- 4 months ago
Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May travel across the world to meet different automobile manufacturers and drive cars made by them.
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🛠️
LifestyleTranscript
00:00:00I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry.
00:01:30This week we are coming, if you can see through the drizzle dribbling down the windows, from Scandinavia.
00:01:39Oh, yeah.
00:01:40This, of course, is the home of those gloomy dramas where a weird woman in a jumper solves a murder by staring at a lake for six hours.
00:01:51This will probably be the jolliest programme to come out of this neck of the woods since...
00:01:57Four funerals and a funeral.
00:01:59Yeah.
00:02:00Swedish rom-com, that was.
00:02:02When Harry shot Sally.
00:02:04Oh, laugh a minute.
00:02:06The girl with the pearl necklace.
00:02:07No.
00:02:09That's another sort of Scandinavian, Gordon.
00:02:13Yeah.
00:02:13Anyway, specifically, we are deep inside the Arctic Circle in Finland.
00:02:22We...
00:02:22There you go.
00:02:26And Finland, of course.
00:02:28Finland, of course, is home to every single racing driver currently...
00:02:32What?
00:02:33All of them?
00:02:34What?
00:02:35All of them?
00:02:36Well, apart from Nico Rosberg, who is Finnish, but for some reason claims he's German.
00:02:41It is.
00:02:42Why does he do that?
00:02:43I have no idea.
00:02:44Who else is there, then?
00:02:46Well, there's Mika Sarlow, Mika Hakkinen, Kimi Raikkonen...
00:02:48Hang on.
00:02:49They're just anagrams of the same name, aren't they?
00:02:53Well, then you've got rallying.
00:02:54There's Tommy Makkinen, Timo Makkinen, Juhar Kankinen, Larry Vatanen...
00:02:58More anagrams.
00:03:01Kinky Wankkinen...
00:03:03Manki Wankkinen...
00:03:07Manki Pantenden...
00:03:11I'm trying to throw it away now.
00:03:13Seriously, I went on Wikipedia last night to look for famous Finns who aren't racing drivers
00:03:18and put it up, here's the list, this is what I found, and I noticed something.
00:03:21They're all men!
00:03:23All of them!
00:03:24Are there any famous Finnish women?
00:03:28Finnish people?
00:03:29I know why, okay?
00:03:34It's because all Finnish women at the age of 19 moved to England to be au pairs.
00:03:41They actually had three Finnish au pairs over the years for my children.
00:03:44Did you?
00:03:45Yeah.
00:03:46And it was always funny, you'd go to Heathrow Airport to pick up your new au pair,
00:03:49and there'd always be a row of 30-something fathers waiting at the gate for the Scandinavian au pair to come out.
00:03:56And there was one year I've never forgotten, this huge moose lumbered out of the door,
00:04:03and the man next to me looked at his piece of paper and went,
00:04:06Oh, for God's sake!
00:04:08LAUGHTER
00:04:10That's not good!
00:04:11That's not good!
00:04:13APPLAUSE
00:04:15Shall we get on with the show?
00:04:17Yes, good idea, because tonight, in our television programme about cars...
00:04:24I eat some cheddar.
00:04:27Richard says he doesn't want any.
00:04:30I don't want cheese.
00:04:32And James compares a Ford GT40 to a Ferrari P3.
00:04:38I'm happy!
00:04:40But first, if you're watching this in America, you may be amazed to hear that the Ford Mustang has never been sold officially in the UK.
00:04:50Well, until now, because Ford has now decided that the latest Mustang will be sold in the UK, with a V8 engine and right-hand drive.
00:04:58Mmm, and this has made our other resident American very happy.
00:05:04He was so excited, in fact, that when the first right-hand drive Mustang arrived at the docks in the UK, he was actually there to meet it.
00:05:12MUSIC PLAYS
00:05:35It'll be here any minute.
00:05:37MUSIC PLAYS
00:05:39That is it. Are we ready?
00:05:50This is the moment.
00:05:52It's touchdown!
00:05:54Go, go, go!
00:06:02Look!
00:06:04It's a bit gloomy, isn't it?
00:06:05It's not very welcoming.
00:06:07Have you got anything more upbeat?
00:06:09MUSIC PLAYS
00:06:13Forget it! Forget it! Forget it!
00:06:15Forget it!
00:06:21I'm so excited! My tinkle is fizzing!
00:06:30Oh, yeah!
00:06:31Oh, sorry about that. We really are useless over here. It's one of the reasons we needed your help in the war.
00:06:44I decided that, first of all, I'd show the new Mustang around, so I headed for London, which is the capital city.
00:06:57Oh, yeah, it's 40,000 of the time, this is on the mountain, all the time, you've got a big opportunity to take a plan.
00:07:00Oh, yeah, we're notetera.
00:07:02Let's go!
00:07:03Let's go!
00:07:07Let's go!
00:07:08Ah, now this is Tower Bridge.
00:07:19Interesting. It's very, very old.
00:07:22But it folds completely in half
00:07:24so that in the old days, the horses could go through.
00:07:30Now, that's the Houses of Parliament,
00:07:33which are a series of houses in which we keep all our idiots.
00:07:36That clock thing, that's Big Ben.
00:07:41I know it's not what you call Big Ben,
00:07:43but we couldn't just call it Ben.
00:07:46And that is the Cenotaph,
00:07:49where we remember those who died fighting for us.
00:07:54Slowing down a bit here.
00:07:56Show some respect.
00:08:01No idea what that is.
00:08:03Wasn't here this morning.
00:08:06Now, that's a cyclist. You want to be careful of those small but very angry creatures.
00:08:13That's the army.
00:08:16They're the ones who shot at your White House.
00:08:18Sorry about that.
00:08:18Having seen all of the sights,
00:08:22we headed out of town.
00:08:25So I could do this.
00:08:31There it is.
00:08:32That is the soundtrack that Britain has been missing for 51 years.
00:08:37Real American V8 muscle.
00:08:39We just don't make cars like this on our side of the pond.
00:08:47All that lazy but determined torque.
00:08:51Squeeze the throttle in any gear at any speed.
00:08:55And there's an inevitability to the way it moves off.
00:08:58It's like arm wrestling a solar system.
00:09:00You're going to lose.
00:09:00It is weird driving a Mustang from this side.
00:09:16It's like suddenly changing your mind after 50 years of marriage
00:09:19and sleeping on the other side of the bed.
00:09:22It's also weird driving a car with a big V8,
00:09:25reversing camera,
00:09:27air-conditioned seats,
00:09:28rain-sensing wipers
00:09:29that you can buy for 37,000.
00:09:32That's half what you'd pay for a BMW M4.
00:09:35Half.
00:09:39Once we were in the countryside proper,
00:09:41I continued my sightseeing tour.
00:09:45Look!
00:09:46I've drawn your badge on a hill.
00:09:55Jeremy did that one.
00:10:00Sorry.
00:10:04Eventually, we arrived at Stonehenge.
00:10:07That, you'll be amazed to learn,
00:10:12is an ancient calendar.
00:10:16Four o'clock.
00:10:18Or church.
00:10:19My tour of Britain
00:10:20was then interrupted by an unwelcome arrival.
00:10:23Oh.
00:10:25What are you doing here?
00:10:27Well, I have come to remind you,
00:10:30because you've obviously forgotten,
00:10:31because you're too giddy,
00:10:33that we have no need for the Mustang in Britain
00:10:36because if you want to spend, what,
00:10:39£30,000, £35,000 on a fast Ford,
00:10:41you'd buy a Focus RS,
00:10:43because that was designed for here.
00:10:45No, you'd settle for that in the UK
00:10:48because you couldn't buy this,
00:10:49but now you can't.
00:10:50That is the point.
00:10:51That's what I mean.
00:10:52Would you wear chaps?
00:10:54No, because we have trousers.
00:10:56What about cowboy?
00:10:57Oh, you are cowboy boots.
00:10:58Well, it's appropriate, isn't it?
00:10:59I'm welcome.
00:11:00Listen, I don't want everything from America.
00:11:02I just want the Mustang.
00:11:03Stupid.
00:11:04It wasn't designed for here.
00:11:07Would you wear a Stetson?
00:11:09Well, no.
00:11:09It's cold out, I'll wear a Stetson.
00:11:11No.
00:11:11You'd wear a bobble hat.
00:11:13That's a bobble hat.
00:11:14Oh, you're...
00:11:15No, hang on.
00:11:18I've just realised.
00:11:19What?
00:11:20Um, I don't want to talk to you anymore.
00:11:22Anyway, anyway, we shall pick that up later on,
00:11:46but right now it's time to drop in a cog
00:11:48and hook a left into Conversation Street.
00:12:01Serious.
00:12:01It's serious.
00:12:02It is serious stuff, this.
00:12:05Now, look, in Britain, we're always being told
00:12:07that the Scandinavians are brilliant at driving,
00:12:10and that's because, well, of course,
00:12:11they would be because they have to deal with all that snow.
00:12:14Mm, they're brilliant because what they do most of all is crash.
00:12:18Well, you're absolutely right, as it turns out,
00:12:20because I've got some interesting statistics here.
00:12:22In Britain, 1.2% of accidents result in fatalities.
00:12:27Here, I'm afraid, it's 5.1%.
00:12:30Yeah, and it's not just the Fens, either, if I may be so bold.
00:12:34Our senior international producer, that's his job title,
00:12:38came over to Finland the other day,
00:12:40rented himself a BMW at the airport,
00:12:42not a Ford or an Opel, you'll know, it's a BMW,
00:12:44and on his way to the location here, this happened.
00:12:48It did. It did.
00:12:50He did.
00:12:50When I say he's our senior international producer,
00:12:52he's now our junior international producer.
00:12:55A junior local producer, very local,
00:12:58specifically the stationery company.
00:13:00Yeah, that's all he's in charge of from now.
00:13:03How did he do that?
00:13:05The thing is, what I don't understand
00:13:06is how the Finns managed to go fast enough
00:13:08to have a crash of any sort at all,
00:13:10because the speeding fines here are insane.
00:13:14They're means-tested,
00:13:16which means a guy here recently
00:13:17was caught doing 49 miles an hour through a 30 zone,
00:13:20and he was fined 112,000 euros.
00:13:25That's a speeding fine.
00:13:27Are they really that high in Finland?
00:13:30That's what?
00:13:31112,000 euros.
00:13:34Imagine getting that in the post.
00:13:36Well, it's interesting, actually,
00:13:37there was a Finnish minister recently said
00:13:40that the government needs those speeding fines
00:13:42to balance the books, they said.
00:13:44They actually said,
00:13:46speeding is good for the country.
00:13:48There we are.
00:13:48That's actually what they...
00:13:50It is, it is, every country.
00:13:52Right.
00:13:53We can adopt that.
00:13:56Speeding is good for you.
00:13:57It's a social duty.
00:13:58Bit more conversation for you.
00:14:00Oh, good.
00:14:02I think, with the exception of Rolls-Royce,
00:14:05Volvo now make the best car interiors of anybody.
00:14:09No.
00:14:10No.
00:14:10You do?
00:14:11That was very, very good.
00:14:13No, weirdly, I don't like to,
00:14:14but I agree with you,
00:14:15because I went in the new S90 the other day,
00:14:17and the interior is superb.
00:14:18No, we've got a picture of it here.
00:14:19Yes, that one.
00:14:20And the thing about it is,
00:14:21they use pale colours.
00:14:22They've got pale-coloured seats,
00:14:23pale-coloured carpets,
00:14:24pale wood,
00:14:25and that makes it feel light and airy and spacious.
00:14:28The only problem is
00:14:29that in one of those,
00:14:30you couldn't enjoy a chocolate Magnum ice cream.
00:14:35It's all right, I don't eat ice cream.
00:14:37I think it's something to do with being straight.
00:14:38What?
00:14:39LAUGHTER
00:14:40What?
00:14:42What?
00:14:42What?
00:14:43Are you applauding him?
00:14:44What's it?
00:14:47What do you mean?
00:14:48Are you saying everyone who likes ice cream...
00:14:50Well, ice cream is a bit, you know...
00:14:53You're saying all children are homosexual?
00:14:55No, but...
00:14:57There's nothing wrong with it,
00:14:58but a grown man eating an ice cream,
00:15:00it's, you know, it's a bit...
00:15:01It's that way rather than that way.
00:15:03Welcome to the inside of Richard Hammond's head.
00:15:07I'm right, I can't believe you can't see that.
00:15:09It's a fact, it's easy, it's in front of you.
00:15:11You could enjoy a 99 in there.
00:15:13You mean a 69?
00:15:15No, not...
00:15:1599, but you couldn't have the chocolate thingy.
00:15:18My case rests!
00:15:19Oh, the chocolate thingy.
00:15:21Do I...
00:15:21Exactly.
00:15:23But if you had a vulva,
00:15:24if you had that vulva,
00:15:25you could have a white Magnum...
00:15:26True.
00:15:27...or a Milky Bar.
00:15:28Yeah, but not a double-decker.
00:15:30Well, a flake is worse.
00:15:32No, double-decker is worse.
00:15:34Double-decker.
00:15:35Do you all know what I mean by the double-decker, right?
00:15:38Because it is unique among chocolate confectionery items.
00:15:41Take a bite as you're driving along,
00:15:43and a bit about this big, OK,
00:15:45silently breaks away.
00:15:48Goes down between your legs.
00:15:50And melts.
00:15:52So when you get out of the car,
00:15:53everybody thinks you've had some kind of trouser accident.
00:15:57A big brown stain.
00:15:59I know what you mean.
00:16:00I do know what you mean.
00:16:02Yeah, yeah.
00:16:02A flake is worse.
00:16:04No, it just isn't.
00:16:05A flake is advertised as the crumbliest, flakiest chocolate.
00:16:09It is worse.
00:16:10This is a hot topic on Conversations 3rd.
00:16:11It is.
00:16:12And I think we should settle it here and now.
00:16:15I'm going to go into our travelling box.
00:16:17CHEERING
00:16:17Our travelling box of chocolate confectionery,
00:16:23and I'm going to...
00:16:24Let's settle it.
00:16:25Competition, yes?
00:16:26I'm going to give you, James' flake.
00:16:27The flake.
00:16:28You, the double-decker.
00:16:29All right, so I'll just turn that over so then you'll see how much spills off as I eat the flake.
00:16:33Yeah.
00:16:34Not much.
00:16:34This is scientific.
00:16:37Here we go.
00:16:37Oh, some of it's already crumbed.
00:16:39This is cheating, this one.
00:16:40LAUGHTER
00:16:41OK, no, no, clear away the debris.
00:16:43No, no, I need to...
00:16:44Jesus.
00:16:45No, that's part of eating it.
00:16:46It isn't part of eating it.
00:16:48I haven't even begun now, right?
00:16:49You've got to unwrap it.
00:16:50Shh.
00:16:50Cheat.
00:16:52Only the crumbliest, flakiest chocolate.
00:16:56Oh, God.
00:16:57Teas like chocolate.
00:16:58Jeremy, you know that advert,
00:17:00Girl in...
00:17:00LAUGHTER
00:17:01Girl in the Field of Poppies?
00:17:04We're not seeing that right now.
00:17:05LAUGHTER
00:17:06I am.
00:17:07I'm not.
00:17:08Right, ready?
00:17:08Watch this.
00:17:09He's going in.
00:17:10First bite.
00:17:11Oh, it's a big bowl of chocolate.
00:17:13It's a spring.
00:17:14It's a heavy sprinkling, that.
00:17:15I like dusting of chocolate.
00:17:17Light dusting, yeah, OK.
00:17:18Right, James May.
00:17:19Moving over to this corner,
00:17:20James May in his double-decker.
00:17:21This is exciting, isn't it?
00:17:23LAUGHTER
00:17:23This is a great car programme.
00:17:25Ground-breaking stuff.
00:17:27Yeah.
00:17:28Quiet, please.
00:17:28I can't believe...
00:17:29I can't believe this hasn't been done before.
00:17:31LAUGHTER
00:17:32LAUGHTER
00:17:32He's going in.
00:17:34He's taking a bite.
00:17:35LAUGHTER
00:17:36LAUGHTER
00:17:40It's a catastrophic fall.
00:17:43The clear winner.
00:17:45The double-decker is worse than the plate.
00:17:49There's the plate.
00:17:50There's the double-decker.
00:17:52So there we are.
00:17:53Using science we have now established...
00:17:55If you've got a Volvo,
00:17:57don't have a double-decker.
00:17:58Ever.
00:17:59Or an ice cream, cos he...
00:18:01Oh, no, forget it.
00:18:02Let's move a little further along conversation street, shall we?
00:18:06Um, a few weeks ago, Amazon, they ran an advert for our show,
00:18:10and we were rather pleased.
00:18:11You see, it's got everything in.
00:18:13Yeah, a sense of travel.
00:18:14Logo.
00:18:15And there's even the goat.
00:18:16Yeah, no, that's perfect.
00:18:17That's everything you need.
00:18:19It's all you need for the advert.
00:18:19I'll show you here.
00:18:20It's on the screen.
00:18:21That's...
00:18:21It's good, isn't it?
00:18:22LAUGHTER
00:18:23Yeah.
00:18:24All the essentials are there.
00:18:25Everything you need.
00:18:27Everything you need to see.
00:18:29LAUGHTER
00:18:31LAUGHTER
00:18:31That's great.
00:18:33All the important stuff.
00:18:34And, I'm sorry to have to do this to you,
00:18:36but before the show launched,
00:18:37Amazon did another advert, OK,
00:18:39which somebody sent to me on a tweet,
00:18:40which I did a screen grab-off,
00:18:42so the quality's not very good,
00:18:43but I have brought it along, OK?
00:18:44Here it is.
00:18:46Oh, for God's sake.
00:18:47LAUGHTER
00:18:48LAUGHTER
00:18:49LAUGHTER
00:18:50LAUGHTER
00:18:51I like their marketing department a lot.
00:18:55LAUGHTER
00:18:56I think that's enough conversation street,
00:18:58so let's get back to our film.
00:19:00Yes, earlier on,
00:19:01I was in the right-hand drive Ford Mustang,
00:19:03showing it the sights around our country.
00:19:05Unfortunately, he turned up and tried to argue
00:19:08that the similarly priced Ford Focus was a better bet.
00:19:12Yeah, I did do that.
00:19:12Yeah, and I responded by driving off
00:19:15and refusing to talk to you.
00:19:17Bit rudely, I thought.
00:19:20LAUGHTER
00:19:20LAUGHTER
00:19:21I'm sorry, this is my film,
00:19:27my tour of England,
00:19:28and I didn't want him spoiling.
00:19:30LAUGHTER
00:19:31This thing's bloody awesome.
00:19:39Listen to that bellow.
00:19:40This thing squats on its haunches.
00:19:42This is what it's built to do.
00:19:45Every crackle, pop and bang
00:19:47is just connected to every synapse and sinew in me.
00:19:51This is like a first date for me,
00:20:03and on a first date,
00:20:04you don't want a fat, balding uncle tagging along.
00:20:08So what I'm going to do now
00:20:10is lose it.
00:20:12LAUGHTER
00:20:12It's hammer time, shock and awe.
00:20:19LAUGHTER
00:20:20It's Bond versus Bond.
00:20:29LAUGHTER
00:20:30He's got five litres, I've only got 2.3.
00:20:39Is he going twice as fast?
00:20:42No, he is not.
00:20:45LAUGHTER
00:20:46Corner coming up.
00:20:50Now, there's no need to panic anymore in a Mustang
00:20:52because, for the first time,
00:20:53the Mustang has independent rear suspension.
00:21:00LAUGHTER
00:21:01LAUGHTER
00:21:02The cornering speeds this thing can achieve,
00:21:09beggar belief.
00:21:10LAUGHTER
00:21:12LAUGHTER
00:21:13How does it grip that well?
00:21:23LAUGHTER
00:21:24I'm in a car chase in a Mustang.
00:21:30I am Steve McQueen.
00:21:34LAUGHTER
00:21:35LAUGHTER
00:21:36Try that on.
00:21:38LAUGHTER
00:21:39Got it in sport mode,
00:21:44which makes the exhaust pop and bang.
00:21:49Oh, my!
00:21:50LAUGHTER
00:21:51LAUGHTER
00:21:52Oh, my God!
00:21:59Flat out, yep.
00:22:03It still grips.
00:22:05What is the point of traction control on this thing?
00:22:08It's like putting a nymphomania control on a nun.
00:22:12LAUGHTER
00:22:13LAUGHTER
00:22:16LAUGHTER
00:22:19Oh, my...
00:22:20LAUGHTER
00:22:21LAUGHTER
00:22:22LAUGHTER
00:22:23Oh, God.
00:22:24LAUGHTER
00:22:25LAUGHTER
00:22:26LAUGHTER
00:22:27LAUGHTER
00:22:28LAUGHTER
00:22:29LAUGHTER
00:22:30LAUGHTER
00:22:31LAUGHTER
00:22:33MUSIC
00:22:36LAUGHTER
00:22:38What has he got?
00:22:42How did he do that? How did he get away from me?
00:22:45In something from the 18th century?
00:22:48Especially when I'm driving what is basically a turbocharged barnacle.
00:22:54This has the most sophisticated four-wheel drive system
00:22:59fitted to any car.
00:23:03Not even a Nissan GT-R could live with this.
00:23:07The Mustang, well, that's for cruising down the Pacific Coast Highway
00:23:15listening to Don Henley.
00:23:17This is for storming up the Stelvio Pass listening to The Clash.
00:23:25But, while it's a grippy technological masterpiece,
00:23:29it still has the blue-collar character of its ancestors.
00:23:34In many ways, this reminds me of the old Escort Cosworth,
00:23:38and that was a great car.
00:23:40I actually had one in the 90s. I called it Gary.
00:23:42It started every morning and it always went,
00:23:45Do you want, Sam?
00:23:47It was just John Terry, really, with windscreen wipers.
00:23:50Meanwhile, having got rid of the ape, I was back on my sightseeing tour.
00:23:58This is our Cheddar Gorge.
00:24:03Obviously, it's not as big as your gorge.
00:24:06The Grand Canyon is bigger.
00:24:08Well, it's longer.
00:24:09And deeper.
00:24:10And wider.
00:24:11Mmm, but it doesn't have any cheese in it.
00:24:14Why can't you just leave me alone?
00:24:16I'm just saying, everything in America comes with cheese,
00:24:19apart from the Grand Canyon.
00:24:20Whereas this canyon does come with cheese, and it's delicious.
00:24:24Here, have some.
00:24:25I don't want cheese.
00:24:26He's better than Monterey Jack in a tube.
00:24:28You're ruining this.
00:24:29No, you are, because you are telling everyone that the Mustang is better than the Focus.
00:24:36Well, it is.
00:24:37It isn't.
00:24:38It is?
00:24:39No, it isn't.
00:24:41Look, I'm not saying this is perfect, because it isn't.
00:24:44There's a vertical choppiness to the ride, which is annoying.
00:24:47If you put your phone in the phone holder in front of the gear lever,
00:24:50and then accelerate, it shoots out and goes under the seat,
00:24:52you'll never see it again.
00:24:53Petrol tank, way too small, and the styling is a bit...
00:24:57...yobbish.
00:24:58A bit?
00:24:59But, Hammond, look at this.
00:25:03Oh, yeah, you're right.
00:25:05Half a century of Mustang history, heritage and pride,
00:25:09but it hasn't got a small plastic strip on the door,
00:25:12in case you're a bit clumsy.
00:25:14No, it's brilliant there, and this is faster.
00:25:17Well, no, it isn't.
00:25:19It is.
00:25:20No, it isn't.
00:25:22It isn't.
00:25:23It is.
00:25:24It isn't.
00:25:26At this point, I decided to abandon my tour,
00:25:29and head for the nearest airfield.
00:25:32To teach Clarkson a lesson.
00:25:34Right.
00:25:35I've got 410 horsepower, that's 100 more than him.
00:25:44But there's something else on here that's missing on his focus,
00:25:46and it's this.
00:25:47Line lock.
00:25:48So, engage it.
00:25:49Press OK to initialise.
00:25:51Initialising.
00:25:52Initialising complete.
00:25:53Firmly apply and hold brake to engage.
00:25:55Engage.
00:25:56Press OK to begin.
00:25:57What that's doing is locking the front brakes,
00:26:03so I can warm up my tyres.
00:26:06That is an ideal feature for people who wake up in the morning and think,
00:26:12do you know, I've got too much tread on my tyres.
00:26:19Yeah!
00:26:20I'm doing that automatically!
00:26:25Thank you!
00:26:32What a moron.
00:26:35With my tyres warmed up, I took my place on the start line.
00:26:39Right, race mode, launch control, overboost facility on the turbocharger,
00:26:49four-wheel drive and a man with lightning reactions at the wheel.
00:26:54This car is going to boing off the line like a spring lamb.
00:27:01Launch control, first gear, and we're ready to go.
00:27:09Oh, he's away first!
00:27:23The most incredible launch control in the world!
00:27:30Come on!
00:27:32Come on, Jeremy!
00:27:33Come on!
00:27:34You're winning!
00:27:35We're winning him in!
00:27:38Ha ha ha ha ha!
00:27:42Ha ha ha!
00:27:46No, no, no!
00:27:47That's simply impossible!
00:27:49Well, bless it for trying.
00:27:55Things I don't want to see right now, number one.
00:27:58So, er, I won then?
00:28:00Yes, but your car doesn't have a drift button.
00:28:05A what?
00:28:06A drift button.
00:28:07What does that do?
00:28:08Well, you push it, and then when you go round the corner, the car drifts.
00:28:13Does it?
00:28:14Yeah.
00:28:15Do you know what? I'd love to see that in action.
00:28:16I'd love to see you doing that.
00:28:17Yes.
00:28:18I'll watch. Yes, show me.
00:28:19I'm going to.
00:28:20You stay there.
00:28:21Oh.
00:28:22Even James May could drift this.
00:28:23Here we go!
00:28:24I can't wait to watch.
00:28:35Check it out, ladies and gentlemen. Check it out.
00:28:38Drifting.
00:28:41Ha ha!
00:28:42Look at that, Hammond.
00:28:43Look at that.
00:28:49Hammond?
00:28:50Hammond?
00:28:53Hammond?
00:28:56Hammond?
00:28:57Hammond!
00:29:06Come on.
00:29:08Where did you go?
00:29:09Well, I left you because you were being moronic.
00:29:11Who wasn't?
00:29:12Seriously, who is going to buy a Ford Focus when, for the same money, you could have a V8 engine Mustang?
00:29:18No one.
00:29:19What?
00:29:20Nobody would.
00:29:21Mustangs got so much more character.
00:29:23Hang on.
00:29:24So you agree with me?
00:29:25Oh, God, yes.
00:29:26If I had the choice of those two cars, I'd have the Mustang every day of the week.
00:29:31So you ruined my day out for no reason at all?
00:29:34I ruined your day out because it was fun to ruin your day out.
00:29:38Good work.
00:29:39It was good work.
00:29:40Sorry about that.
00:29:41But anyway, we must now find out how fast those Fords go round our track.
00:29:45And that, of course, means handing them over to our other resident American.
00:29:50A man who thinks that shower gel is basically communist.
00:29:55It's the American.
00:29:57There he is, looking bewildered.
00:30:00And he's away!
00:30:03Sounds like a bunch of goddamn mice in there.
00:30:06Why the hell don't they just start with eight cylinders?
00:30:12Strangest mice I ever heard as he powers down the isn't.
00:30:17There is a good noise.
00:30:19Arms working the wheel like he's wrestling a drifter, which, of course, he is.
00:30:23And already is it your name here?
00:30:26Tires squealing, but it's clinging on well.
00:30:28And now the climb back onto the isn't.
00:30:31Ain't got no room in it.
00:30:33No place to put your beer.
00:30:36I think he and I look for slightly different things in a car.
00:30:40Anyway, now hard on the brakes as he turns into old lady's house.
00:30:46Yep, he is dispatching that with no dramas.
00:30:49And now he can get the hammer down for the bumpy sprint to substation.
00:30:54Looking good.
00:30:56Four wheel drive cars can, of course, understeer, but...
00:30:59Nope, not a whiff of it here.
00:31:01And field of sheep tidy through there as well.
00:31:05And across the line.
00:31:08Now, I think he might enjoy this one.
00:31:11And he is wheel spinning away.
00:31:14All right, American muscle, baby.
00:31:185.0 Mustang, this thing is badass.
00:31:24Got a trunk, got a place for my golf clubs.
00:31:27Pack up the old lady, go for the weekend somewhere, this thing.
00:31:31And you can haul ass while you're going.
00:31:33Something there about an old lady and hauling the bottom.
00:31:37Anyway, he's on the isn't and he's flying into your name here.
00:31:41The mighty Mustang has filled the American with vigour.
00:31:44But he's been surprisingly tidy.
00:31:47That's what us Americans want. We want to smoke the tires.
00:31:53We want this thing to just get shit and git.
00:31:57Literally no idea what he's on about. It's just a noise.
00:32:01This thing stops, man. It stops on a dime.
00:32:04It'll stop on a dime, give you nine cents a change, what we say.
00:32:07You really can't shut him up about this one.
00:32:10Anyway, he is keeping it neat round old lady's house and then unleashing that V8 fury over the rough stuff to substation.
00:32:19Hard on the brakes.
00:32:21Ready for the 90 left.
00:32:23Blip it up to field of sheep.
00:32:25Here we go.
00:32:27Flurry of exuberance and across the line.
00:32:29Flurry of exuberance and across the line.
00:32:32There you are.
00:32:35OK, here's the lapboard.
00:32:38Let's have a look first of all where the focus went.
00:32:42So...
00:32:44There it is. Faster than an ST200, perhaps not surprising.
00:32:47Just as well.
00:32:48Now let's bring up the Mustang.
00:32:51Oh!
00:32:55Well, that's not embarrassing, is it?
00:32:57The car that you, me and the American all prefer is quite a lot slower than the European Focus.
00:33:06Yes.
00:33:07Anyway, listen, let's move on, shall we?
00:33:09Celebrity brain crash!
00:33:17Now, our guest this week isn't just my favourite Formula One driver, he's also a local boy.
00:33:27Oh, yeah.
00:33:29This is the chatty man of motorsport, Mr. Effervescent, ladies and gentlemen, Kimi Raikkonen!
00:33:37Here he comes.
00:33:41What? What are we going to ask him?
00:33:43It doesn't matter what you ask him.
00:33:44It doesn't, because he won't get a coherent answer.
00:33:48Is he alright?
00:33:52No, hang on. Whoa!
00:33:54Oh, no.
00:33:56Not again.
00:33:58No, he has, I'm afraid, ladies and gentlemen, literally drunk himself to death.
00:34:03Damn.
00:34:05Does that mean he's not coming on, then?
00:34:07Well, his liver has failed and is now slowly solidifying in the freezing dusk of an Arctic night.
00:34:12So that's a no.
00:34:15Yeah, but it doesn't matter.
00:34:16Well, it does, because I actually rather liked Kimi, but it doesn't actually matter, because I can think of something else we can do to fill the time.
00:34:22Here's the thing.
00:34:24If you're watching this on the day the programme is actually released, it is December the 23rd.
00:34:29There are two days to go until Christmas, and if you're a man, you won't have done any shopping yet.
00:34:36But don't worry, because we've got you back. We have trawled the internet and the shops to find the best gift ideas.
00:34:45Yes, and here in our special Grand Tour Santa Land Grotto.
00:34:52Yeah.
00:34:54Nice view. Nice everything.
00:34:56Yeah.
00:34:58We begin with this rather brilliant tray, which apparently is the ideal place to put your laptop or your breakfast.
00:35:04We have a picture of it in action here.
00:35:06I can see a couple of problems with that.
00:35:11Yeah, I can too. What else have we got?
00:35:13Well, now, the reason I don't play chess anymore is it's just so exhausting to move the pieces around.
00:35:19Oh, I know what you mean.
00:35:20They're far too heavy, picking the Queen up and moving her along, but it's okay because Ferrari has answered that problem with this.
00:35:26It's a lightweight carbon fibre, Chester, and it's yours for £1,400.
00:35:33How much?
00:35:34£1,400.
00:35:36And that is the funny thing. You take something ordinary, write a car name on it, and suddenly it becomes expensive.
00:35:43This bear, for example. I know about bears. It's an acrylic fibre stuffed with industrial waste.
00:35:50£2.75, but because it's got a Honda T-shirt on, £10.
00:35:56£10.
00:35:57Yes, but it's Honda Bear.
00:35:59Oh, it's...
00:36:00No, no, Christmas morning, Honda Bear. I love following his adventures.
00:36:04How about this lovingly crafted, I love my Hyundai pillowcase.
00:36:11What woman is ever going to leap into bed with the man whose pillows bear that legend?
00:36:15OK, Hammond, I'll tell you exactly what woman.
00:36:18The woman who would wear this thong, which has written lovingly on the front, the legend Elantra.
00:36:26Erotic. Erotic.
00:36:29Can I just say, the perfect Christmas gift for the Hyundai owner is a BMW.
00:36:35Well, yes, look, we realise that branding stuff, obviously there's some money in it, so we thought, since we're in Scandinavia, we would launch our own range of car-branded Christmas jumpers.
00:36:46Mm-mm.
00:36:47Oh, yeah.
00:36:48Yeah.
00:36:49Talk among yourselves, everybody.
00:36:50Hold on a moment.
00:36:51This is modelling time.
00:36:55Mine is a simple turtleneck, very, very warm, bearing the name of a legend on the front.
00:37:01I know.
00:37:02It's very special.
00:37:03They're Christmassy.
00:37:04Yeah.
00:37:05I have gone for a very cunning and Christmassy cardigan bearing the name, as you can see, of a car I absolutely adore.
00:37:13Yeah.
00:37:14And here's the thing, OK?
00:37:15Mine is a crew lick, actually.
00:37:22Nice, everybody.
00:37:26Oh, you're applauding.
00:37:27I know.
00:37:29I think...
00:37:31Is it...
00:37:33Is it because they haven't seen us in knitwear before?
00:37:36Anyway, we've had a go at making some Grand Tour-branded stuff.
00:37:39Oh, yeah.
00:37:40But, here's the thing, we haven't gone for the obvious stuff, like jumpers and mugs and umbrellas.
00:37:44We've gone for things that other people haven't thought of.
00:37:47Things like...
00:37:49This.
00:37:50Hemorrhoid cream.
00:37:52We all need it.
00:37:53I don't.
00:37:54No, I don't either.
00:37:55Well, this is mine.
00:37:57Bought it for £2.75, but now it's got Grand Tour on it.
00:38:00We could sell that for £20.
00:38:03I'll tell you what really good idea we've had.
00:38:07Is condoms, OK, which have been...
00:38:10Well, they've been branded with well-known expressions and phrases that we often say.
00:38:14I'm going to demonstrate using the...
00:38:15Whoa!
00:38:17You flatter yourself, sir.
00:38:19Au contraire.
00:38:20Oh, really?
00:38:22So we simply roll the condom over the...
00:38:25Rolling pin.
00:38:27Here it is.
00:38:28There's the GT logo coming up.
00:38:30And on the other side,
00:38:31How hard can it be?
00:38:34We're very pleased.
00:38:37Pretty damn hard for a man of my age.
00:38:41We're...
00:38:42We're very pleased with these.
00:38:43Various of our slogans have been used.
00:38:45I'm going to put mine on this disappointingly small carrot.
00:38:50And it bears one of my expressions.
00:38:52See, I can't...
00:38:53Don't bullet it!
00:38:54Well, I can't open the thing, can I?
00:38:55Use my glass...
00:38:56No, there's one of those little tear things.
00:38:58Hold on, love, I'll be with you in a minute.
00:38:59No, no.
00:39:01Look, you're not going to be here to help me when I'm using it, are you?
00:39:05You don't know.
00:39:06I'm pretty sure you won't be.
00:39:08It's quite the wrong thing to say.
00:39:09Are you in?
00:39:10Yeah, I mean...
00:39:11What?
00:39:12Can I have my glasses back?
00:39:13No.
00:39:14No, I want my glasses back before you start...
00:39:15Right, hang on.
00:39:16...messing around with sex things.
00:39:17Oh, right.
00:39:18Let me just...
00:39:19Ooh, it's a bit baggy.
00:39:20I've actually torn it with my teeth.
00:39:22Which makes the slogan on it quite appropriate, really.
00:39:25That's not gone well.
00:39:28Can I just say that is by far and away the least erotic thing I have ever...
00:39:34Don't tell me that's not an unfamiliar sight.
00:39:36Oh, you, have you done one as well?
00:39:46Of course I have.
00:39:47Very sensibly, I put mine on earlier.
00:39:49Whoa!
00:39:51Branded with the GT logo and my own personal catchphrase,
00:39:54I was the first to arrive.
00:40:01Now, are you bored with having two fully functioning ankles?
00:40:05Yes.
00:40:06Well, don't worry if you are, because this Christmas the market is awash
00:40:09with products designed specifically to break them,
00:40:12such as this, iBot9.
00:40:14I thought that was a vacuum cleaner.
00:40:16No, it's incredibly heavy because it's packed full of pain.
00:40:20Basically, you put these things out on the side, yeah,
00:40:22you stand on that and you're whizz about,
00:40:23but within seconds of getting on there,
00:40:24you will be falling over and breaking your ankles.
00:40:26Probably so.
00:40:27Yes, and on the other hand, there are also these.
00:40:30These are called the rocket skates.
00:40:32The rocket skates, they will cost you just £900
00:40:35and they are guaranteed to power you straight to casualty.
00:40:39Yeah.
00:40:40Look, they're fine.
00:40:41No, they're really not.
00:40:42Oh, you're all right, I could have a go on those.
00:40:44Really?
00:40:45Who'd like to see that?
00:40:46Seriously, I mean, honestly...
00:40:49How hard can it be?
00:40:54See, I knew it would come in handy, I can bludgeon...
00:40:57No, seriously, I'll have a go then.
00:40:58No, off you go then.
00:40:59Really?
00:41:00Yeah.
00:41:01Can I wear my shoes in them?
00:41:03Are they like ski boots?
00:41:05Yes, Jeremy, apart from they've got wheels and you're indoors.
00:41:08This is just...
00:41:09I am not going near them, by the way.
00:41:10Just put my foot in them.
00:41:11I don't want to!
00:41:12It's not that...
00:41:13I can't see what I'm...
00:41:14It's degrading and unpleasant.
00:41:17Do I'm supposed to take the shoes off?
00:41:18Put your great cloven hoof in there.
00:41:21It fits!
00:41:22You can go to the ball.
00:41:25There, you're in.
00:41:26Thank you very much.
00:41:27Now what are you going to do?
00:41:28You're not going to do it!
00:41:29Is that it?
00:41:33Have you started?
00:41:34Not yet.
00:41:35Might have faced the other way, haven't I?
00:41:39Looking good.
00:41:40These are worth every...
00:41:42What were they cost?
00:41:43900 quid.
00:41:44900 quid.
00:41:45Literally every penny.
00:41:46Wait, hold it there.
00:41:47Hold it there.
00:41:49Look out, girls.
00:41:50Mr. Darcy's arrived.
00:41:53Looking good.
00:41:59Oh, this is brilliant.
00:42:01Wow.
00:42:02I can see why they're called rocket skates.
00:42:06Come on, then.
00:42:07Oh, God!
00:42:08Try to move!
00:42:10What do you mean, lean back?
00:42:20Jeremy?
00:42:21What?
00:42:22Stephen Hawking would make a better job of his rocket skates than you.
00:42:27Where are you going?
00:42:28You've got to get one.
00:42:29Do you remember that?
00:42:30Oh, God!
00:42:31Whoa!
00:42:32It's a disaster!
00:42:37Shit.
00:42:38Sorry.
00:42:39Don't worry, Jeremy.
00:42:40I will come and rescue on my nine bar.
00:42:41Bloody hell!
00:42:42Oh, my God.
00:42:43It's going mad.
00:42:44Right.
00:42:45Right.
00:42:46Put my foot on there, and I go like that.
00:42:47This is a really good ambulance service.
00:42:52Yep.
00:42:53Yep.
00:42:54Don't worry.
00:42:55I'll be there in a minute.
00:42:56I don't know that this works.
00:42:57What?
00:42:58I've gone again!
00:43:01Shit.
00:43:02And I've got cramp.
00:43:03Ah!
00:43:05Ooh!
00:43:06That was a brilliant idea, but never mind.
00:43:08Because, um, I have a perfect Christmas present here.
00:43:11You control this with your mobile phone, and your face comes on it.
00:43:14And the brilliant thing about it is that it means you can have your favorite celebrity round
00:43:19to your house for Christmas lunch.
00:43:21And with that in mind, ladies and gentlemen, would you please welcome into the studio, he's
00:43:25actually in his office in London, and yet he's also here on top of a stick, it's Bob Geldof!
00:43:33CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
00:43:36We've got to say hello to Bob.
00:43:38I can't say hello to Bob!
00:43:39He's coming!
00:43:40Oh, look, he's going so fast!
00:43:41It is!
00:43:42It's Bob Geldof, everybody!
00:43:45Hello, Bob!
00:43:46There we go!
00:43:47Bob, we're over here, Bob!
00:43:48Bob!
00:43:49Bob!
00:43:50We're over here!
00:43:51Where are you?
00:43:52Bob, you've gone the wrong way!
00:43:53Bob Geldof, how are you?
00:43:54Bob Gel-
00:43:55Yes!
00:43:56Happy Christmas!
00:43:57Oh, f**k!
00:43:58Are you having a good Christmas, Bob?
00:44:01Oh, no, he's Bob!
00:44:02Ladies and gentlemen!
00:44:03Bob Geldof is lost!
00:44:05He's gone in the wrong...
00:44:07Oh, James May's coming to join him!
00:44:09Where's May?
00:44:10I'm coming to talk to Bob Geldof!
00:44:13Whoa!
00:44:14May has kissed Bob Geldof!
00:44:16Hello, Bob!
00:44:17How are you?
00:44:18Get out of the way!
00:44:19I'm travelling!
00:44:20No, straight ahead, Bob!
00:44:21Bob, no!
00:44:22Left hand down, Bob!
00:44:23No, Bob!
00:44:24Bob, you...
00:44:25Just attack somebody!
00:44:26Stop!
00:44:27Bob, stop attacking the crowd!
00:44:30Now where's he going?
00:44:31No!
00:44:32Bob!
00:44:34Right, I'll rescue Bob!
00:44:36Hold on!
00:44:37Straight ahead, Bob!
00:44:38That's perfect!
00:44:39Straight ahead, straight ahead!
00:44:40Bit of right hand down!
00:44:41Bit of right hand down!
00:44:42No, don't drive into it!
00:44:43Stop head butting the tree!
00:44:45This is ridiculous!
00:44:46Where's the little reindeers of Santa Claus at?
00:44:50Oh, no!
00:44:51Hang on a minute!
00:44:53He's ruined Christmas!
00:44:54Does he know it's Christmas time at all?
00:44:56Well, tonight, thank God it's him instead of us knocking the Christmas tree!
00:45:00Absolutely right!
00:45:01He's ruined it!
00:45:03Anyway...
00:45:04This year marks the 50th anniversary of the greatest battle in motorsport history.
00:45:11The story begins in the 1960s when Ford realised that they could sell a lot more cars if they were a lot more successful on the racetrack.
00:45:20So, they formulated a brilliant plan.
00:45:24But unfortunately...
00:45:28It went disastrously wrong, didn't it, Bob?
00:45:36Ford knew that if he wanted to rule in motorsport, there was only one race that mattered.
00:45:41The toughest and most dangerous of them all.
00:45:44The 24 hours of Le Mans.
00:45:47LaVey's Mercedes collides and blows up.
00:45:50The problem was, for all its might, Ford didn't have a clue how to win at Le Mans.
00:45:56However, over in Italy, someone did.
00:45:59In the early 1960s, Enzo Ferrari's cars ruled sports car racing, Le Mans especially.
00:46:14At the start of the decade, he had won the famous and gruelling 24-hour race three times on the trot.
00:46:20However, the company was in deep financial difficulty.
00:46:24So, when Ford offered to buy the entire business, Enzo agreed.
00:46:33At first, all went well.
00:46:36Enzo Ferrari and the head of Ford, Henry Ford II, quickly settled on a price of $16 million.
00:46:44And on May 21, 1963, Ford executives arrived in Maranello to sign the deal.
00:46:51Ford turned up with an army of suits.
00:46:55Enzo Ferrari sat opposite them with just the local town lawyer.
00:46:59Now, they read through the contract and it all seemed well.
00:47:01But then suddenly, Ferrari stopped and he took out his famous fountain pen full of purple ink.
00:47:06And as you can see from this accurate copy I have here, he drew a big exclamation mark and he wrote,
00:47:11No, that's no good.
00:47:15Now, what had angered him?
00:47:16Well, it was this clause here.
00:47:17You see, Enzo Ferrari wanted to retain control of the motorsport side of his business.
00:47:23But this bit effectively handed control to Ford.
00:47:27There followed a tirade of abuse, in Italian, after which Enzo said to his lawyer,
00:47:32Let's go and eat.
00:47:33And they got up and they simply walked out on the stunned Ford executives.
00:47:38That was that.
00:47:40All of this for nothing.
00:47:43Back in Detroit, Henry Ford II, apoplectic with rage, gathered his lieutenants and issued the order.
00:47:51Build me a car that will crush Ferrari at Le Mans.
00:47:55To beat Ferrari on European soil, Ford needed European expertise.
00:48:03So, he hired a small British motorsport company that set up shop here, in this very building,
00:48:09on an industrial estate in Slough, just outside London.
00:48:13And the challenges they faced were enormous.
00:48:16They had to build a car that would race at over 200 miles an hour,
00:48:20which was something that had never been done before.
00:48:22And it had to be reliable for the 24 hours of the Le Mans race.
00:48:27A race in which you changed gear 9,000 times and drove flat out for 3,000 miles.
00:48:34And as if that wasn't bad enough, they only had 10 months to do it.
00:48:43Out of that insane timetable emerged this.
00:48:47The Ford GT, thanks to its sleek shape and a body that stood just 40 inches tall, it promised to cut through the air like a missile.
00:48:59Add a 4.2 litre V8, and the magic target of 200 miles an hour seemed in the bag.
00:49:05The trouble is, a racing car is just a collection of hopes and dreams until it gets on the track.
00:49:13That's something that Ford learned in a very brutal way when they took the GT40 to test the Le Mans for the first time.
00:49:21And so to the first Le Mans practice session.
00:49:26On its first outing, the renamed GT40 was fast, but it was also terrifyingly unstable, spinning its wheels on the straights.
00:49:35Now I'm not talking about when you set off, I mean it was happening at 170 miles an hour.
00:49:45Now the problem was either aerodynamics or suspension, but they never got to tell us to find out because later that day, the car crashed at 160 miles an hour.
00:49:54Well that was okay, they had a spare one of course. The next day that crashed as well. The Le Mans was just two months away.
00:50:06Against all odds, Ford got their act together in time for the 1964 race.
00:50:11The Le Mans 24-hour race at last, and three gleaming Ford GTs are present.
00:50:19But during the race itself, all the cars broke down or caught fire, leaving bitter rivals Ferrari to take another one, two, three victory.
00:50:31In Detroit, Henry Ford decreed that they would be back next year to take on Ferrari again.
00:50:40And to head up the campaign, he turned to an American motorsport hero.
00:50:45My name's Carroll Shelby and performance is my business.
00:50:49Shelby was a former chicken farmer from Texas, who took nitroglycerin pills to keep his heart going.
00:50:54But he'd also racked up countless victories as a driver and team owner.
00:51:00Given the task of turning the GT40 into a winner, he put his top man on the job.
00:51:06Coming up is Ken Miles, one of the best sport car drivers in America.
00:51:11Miles was a former Second World War tank commander from Birmingham, the one in England, not Alabama.
00:51:18He was renowned for speaking his mind and developing racing cars.
00:51:22Miles took the car for a shakedown and he got out and he told Shelby and the Ford executives,
00:51:28it's bloody awful.
00:51:30Then he got to work, improving the brakes, the engine, the aerodynamics, the handling,
00:51:37and taming the car's terrifying high-speed instability.
00:51:41However, and even though he and his team took amphetamines so that they could stay awake all night,
00:51:47there simply wasn't time to develop the car properly for Le Mans.
00:51:50The GT40 may have been faster, but it was still fragile.
00:51:56At the 1965 race, six cars started, none finished.
00:52:01And the Italians humiliated Ford once again.
00:52:04So, untold, millions of dollars had been spent since the first GT40 emerged from this building here.
00:52:13And yet not one car had even finished the race.
00:52:17So Ford now faced a difficult choice. He could throw in the towel against Ferrari or he could fight on.
00:52:22What he actually did was he had some business cards printed and he distributed them to his Le Mans team.
00:52:29And on the cards it said, you'd better win.
00:52:31And so, a year later, the American giant returned to Le Mans with his hopes resting on this.
00:52:39Okay, viewers, this is historic race car bucket list moment number two.
00:52:53Because this is an actual GT40 that competed at Le Mans in 1966.
00:53:02I don't go mad, mate, it's worth 15 million quid.
00:53:08Sod it, let's make some noise!
00:53:10Sod it, let's make some noise!
00:53:17Oh, yes!
00:53:21In this new GT40, Ken Miles had racked up thousands of test hours.
00:53:27Now the car was no longer horribly unstable, but would sit rock steady at 210 miles per hour.
00:53:34And the Brummie tank commander had the backing of Ford's huge R&D department,
00:53:40who tackled the car's appalling reliability.
00:53:45The brakes no longer went into thermal shock at the end of the long straight.
00:53:50The engine and transmission were run on a computerised test rig
00:53:54that simulated the whole of the 24-hour Le Mans race.
00:53:57Now that's standard practice in Formula One today, but in 1966, that was witchcraft.
00:54:06They weren't mucking about, these blokes.
00:54:09But neither were the opposition.
00:54:12Over in Italy, in response to the new threat, Ferrari produced this.
00:54:17Called the P3, it looked as sleek as a GT40.
00:54:29And at just 37.4 inches tall, it was even lower.
00:54:33And lower.
00:54:38Come on, see!
00:54:43Whoo! Holy mother!
00:54:45Let's be a little bit careful on this narrow road.
00:54:49It's worth 20 million pounds.
00:54:51Where the GT40 boasted a top speed of over 210 miles an hour,
00:54:59the P3 maxed out at just 190.
00:55:03But Enzo Ferrari was willing to trade outright speed for gains elsewhere.
00:55:10The Ferrari was lighter, it was more agile.
00:55:13Ferrari reckoned he could make up the difference in the beds.
00:55:16And he wouldn't have to stop so often for fuel.
00:55:20A David and Goliath battle was looming.
00:55:24At the 1966 Le Mans race, Ford arrived with an armada.
00:55:30Eight cars, 20 tons of spares, and a squad of world-class drivers,
00:55:36including Ken Miles himself.
00:55:38In comparison, Ferrari turned up with just a trio of P3s.
00:55:43But Enzo had an ace up his sleeve.
00:55:45The undisputed fastest driver on the planet.
00:55:47Formula One world champion John Surtees.
00:55:52He had come to me and said,
00:55:55John, we've got to beat the Fords.
00:55:58Go out and do it.
00:56:00I thought there was only one tactic, to have at least one car be the hare.
00:56:05I said, look, I don't mind being the hare.
00:56:07The moment that flag goes down, we need to be back off, tempting the Ford drivers to perhaps overdrive a little bit.
00:56:18If one could push them hard enough for long enough, then there is more likelihood, obviously, of being able to break them.
00:56:25The plan was set. But as zero-hour approached, everything unraveled.
00:56:32Shortly before the start of the race, we learned that he wasn't going to drive, and we asked him about it.
00:56:36Yes, unfortunately, you've heard correct. I won't be driving.
00:56:41What is the reason?
00:56:43Well, I suppose it's best summed up at this stage by saying political reasons.
00:56:48The problem was that the Ferrari team manager was playing his own political game.
00:56:54He had no particular liking for Surtees, and he nominated another driver to go out and start the race, to be the hare.
00:57:01Even though Surtees was clearly the fastest man available.
00:57:06And I just stormed away, drove back, and had it out with the old man.
00:57:10As the Italian papers put it, they showed a picture of me walking out the gates and saying the divorce of John Surtees and Enzo.
00:57:24With Surtees out of the way, the Fords took the top four slots in qualifying.
00:57:30And as the clock ticked down, Henry Ford II prepared to drop the flag, praying that this time he would get his revenge.
00:57:40Live from Le Mans, France, it's the 24 hours of Le Mans.
00:57:57At first, the Fords stormed into the lead.
00:58:00But a few hours in, it was beginning to look like a depressing repeat of 64 and 65.
00:58:06As night fell, the Ferraris, using their greater agility and their greater fuel efficiency, were leading the race one too.
00:58:14Four of the eight GT40s were out of the race altogether.
00:58:18Worse still, the Ford drivers had strict orders not to go balls out, for fear of breaking the cars.
00:58:28But one man wasn't listening to those orders.
00:58:32Ken Miles put the hammer down, set blistering lap times and retook the lead for Ford.
00:58:37The Ferraris had no response to this crushing pace, and by morning, they had either broken down or crashed.
00:58:46That afternoon, Henry Ford watched his cars cruise home to a spectacular 1-2-3 finish.
00:58:54First place for the Ford GT Mark II, and a first time win for America at Le Mans.
00:59:06Ford would go on to win the next four Le Mans races.
00:59:09But the man who had contributed so much to the team didn't get to see these triumphs.
00:59:16Ken Miles was killed two months after their first win, testing the latest GT40.
00:59:21It's impossible to calculate how much Henry Ford spent on his three-year campaign to break Ferrari.
00:59:31But experts reckon that at the very least, in today's money, it was £360 million.
00:59:38Now that's a big bill for settling a spat with an angry Italian.
00:59:44But look what we got out of it.
00:59:47One of the world's greatest cars.
00:59:51One of the world's greatest cars.
00:59:55CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
00:59:58Very good.
01:00:00Very good.
01:00:03There it is.
01:00:07I hate you.
01:00:09I know.
01:00:11No, but I really hate you now, because you've driven the Ford GT40, and I never have.
01:00:14I mean, what is it next week? You're going to lick Helena Christensen?
01:00:17Look...
01:00:18I'm sure you could drive a GT40 if you really wanted to.
01:00:21I can't. I'm too tall.
01:00:23Yeah, you mean fat.
01:00:25LAUGHTER
01:00:27APPLAUSE
01:00:34Tall.
01:00:35But listen, whatever dimension is the problem, I can't drive one.
01:00:44And on that terrible disappointment, it is time to end.
01:00:47Thank you so much for watching.
01:00:49Good night.
01:00:50HE COOPERING
01:00:54He's still a good day, and we'll see you guys on the stage.
01:00:57He's again.
01:00:59Yeah!
01:01:01He's learning.
01:01:03He's also a good coach.
01:01:05He's learning.
01:01:07He's learning.
01:01:09He's learning.
01:01:10He's learning.
01:01:11I'm learning.
01:01:13He's learning.