to be a BMW boat.
17:03Because he got to the channel and just pulled out, didn't look left or right.
17:06Just wanted.
17:06And, big impact, two ships collide, that's got to hurt.
17:11Then it sinks to the bottom, clunk, hits the bottom.
17:14Another big impact, 3,000 cars.
17:16Why didn't all the airbags go off?
17:18Because if they had, it would have just, what?
17:22Problem solved.
17:23Because the thing is, it's now lying on the bottom.
17:25And you know all the Spanish fishermen?
17:27You know what's coming now, don't you?
17:30Because their coastline's been wrecked by all the oil.
17:33They'll be straight up the English Channel, hooking themselves a couple of 318s on.
17:37Ooh, look at that.
17:38And they're not all BMWs, other than the Saabs as well.
17:40So, but, oh, chuck that back.
17:41Sorry.
17:41Yeah, 93, I don't want this.
17:43It's not subsidized, you know.
17:44The true disaster is that Volvo, the XC90, which we've just looked at.
17:48Yeah, great car.
17:50They're only making 50,000 of them a year anyway, which is not enough.
17:54350 of them were on the boat.
17:55No.
17:56Yeah.
17:56They've sunk.
17:56They've sunk.
17:57350.
17:58It's going to make it worse.
17:59Imagine that phone call.
18:00Where's my car?
18:01Well, um, it won't pop down to Jacques.
18:05So if you want an XC90, pop over to Northern Spain.
18:08Okay, slightly water damaged, but that's where they'll all end up.
18:10They should roll in.
18:11Almost certainly.
18:12Um, Morgan, they're going racing again, which is good news.
18:16Good for them, but it's an expensive business, obviously.
18:18Recession on the way.
18:19There's their car at Le Mans.
18:20It's a very expensive game.
18:22And sponsorship is hard to come by at Recession on the Way.
18:24So they've come up with a good idea
18:25to raise a few quid to do this.
18:27Best way to explain it.
18:28Do you remember the Beano Club?
18:30Did you join that?
18:31Or is it just, it's just me, isn't it?
18:33Yes.
18:33Well, I remember it, and it costs you about 5p, and you sent off, and you've got a little
18:38membership card and a badge with little googly eyes on it.
18:41So, Morgan have launched the Morgan Club, and you can join this.
18:45It is a bit more expensive than 5p.
18:47It's 1,000 pounds.
18:48Ooh.
18:48Yes, but for that, you do get, uh...
18:52And this helps, that's basically instead of sponsorship, they just get people...
18:54Yeah, it's actually, yeah.
18:55All these people join 1,000 pounds, that goes in the kitty so they can go racing.
18:58Right, okay.
18:59And for 1,000 pounds, you drive yourself over to the circuit, obviously, to go and watch
19:02the racing.
19:02But when you get there, if you're a member, you get entrance to the circuit and a seat in
19:06the grandstand.
19:07A seat?
19:08Yeah.
19:08What sort of seat?
19:09Well, it'd be like a red plastic thing.
19:10Not a throne, then.
19:12Just want to hide one for 1,000 pounds with tiger skin and...
19:16Sunscreen over the top.
19:17Yeah, exactly.
19:17And some half-naked Fijian girls.
19:20Chilling me.
19:21No, it doesn't say anything about any of that, Jeremy.
19:22No, okay.
19:23But you do get to put your name on a list of other people who've given Morgan 1,000 pounds.
19:26You get private access to the team, which, considering it's a 24-hour race, and they'll be on the
19:31circuit for...
19:31Three-quarters of an hour.
19:32Yes.
19:3423 hours to grill them up.
19:35What?
19:36What happened?
19:37Do you not get, like, you know, access to, like, a clubhouse?
19:40Like a, you know, a treehouse or something with a ladder, where you can sort of go and
19:43talk about Morgans.
19:44Afraid not, but you do get to buy limited-edition clothing.
19:46Buy?
19:47It's a bit steep, innit?
19:48Maybe I won't.
19:50I found the perfect investment, okay?
19:53It's a house, south of France, and it's currently for sale.
19:55Now, this is the house, all right?
19:57There it is.
19:58Beautiful house.
19:59Very nice.
19:59And then in the grounds, there's the racetrack.
20:03Nice!
20:05I kid you not, it's got a full-on racetrack in it.
20:08Every hope should have one.
20:09Look at that, look at that.
20:10I mean, that, and that's all yours, so it's not like anyone's going to complain.
20:13Jeremy, how much is it?
20:15Nine million euros.
20:17Yeah, again, that's quite steep.
20:18No, current exchange rate, 40p.
20:20Oh.
20:22No, but for me, the best story, even better than Jacques Cousteau's new dealership, is this
20:26one, okay?
20:28This is a motorcyclist called Leon Humphreys, who has been taken to court by the DVLA because
20:33he forgot to tell them that his Suzuki was off the road, okay?
20:36He has claimed that under medieval law, he's entitled to settle the dispute in a trial
20:43by combat.
20:45Oh, yes!
20:46He says that under medieval law, which is still on the statute books, he's entitled
20:52to fight a champion nominated by the licensing agency.
20:56The DVLA champion.
20:58Yeah, exactly.
20:58Well, it is in Swansea.
21:00Oh, they'll all do it.
21:01Yeah, they'll all be, exactly.
21:02I'll take it on.
21:03If you fly hard, I'll have him.
21:05Except, what they ought to remember, the DVLA, I have to remember, it is a fight to the
21:09death.
21:11It's quite strict.
21:12And you're allowed to use swords, knives, or blacksmith's hammers.
21:16Nice.
21:16Now, that's good television.
21:18It is.
21:19That's something I'd want to watch.
21:21And that's the end of the news.
21:24But we do have a bit of a treat in store, because look what we've got here.
21:28It's the new MGSV.
21:31And this is the new car from MGRover, now that BMW have left them alone.
21:36Yippee.
21:38Of course, MGs in the past have always been a bit Johnny-go-like.
21:41They're a bit delicate in the Dunlops.
21:43This is different.
21:46If Oliver Reed and Russell Crowe made mad man love on the set of Gladiator, in an angry
21:54brawl, this would be the result.
21:57This is the spawn of something momentous.
22:00It's even got somewhere to rest your helmet.
22:04No, no, honestly, it's got helmet holders in the back.
22:08Would you like to hear it?
22:09Oh, yeah.
22:10Yes?
22:10The sound of V8 thunder.
22:12So we all like a spot of that for Sunday evening.
22:14So, here we go.
22:16Go to DEFCON 3.
22:18Engage.
22:20And fire.
22:27Now, this will be going on sale next year, priced at around £60,000, or more if you want
22:35the 1,000 horsepower nitrous kit.
22:38But you do, don't you?
22:40You just do.
22:43Very, very nice.
22:45Now, obviously, they're not going to make a family version of that.
22:47No, family man is doomed to drive Volvos, like the one we saw earlier on, to wear slippers
22:52and to slowly go beige.
22:54Or, you could have one of these, a Subaru Forester.
22:58Annoying, isn't it?
23:17You can remember the 80s like they were just a couple of decades ago.
23:20And you can remember steering a sharp car just through feeling what was going on through
23:24your bum.
23:24And you could probably still do it, too, if you could get your bum in the seat.
23:28This might fit rather neatly into your life, though.
23:32No, not the house, the car.
23:34It's the new Subaru Forester.
23:36Which, at first glance, is family car heaven.
23:39It's got a really big boot with lots of useful storage spaces to put all the things that
23:44you now need, like kids, books, and apples.
23:50It's sensibly high off the ground, so nothing expensive gets damaged and broken underneath.
23:55It's got everything you need.
23:57Oh, and it can do this.
24:15Without a doubt, it really does take years off the family man.
24:27It's got an Impreza chassis, Impreza turbo engine, Impreza drivetrain.
24:37There's 177 brake horsepower available at 5,600 RPM.
24:42It'll hit 60 in 7.9 seconds.
24:45It's got permanent four-wheel drive and a limited slip differential.
24:49You'd have to be trying very, very hard indeed to break it.
24:52It rocks.
24:57This is superb.
25:04It's a sit-up-and-beg Impreza turbo with a basket on the front and a kiddy-see on the
25:08back.
25:09It uses so many of the turbo nutter's bits and pieces, they could almost have stuck an
25:14Impreza badge on it.
25:18It does offer real-life advantages over the Impreza, though.
25:21There's more space in the back, the boot's much bigger, and that extra height will please
25:26the kids.
25:27Now, if you're old enough to have been around for the first hot hatches, you're probably
25:37a bit worried about your weight by now.
25:39Well, Subaru are watching their weight as well, but they're more concerned about where to put
25:44it.
25:44Now, having the Impreza's engine here in the Forester is good news, and not just for
25:50the power.
25:51It's a flat four, which, apart from anything else, means it's low.
25:55And it's mounted low in the car, too.
25:57And that, in turn, keeps the centre of gravity low, which all helps the handling.
26:01which means where it really wins out is as an all-rounder.
26:13The ride is smoother and more comfortable than on many cars built just to cruise the motorways.
26:29That low centre of gravity helps cut out the usual off-roader wobbliness.
26:33It's civilised, but without losing the ability to cut it off-road.
26:37On the downside, it is thirsty, and the interior is, well, not exactly inspired in terms of
26:45decor, but then the previous Forester was truly awful inside, and this one isn't, so that's
26:51good.
26:52The radio is clearly aimed at buyers of the Impreza.
26:55It's got loads of tiny little buttons, and it lights up like an oil rig at night, but it
26:59is dead loud, so that's good, too.
27:01So they put the DNA of an Impreza Turbo into a family car, and it works.
27:11It's not an in-your-face off-roader, the Forester, compared to CRVs, Freelanders, RAV4s, and
27:17the like.
27:17It looks, well, perhaps a little bit quiet, but believe me, it really is the best of the
27:23bunch.
27:26You know the other thing about the Forester?
27:28Subaru always, always win those reliability surveys.
27:31That's true.
27:32Absolutely.
27:32So you've got that in its favour, and the fact that it'll do everything you want for
27:35the family.
27:35It is very quick, and it won't fall over like a tall 4x4.
27:39Exactly.
27:40Fantastic.
27:40And, best thing of all, here's a photograph.
27:43It goes in the cool section of our board.
27:45Oh, yes, it does.
27:46Of our board.
27:47Yeah.
27:47Cool car.
27:48What do you mean, no?
27:50Wrong.
27:50Hold on.
27:51Have you seen the interior?
27:52Yes.
27:53Well, he's bland and boring and dull.
27:56He just hasn't got the idea of this at all.
27:58Well, is he an interior designer, baby?
27:59That's not the point.
28:00Muller and Swellen Bowen without the cuffs.
28:03It's cool.
28:03You missed it.
28:05TVR.
28:06Cool.
28:07No, again, you're wrong.
28:09Uncool.
28:11And I'll explain why, if I may, okay?
28:14TVRs, as we know, they're for men whose trousers are creeping up a bit.
28:18You know the time of life?
28:20About then.
28:20The time of life.
28:21The gap between the nipple and the waistband is just starting to come down a little bit.
28:28So I'm afraid that's why it's uncool.
28:30Anyone else got any objections to that?
28:32Yes.
28:33Yeah.
28:34You again?
28:35Who is it now?
28:36Me.
28:36Look at it.
28:37It's lovely.
28:38You can't say that's uncool and it comes in yellow.
28:41What?
28:42What is this?
28:43Soda bananas?
28:45Everything yellow is cool.
28:47No, it's not.
28:48Talking of yellow.
28:50Where do we put this?
28:51It's a polo.
28:52It's cool.
28:53No, that's a cool car.
28:55Wrong, wrong, wrong call.
28:56Euro chic.
28:57Euro chic.
28:58Don't take it, Tim.
29:02Agree with me?
29:02It's cool.
29:03Thank you.
29:03Thank you.
29:04Very cool.
29:04What do you drive?
29:05Jeep Wrangler Sport.
29:06But I did have a polo before.
29:08Jeep Wranglers are dreadful cars, but cool.
29:11See, that is what we keep trying to explain, isn't it?
29:13It doesn't matter what they're like to drive or look at.
29:16It's whether they're cool or not.
29:17Oh, what color they are.
29:18Exactly.
29:19Forget color.
29:20Look, you see, you've got your Fiat Punta, you've got your Golf.
29:22As long as it's a petrol, obviously.
29:24Anything little in your appearance, Citroen C3, goes in the cool section.
29:27Are you sure about the M3?
29:28It's just, I've wandered past, and there it is, and I'm just, I still part me thinks
29:32that's the wrong place.
29:34What do you reckon?
29:35M3, is that cool or no?
29:36The only way to put that is down.
29:39I can't.
29:41I'm really not convinced.
29:42Please leave the M3 down there, really.
29:44It's a great car, make no mistake.
29:46We'll discuss that one later.
29:47It's a great car.
29:49Ferrari 575.
29:52Sub-zero.
29:53No, that's...
29:54Who's put this?
29:56Who's put a Porsche Boxster in the Sub-Zero?
30:00It's you, isn't it?
30:02It's you because you've got one?
30:04It's such a cool car.
30:06I had one.
30:07You had that in Uncool.
30:08It is...
30:09You can't put that in Uncool.
30:11No, you see, I had one last week.
30:14Boxster S, Vucart, fantastic, really.
30:17The most beautifully balanced, but you look like a prat.
30:20Yeah.
30:23No, it's not that bad.
30:24It's not that bad, really.
30:26Don't put the M3 in Cool.
30:28I can't...
30:29I've gone with you on most of this.
30:31Will somebody please back me up on the M3, please?
30:34We'll have a vote on the M3.
30:35Forget what it's like to drive.
30:39Hands up if you think it's cool.
30:42Hands up if you think it's uncool.
30:44Precisely, that's more for cool.
30:45I win, thank you.
30:47Yes, but this isn't a democracy.
30:48This is top.
30:49Now, it's a lose-lose.
30:52You're gonna lose.
30:53Now, time to put our star in a reasonably priced car.
30:57Now, this one's got a restaurant.
30:58He's got three of them.
31:00From a tyre company.
31:01Shall we meet him?
31:02Ladies and gentlemen, Britain's best chef,
31:05apart from Ainsley Harrier's, obviously,
31:07Gordon Ramsay.
31:10Hi, Gordon.
31:12Ainsley Harrier.
31:13Ainsley Harrier?
31:14Ainsley's chef.
31:16What?
31:17He's a comedian.
31:17I'm sorry, Ainsley Harrier's not a chef.
31:21He doesn't even have a restaurant, Jeremy.
31:23He's a comedian and a presenter.
31:26He can knock up supper for a fiver.
31:29He can barbecue food.
31:30He gets the contents of a tin and a hoover bag.
31:33Knock them together.
31:34Five pounds.
31:35You can feed a family for a month.
31:36You?
31:37Five pounds for a sprig of parsley.
31:41Anyway, listen.
31:41In between opening, like, 25,000 restaurants,
31:44and you've managed to dish up four children.
31:48Yes.
31:48So, under four.
31:50All under four?
31:50All under four, yeah.
31:51Nightmare.
31:52What a mess.
31:54Whoa.
31:55Same to do.
31:57Look at that.
31:58Thank you, thank you, thank you.
31:59Marley, it'll be empty by now, I should imagine.
32:02Have you got a cushion?
32:03Yes.
32:04Yeah, four under four.
32:05So, what do you do for a family car?
32:08Family car, it turned out a bit of a problem with the Range Rover,
32:11because you couldn't never get all four seats in the back.
32:14So, Tarno came up with the idea of buying a new Mercedes,
32:17and got one of those ML six-seaters.
32:20Yeah.
32:20But there's no boot in the back of that.
32:22There's definitely no boot in the back, no.
32:23But I don't really get sort of over-involved with how you sort of, you know.
32:27You don't do the school run?
32:28I did once.
32:30And it was an absolute nightmare.
32:31Go on, talk me through it.
32:32Well, it's, you know, 20 past 8 in the morning,
32:35and you're driving along the sort of Wandsworth Road towards Battersea.
32:40And the women now, the mums, don't double park.
32:45They treble park.
32:46I have to say, though, rather amusingly,
32:49is that a few years ago, I was making a programme
32:52about women doing the school run in Chelsea,
32:55turn up with a film crew outside a little school in Sloan Square.
32:59Who should pull up and treble park?
33:01But Mrs. Gordon Ramsay...
33:03I thought you'd forgotten about that.
33:05No, of course.
33:05How could I possibly forget?
33:07She's very attractive.
33:08Which is my key for not doing the school run, chaps.
33:11Okay?
33:12What you do, volunteer.
33:14Okay?
33:14I'll do the school run this morning.
33:16Do it.
33:16The next morning, do it again.
33:18Next morning, do it again.
33:20Fourth morning, say to your wife,
33:22a lot of those mums at the school,
33:24quite slim, aren't they?
33:27Let's do it again.
33:29That's my key.
33:30Women drivers and vegetarians.
33:32And if we could just forget these congestion charges
33:34and have alternate days,
33:36one for women drivers,
33:38one for vegetarians,
33:39London would be a dream to drive around, no?
33:41How would this play?
33:43Is this good, do you think?
33:44Well, I'll go to London.
33:45Vegetarian.
33:45You're a vegetarian?
33:47Get out!
33:49He does not look like a vegetarian.
33:52What the hell are you doing?
33:54It's like this gardener's world is in Hampshire.
33:56I'm trying to explain that.
33:58What are you doing to vegetarians?
33:59I quite like that idea.
34:01But, I mean, they drive, you know, 15 miles an hour.
34:04Who vegetarians do?
34:04Yes.
34:05And they sort of don't look where they're going.
34:07They never indicate.
34:07And the minute there's a problem on the road,
34:09they sort of let go of the steering wheel.
34:10How are you able to tell that they're vegetarians?
34:13This is the one thing I like to think now, of course.
34:15Of course, yeah, because they just look rather dodgy.
34:19What, sort of pale and warm?
34:21And they need a bit?
34:21In need of a good bloody fillet steak and sort of, you know.
34:25Now, while we're on the subject of things that annoy us on the road,
34:28motorway service stations.
34:31We've all been there.
34:32What do you think of the food?
34:34Shockingly, disgustingly fad, pretty dismal plastic.
34:41And expensive.
34:42Gross, imitation food.
34:44And before you go on any motorway, eat before you drive.
34:48No, actually, funny enough, no need to eat before you drive.
34:51We had a bit of an idea.
34:53We thought, hang on a minute, you're driving along in a car which has a big, hot engine in the front.
34:59Why not use that to cook your food as you drive along?
35:03So this morning we had an idea, okay?
35:07Okay, let's run some tape here.
35:08I'll show you what we did.
35:09This is a Subaru Forester.
35:11And strapped to its flat four engine, we have a succulent turkey breast and a reduction of porcini mushrooms and red wine garnished with winter sprouts.
35:21And what could be more delicious than that?
35:23Okay, this is the larder.
35:25We turned into a lotus the other day.
35:27And that's being used to cook a baby rack of lamb with market vegetables, dressed in olive oil and Mediterranean herbs, right?
35:35Now, the Suzuki Liana, which will be cooking a wild salmon on a bed of lemon thyme accompanied by Pong's Top Gear.
35:44Vegetarian option there.
35:46Now, because we recognise, we know that fish is justifiable homicide.
35:50Meet the murderous thing.
35:51You actually put them on there.
35:53Yeah, no, they're on the engines now as they're trundling along.
35:56And forget gas mass 6 or 450 degrees.
35:59The measurement here is red.
36:01We recommend 3,000 RPM for about two hours, okay?
36:05So, after two hours, I pulled one of them in.
36:11Okay, here it is.
36:12Let's have a little look how we're doing.
36:17I think it's still a bit pink.
36:19I'll add some seasoning, see if we can mask the smell of engine oil in there and send it back out again, I suspect.
36:29Best thing to do.
36:30There we go.
36:32Go back on the track.
36:34Or the rotisserie, as we like to call it.
36:36So, really, we've kind of worked it out that if you were to set off from London, from where you live, going to Leeds, by the time you get to a Woodall services near Sheffield, lunch should be about ready, okay?
36:51So, they were trundling around our track this morning for two hours, and is the Stig here?
36:58We've finally allowed him to come out of the cold, and we've allowed him into the base.
37:02Can you bring the food over?
37:04Here he is, ladies and gentlemen, for the first time ever in the studio, the Stig.
37:08Here it is.
37:16Now, why don't you sample some of that salmon, and tell me what you think?
37:22This was actually cooked on the engine.
37:24That was, genuinely, all of this food was cooked on the engine of a car.
37:28Tell me if that matches up to motorway service cooking.
37:32It certainly matches it, yes, definitely.
37:33That is slightly dry, a little bit overcooked, and, um, it takes...
37:41So, not worthy of three stars, two stars?
37:44I wouldn't even give that, um...
37:46One star?
37:47I wouldn't even give that one star, definitely.
37:48Not even one star?
37:49No.
37:50Oh, well, try a bit of lamb.
37:51Try a bit of lamb, now, just to remind everybody, this was, uh, cooked on the larder, market vegetables,
37:58uh, dressed in olive oil, Mediterranean herbs.
38:00That's your sort of food, mate.
38:03What do you think of his sort of food?
38:09I think Gordon is about to be sick.
38:14You have some.
38:17Have some sprouts.
38:22Not even the vegetarian likes it.
38:25And that taste of petrol, castor oil-y, greasy...
38:31Yes, it was cooked on an engine.
38:33That's why.
38:34And that's what tends to happen.
38:36The lamb, sadly, is overcooked.
38:38So, 2,000 revs for two hours is far too long.
38:41That's the problem.
38:42You see, we cooked it on a four-speed car.
38:44Here's a tip.
38:46If you're cooking lamb, make sure it's five-speed, preferably six-speed.
38:50Okay, who would like to see Gordon's lap?
38:55Yes, let's play it.
38:57Come on.
38:59Looking cheerful.
39:01That's an aggressive start.
39:03That's the most aggressive start we've seen in all series.
39:05Come on, you.
39:06Concentrate.
39:08Bloody hell, I could have sworn I just saw a traffic warden.
39:10That's the whole point of this track there are now.
39:15Now, let's just see how tight you are on that line.
39:17Look, that's precision driving, mate.
39:20That is precision driving.
39:26That's about 85 through there, and then that's it.
39:28And brake, all of those.
39:29And turn.
39:30Right?
39:31Turn.
39:32Gently.
39:33Too early.
39:36That's where most of the lads come off, but go on across the line.
39:40Okay, and, and, Gordon, Gordon R.
39:52Now, these are the sort of times you're looking to be.
39:54It was a dry day, so you should be somewhere near the top, okay?
39:58Mm-hmm.
39:59One minute, 50 seconds.
40:03Same as me, ladies and gentlemen.
40:08That's an epic time.
40:10That is an epic time.
40:15I'm obviously not going to put you above me.
40:17It'll just be rude.
40:18Alphabetical order.
40:19Yeah, alphabetical order, and, um, yes, G comes after J.
40:24On that wall chart, it does.
40:26Anyway, Gordon Ramsay, it's been an absolute riot having you here.
40:29Thanks very much.
40:30Thank you.
40:30Thank you.
40:31Thank you.
40:31Thank you.
40:36Now, that's enough about food, okay?
40:41Let's see how the Jag's diet's getting along.
40:44Over the next three hours, the Cornish crew stripped every piece of excess fat from our beautiful XJS.
40:54Out came the spare wheel, the back seats, bumpers, and the soundproofing.
40:58As they say at fat clubs, no pain, no gain.
41:00But Jag fan Jason wasn't happy.
41:04No.
41:05Oh, mate, this is sacrilege.
41:08There goes the electric window motor.
41:13Oh, that's the headlamp wiper motor.
41:16All that's up.
41:17Everything the guys have pulled off the car has been weighed, and it's all made a nice big pile.
41:31Yeah, they took off the rear bumper.
41:33That was 20 kilograms.
41:34Passenger seat, that was another 16 kilograms.
41:37Even the speakers, six kilos each.
41:39Apparently, the ashtray was 0.27 of a kilo.
41:42But every beat counts, and it's come to a total of 223 kilograms.
41:46That should make a difference when we get it back out on the track.
41:49I don't care though, look, boys, you've ruined it.
41:52It was a lovely car.
41:53I don't know, I think it looks better, kind of rugged and manly.
41:55Anyway, let's get it out on the track and see what the Stig makes of it.
42:16So let's recap.
42:23Before we put our Jag on a diet, we tested it.
42:260-60 it did in 8.6 seconds.
42:29Then we put it on the diet, we stripped out a fifth of a ton of stuff, and we lost so much out of it.
42:34Well, pretty much everything.
42:35Took out the seats, took out the trim, took off the bumper, spare wheel.
42:38Don't bother looking in there, there is nothing to see.
42:40Nothing.
42:41Shell.
42:42Then we tested it again.
42:440-60 time came down to 7.4 seconds.
42:47That's 1.2 seconds better.
42:49I think that's pretty incredible.
42:50No more power, just less weight.
42:51Yeah, but if you think that's quick, how much time do you reckon we save?
42:540-100 before and after.
42:57A couple of seconds for it.
42:58Five seconds.
43:00This car was five seconds quicker after we stripped it out.
43:03I think that's quite an achievement.
43:05That is a lot.
43:06So we have proved the point.
43:08But weight is the enemy, not just of performance.
43:11It's the enemy of economy, too.
43:13You waste a lot of fuel just lugging it around, so it costs you money.
43:16So light is good, light is right, and light works.
43:20Anyway, this week's Insider Trading News, well, we've just got, what, a few days left before the end of the year?
43:25But there's still deals out there to be done.
43:27One that turned my head this week.
43:29Four by fours, right?
43:30Nissan do the X-Trail, but they still do the Toronto.
43:33Yeah.
43:33It's all right.
43:34It's okay.
43:34It's been around for a while.
43:362.7 diesel, five door.
43:38That's normally 20 grand.
43:39But at 15 and a half, it's a bargain.
43:41Yeah, that money, it makes sense.
43:4315 and a half, four and a half grand off that car.
43:45Nothing wrong with it.
43:45That's a brand new car.
43:47Now, Toyota Avensis.
43:48You're a fan.
43:49Oh, God.
43:49It's a foul car.
43:51You've got a big problem, mate.
43:52It's disgraceful.
43:54It's not the best car in the world, but...
43:55Not the best.
43:56It should come with a taxi light on the top.
43:59It's horrible.
44:00Mate, listen.
44:01Secondhand, they are really, really seriously good news.
44:03I should hope so.
44:04Honestly, three, four-year-old ones, they're fetching over book at the minute.
44:07But there's a new one coming out next year.
44:09Early part of the year.
44:10And what will happen, this is a tip for next year, what will happen is January, February,
44:14the old stock, the dealer's going to start discounting them.
44:16So if you're the kind of person that has a car and keeps it for four, five, six years,
44:20runs it into the ground, no, that's the car to buy.
44:22I've got to keep an Avensis for five years, I'd rather have it for five days.
44:25Mate, you can buy one, buy one in the early part of next year, you'll get a discount on
44:29a new one, run it for six years, it won't go wrong, it's a Toyota.
44:31That's very true.
44:32And when you come to sell it, it will hold its value.
44:35Will it?
44:35Yeah, it's a good car to buy.
44:36Now, if you buy a new car, you pretty much accept the fact you're going to lose money
44:40on it, with the possible exception of this year, the Mini.
44:43Yeah, you pointed that out earlier.
44:44Yeah, run it for 12 months, make a profit.
44:46Now, my prediction is there's two or three cars next year that the same thing's going
44:49to happen on, okay?
44:51Number one, BMW Z4.
44:53Nice car.
44:54Fantastic car.
44:54Buy one of those, run it for six months, 12 months, chances are when you come to sell
44:58it, you'll either get your money back or you might make a small profit.
45:01Do you reckon?
45:01That's just because it's going to be difficult to get a hold of it.
45:03Absolutely.
45:04They won't build enough, so demand will outstrip supply, as it always does.
45:07So that's a good one for you.
45:08Second one, VW Beetle Cabriolet.
45:12What's wrong with you, man?
45:14Now, I know the Beetle's not everyone's cup of tea, but when they bring out the Cabriolet,
45:17wow, I think that's just going to have such a good effect on the whole brand.
45:20I think that car's going to hold its value fantastically.
45:22You'll probably make a profit if you buy one.
45:24And the third one is the Nissan 350Z.
45:28Okay, 22 grand that car, a seriously good value.
45:30I reckon people are going to queue up for that car, come out of TTs and all sorts.
45:34That'll be a car I think you could make a profit on.
45:36If you want more information about the deals we talk about on the show, just visit the website
45:40at bbc.co.uk forward slash top gear.
45:45Now, since this programme has a family car flavour, we thought it'd be a good idea to catch
45:50up at this point with all that's new and exciting in the world of the hot hatchback.
45:55I've always been a big fan of hot hatches, because they were cheap, simple, and you got
46:04two cars for the price of one.
46:07On the one hand, they were as practical as a normal hatchback.
46:11You could use them for taking the children to school.
46:13But then, thanks to their big engines, you could drive home like your trousers were on fire.
46:19Recently, however, things have got all muddy and complicated.
46:33This Volkswagen Golf R32 costs £22,000, so it's not cheap.
46:39And it's not simple either.
46:41Quite apart from the safety and emissions stuff that all cars have to have these days,
46:46I've got traction control, seedy changer control, climate control, and heated seats, which of
46:52course are hemorrhoid control.
46:55All very nice.
46:57But luxuries like this add weight.
46:59So much, in fact, that this car weighs exactly twice as much as the original Golf GTI from 25
47:06years ago.
47:07So, to move around as anything more than a trot, it needed twice the engine.
47:15And that's what it's got.
47:17The original had 1.6 litres.
47:19This has 3.2.
47:22The original developed 110 brake horsepower.
47:25This develops, well, slightly more than twice that, actually, 240 brake horsepower.
47:31Because it has twice the engine and twice the weight, that led to another problem.
47:37It needed twice as much grip.
47:39So, the original was front-wheel drive.
47:42This is four-wheel drive.
47:45So, you're probably imagining, at this point, I'm going to say it's twice the car.
48:04Well, it's twice as substantial, that's for sure.
48:06It's twice as luxurious, it's twice as well-made, it's twice as quiet.
48:12And, bearing in mind the original didn't have power steering, it's twice as easy to drive.
48:20But it doesn't have the spirit of the original Golf.
48:24It's less fun somehow.
48:26It's like the new Mini, a better car than the original.
48:29As a historical monument, then, it's thrashed.
48:44But as a 21st century flying machine, how does it stack up?
48:50In this market, in the blue corner, you have the Ford Focus RS.
48:54In the red corner, there's the Honda Civic Type R.
49:04And in the yellow corner, the Seat Leon Cupra R.
49:09This is a world of fat tires and aluminium add-ons, where the show matches the go.
49:16The Golf tries to compete.
49:24It has two exhausts, for instance, and lowered suspension and big wheels.
49:29But I don't know, somehow, it looks like the nominated driver at a New Year's Eve party.
49:35It's sober and restrained, in a rainbow whirl of streamers and noise.
49:41Sure, the R32 is very, very fast.
49:550-60 takes 6 seconds.
49:57The top speed is 153.
50:00But I suspect it's more of a long-distance cruiser than a B-road barnstormer.
50:05The engine doesn't really like to be revved, and the gearbox doesn't like to be rushed,
50:17and the steering doesn't like to be rushed either.
50:19If you're quick with the wheel, you can actually beat the power assistance.
50:23It all suddenly gets very heavy, which is weird.
50:30And those of you of a tail slide disposition are going to be disappointed as well,
50:35because it really won't play ball, no matter what you do.
50:38I don't know, it's not brutal like the Ford.
50:55It's very soft, actually, very forgiving.
51:00Think of it more in terms of being a long-term companion,
51:04rather than a fiery one-night stand.
51:06So, there we are.
51:10The oldest hot hatch of them all is acting its age.
51:15You know what?
51:16I feel as though I've grown up with the Golf.
51:19I was 17 when the Golf GTI came out.
51:21We've matured together, so that now we're...
51:24Fatter?
51:25Fatter, yes.
51:26But wiser.
51:27A wise head on a fat body.
51:31More importantly, how does it compare with obvious direct competitor, the Ford Focus RS?
51:35Well, we're men, OK?
51:36So, we have to quantify that.
51:39Therefore, engage Stig Drive.
51:42The Ford Focus RS came here a few weeks ago and was four seconds faster around our track than a Subaru Impreza.
51:48And here it is again, blitzing the track.
51:51What's the time?
51:53What's the time?
51:53Here's the line.
51:54in one minute and 32 seconds.
51:55So, how does the Golf compare?
51:58Four-wheel drive gives it in the...
51:59Oh, look at that.
52:02Stig is managing to promote his CD.
52:05We told him he couldn't.
52:06And what's he listening to?
52:07It's wham.
52:08It would be, of course.
52:10Will the combination of the four-wheel drive and the...
52:14Will the combination of the four-wheel drive and the power match the Ford's front, Biff?
52:20Ooh, crosses the line in one minute, 33 seconds.
52:25Well, that's only one second behind the Ford.
52:28I know.
52:28And that means it's still three seconds quicker than an Impreza.
52:32It's an astonishing car.
52:34It really is.
52:34But you've got to admit, that Ford is incredible.
52:37Then again, you did have reservations.
52:39Well, exactly.
52:39The very thing that makes the Ford incredible on a track, its front differential, makes it useless on the road.
52:46It's so twitchy.
52:47There's so much torque steer.
52:48Now, this, yes, it's a second slower on a track.
52:51A big deal.
52:52But on the road, it's so much more civilized.
52:54This, this is the car for me.
52:57Right, we are getting towards the end of the series.
53:00And still, the Westfield XTR is at the top of the tree.
53:03It was the quickest car to get around our test track.
53:06But now it's coming under threat from two directions.
53:09First of all, there's this.
53:10It's the Radical SR3.
53:12And like the Westfield, it's got a 1.3-litre bike engine.
53:15But in the Radical, it's more powerful.
53:18So that's one threat.
53:20Then we heard from this guy, Tom.
53:22Now, he got in touch and said,
53:23I've got something that can thrash anything around your test track.
53:26To be honest, we get a lot of challenges like that.
53:28And most of the time, they're rubbish.
53:31But this time, he may have a point.
53:33OK, so here's the Stig warming up the Radical.
53:41And this is what he'll be racing.
53:44It's a super light, super fast aerobatic plane.
53:47And Tom, the Stig's challenger, is the British aerobatic champion.
53:55Now, since the Stig isn't one for words, I'll be the go-between.
53:59Have a look at the opposition, OK?
54:00This is it.
54:01It's a Radical SR3.
54:02Now, it's powered by a bike engine, 1,300 cc.
54:05But it puts out about 200 brake horsepower.
54:07That's compared to your plane's, what, 300?
54:09300.
54:10But this is the amazing bit.
54:11This only weighs 500 kilos.
54:14But your plane only weighs 600 kilos.
54:17Correct.
54:17So, with the extra weight, they're quite evenly matched.
54:19Top speed here, about 150 miles an hour.
54:22Your plane?
54:22200.
54:23But although the plane is going to be faster along the straights, it will lose out in the
54:28corners.
54:28A plane has a big turning circle.
54:30And our track is very tight.
54:32So, to stay within the lines, Tom's going to have to climb violently and throttle back
54:36to lose speed.
54:37And that gives Stig the edge.
54:40This here, I'm going to have to climb to lose speed to get back down to the track here.
54:46So, I'm going to be covering more distance.
54:48And round here, we're going to be drifting wider.
54:51But you reckon you can stay pretty close to the track?
54:53I think so, yes.
54:54OK.
54:55Is this going to work?
54:57We'll see.
54:58Have you done it before?
54:58No.
54:59Neither have we.
55:00OK.
55:00OK.
55:00The Radical can hit 60 miles an hour in three and a half seconds, a hundred in 8.8 seconds.
55:12So, it has the edge from the start.
55:19It carries that lead into the first corner, because as soon as Tom's airborne, he's got
55:23to start climbing.
55:24He's going to have to throttle back straight away to make it around that first bend.
55:27Bearing in mind the G-forces here, that Radical can generate 2G in the corners.
55:33That's a lot.
55:33The plane can manage 9.2.
55:36Once again, on the straights, he starts to catch up, but as soon as he gets near to the
55:40Stig, he's got to climb.
55:41Again.
55:42Losing speed.
55:43That means he can make the turn, but that means the Stig is ahead.
55:49Both of them pushing these things about as far as they're going to go today.
55:53That plane's acceleration is awesome.
55:54But every time he gets near to the Stig, every time he's got to climb again to make
55:59that corner.
55:59It's hard work on the ground, but it's nothing to what Tom is having to do.
56:19Again, he swoops down on the Stig.
56:21Now we are getting close towards the end here.
56:23We're on the final straight.
56:24I think Tom's feeling more confidence he should be able to.
56:27And here's his engine past the Stig.
56:34But not for long, because this might be the final straight.
56:36It's not the final corner.
56:38There are two bends yet, and that means the Stig could get ahead.
56:40Can he make it round faster?
56:42The plane's got to climb so high there to lose speed.
56:44That means the Stig is inching across.
56:46Will he get over the line first, or will Tom swoop down on him?
56:49And there he swooped, and he's won.
56:51Stig comes second.
57:03Oh, cool.
57:05Tom's my new hero, definitely.
57:08That was very cool.
57:09But hang on a second.
57:11It was a plane.
57:12We specify everything that goes on our board here has to be road legal.
57:16Yeah.
57:16If you took that plane to the shops, the police would stop you.
57:20It's got no indicators, no brake lights, it's got no brakes.
57:23It's got wings.
57:24Somebody would notice.
57:25You can't park it either in the town centre.
57:27You'd just cause a menace.
57:28This is true.
57:29So what matters here is the radical.
57:32How did it do?
57:33Here's the Westfield XTR.
57:34One minute, 23.
57:35The Zonda, one minute, 23.
57:37Where's it going to go?
57:37Where do we think?
57:38Faster?
57:39Higher?
57:401.22.
57:42I'll tell you what it is.
57:43This is.
57:44One minute, 19.
57:4619 seconds.
57:48Wow.
57:56The thing is, though, next week, the Germans are coming here with a couple of cars that they
58:03think will beat the radical.
58:05We'll have a laugh at it.
58:07I mean, we'll see, obviously.
58:08We'll see in a fair way how they get on.
58:11We're also going to be naming our car of the year and our quest to find Britain's fastest
58:17faith goes on.
58:19Remember, the Church of England currently hold the title, but will the Druid beat the Muslim?
58:24Will the Rastafarian win through?
58:27Find out next week.
58:29We'll see you then, but in the meantime, have a very happy Christmas.
58:32Good night.
58:33applause
58:35Matthew 1-0-2-0-3-0-3-5-1-1-2-0-3-1-2-0-3-2-0-2-0-3-8-2-0.
58:45Thanks for a nice tour.
58:50Ευχαριστώ.
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