The Wackiest Wheels: Top Gear’s Most Outrageous Specials

The Wackiest Wheels: Top Gear’s Most Outrageous Specials

Few shows have mastered the art of blending automotive obsession with sheer madness quite like Top Gear. While the British motoring series is best known for its high-speed races, scathing reviews, and charismatic presenters, it’s the show’s specials that truly push the boundaries of what’s possible on four wheels. These episodes aren’t just about evaluating cars—they’re about spectacle, stuntwork, and sometimes outright lunacy. From racing across continents to tackling absurd challenges, Top Gear’s specials have given us some of the most unforgettable television moments in automotive history.

The Ultimate Road Trip: Coast-to-Coast Adventures

One of Top Gear’s most beloved special formats involves taking a journey across vast distances, often with a budget, a bizarre car, and a race against time. These episodes test both the presenters’ endurance and the limits of their chosen vehicles—usually something far from ideal.

• New York to Miami (2009): Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May embark on a 1,200-mile road trip from New York to Miami in just under 48 hours, but with a twist: they must use the cheapest cars they can find, each costing no more than $1,000. The result is a hilarious showcase of automotive ingenuity—and recklessness—as they battle breakdowns, questionable navigation, and their own terrible decisions.
• Vietnam to Botswana (2007): In one of the show’s most ambitious challenges, the trio drives from Hanoi to Cape Town in a convoy of aging, Soviet-era vehicles. The journey spans thousands of miles across war zones, jungles, and deserts, proving that sheer determination (and a lot of duct tape) can overcome even the most unsuitable cars.
• London to Edinburgh and Back (2015): To celebrate the launch of the new McLaren 675LT, Clarkson and May attempt to drive from London to Edinburgh and back in under 5 hours—using only farmyard vehicles. Their chosen rides? A tractor, a combine harvester, and a quad bike. Spoiler: they don’t make it.

Celebrity Challenges: When the Stars Take the Wheel

Top Gear has a long tradition of pitting celebrities against each other (and themselves) in high-stakes driving challenges. These episodes mix humor, competition, and the occasional moment of sheer terror.

• The Star in a Reasonably Priced Car: While not a special in the traditional sense, this segment became a staple of the show, featuring celebrities racing laps around the Top Gear test track in a Suzuki Liana. Over the years, everyone from Simon Cowell to Lady Gaga has taken on the challenge, often with hilarious (or cringe-inducing) results.
• Celebrity Face-Offs: Occasionally, two stars are paired up for a head-to-head race or stunt. In one memorable episode, basketball legend Shaquille O’Neal and actor Ross Kemp compete to see who can complete a lap faster in a reasonably priced car—while Shaq, who outweighs the vehicle by a considerable margin, struggles to fit behind the wheel.
• The Celebrity Polar Special (2007): In a nod to the show’s famous Siberia special, celebrities including actor Stephen Fry and comedian Jimmy Carr take on a race across the Arctic tundra in a Toyota Hilux and a custom-built snowmobile. The challenge? Reach the magnetic North Pole before their rivals. The journey is as much about survival as it is about driving, with temperatures plummeting and vehicles nearly sinking into the ice.

Extreme Stunts and Impossible Feats

Some of Top Gear’s most outrageous moments come when the presenters attempt stunts that defy logic. These episodes often involve massive budgets, last-minute improvisations, and a healthy disregard for safety.

• The Moon Buggy Race (2018): To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing, Clarkson, May, and Hammond build and race homemade moon buggies across a lunar-like landscape in Wales. The challenge? Who can complete the course the fastest without their vehicle falling apart. Spoiler: May’s buggy literally disintegrates mid-race.
• The Worst Car in the History of the World (2007): In a quest to find the most terrible car ever made, the presenters nominate the 1970 Peel P50—a tiny, three-wheeled microcar with a top speed of 38 mph and no reverse gear. The climax? Clarkson attempts to drive it through the streets of London, including a daring (and illegal) shortcut through a department store.
• The Amphibious Car Challenge (2013): Hammond and May build amphibious cars—vehicles capable of driving on land and floating in water—to cross a lake and a river. The catch? They must use only parts found at a local hardware store. The results are predictably disastrous, with both cars sinking mid-crossing.

The Polar Specials: Ice, Madness, and Survival

Few adventures in Top Gear history have been as grueling—or as iconic—as the Polar specials. These episodes take the presenters to the ends of the Earth, where they must navigate treacherous ice, subzero temperatures, and vehicles pushed to their absolute limits.

• Siberia Special (2008): Clarkson, Hammond, and May drive from Norway to the North Magnetic Pole in a trio of heavily modified Toyota Hilux pickups. The journey involves crossing frozen rivers, battling -30°C temperatures, and dealing with a broken ice bridge that nearly sends Hammond’s truck plunging into the drink. The episode is a masterclass in endurance, problem-solving, and sheer stubbornness.
• Patagonia Special (2014): In a follow-up to the Siberia challenge, the team attempts to drive from Bariloche, Argentina, to Ushuaia, Chile—the southernmost city in the world—using a mix of off-road vehicles and hand-built contraptions. The route includes the treacherous Andes mountains, where one presenter’s truck is nearly blown off a cliff by hurricane-force winds.

Why These Specials Matter

At their core, Top Gear’s specials are about more than just cars—they’re about pushing boundaries, embracing the absurd, and reminding us that adventure doesn’t always have to be sensible. The show’s presenters may have left in a haze of controversy, but their legacy lives on in these wild, unpredictable episodes that continue to entertain and inspire.

Whether it’s Clarkson’s unhinged grin as his car sinks into a frozen lake or Hammond’s exasperated cursing as his amphibious vehicle capsizes, the magic of Top Gear lies in its ability to make us laugh, gasp, and marvel at the sheer audacity of human ingenuity. These specials aren’t just a testament to the presenters’ bravery (or lack thereof)—they’re a celebration of the joy of driving, unfiltered and unapologetic.

So, the next time you watch a Top Gear special, remember: it’s not just a car show. It’s a journey into the unknown, where the only rule is that there are no rules. And that’s what makes it so unforgettable.