The presenters were sent to Botswana to buy a car that was not an off-road vehicle and had only two-wheel drive, which they would drive across the country, from the eastern border of Zimbabwe to the western border of Namibia (approximately 1,000 miles). The challenge included a drive over the Makgadikgadi Pan, which left Clarkson and May's cars filled with dust after they had been stripped of excess weight as to try to prevent their cars sinking through the thin surface, and over the Okavango Delta. This was to prove "to the people of Surrey that they don't need 4x4s in case there are leaves on the road." This challenge introduced a new rule that stipulated if any of the presenters' cars were to break down beyond repair, they would have to complete the journey in a substitute vehicle - for this challenge, a Volkswagen Beetle (the Beetle being the presenters' unanimous choice as their least favourite car). Clarkson bought a Lancia Beta Coupé, which was the most unreliable car of the lot. Hammond bought a 1963 Opel Kadett, which he named Oliver (consequently becoming the butt of jokes of the other presenters), while May bought a Mercedes-Benz 230E Hammond felt such affection for his car that he subsequently had it shipped to the UK (which resulted in Clarkson and May making fun of him), and it now has the occasional cameo on Richard Hammond's Blast Lab. It also subsequently featured on the Top Gear 'Lorryist' challenge. All three made it to the Namibian border. Clarkson declared the Beetle as the winner, since it had no documented mishaps during the trip, much to the shock of Hammond, with which May answered "No, he [Clarkson] has a point!". Winner: None Series Ten, Episode Four
Top Gear Season 10 episode 4 (All Rights-->BBC UK)
No comments:
Post a Comment