- 2 days ago
Season 17 opens with Jeremy Clarkson testing the explosive BMW 1 Series M Coupe, while James May gets behind the wheel of the Mini Countryman WRC on a rally stage. Richard Hammond reviews the outrageous Lotus T125, a track-only hypercar built to mimic a Formula 1 machine. The trio then attempt to create a car-powered train for a cross-country journey — with predictably chaotic results. Guest Alice Cooper appears as the Star in a Reasonably Priced Car.
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MotorTranscript
00:00:00Tonight, Richard Hammond buys a cup of coffee, James May slips on some snow, and we show
00:00:20a picture of Steve McQueen.
00:00:30Hello! Hello, everybody! We're back! We're back! Thank you so much! Thank you! It is a whole
00:00:43new series featuring many things. We go to Las Vegas, Italy, Monte Carlo, Albania, Loughborough.
00:00:53But we start tonight with General Motors, which is a big company in America. Now, many people
00:00:59say that last year they stopped making the Hummer because it was too big and too silly.
00:01:05However, Richard Hammond says the reason it's gone west is because it wasn't big or silly
00:01:11enough.
00:01:22This is one of the deceased Hummers, the H3. And it is, you'll notice, a pretty sizeable
00:01:30car. However, if you mourn its passing, don't worry, because happily you can now buy something
00:01:38a bit bigger.
00:01:42It's called the Marauder, which is quite a scary sounding name. Buttercup didn't feel
00:01:50quite right, so hey, live with it. Can't imagine it ever having one of those Christian fish symbols
00:01:55on the back bumper. The Marauder, which is built in South Africa, weighs 10 tonnes. It's
00:02:03also 21 feet long and 9 feet high. So in traffic, it does tend to stand out a bit.
00:02:15Oh, don't people get out of your way, don't they?
00:02:27Tell you what, you do get some people telling you about how they feel a bit nervous in Johannesburg.
00:02:35I don't. No, I don't. It's a weird feeling because I'm both worried about bumping into things
00:02:44because, well, frankly, who cares?
00:02:52Like the original Hummer, the Marauder is a military spec vehicle that ordinary civilians
00:02:57can buy.
00:02:58All you have to do is pass a background check to prove you're not a villain living in a
00:03:04hollowed out volcano and come up with a check for £300,000.
00:03:12That is Rolls-Royce Phantom money for a machine that's not exactly the last word in luxury.
00:03:19Take the back seats, for instance. There are eight of them, which is good, but I don't
00:03:24think you'll be renting this out as a wedding car any day soon.
00:03:28And as for the dashboard, they've clearly decided not to go for the walnut and leather option
00:03:34on here, partly because they need to leave room for all the switches, partly because the
00:03:38wood might clash with the wood on the machine guns.
00:03:41Yeah.
00:03:43However, the Marauder does compensate in other areas.
00:03:47Take this annoying slow traffic that I'm stuck in now.
00:03:53Normally, this is where you need some expensive sat-nav system to give you alternative routes.
00:03:58The Marauder doesn't need sat-nav.
00:04:08There you go.
00:04:13Oh yeah.
00:04:13It really does control its immense weight very well.
00:04:21Yes.
00:04:25It really is like off-roading quite a large building.
00:04:33Right, now.
00:04:34Oh, that gap's big enough.
00:04:44There it is now.
00:04:51Oh lord.
00:04:52This is a good tab car.
00:05:11In fact, the Marauder has several benefits as a city runabout.
00:05:15Imagine, for example, that you nip off to get a coffee, and this happens.
00:05:26Oh, that's not nice, no.
00:05:32Now, normally, the tow-away people leave you powerless and penniless, but not this time.
00:05:38The Marauder has got 290 brake horsepower and a top speed of just 70 miles an hour, which
00:05:45admittedly isn't brilliant.
00:05:46However, the torque figure is astonishing.
00:05:501,100 newton-metres of it, which is a lot.
00:05:53And that makes it pretty good in a tow-away tug-of-war.
00:06:07We're going this way.
00:06:15Yes, there you go.
00:06:19Another everyday irritation.
00:06:21Popping into the supermarket and coming out to find yourself blocked in.
00:06:27Again, no problem for the Marauder thanks to its vertical climbing system.
00:06:32Low range, four-wheel drive, div-lock, clear drive, handbrake off.
00:06:39More than more than anything you can think of
00:06:43our world's taste of.
00:06:45Oh, oh.
00:06:45Oh, oh.
00:06:47No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.
00:06:49Yes, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.
00:06:53Oh.
00:06:54Oh.
00:06:55Oh.
00:06:55Oh.
00:06:58Oh.
00:06:59Oh, oh.
00:07:01Oh.
00:07:03Oh.
00:07:06Oh.
00:07:07Oh.
00:07:09It's really kind of the ideal shopping car.
00:07:16But let's not get carried away.
00:07:19Because, like everything, the Marauder has its weak points.
00:07:23Visiting a drive-thru, for example.
00:07:26Now, normally, at about this point, you'd roll down the windows
00:07:30and get ready to say, cheeseburger and chips, please.
00:07:33But the problem is the Marauder's windows are, you know, for tough situations.
00:07:3890 millimetres thick that can shrug off an RPG.
00:07:42And as a result, you can't open them.
00:07:44So this is where it gets a bit awkward.
00:07:50Good morning. Can I take your eye off, please?
00:07:53Hello? Um...
00:07:55If you're there, I'd like a cheeseburger and some chips, please.
00:07:59This isn't the right situation. Don't be alarmed.
00:08:02But the real problem comes when you drive around to collect your order.
00:08:08Right.
00:08:12Don't be alarmed, I'm not shooting.
00:08:21So, a mark against the Marauder there.
00:08:24And if you happen to visit a safari park,
00:08:28you might find that the windscreen wipers aren't that tough.
00:08:33But is this the only weak spot?
00:08:37Let's see.
00:08:38Let's see.
00:08:42Now, this is where we're going to do a little test
00:08:45we won't find in the NCAP ratings.
00:08:48And we start, not with this, but with that.
00:08:52Our old friend, the Hummer.
00:08:53And the Hummer.
00:08:58Whose underside was packed with seven pounds of plastic explosive.
00:09:04Oh dear.
00:09:06Really not much point trying to see if it will start
00:09:08because some pretty important bits are missing.
00:09:12So, the H3 is, like Hummer itself, very dead.
00:09:17But the important question is,
00:09:19what happens to the Marauder
00:09:21when you put the same amount of explosives underneath it?
00:09:24Right.
00:09:25Well, clearly what's happened here is,
00:09:26there was a fight between the Marauder and the Earth.
00:09:28And the Earth lost.
00:09:29And the explosion has just dug a big hole.
00:09:30OK.
00:09:32Well, we're going to go.
00:09:36And the Earth lost.
00:09:38And the explosion has just dug a big hole.
00:09:46OK.
00:09:48Well, it's going to go.
00:09:50Right.
00:09:51Well, clearly what's happened here is,
00:09:52there was a fight between the Marauder and the Earth.
00:09:54And the Earth lost.
00:09:55And the explosion has just dug a big hole.
00:09:58OK.
00:10:00Things crossed.
00:10:07That was definitely an inconvenience, but really nothing more.
00:10:30That was a good car.
00:10:33That was a good car.
00:10:35Good car.
00:10:36Oh, that's great.
00:10:39A useful bit of consumer advice there, Adam.
00:10:43Can I just say though, I was looking carefully, the last little bit there as it came out of the hole,
00:10:47I noticed that the rear tyre had been blown off the rim.
00:10:51Seven pounds of plastic explosive and all it did was blow the tyre off of it.
00:10:55But a car with the tyre blown off is as useless as a car that's been blown to smithereens, really.
00:11:00Well, no, seven pounds of...
00:11:01No, he's right, because it's a bit like saying, my watch survived the explosion completely unscathed.
00:11:06Well, I mean, the hour hand's come off, but apart from...
00:11:08No, it's like saying, I survived the explosion apart from my head, which is over there.
00:11:12Will you two please just stop saying things?
00:11:15I think it's an excellent car, and anyway, it's time now to do the news.
00:11:18Yes, news.
00:11:19Yes, it is the news.
00:11:20Now, for people who think that there is just literally too much room in the back of a standard Mini,
00:11:25don't worry, because there is now a coupe.
00:11:28There it is.
00:11:29Whoa, whoa, whoa!
00:11:33Any details? I could tell you it's...
00:11:35It's between 18 and 24,000 pounds, and the top model has 208 horsepower.
00:11:41Yeah.
00:11:42Now, a lot of people have been talking about its roof, unsurprisingly.
00:11:44Oh, yeah.
00:11:45Many themselves say it's styled to look like a baseball cap being worn backwards.
00:11:50Why would I want that as my roof?
00:11:53Uh, I think this is a car that probably at night, when you leave it, entertains itself by spitting at the elderly.
00:11:59Um...
00:12:00They should have called it the Lout.
00:12:02The Slob.
00:12:03The Slob's a good idea.
00:12:04Steal its own wheels and put itself on free.
00:12:06Good news!
00:12:09No, actually, it's not good news, it's just some news, okay?
00:12:12MG is back.
00:12:13Yeah.
00:12:14This is the new car.
00:12:15Here it is.
00:12:16It's called the MG6.
00:12:17You can have it as a saloon or as a hatchback.
00:12:19Um...
00:12:20It's supposed to be very modern in every way, but I don't think the factory where it's being made in Longbridge is modern at all,
00:12:27because...
00:12:28Got the press release they sent out here, and it says,
00:12:30the first car was driven off the line by the only woman who works there.
00:12:35It's not very modern, is it?
00:12:36No.
00:12:37No.
00:12:38They go on to say, and best of all, she has a smashing pair of knockets.
00:12:41Very modern.
00:12:42No, don't tell me.
00:12:43It says next, don't worry chaps, we'll let her drive it off, but we won't let her park it.
00:12:47Oh God!
00:12:48Welcome to 1950!
00:12:50The thing is, the car's gone away from...
00:12:52That's not a joke!
00:12:54The thing about this is, okay, we know that this is made, in China, by the Ling King, Wang King, Dong King, Nong King...
00:13:06Bam!
00:13:07Yeah, bam!
00:13:08Keep going, keep going!
00:13:09Yeah, see, that's all good.
00:13:11Heavy corporation industry, right?
00:13:13Okay, and then it's shipped over to Birmingham, where they fix an MG badge on it, okay, and then sell it.
00:13:18But they say, in the actual brochure, which I've got here, it talks about Le Mans and breaking land speed records, right?
00:13:24It says, the MG embodies British sporting style.
00:13:28It doesn't.
00:13:29No, it doesn't.
00:13:30I think the only British sportiness in that is, the glue they use to fix on the badge is made from a dead British racehorse.
00:13:38That is the only sporty thing in that car, I reckon.
00:13:42Oh, now, wait a minute, it should have the press release, okay?
00:13:44They sent us, has got a typo on it.
00:13:46Here it is, look.
00:13:47Ear?
00:13:48Yeah, MG ear.
00:13:50Oh, ear.
00:13:51I think this indicates the car will be a bit hit.
00:13:53Might be complete rap, absolute ollocks.
00:14:01Yes.
00:14:02Now, I've always wondered, okay, I've always thought, there's somebody in Britain now, driving around in a Rena, let's just say a Rena Fuego Turbo, okay?
00:14:10How do they know that isn't the last Rena Fuego Turbo in the whole country?
00:14:16Well, now, there's a website called howmanyleft.co.uk, okay?
00:14:20Well, you can go on it and find out precisely how many cars of each, how many examples of each model are actually left in existence, okay?
00:14:28It's unbelievable.
00:14:29It's so addictive.
00:14:30It's so addictive.
00:14:31How many Fuego turbos are there?
00:14:32When on it, there are three.
00:14:33Just three?
00:14:34There are only three Fuego turbos.
00:14:36It's really special.
00:14:37You know what?
00:14:38It's an incredibly rare car.
00:14:39No, I went on it and did you know, because somebody doesn't, there is somebody driving around in an Austin Maxi 1750 automatic and probably doesn't realise it is the last one.
00:14:52There's only one Maxi 1750, he's not here are you?
00:14:57There's a Maxi 1750 automatic and it's unique.
00:15:00It's still crap.
00:15:01It is terrible.
00:15:02And it's uniquely crap because there's only one.
00:15:05Now, whenever we're told there's like one Amazonian green-backed nose turtle left, okay?
00:15:10God, isn't it?
00:15:11We're all supposed to have these candlelit vigils and eat mud and not drive cars and turn our central heating down to save it because it's going extinct.
00:15:18There's only one Vauxhall Chevette GL automatic left.
00:15:23Okay, that's it.
00:15:24There's only one left.
00:15:26Look at it.
00:15:27What is being done to save this car?
00:15:30I put it to you, nothing is being done.
00:15:33Well, actually, in the Victorian era, chaps used to go off when something was about to become extinct.
00:15:39They'd go off, find it and, well, shoot it.
00:15:42Yes, I know.
00:15:43The very last one!
00:15:44Blam!
00:15:45And then nail its head to the wall.
00:15:47So, are you suggesting then we go out and hunt?
00:15:50Yes.
00:15:51And nail its head to our wall in here, the last Chevette like that.
00:15:55We've just thought of something to do in programme six of this show.
00:15:59We're going hunting the Chevette GL automatic, it's out there.
00:16:04Now, moving on.
00:16:05There was a poll recently to find the most important car from the 20th century.
00:16:11And I went for the Golf GTI because it was fast and practical and classless.
00:16:18And it's been much the same story with all the models that have come along subsequently.
00:16:23But none of them have ever managed to capture somehow the magic of the original.
00:16:30Until now.
00:16:31Now, I'll admit, it's not actually a GTI.
00:16:43Or a Golf.
00:16:45Or even a Volkswagen.
00:16:47What it is, is a BMW.
00:16:49The new 1M.
00:16:56What BMW has done to create this is take a standard 1 Series and pump it up a bit.
00:17:02The wheel archers are flared.
00:17:04The car is slightly lowered.
00:17:06And at the back, there are extra poo shoes.
00:17:12Inside, there's a splash of suede on the dash with some orange stitching.
00:17:17Otherwise, it's humdrum.
00:17:19Normal.
00:17:21Not showy at all.
00:17:25Apart from the orange paint, you simply wouldn't guess that it can do this.
00:17:29Oh, yes!
00:17:40Blimey, this is good.
00:17:45So, what have we got here?
00:17:47Well, there's a straight-six engine at the front.
00:17:50A manual gearbox in the middle and drive goes to the back.
00:17:55That's page one, chapter one, from the petrosexual handbook.
00:18:07It just feels so beautifully balanced.
00:18:14And, of course, all BMW M cars feel this way.
00:18:18They just feel better than Merck's, better than Audi's, better than pretty much anything.
00:18:25And just when you think it can't possibly get any better than this,
00:18:30you push the little M button on the steering wheel,
00:18:34and the whole car shimmies.
00:18:36It's like a shiver of excitement.
00:18:39The feeling you get if someone suddenly gave you permission to set fire to Piers Morgan.
00:18:44Ooh, yes!
00:18:48In M mode, it's even more of a tire-smoking mentalist.
00:18:52Honestly, I haven't driven anything this sort of perfect since, I don't know, since the original Golf GTI, in fact.
00:19:08And what makes that quite surprising is that the 1M is like a turkey curry on Boxing Day.
00:19:19It's made from leftovers.
00:19:24The door mirrors are from the current M3.
00:19:27The rear axle is from the old one.
00:19:30The engine is from a Z4.
00:19:32It's a recipe that shouldn't work, but it does.
00:19:37As we shall now see.
00:19:41What we have here is a new, lighter, more powerful Porsche Cockster.
00:19:46The Cayman R.
00:19:49And this is the new supercharged Lotus Evora S.
00:19:54Both these no-compromise ground-huggers are purpose-built to go like hell.
00:19:59So they ought to cream the sit-up-and-beg Beamer.
00:20:03However, while the 3-litre engine in this is from a Z4,
00:20:07it's boosted to 340 horsepower with two tiny little turbochargers.
00:20:21So, let's see how we get on.
00:20:24So, £50,000 Porsche, £60,000 Lotus, and the £40,000 BMW
00:20:44is showing them its many push-ups.
00:20:47Ho, ho, ho!
00:20:48A bit depressing if we've just bought a Lotus.
00:20:58And there's more.
00:21:00The Porsche and the Lotus are effectively two-seaters,
00:21:04and there's hardly any luggage space at all.
00:21:07You get the speed at a price.
00:21:11But there's no price to pay with the 1M.
00:21:14There's space in the back for two children,
00:21:17and room in the boot for two more.
00:21:20It's a family saloon.
00:21:25This, then, does to today's sports cars
00:21:28what the original Golf GTI did to the MG and the Triumph Spitfire.
00:21:33It renders them pointless.
00:21:38Drawbacks?
00:21:39Maybe the sat-nav screen is a bit far away.
00:21:49And perhaps the ride is a tad firm.
00:21:53But that said, it isn't as uncomfortable as my AMG Mercedes.
00:21:58Actually, falling down a flight of stairs isn't as uncomfortable as my Mercedes.
00:22:02Sustained machine gun fire would be better than popping to the shops in that.
00:22:07And anyway, you won't really notice the stiff suspension.
00:22:12Partly because the seats are so comfortable,
00:22:15and partly because you'll be having such a good time.
00:22:19I wish you could have died.
00:22:23This is a brilliant, brilliant, brilliant car.
00:22:30And that's all, really, I've got to say.
00:22:33The end.
00:22:34The end.
00:22:35The end.
00:22:36The end.
00:22:37The end.
00:22:38The end.
00:22:43The end.
00:22:45The end.
00:22:46The end.
00:22:48The end.
00:22:49The end.
00:22:51It's one of the most spectacular cars I've ever been in a long time, this.
00:22:56Fair enough.
00:22:57But hang on, hang on, hang on, hang on, hang on.
00:23:0040,000 pounds for a one-series that's I'm sorry. Were you not listening? I just said it was a brilliant car
00:23:07That was the end. There's nothing more to say
00:23:11There's nothing more to say but there is something to do
00:23:13We have to find how fast it goes around our track and that of course means handing it over to our tame racing driver
00:23:20Some say he doesn't know what dogs are for and that he recently took it as a super injunction to prevent us from
00:23:28revealing that he
00:23:30With an enormous goat
00:23:35All we know is he's called the Stig
00:23:40And he's off. Wipers on. It is drizzling out there. Hopefully that won't hurt the time too badly
00:23:48Let's see. Coming up to the first corner. Very tidy on the way in
00:23:54Tidy through the middle. Tail out. There it is
00:23:57The limited slip diff, though, allowing him perfect control
00:24:01Okay, he was tidy through Chicago now down to Hammerhead. I have a sneaking suspicion BMW have tried to make this car slow
00:24:16So it doesn't go faster than the more expensive M3
00:24:20Look at that tail
00:24:22Really out there
00:24:23Stig looking where he's going out of the side windows
00:24:26Okay, follow through
00:24:32He's even sideways through
00:24:33He's even sideways through that
00:24:35BMW only bringing 450
00:24:371M's to Britain
00:24:39300 of them already sold
00:24:41Okay, hard on the brakes
00:24:43Penultimate corner
00:24:45Still very greasy out there
00:24:47Into Gambon
00:24:48And there he is
00:24:49Across the line
00:24:51I have the time here
00:24:51It did it
00:24:54It did it
00:24:55It did it in
00:24:561 minute
00:24:5725
00:24:58Dead
00:24:59So even though it was a damp track
00:25:01It was faster
00:25:02Than an M3
00:25:03Yeah, very good
00:25:04But hang on
00:25:05Because I think there was
00:25:06There was a bit of film there
00:25:07We didn't see
00:25:08No, there wasn't
00:25:09There was
00:25:10I think the ladies in general would like to see it
00:25:12No, they wouldn't
00:25:13Yes, they would
00:25:14Let's have a look
00:25:15Let's have a look
00:25:16Now there he is, you see
00:25:17He's just past the tyres
00:25:19He's done about 115 miles an hour
00:25:20And oh look, it spat him off
00:25:22Yes, no, but even on the wet grass
00:25:24It's still in shape
00:25:25No, that's just how good
00:25:26The Sticky's not the car, you fool
00:25:28It spat him off
00:25:32Big price, small car
00:25:33Big price
00:25:34Fell off
00:25:41Now time to put a star in our reasonably priced car
00:25:44My guest tonight was christened
00:25:46Vincent
00:25:47But then he became a rock star
00:25:49And decided he needed a rock starry name
00:25:52So he changed it to Alice
00:25:54Ladies and gentlemen, we are not worthy
00:25:56Please welcome
00:25:57Alice Cooper
00:26:04I can hardly believe you're here
00:26:05Alice Cooper
00:26:09A legend
00:26:10Have a seat
00:26:14Thank you
00:26:16Why is it Alice?
00:26:17Why Alice?
00:26:18Why Alice?
00:26:19You know
00:26:20You had to come up with a name that was going to
00:26:22off every parent in America
00:26:25And it translated across the ocean
00:26:27So, you know
00:26:28And Mary Whitehouse just hated us
00:26:30Because you were banned by Mary Whitehouse
00:26:31Oh yeah, she banned us for no apparent reason
00:26:33But it was the best thing that ever happened to us
00:26:35You know, schools out came out
00:26:36We went right to number one
00:26:38Sold out
00:26:39Because the British public said
00:26:40How dare you tell us what we can see and what we can't see
00:26:44So the British public was all for us
00:26:46But there was the one lady
00:26:47And we sent her flowers
00:26:49Yeah, Mary Whitehouse
00:26:50She was in essence
00:26:51She was the Daily Mail
00:26:52But in a pearl necklace
00:26:53Really?
00:26:54That's what she was
00:26:55She was terrifying woman
00:26:56Because it was the stage shows
00:26:57I think that made everybody say
00:26:59Hang on a minute
00:27:00Why are these people coming here?
00:27:01Wasn't it?
00:27:02There was this story
00:27:03Which I don't believe is true
00:27:04That you ate a chicken
00:27:05No, ripped a chicken in half
00:27:06No, that was Colonel Sanders
00:27:07Made a chicken die
00:27:10That somebody threw a chicken on stage
00:27:12In the middle of a concert
00:27:13I'm from Detroit
00:27:14I've never been on a farm in my life
00:27:16So I picked it up
00:27:18It had feathers
00:27:19It had...
00:27:20It was a bird
00:27:21It should fly
00:27:22Yeah
00:27:25I threw it
00:27:26And it didn't fly as much as it plummeted
00:27:29Into the audience
00:27:30And the audience tore it to pieces
00:27:31Oh
00:27:33Then the next day was
00:27:34Alice Cooper rips
00:27:35You know, chicken apart
00:27:36And eats it
00:27:37Because in your shows
00:27:38You often got decapitated
00:27:40Hung
00:27:41I got killed four times in my last show
00:27:43But I play the villain
00:27:45I always play the villain
00:27:46So the villain has to get it in the end
00:27:48The Darth Vader
00:27:49The Annable Lecter
00:27:50Always has to get it in the end
00:27:52So when's the next time we can see you then?
00:27:54We'll be here in Halloween
00:27:55Of course
00:27:56Because I own Halloween
00:27:57It's mine
00:27:58It is
00:27:59The Prince of Darkness
00:28:00Well we're doing a big show at the Alley Pally
00:28:02I think it's kind of interesting
00:28:03Alice at the Palace
00:28:04Yeah
00:28:05Will you be killed many times?
00:28:06Just once in the show
00:28:08Just one good one
00:28:09Now although you've been killed many times
00:28:12Obviously on stage
00:28:13You didn't die in the sort of 60s and 70s
00:28:16When so many of your contemporaries did
00:28:19Yeah
00:28:20Well you know I mean my big brothers were Keith Moon
00:28:23Jim Morrison
00:28:24Jimi Hendrix
00:28:25I can go right down the list of everybody that died at 27 years old
00:28:29And I was the little brother trying to keep up with them
00:28:31And I mean it almost got me
00:28:32Who was the biggest?
00:28:33Oh no nobody can compete with Keith Moon
00:28:36Well this is what I've heard this many times
00:28:38That Keith Moon was the maddest
00:28:39Well if you think of it this way
00:28:41About 40% of what you've heard about me
00:28:43Or Iggy
00:28:44Or Ozzy
00:28:45Or anything like that
00:28:46Is probably true
00:28:47Everything you've ever heard about Keith Moon is true
00:28:50And you've only heard a tenth of it
00:28:53He'd come to Los Angeles
00:28:55And he would stay at the house for a week
00:28:57You know
00:28:58And I would come back
00:28:59I'd go out to a recording session
00:29:00Come back
00:29:01And he would be dressed like a French maid
00:29:03You know
00:29:05And your car was in the swimming pool
00:29:06And my wife would go
00:29:07Who is this?
00:29:09Well how did you manage to survive then
00:29:12When obviously so many people didn't?
00:29:14I woke up one morning
00:29:16And instead of just throwing up beer
00:29:18It was blood
00:29:20And I went
00:29:21But real blood
00:29:22I mean not
00:29:23Yeah it wasn't like fake blood
00:29:24You know
00:29:25I mean throwing up blood
00:29:26You know
00:29:27On stage is very theatrical
00:29:28And it looks great
00:29:29In your Holiday Inn room
00:29:33You know
00:29:34Where the only person they can see is the maid
00:29:36And she's really not impressed
00:29:37Because she has to clean it up
00:29:38That's when
00:29:39That was a good message for me
00:29:40That this is really it
00:29:42Now
00:29:43If I keep drinking
00:29:44I'm going to die
00:29:45So what did you replace it with?
00:29:47Golf
00:29:48That would clear Keith Moon up
00:29:51Golf and cannibalism
00:29:53That's good
00:29:54I don't want to talk about golf
00:29:57I want to talk about Detroit
00:29:59Which is where you're from
00:30:00Yeah
00:30:01A lot of people think of it as the music town
00:30:04Obviously Motown
00:30:05Yeah
00:30:06And the Motown acts
00:30:07But it's more
00:30:08The amount of rock and roll stars
00:30:10Yeah
00:30:11That have come out of Detroit
00:30:12Is simply unbelievable
00:30:13Iggy Pop
00:30:14Ted Nugent
00:30:15Bob Seger
00:30:16Madonna's Detroit
00:30:17Right
00:30:18The MC5
00:30:19White Stride
00:30:20Bits of the Eagles
00:30:21Everyone thinks they're from California
00:30:22They're not
00:30:23Detroit
00:30:24Detroit
00:30:25Yeah
00:30:26Which was huge
00:30:27Well obviously cars were also big
00:30:29And you
00:30:30There's no question
00:30:31I mean you are a big car freak
00:30:33Yeah
00:30:34Massive
00:30:35I love
00:30:36Petrol head
00:30:37And they give me a Kia
00:30:38Yeah we do
00:30:39Down to earth
00:30:40It's the star in the reasonably priced car
00:30:42How many cars do you think you've owned over the years?
00:30:45Over the years
00:30:46Oh at least a hundred
00:30:47At least a hundred
00:30:48I'm assuming most of your cars that you've had over the years
00:30:51I guess are American
00:30:52Is that would that be the case?
00:30:53Yeah well I mean you know we were always addicted to the Mustangs
00:30:56And we were addicted to the Camaros
00:30:58Detroit?
00:30:59Detroit muscle cars
00:31:00And you know the of course the Hemi Cudas were the
00:31:03Cause what's the Alice Cooper Corral that you read about all the time?
00:31:07Well I'm so into the cars and in Phoenix Arizona where I live we build cars
00:31:11And then
00:31:12This is the Corral?
00:31:13Yeah and then we put my name on it and then I go and help sell it
00:31:16So we've got a picture of one of the and that is a Lincoln was a Lincoln Zephyr
00:31:19Yeah
00:31:20That's a billion dollar bills burning up the flames are
00:31:23And we said now who would buy a car the billion dollar babies car?
00:31:27And we said well trunk maybe?
00:31:29You know?
00:31:30What would make it really really appealing to them?
00:31:33You open the trunk in this car and there's your own private ATM machine
00:31:36Oh really?
00:31:37Yeah
00:31:38You have your own bank money machine
00:31:40Cash machine
00:31:41Cash machine in the truck
00:31:42You open it up you just go yeah I need a hundred
00:31:44So it's
00:31:45When you're touring are you looking for these unusual cars then to go and buy?
00:31:48Just found a really really nice little 65 Mustang that just looks like it just came out of the shop in Nashville
00:31:56Just drove by it every day going to the studio
00:31:58And I finally went and I said what do you want for this car?
00:32:00And they said twenty two thousand dollars
00:32:02I said
00:32:03Yeah because that's cheap for absolutely
00:32:06You didn't have the heart to say you do realize cars like that are worth a lot more these days
00:32:10I didn't tell him
00:32:12Okay so anyway you came over here
00:32:16To try your hand at a lap and I guess a lap is quite unusual with corners for an American
00:32:21We do we yeah it's no you're really really right because in America we drag race
00:32:26You go from light to light
00:32:27Yeah
00:32:28You pull up next to a car this is the sign this means race
00:32:31Really?
00:32:32And you go okay you rev it up put it in first gear and whoever gets to that light next is the winner
00:32:37But you burn rubber up it's just drag racing so you don't even think about turning
00:32:42You know but this was interesting for me to get in a car
00:32:46The shift on the left side it was like dyslexic driving
00:32:50Because I'm going third, ninth
00:32:54Opening the door no it's not there
00:32:55So they gave me an automatic and it was a really really fast Kia
00:33:00Well now who'd like to see Alice's lap
00:33:07Yeah
00:33:08Here we go let's play the tape let's have a look
00:33:12Oh that is pouring with rain
00:33:14Oh look at that thing go
00:33:16Oh that goes
00:33:18Oh no
00:33:19Alright
00:33:20That's an intense stare you've got going on there looking good
00:33:23Oh yeah Clint Eastwood here for a second
00:33:25And into the first corner
00:33:26Yes this is this can go as a very very wet lap
00:33:29No brake lights there that's good
00:33:32Trundling
00:33:34Pig
00:33:35Did I say come on you pig?
00:33:38Yes I think you probably did
00:33:40The C apostrophe D gripping well there is it where are you going?
00:33:43I have no idea
00:33:45It's tricky now the hammerhead was this okay you managed to stay in between the lines
00:33:49Yes come on get that back around
00:33:52And some tire squeal despite the conditions
00:33:56Yes you are moving just
00:33:58Oh no come on come on come on come on come on
00:34:00Yeah there it is
00:34:01Come on Kia
00:34:02How many people said come on Kia?
00:34:07Now where are you going?
00:34:09Left left left
00:34:10I was getting a big
00:34:11Left
00:34:12I was getting a big
00:34:13That's not fast there that's not fast at all
00:34:16I had my foot I was floored right then
00:34:18I had it floored
00:34:19Well there's obviously something stuck behind the accelerator panel
00:34:22Come on spin a little bit
00:34:24Come on
00:34:25Where are you now?
00:34:26And you're being a rock star there all over the place but across the line there we are
00:34:32Here is the board with many many names on it where do you think you've come?
00:34:48Oh man I have no idea if I broke two minutes I would be the happiest guy in the world but uh
00:34:53I can make you the happiest man in the world
00:34:56Yes
00:34:57But not by much
00:35:00Because Alice Cooper rock legend all round unbelievably nice guy you did it in one minute
00:35:08Fifty
00:35:11Six point three
00:35:13Oh
00:35:14But I'll give you
00:35:15I don't know really what to say about that other than it was terrible
00:35:29But you know what I'm proud of that
00:35:32You know
00:35:33Do you know what I am?
00:35:34I am so grateful to you for coming on
00:35:36Because it's been such an honour to meet you
00:35:38You're nothing like I was expecting
00:35:39Well
00:35:40I thought you'd eat the television and kill some of the audience
00:35:43I couldn't see the show I'd do that
00:35:44I'd love to see it
00:35:45Ladies and gentlemen
00:35:46Alice Cooper
00:35:47Thank you
00:35:48Thank you so much
00:35:59Now
00:36:00Now
00:36:01As
00:36:02As you know
00:36:03Here on top gear it's our job to keep you up to date with all that's new and cutting edge in the ever-changing world of modern motoring
00:36:12Hello viewers
00:36:18James Paddy May Hopkirk here
00:36:20Driving a rally version of the original Mini Cooper S
00:36:25And that's quite a special feeling
00:36:29Because even though it rose to fame because of all that swinging 60s stuff
00:36:34The Mini is actually the most iconic rally car of all time
00:36:41Now if you're one of our younger viewers or you were hoping to watch the Antiques Roadshow but you can't find the remote
00:36:46Let me give you a quick history lesson
00:36:48This tiny machine shocked the rally world by winning the prestigious Monte Carlo rally in 1964, 65 and 67
00:37:03The 0-60 time might have been a dreary 13 seconds but its light compact body meant it cornered like a go-kart
00:37:10It's bloody brilliant
00:37:17Everybody should drive a Mini, everybody should own a Mini at some point or you are incomplete as a human being
00:37:25Now like any form of motorsport rallying needs cars that are stars in their own right
00:37:31It's why Formula One needs Ferrari
00:37:38And that's why modern rallying needs another Mini
00:37:43And now, at last, it's got one
00:37:52This is the brand new World Rally Championship Mini
00:37:56But whereas the old car was something of a giant slayer
00:38:03This new one is really, well, it's just a bit of a giant
00:38:06And it's because it's based on this car
00:38:09The Mini Countryman, which isn't really a Mini at all
00:38:12It's more of a trendy school run car with four-wheel drive
00:38:15But, if you look down here, you will see it says Mini
00:38:20So it must be true
00:38:22Let's not get bogged down in that now
00:38:26Because this is the modern Mini we're interested in
00:38:31Yes!
00:38:33What a racket!
00:38:37Whereas the original Mini had 70 horsepower
00:38:40This one has around 300
00:38:42That's 0-60 in 3.5 seconds
00:38:45And this brilliant sequential gearbox, look at this
00:38:53Yes!
00:38:54And go!
00:38:56In fact, I got a bit carried away with the gearbox
00:39:00Bang!
00:39:02Go!
00:39:04Yes!
00:39:06Yee!
00:39:08By the time you watch this film
00:39:10Yes!
00:39:11The Mini will have taken part in its first proper rally
00:39:13Oh!
00:39:14Stop bugging it!
00:39:16But as I drive it today
00:39:17It's yet to turn a wheel in real anger
00:39:26So, we're here to find out how good it is
00:39:28And we're going to do that with a typically unscientific
00:39:31Yet informative and hopefully invigorating Top Gear race
00:39:35And to do that, we've come back to one of our old Top Gear stomping grounds
00:39:42The Winter Olympics site at Lillehammer in Norway
00:39:46Where, several years ago, we raced a rally car against Richard Hammond in a bobsleigh
00:39:53And on that occasion, it was the men in tights who came first
00:39:56So, the motor car was given a bloody nose and has come back with a score to settle
00:40:04And because of that, the rally mechanics here have told Captain Paddy Slow to get stuffed
00:40:10And make way for their driver
00:40:12He is Chris Meek
00:40:15Intercontinental Rally Champion
00:40:17And quite possibly the fastest ginger on the planet
00:40:19And as for the bobsleigh team
00:40:26They're not here
00:40:28Instead, the ice-sliding community is fielding one of its biggest guns
00:40:40Olympic skeleton gold medallist Amy Williams
00:40:43Right, in case you can't get Dave on your telly or for some other reason you haven't seen the original race between Hammond and me
00:40:57Here is why Lillehammer is the ideal venue for a rally car versus skeleton bob shootout
00:41:03We begin here at the Starthus
00:41:06And this red line is the bob track
00:41:08Almost two kilometres of twisting, turning, icy terror
00:41:13And this blue line is the road, almost exactly the same length, nearly two kilometres
00:41:18And it too is twisting, turning, yumping, icy terror
00:41:23And they both end here at the Wirhus, the finish line
00:41:27The first person there is, of course, the winner
00:41:28And you realise that the car must win this one because the car is 1-0 down
00:41:33The car that has been around for, you know, 125 odd years now
00:41:37Is being challenged by what is, let's be honest
00:41:39My two-year-old sled
00:41:41A tea tray
00:41:43And could you mind if I, I don't think people will have seen one of these close up
00:41:45This is a skeleton bob, your face goes that way
00:41:48Face this end, and I steer here and here
00:41:51By doing what?
00:41:52By pushing my shoulders in and moving the sled
00:41:55Right, so your face is actually over the end
00:41:56Yeah, my chin and head and helmet will be scratching the ice on the way down
00:42:0170 miles an hour with your face
00:42:04Scraping the ice
00:42:05Our faces aren't going to scrape along the road, are they, in the car?
00:42:08Hopefully not, that's only if we're going upside down, which we don't plan to do
00:42:12Right, let's do it
00:42:13As Amy imagined her way down the run
00:42:14I imagined Chris going too fast in the dark
00:42:27And the pair of us rolling end over end in a huge fireball
00:42:42Okay, here we go, in three, two, one
00:43:01And we're off
00:43:02Go, go, go, go!
00:43:19Yay!
00:43:21For Amy, the start is everything
00:43:23Just a tenth too slow at the top, and she'll be two seconds off the pace at the bottom
00:43:29Sadly for us, she'd have a great start
00:43:35Good in the left with the banking
00:43:42No sign of Williams at the crossover
00:43:44That's because Williams was ahead
00:43:50Go, go, go!
00:44:03At the halfway point, both Chris and Amy were losing precious time
00:44:07Chris, because of the slushy grand
00:44:09And Amy, because of rough ice
00:44:11Fortunately, Chris, could rise above the problem
00:44:17Get away!
00:44:21Go!
00:44:35Here we go!
00:44:37Woo!
00:44:38With less than a kilometre to go, Chris had closed the gap.
00:44:46Yes, sir. Love it, man.
00:44:52And right.
00:44:56To the race, here we go.
00:45:08Oh, no! What did you get?
00:45:30Amy Williams, you did it in.
00:45:34What is it? What is it?
00:45:36You did it in 61.
00:45:41Point?
00:45:420.04.
00:45:43Yeah.
00:45:44We did it in 59.73.
00:45:49No!
00:45:50Sorry.
00:45:51Fair enough.
00:45:53Do you mind? It's traditional. I'm really sorry.
00:45:55Congratulations to you, too.
00:45:56It's bad manners, but loser.
00:46:00Well done.
00:46:03Disappointing.
00:46:04It's fine.
00:46:05Well done, Minnie.
00:46:10I hate snow.
00:46:11It's fine.
00:46:19So, Chris.
00:46:20Amy.
00:46:21Amy!
00:46:22Amy!
00:46:23First of all, can I just say what a pleasure it is for me to have you back here on our show.
00:46:28You always bring a touch of joy to my heart.
00:46:34This steering thing.
00:46:35You know you say you use your shoulders.
00:46:37How does that actually work?
00:46:40So, the inside of the sled pretty much is like a pivot point in the middle.
00:46:44Mm-hmm.
00:46:45So, if I stare one shoulder there, the pivot point will move, and the runners grip the ice.
00:46:50Do you have to do that really fast?
00:46:53Um, sometimes.
00:46:54Yeah.
00:46:55Sometimes slow, sometimes fast.
00:46:56Is your hair naturally curly?
00:46:57Yes.
00:46:58This is normal.
00:46:59That's normal.
00:47:00Very lovely.
00:47:01What's your favourite song?
00:47:02Oh, for God's sake.
00:47:03Chris.
00:47:04No, I'm sorry.
00:47:05We don't have time to talk to the man.
00:47:06No, we do have time to talk to the man.
00:47:07How did it get on, the mini, in its first proper rally?
00:47:09Well, on the thrift.
00:47:10Well, there we are.
00:47:11Good.
00:47:12I want to talk about planning permission, because if you want to change your house in this country,
00:47:25you have to go to the council for permission, okay?
00:47:28Now, this is to stop people putting up pink conservatories and generally ruining the heritage
00:47:33of Britain.
00:47:34And it all makes sense, but I think the planners have overlooked an important detail.
00:47:42This is the pretty little village of Chillum in Kent.
00:47:49And careful planning means all of the houses are still very lovely.
00:47:55But look here.
00:47:57The owner of this house would not be allowed by the planners to fit upvc windows or stone
00:48:03cladding, but he is allowed to festoon the parking space outside his house with a hideous
00:48:10Chrysler PT Cruiser.
00:48:11That makes no sense.
00:48:16If I had my way, only one car would be allowed in a village as lovely as this.
00:48:21A car that this year is celebrating its 50th birthday.
00:48:25The beguiling, bewitching, beautiful E-Type Jag.
00:48:38Over the years, there have been many pretty cars.
00:48:44But Enzo Ferrari described the E-Type as the prettiest of them all.
00:48:51And what makes that extraordinary is that it was shaped at night in a rudimentary early-days
00:48:59wind tunnel that used so much electricity, it could only be operated when the rest of the
00:49:04the country was asleep.
00:49:09And everyone was still asleep when the car itself was tested.
00:49:12Because the only place where they could actually run it up to its 149 mile an hour top speed
00:49:18was at five in the morning on the M1.
00:49:24It was on one of those high speed runs, they discovered the roof would flap about.
00:49:29So, to weigh it down, a string of lead shot was sewn into the canvas.
00:49:34And there was a similar make-do-and-mend attitude to the rear suspension.
00:49:38The chief engineer was given just a month to design an entirely new system.
00:49:44The boss, Sir William Lyons, bet him a fiver he couldn't do it.
00:49:48He did.
00:49:49And Jag used exactly the same set-up for the next 25 years.
00:49:54Lyons, in fact, was completely underwhelmed by the finished product.
00:50:00He didn't like the look of the back end and didn't think it would sell.
00:50:03He was wrong.
00:50:06Because when the e-type was unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1961,
00:50:11it was an instant hit.
00:50:16Such was demand for test drives that a second demonstrator was driven through the night
00:50:21from the factory in Coventry to Switzerland.
00:50:25And this is that very car.
00:50:35OK, let's see what the old girl can do.
00:50:37I know it's Genesis.
00:50:39I know this is the very first convertible E-Ti ever.
00:50:43But I have to find out what it's like when we give it some noise.
00:50:46Can you imagine what it must have been like in 1961?
00:51:00You'd been to the bakery.
00:51:01You'd queued for a week for a loaf of bread.
00:51:04You were on your way home in black and white in your Humber.
00:51:07And you were overtaken by one of these.
00:51:11It must have just been staggering.
00:51:14What was that?
00:51:18It's the same age, this car and me, give or take.
00:51:22And only it has aged better.
00:51:24Still looks good.
00:51:27But it wasn't just the looks that astonished everyone back in 1961.
00:51:32Back then, the equivalent Ferrari or Maserati was £6,000.
00:51:37A little bit more, in fact.
00:51:38This was £2,098.
00:51:42And this, thanks to its 3.8 litre straight-six engine, was faster.
00:51:51Oh!
00:51:54This is just heaven!
00:51:59Even by today's standards, that is a lot of boat.
00:52:02Small wonder the E-Type became a must-have accessory for the jet set.
00:52:15Princess Grace, Steve McQueen, Tony Curtin, Brit Eklund, Frank Sinatra, George Best, Roy Orbison, Charlton Heston, Count Basie.
00:52:26They all had E-Type Jags.
00:52:32No car before ever caused such a stir.
00:52:36And no car has since, really.
00:52:44Until now.
00:52:45This is called the Eagle Speedster.
00:52:53Made by a small engineering company in Sussex, it looks like an E-Type.
00:52:58It's even based on an E-Type.
00:53:00But there have been some changes.
00:53:03The aluminium body is deeper.
00:53:04The windscreen is lower and more steeply raked.
00:53:09The wheels are new.
00:53:11And the tyres.
00:53:12And the brakes.
00:53:14And the interior.
00:53:18If someone had come to me asking for planning permission to alter an E-Type Jaguar, I'd have said,
00:53:23No, don't be stupid.
00:53:24You'll mess it up.
00:53:26But...
00:53:28They haven't.
00:53:30I think this, by a long way, is the most beautiful car I've ever seen.
00:53:40It might actually be the most beautiful thing I've ever seen.
00:53:43And the surgery is not just cosmetic.
00:53:51Under the bonnet, there's a fuel-injected 4.7-litre straight six,
00:53:56which sends its power to the rear wheels through a five-speed gearbox
00:54:00and an aluminium differential.
00:54:09As a result of all the aluminium, which doesn't weigh very much,
00:54:11this has a better power to weight ratio than a Porsche 911 Turbo.
00:54:16And as a result of that, it will do 0-60 in five seconds.
00:54:21Flat out, it'll do 160.
00:54:27And then, there's the noise.
00:54:28There's the noise.
00:54:40It is spitting fire.
00:54:43It's a spitfire.
00:54:45That's what it is.
00:54:46The looks, the noise.
00:54:53The looks, the noise.
00:54:55The noise.
00:55:09This, to me, is absolute perfection.
00:55:12I will put my hand on my heart and say here and now, I have never, ever driven a car, ever, that I've wanted more than this one.
00:55:24I yearn to have it.
00:55:32There is, however, a problem.
00:55:43Because every single piece of this car pretty much was handmade, the price is fantastic, enormous, eye-watering.
00:55:54I didn't know numbers went this high.
00:55:58But it turns out they do.
00:56:00So sit down, I'm going to say it.
00:56:02Here we go.
00:56:04The Eagle Speedster is half a million pounds.
00:56:10Half a million.
00:56:11That's a lot for a toy.
00:56:16A car that doesn't even have a roof.
00:56:19But this is more than a toy.
00:56:21It's a modern take on the E-Type Jack.
00:56:24And the E-Type, with the possible exception of Concorde, is almost certainly the last truly great thing Britain made.
00:56:34I think we should be more proud of it than we actually are.
00:56:38It's 50th birthday was marked by a small piece on page 16 of the Daily Telegraph.
00:56:46And I don't think that's right.
00:56:47Which is why I've organised something a little more substantial.
00:56:51I've organised something which recognises that this is the soul, the spirit, the beating heart of all that we can be.
00:57:01The E-Type is not a plucky Brit that's happy to come home second.
00:57:05It would not be humiliated by Barcelona.
00:57:10It would not simply wave Sebastian Vettel by.
00:57:14And if you asked an E-Type to organise a royal wedding, it would not ferry the guest to Westminster Abbey in a fleet of minibuses.
00:57:21The E-Type does not know what a minibus is.
00:57:24Every country has an icon.
00:57:28The great nation of France has the big brown pylon in the middle of Paris.
00:57:32Australia has a rock.
00:57:34The Belgians have a urinating infant.
00:57:36Well this, I put it to you, is ours.
00:57:40Our Jerusalem.
00:57:41Our chariot of fire.
00:57:43The maypole around which the people of this funny little rock in the North Atlantic can gather.
00:57:49To remind ourselves that once upon a time we really were as great as we think we are now.
00:57:55We are now.
00:58:25It won't stop.
00:58:40That was moving.
00:58:41Well done.
00:58:42Well done.
00:58:48A stirring but nicely understated tribute there, I thought.
00:58:52But you said something that worried me a bit.
00:58:54You said, with the possible exception of Concorde,
00:58:56the E-Type was the last great thing that Britain made.
00:58:59I know.
00:59:00Is that right?
00:59:00Well, can you think of anything we've made since,
00:59:03which you go, that's a world beater.
00:59:04I mean, the E-Type was a third the price of a Ferrari, as I said,
00:59:08and faster and better looking.
00:59:10And the only thing I can think that even gets close, really,
00:59:11is Monty Python that moved the world on.
00:59:14What about those vacuum cleaners with no bags in them?
00:59:17We invented those and they're pretty good.
00:59:18They're clever.
00:59:19Hammond, I'm not sure that in 50 years time,
00:59:22people are going to be having a big birthday party on Beachy Head
00:59:24with people going, look at these Dysons, aren't they brilliant?
00:59:27Yes.
00:59:27I'm not sure that's going to happen.
00:59:29Look, moving on.
00:59:30The Eagle Speedster, is it really that good?
00:59:34Look at it.
00:59:35I mean, seriously, just look at it.
00:59:37It is beautiful to behold, yes, but how can it really be worth
00:59:42five times more than an immaculate, original E-Type?
00:59:45Well, I can demonstrate that, Hammond.
00:59:47I can demonstrate that, because if I step in here, OK?
00:59:50Listen.
00:59:51It starts, and on that bombshell, it is time to end.
01:00:04Thank you very much for watching.
01:00:06Good night!
01:00:06Good night!
01:00:07Good night!
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