Top Gear Botswana Cars Info

Each presenter chose a vehicle that surprisingly reflected their personality and faced unique mechanical trials:

Compare the of the Lancia vs. the Mercedes. Share public link

The Top Gear Botswana Special shifted the formula of the show away from reviewing new supercars toward celebrating the bond between humans and old automobiles. The episode proved that regular road cars possess a level of durability that modern, electronics-heavy vehicles rarely match.

Hammond chose a vehicle significantly older than the others. " top gear botswana cars

It was heavy, slow, and lacked the agility of the other two cars.

Due to local scrap and import laws at the time, Clarkson and May had to leave their vehicles behind in Africa.

The Lancia, affectionately known for its fragility, actually survived, though it was later found in Botswana, stripped and sun-damaged, showing the brutal aftermath of the trip. It famously had to survive a deep river crossing, leading to it being modified with "gull-wing" style doors after being submerged. Each presenter chose a vehicle that surprisingly reflected

Similar to most of Clarkson's choices, it was designed for a quick laugh and to test the patience of the crew. 3. James May’s Mercedes-Benz 230E

Their total car budget was less than a decent used Toyota Corolla. Yet that trip became legendary. You don’t need a $50k overland rig. You need curiosity, duct tape, and a willingness to look stupid.

The Mercedes handled the corrugated dirt roads with luxury-car poise. It suffered almost zero mechanical issues throughout the journey. The episode proved that regular road cars possess

The Mercedes was also left in Africa. Its fate, along with the Lancia, was uncertain for years, with rumors placing them in various parts of the country. Why These Cars Worked (And Why They Didn't)

Each presenter was given a budget of to buy a used car in Africa. The rules were strict: the vehicle had to be two-wheel drive and must not have been designed in any way for off-road use. Starting from the Botswana-Zimbabwe border (which, at the time, the BBC was banned from filming in), the trio had to drive 1,000 miles (1,600 km) across the spine of Africa to the Namibian border, traversing the brutal Makgadikgadi Salt Pans and the watery Okavango Delta.