Top Gear Botswana Cars Exclusive Access

The cars had to be stripped down to pass through the Makgadikgadi Salt Pans, the largest and most dangerous salt flats in the world, where heavy cars would sink into the mud beneath the salt crust.

"Right," James said. "Here's the plan. Hammond, you get in the back. Jeremy, you tie your Lancia's front bumper to my tow bar. We drag your corpse to the other side."

In a rare moment for a Top Gear challenge, all three primary cars completed the 1,000-mile journey. top gear botswana cars

The Botswana Special is a reminder that the best journeys aren't about the destination, but the people (and cars) you travel with.

Jeremy Clarkson chose a 1981 Lancia Beta Coupé. Lancia is a brand legendary for its beautiful styling and rallying pedigree, but equally infamous for atrocious reliability and catastrophic rust issues. The cars had to be stripped down to

In the end, the Mercedes won the challenge, but the fans won the memories. We learned that you can drive across a country with a sewing machine strapped to your bonnet (long story), that showering in a waterfall is harder than it looks, and that a £1,500 budget can buy you an adventure of a lifetime.

Oliver performed exceptionally well through most of the trip, easily navigating the rough terrain due to its light footprint. However, disaster struck during a river crossing when the car sank and the engine flooded. After an emotional Hammond painstakingly dried out the distributor and spark plugs, Oliver fired back to life. Hammond loved the car so much that he legally imported it back to the UK after filming. James May: 1985 Mercedes-Benz 230E Hammond, you get in the back

was left in Botswana; though long thought scrapped, it was discovered partially reassembled in Maun as recently as 2020. The Volkswagen Beetle

In true Captain Slow fashion, James May made the most sensible choice. He purchased a 1985 Mercedes-Benz 230E. The W123 series Mercedes is renowned for being one of the most durable cars ever built, and May relied on the fact that Africa had "loved" the model for decades due to its robust engineering and availability of spare parts.