0:00:17 > 0:00:19CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:00:19 > 0:00:21Thank you so much. Hello.
0:00:21 > 0:00:24Hello, everybody, and welcome.
0:00:24 > 0:00:26Thank you very much, Thank you. Now...
0:00:27 > 0:00:33Now, a few years ago, bosses at a Cheshire-based engineering
0:00:33 > 0:00:37company called BAC decided they'd like to make a car.
0:00:37 > 0:00:40Now, because they're from Cheshire, I assumed it would be made
0:00:40 > 0:00:43from onyx and have Bullseye glass in the windows
0:00:43 > 0:00:46and then door mirrors made out of Wayne Rooney's ears.
0:00:46 > 0:00:48- LAUGHTER - But, no.
0:00:48 > 0:00:51They decided it should have the four-cylinder engine
0:00:51 > 0:00:53from a Ford people van,
0:00:53 > 0:00:56the gearbox from a Formula 3 racing car,
0:00:56 > 0:00:59and that it should be upholstered in the same
0:00:59 > 0:01:04stain-resistant and waterproof material that they use to line
0:01:04 > 0:01:07furniture in old people's homes.
0:01:07 > 0:01:10And then they turned their attention to how it should look.
0:01:10 > 0:01:13Now, most car designers, for their inspiration,
0:01:13 > 0:01:16go to big cats and bats and jet fighters.
0:01:16 > 0:01:21But the men from Cheshire decided they didn't want any of that.
0:01:21 > 0:01:25They decided to take their inspiration from this.
0:01:25 > 0:01:27MUSIC: "All Is Full Of Love" by Bjork
0:01:32 > 0:01:35# You'll be given love... #
0:01:35 > 0:01:40So, the styling of an Icelandic robot from a Bjork pop video,
0:01:40 > 0:01:42the gearbox from a racing car
0:01:42 > 0:01:44and the engine from a van.
0:01:45 > 0:01:49Bring them all together and this is the result.
0:02:01 > 0:02:03It's called the Mono,
0:02:03 > 0:02:04and it's amazing.
0:02:06 > 0:02:09The engine may be from a Ford people carrier
0:02:09 > 0:02:14but it's been fettled by Cosworth, so now it produces 280 horsepower.
0:02:17 > 0:02:19And fitting a 280 horsepower heart
0:02:19 > 0:02:22in a car which weighs just half a tonne is...
0:02:23 > 0:02:26Well, the effects are going to be profound.
0:02:30 > 0:02:32ENGINE ROARS
0:02:34 > 0:02:37I can see why they lined it with
0:02:37 > 0:02:42material designed to resist trouser accidents.
0:02:42 > 0:02:45Because my bladder's gone.
0:02:45 > 0:02:48It's completely gone.
0:02:48 > 0:02:49I've wet myself.
0:02:59 > 0:03:020-60 takes just 2.8 seconds.
0:03:04 > 0:03:07And, in theory, the top speed is 170.
0:03:07 > 0:03:09But in reality it isn't,
0:03:09 > 0:03:13because the Mono has the same problem as the Ariel Atom -
0:03:13 > 0:03:14no windscreen.
0:03:16 > 0:03:21At 70mph, your face starts to move about.
0:03:23 > 0:03:26And then when you get to 80,
0:03:26 > 0:03:27it starts to come off.
0:03:31 > 0:03:35'At 90, you're forced to accept that, really, you need a helmet.'
0:03:46 > 0:03:49With a lid on, you can start to appreciate
0:03:49 > 0:03:51just how clever this car is.
0:03:53 > 0:03:57First of all, I fit. I mean, only just, but I do actually fit.
0:03:58 > 0:04:00And even though it has
0:04:00 > 0:04:02Formula 1-style pushrod suspension,
0:04:02 > 0:04:04the ride is sublime.
0:04:04 > 0:04:07You could almost call it comfortable.
0:04:07 > 0:04:10Although, that said, at high revs,
0:04:10 > 0:04:13everything starts to tingle and vibrate.
0:04:14 > 0:04:18I don't want to go into too many details but let me put it this way -
0:04:18 > 0:04:21if I were a girl, I'd like it VERY much.
0:04:24 > 0:04:29Strangely, even cross-eyed women can drive this car legally on the road.
0:04:29 > 0:04:32But realistically, it's built for the track.
0:04:32 > 0:04:34So - let's see what's what.
0:04:43 > 0:04:45It's not really about straight-line speed.
0:04:47 > 0:04:50It doesn't actually feel that fast.
0:04:53 > 0:04:55And when you get used to it,
0:04:55 > 0:04:57it's not that scary either.
0:04:58 > 0:05:01If I'm honest, it's not really like driving, this,
0:05:01 > 0:05:06it's like I'm conducting an orchestra of parts that know...
0:05:07 > 0:05:09..certainly what they're doing, they're very well rehearsed...
0:05:12 > 0:05:15There goes the French horns and here are the violins.
0:05:20 > 0:05:22The brakes, yeah, they're good.
0:05:22 > 0:05:25Gearbox is fantastic.
0:05:25 > 0:05:28It really is an absolutely instant change.
0:05:28 > 0:05:30Bang, bang, bang - ready.
0:05:32 > 0:05:33And there's more.
0:05:38 > 0:05:42Because all the heavy stuff - the engine, the gearbox and the driver -
0:05:42 > 0:05:45is all in a line, low down in the middle of the car,
0:05:45 > 0:05:47it has the same centre of gravity
0:05:47 > 0:05:49as a worm.
0:05:51 > 0:05:55Couple that to the F1 suspension and the specially made tyres,
0:05:55 > 0:05:59and the cornering speeds are simply immense.
0:06:03 > 0:06:05To demonstrate how immense,
0:06:05 > 0:06:07we've set up a radar trap on the Follow-Through
0:06:07 > 0:06:10and coming through it now, as fast as possible,
0:06:10 > 0:06:12is a Peugeot 208.
0:06:19 > 0:06:2283 and a half miles an hour.
0:06:23 > 0:06:27Then it was the turn of a BMW M3.
0:06:28 > 0:06:30TYRES SCREECH
0:06:30 > 0:06:34Ooh, now, look at that. 90.25mph.
0:06:34 > 0:06:36After a Nissan GTR had a go...
0:06:38 > 0:06:40..we unleashed the Mono.
0:06:44 > 0:06:45See my point?
0:06:47 > 0:06:50It is very fast, then, and it's fun.
0:06:50 > 0:06:51But what about reliability,
0:06:51 > 0:06:57traditionally not a strong point for small volume British sports cars?
0:06:57 > 0:07:00The first time I drove a Mono, it set fire to itself.
0:07:00 > 0:07:02The second time, the engine went wonky
0:07:02 > 0:07:06and the third time, it broke down before it had even left the factory.
0:07:06 > 0:07:08So I thought of it, really, as
0:07:08 > 0:07:13another typically British, badly executed good idea.
0:07:13 > 0:07:16But, since all those calamities
0:07:16 > 0:07:20they've had 12 months to work on the design and the detailing,
0:07:20 > 0:07:25and I have to say it looks not just very well thought out...
0:07:26 > 0:07:29..but absolutely beautifully made.
0:07:32 > 0:07:35And it's not just the detailing that's beautiful, either.
0:07:35 > 0:07:37When you stand back,
0:07:37 > 0:07:42that's one of THE most exciting shapes I've ever seen.
0:07:44 > 0:07:48The Mono is the nicest thing to come out of Cheshire
0:07:48 > 0:07:49since the cheese.
0:07:51 > 0:07:54But it does cost £102,000,
0:07:54 > 0:07:57and that, for a twice-a-year toy, is a lot.
0:08:04 > 0:08:07In many ways, then, this is a bit like an iPad,
0:08:07 > 0:08:11cos that's not cheap either, and you certainly don't need one.
0:08:11 > 0:08:15But you want one, cos it's such a lovely...
0:08:15 > 0:08:16thing.
0:08:31 > 0:08:35- It does feel well-made. - Feel how well-made it is.
0:08:38 > 0:08:41- It is.- It's gorgeous. - I know.- And beautifully made.
0:08:41 > 0:08:48- It's a piece of jewellery. But...- What?- £102,000?
0:08:48 > 0:08:51I know. It is expensive, especially when you bear in mind
0:08:51 > 0:08:54all the other brilliant track day cars you can buy for a lot less.
0:08:54 > 0:08:56You know, the KTM, Radical, Ariel Atom...
0:08:56 > 0:08:58Morgan Three Wheeler.
0:08:58 > 0:08:59No, I said brilliant.
0:08:59 > 0:09:01All right, the Caterham R500.
0:09:01 > 0:09:04That's a brilliant track day car and that's half the price of this.
0:09:04 > 0:09:06Yes, and that is enormously fast.
0:09:06 > 0:09:08But will this be faster?
0:09:08 > 0:09:12Well, to find out, we shall hand it over to our tame racing driver.
0:09:12 > 0:09:15Some say that he breaks into people's houses at night and
0:09:15 > 0:09:20leaves two mysterious extra keys in a kitchen drawer.
0:09:20 > 0:09:21LAUGHTER
0:09:21 > 0:09:25And that, as a result of buying Pirelli condoms this week,
0:09:25 > 0:09:26he now has 17 children.
0:09:27 > 0:09:30All we know is he's called The Stig.
0:09:31 > 0:09:33Stig snaps to attention and he's off.
0:09:33 > 0:09:35Flicking off the line like a flea,
0:09:35 > 0:09:37even though the start/finish line was damp.
0:09:37 > 0:09:40Hopefully the rest of the track's dry.
0:09:40 > 0:09:42Flying into the first corner.
0:09:42 > 0:09:44He came in very hot there but sorted it out...
0:09:44 > 0:09:46no problem at all.
0:09:46 > 0:09:48ENGINE ROARS
0:09:48 > 0:09:52No stereo, of course, just the sound of that Cosworth-tuned engine
0:09:52 > 0:09:54as he zips round Chicago.
0:09:54 > 0:09:56Absolutely rock-solid.
0:09:56 > 0:10:01Now, Hammerhead. what will this reveal about the mid-engine balance?
0:10:01 > 0:10:02No drama.
0:10:02 > 0:10:05That is properly nailed down.
0:10:05 > 0:10:08Oh, but look, a well-orchestrated drift on the way out.
0:10:10 > 0:10:14High revs now. The vibrations will be stimulating his lady parts.
0:10:14 > 0:10:18Follow-Through. And, yes, he actually changed up through there.
0:10:18 > 0:10:22Stig is brave, even on the brink of a crisis.
0:10:22 > 0:10:26OK, controlling it beautifully into the second-to-last corner.
0:10:26 > 0:10:29Screams up to Gambon, racing gearbox whining.
0:10:29 > 0:10:32Slides it through and across the line.
0:10:32 > 0:10:35CHEERING
0:10:37 > 0:10:41Now, here we have the Caterham R500,
0:10:41 > 0:10:45which did it in 1.17.9, yeah?
0:10:45 > 0:10:47BAC Mono...
0:10:51 > 0:10:54..1.14.3.
0:10:54 > 0:10:58- No way!- The second fastest car we've ever had.
0:10:58 > 0:10:59That is something else.
0:11:04 > 0:11:07Now, as I'm sure you know, after 13 years
0:11:07 > 0:11:09the British military forces are pulling out of Afghanistan.
0:11:09 > 0:11:13What you may not know is that that operation has been the biggest
0:11:13 > 0:11:17deployment of British military vehicles since World War II.
0:11:17 > 0:11:21Now, bringing that lot home is quite a big job
0:11:21 > 0:11:24so I packed my tin helmet and went out there to...
0:11:24 > 0:11:25get in the way.
0:11:30 > 0:11:33If you want to get a sense of just how big
0:11:33 > 0:11:35the British involvement in Afghanistan has become...
0:11:36 > 0:11:40..you just have to look at the size of its main base -
0:11:40 > 0:11:41Camp Bastion.
0:11:47 > 0:11:50In 2006, when British forces arrived here,
0:11:50 > 0:11:53it was just a scrap of desert with a few tents in it.
0:11:53 > 0:11:57But now look - it's the size of Reading.
0:12:05 > 0:12:10And inside its 25 miles of blast-proof perimeter wall,
0:12:10 > 0:12:12alongside the few comforts of home,
0:12:12 > 0:12:15you'll find a vast armada of vehicles.
0:12:21 > 0:12:25At its peak, the number was 5,000.
0:12:27 > 0:12:29We've got a few of them here.
0:12:29 > 0:12:31Their names will be dimly familiar from news reports.
0:12:31 > 0:12:33That is a Ridgeback.
0:12:33 > 0:12:35That is a Mastiff.
0:12:35 > 0:12:36Then you have a Foxhound,
0:12:36 > 0:12:38the pale-coloured one is a Husky,
0:12:38 > 0:12:41and that weird-looking thing with the tracks on over there,
0:12:41 > 0:12:42that is a Warthog.
0:12:42 > 0:12:45Don't expect cute and cuddly names like Panda or Fiesta,
0:12:45 > 0:12:48everything here is named after a dog.
0:12:48 > 0:12:50Except the Warthog...
0:12:50 > 0:12:52which is named after a warthog.
0:12:54 > 0:12:55To keep the wheels turning
0:12:55 > 0:12:58the Army has built this enormous workshop,
0:12:58 > 0:13:02which, at full strength, carries £60 million worth of spares
0:13:02 > 0:13:05and employs 150 mechanics.
0:13:09 > 0:13:11Bastion even has its own
0:13:11 > 0:13:13purpose-built driver training ground,
0:13:13 > 0:13:16approved by a squad of driving instructors.
0:13:19 > 0:13:22The sheer size of this operation is truly impressive,
0:13:22 > 0:13:27but equally fascinating is what the Afghanistan campaign has done
0:13:27 > 0:13:29to Britain's military vehicles.
0:13:30 > 0:13:35It has brought about the biggest change in a generation.
0:13:35 > 0:13:38When the British first arrived here, their staple patrol vehicle,
0:13:38 > 0:13:43the Snatch Land Rover, offered woeful protection against IEDs.
0:13:43 > 0:13:49In 2009 alone, 79 soldiers fell victim to such devices.
0:13:49 > 0:13:51BUGLE PLAYS
0:13:54 > 0:13:59The 29-tonne American-made Mastiff offered a quick fix.
0:13:59 > 0:14:00But in Leamington Spa,
0:14:00 > 0:14:04a small British firm devised a more 21st-century solution.
0:14:11 > 0:14:13This is a Foxhound.
0:14:13 > 0:14:16And it's very clever because it's actually made out of armour,
0:14:16 > 0:14:19it's not a normal vehicle to which armour plate has been added.
0:14:19 > 0:14:22It's a sort of armour monocoque, if you like.
0:14:24 > 0:14:28The Foxhound also has a V-shaped hull to deflect mine blasts,
0:14:28 > 0:14:34and, thanks to its state-of-the-art armour, it weighs just 7.5 tonnes,
0:14:34 > 0:14:36which makes it a featherweight around these parts.
0:14:39 > 0:14:42To drive, it's pretty much like an off-road car.
0:14:45 > 0:14:49It's a positive mountain goat, this thing.
0:14:49 > 0:14:50Now, history will record
0:14:50 > 0:14:53that Government bureaucrats dragged their heels
0:14:53 > 0:14:56over the military vehicle crisis in Afghanistan.
0:14:56 > 0:15:00But the boffins who developed the Foxhound certainly didn't.
0:15:00 > 0:15:03This machine was designed, engineered, tested, proved
0:15:03 > 0:15:05and got on the ground in large numbers
0:15:05 > 0:15:07in just over three years.
0:15:08 > 0:15:11Try doing that with a small hatchback or something.
0:15:15 > 0:15:17Alongside the Foxhound...
0:15:20 > 0:15:21..the military drew on a policy
0:15:21 > 0:15:25called Urgent Operational Requirement, or UOR,
0:15:25 > 0:15:27which saw them combine operational demands and
0:15:27 > 0:15:31the best vehicle-related suggestions from soldiers on the ground.
0:15:34 > 0:15:37Here's a very simple example of UOR. This is a Mastiff.
0:15:39 > 0:15:42It's got cameras mounted on the sides.
0:15:42 > 0:15:44The commander here can look at the pictures on his screen.
0:15:44 > 0:15:46Now, on the early ones, they were rigidly mounted.
0:15:46 > 0:15:49When you went through things like villages, they got smashed.
0:15:49 > 0:15:51So somebody said, "Why not put them on a hinge?"
0:15:51 > 0:15:53So they did.
0:15:57 > 0:16:01Soldiers also needed their vehicles to be more stealthy in the dark,
0:16:01 > 0:16:04so a night vision system was developed that would allow them
0:16:04 > 0:16:05to switch off their headlights.
0:16:07 > 0:16:10I'm now driving the Mastiff completely blacked-out
0:16:10 > 0:16:14but using the night vision system suspended in front of my face,
0:16:14 > 0:16:16and this is quite amazing. This is actually my eyes,
0:16:16 > 0:16:19I can't see a single thing through the windscreen.
0:16:22 > 0:16:25These lamps on the outside are infrared
0:16:25 > 0:16:27and illuminate the surrounding area.
0:16:27 > 0:16:29Our camera can see the light they emit,
0:16:29 > 0:16:31but it's invisible to the naked eye.
0:16:32 > 0:16:36We ought to point out that normally we wouldn't even have these red interior lights on,
0:16:36 > 0:16:39those are there so that our cameras are working properly. But actually
0:16:39 > 0:16:43- we could be completely black in here, couldn't we? - Complete blackout, yeah.
0:16:45 > 0:16:47Right, so I've missed those, what are those? Are they rocks?
0:16:47 > 0:16:49Yeah, they're just mounds in front of you.
0:16:50 > 0:16:54- Straightening up, sir. - See that compound ahead of us?- Yeah.
0:16:54 > 0:16:57We want to be going round to the left of that.
0:16:57 > 0:16:59I can see that as clear as day.
0:17:00 > 0:17:02- It's a good piece of kit. - It's brilliant, isn't it?
0:17:02 > 0:17:06Now, on a machine as heavily armoured as a Mastiff,
0:17:06 > 0:17:09the protection against roadside bombs is good.
0:17:09 > 0:17:12But Afghanistan threw up another issue that needed sorting.
0:17:13 > 0:17:17What if the vehicle is blown over? How do you train for that?
0:17:17 > 0:17:20MEN: Brace! Brace! Brace!
0:17:20 > 0:17:23Well, what you do is you build one of these.
0:17:23 > 0:17:29It's a RODET - roll over drill egress trainer.
0:17:29 > 0:17:31Ah!
0:17:31 > 0:17:32I think we're upside down.
0:17:37 > 0:17:41All these improvements have had a dramatic effect on military motoring out here.
0:17:41 > 0:17:45Since the new generation of PMVs was introduced -
0:17:45 > 0:17:47that's protected military vehicles,
0:17:47 > 0:17:52the Mastiff, the Foxhound, the Husky, the Warthog,
0:17:52 > 0:17:53all those things -
0:17:53 > 0:17:59there have been over 1,000 survivors of IED strikes on vehicles.
0:17:59 > 0:18:03And a senior British officer admitted to me the other day
0:18:03 > 0:18:05that in the old days,
0:18:05 > 0:18:08when we had the soft-skin vehicles, the Snatch Land Rover and so on,
0:18:08 > 0:18:12that might have been more like three casualties per vehicle.
0:18:19 > 0:18:21With our troops now coming home,
0:18:21 > 0:18:24this stuff is too valuable to leave behind.
0:18:24 > 0:18:28So a massive operation is under way to bring it back to Britain.
0:18:28 > 0:18:31At forward bases like this one, all the vehicles and spares
0:18:31 > 0:18:34are being gathered up for the drive back to Bastion.
0:18:36 > 0:18:38Which meant that in the middle of the night, I found myself
0:18:38 > 0:18:43in a convoy of returning vehicles in full Ross Kemp mode.
0:18:43 > 0:18:46We're in a Mastiff, we're in a convoy of 31 vehicles.
0:18:46 > 0:18:48These legs belong to Sue,
0:18:48 > 0:18:50who's up the top on the gun keeping lookout.
0:18:50 > 0:18:53- Hello.- Morning.- Morning, ma'am.
0:18:53 > 0:18:56- Is there room for two of us up there?- We can give it a go.
0:18:56 > 0:18:57Hang on, I'll move this way a bit.
0:18:57 > 0:19:01- Up we go.- Ow.- I don't think we're going to fit on.
0:19:01 > 0:19:03I've pulled something off...
0:19:08 > 0:19:10I'm not fat.
0:19:13 > 0:19:14What's to stop somebody out...
0:19:14 > 0:19:16because we can't really see very much out there,
0:19:16 > 0:19:20what's to stop somebody out there just taking a shot at you?
0:19:20 > 0:19:23- Absolutely nothing at the moment. - So they're out there somewhere?
0:19:23 > 0:19:26They are. They're not that far away.
0:19:26 > 0:19:29When was the last time a roadside bomb went off on this bit,
0:19:29 > 0:19:30do you know?
0:19:32 > 0:19:34Very, very recent.
0:19:34 > 0:19:36- Very recent.- Very recent.
0:19:42 > 0:19:44Daylight found us still in one piece,
0:19:44 > 0:19:48and back within the walls of Bastion the packing-up process could begin.
0:19:48 > 0:19:51Alongside a stripped-down service,
0:19:51 > 0:19:55each vehicle gets a 24-hour-long jet wash,
0:19:57 > 0:20:02a biological decontamination and, at the very end, its own passport.
0:20:04 > 0:20:05And look at the size of it.
0:20:05 > 0:20:10All these pages, all these signatures, everything signed off -
0:20:10 > 0:20:13every single vehicle and piece of equipment has one of those
0:20:13 > 0:20:17and there are over 3,500 of them.
0:20:17 > 0:20:20So don't complain next time you have to tax and MOT your car.
0:20:26 > 0:20:31For some poor souls, the new machinery came too late.
0:20:34 > 0:20:38But the military has responded to the brutality of this conflict.
0:20:46 > 0:20:49And the vehicles we're bringing home from Afghanistan
0:20:49 > 0:20:52are much better than the ones we went out with.
0:21:19 > 0:21:22My guest tonight is an Australian who lives in Britain,
0:21:22 > 0:21:25but unusually, he doesn't work in a pub.
0:21:26 > 0:21:29Instead, he works in the marketing department
0:21:29 > 0:21:32of a large energy drinks company,
0:21:32 > 0:21:34and he's just handed his notice in.
0:21:34 > 0:21:36Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Mark Webber!
0:21:36 > 0:21:39CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:21:41 > 0:21:43Mark Webber! How are you?
0:21:46 > 0:21:47Have a seat.
0:21:48 > 0:21:50Have a seat.
0:21:52 > 0:21:56One of the most popular figures, I say, in Formula 1.
0:21:56 > 0:21:58Now, we have so much in common.
0:21:58 > 0:22:01We have the same body fat index, I know that.
0:22:01 > 0:22:02LAUGHTER
0:22:02 > 0:22:04Why are you laughing? Exactly the same.
0:22:04 > 0:22:07But the main thing we have in common,
0:22:07 > 0:22:10apart from the same body fat index is...
0:22:10 > 0:22:12TITTERING
0:22:12 > 0:22:15..is cycling. I'm now a cyclist.
0:22:15 > 0:22:19I hear. I hear, mate, it's a new passion for you.
0:22:19 > 0:22:21And you, of course, are well known as a cyclist.
0:22:21 > 0:22:24I've done a little bit of cycling over the years.
0:22:24 > 0:22:26Somebody said you are the fittest of all the drivers.
0:22:26 > 0:22:29I'm in reasonable shape. I think all the guys are fit now, but...
0:22:29 > 0:22:31If you're the fittest Formula 1 driver,
0:22:31 > 0:22:34- you've got to be one of the fittest athletes.- I'd like to...
0:22:34 > 0:22:36If we did lots of different challenges, yeah.
0:22:36 > 0:22:40- That would be good, to get you all playing all the different sports. Do you play football?- Yeah.
0:22:40 > 0:22:45- Our football or your silly football? - I don't get on the lines like the Wallabies. We'll leave that alone.
0:22:45 > 0:22:47- A SPECTATOR CHEERS - Somebody's here.
0:22:47 > 0:22:49Somebody understands what you're on about.
0:22:49 > 0:22:51- How much mileage have you done on the bike?- On the bike?- Yeah.
0:22:51 > 0:22:53I do... I've done...
0:22:53 > 0:22:54- three.- Three miles.
0:22:54 > 0:22:56LAUGHTER
0:22:56 > 0:23:00One thing I will say about cycling is it is pretty dangerous,
0:23:00 > 0:23:03because over the years you've had a number of car accidents, let's be honest.
0:23:03 > 0:23:06If you're going to race cars, you're going to crash cars.
0:23:06 > 0:23:09We've got a photograph here of a crash. I believe it was at Le Mans.
0:23:09 > 0:23:12- A still. This is you in a Mercedes. - Yeah.
0:23:12 > 0:23:15- I say car crash. That is a plane crash going on.- Yeah.
0:23:15 > 0:23:16How did that happen?
0:23:16 > 0:23:20Actually, in that era, in the late '90s, the cars were super-unsafe
0:23:20 > 0:23:23so a lot of cars were flying. Just the regulations.
0:23:23 > 0:23:26So you're sitting in there thinking...
0:23:26 > 0:23:29I'm thinking, obviously, I'm now out of control.
0:23:29 > 0:23:31Believe it or not, I'm now out of control.
0:23:31 > 0:23:35LAUGHTER So even, as arrogant as us boys are,
0:23:35 > 0:23:38I have now lost control of that car. That's gone. But...
0:23:38 > 0:23:41Do you find yourself, in a situation like that, braking?
0:23:41 > 0:23:44The brake lights will still be on, probably, yeah.
0:23:44 > 0:23:47"Why isn't it slowing down?"
0:23:47 > 0:23:50Now, the thing is, you walk away from those accidents
0:23:50 > 0:23:51which of course is remarkable,
0:23:51 > 0:23:53and yet you go cycling in when was it, 2008?
0:23:53 > 0:23:57- Yep.- Bump into a Nissan Terrano, I believe was the vehicle.
0:23:57 > 0:24:04- It won, mate, it won.- It won. And you broke your leg.- Yeah, shoulder...
0:24:04 > 0:24:07Because this is one I think we need to impress upon children watching,
0:24:07 > 0:24:11is that, don't get a bicycle, because they're dangerous.
0:24:11 > 0:24:13LAUGHTER
0:24:13 > 0:24:17Now, obviously, you've, just as we said in the introduction,
0:24:17 > 0:24:19- handed your notice in.- Mmm.
0:24:19 > 0:24:22Why? Where are you going? What are you going to do?
0:24:22 > 0:24:24Timing's right for me, mate. Bit of a break
0:24:24 > 0:24:28from what I've been doing for the last 14 years,
0:24:28 > 0:24:30so I'm going to race with Porsche, actually.
0:24:30 > 0:24:32I know you love Porsches, don't you, mate?
0:24:32 > 0:24:35Oh, the 911 is such an interesting car.
0:24:35 > 0:24:37LAUGHTER
0:24:37 > 0:24:41Do you think you're getting out at the right time, Formula 1?
0:24:41 > 0:24:45Now that we've got the tyres going off like they do, is that just getting a bit wearisome?
0:24:45 > 0:24:48You're in the car, the car's going well, you know the track,
0:24:48 > 0:24:51you're in the groove, and you know that if you push hard,
0:24:51 > 0:24:54your tyres will simply wear out and you can't win.
0:24:54 > 0:24:56It is very different, mate, from how it used to be.
0:24:56 > 0:24:59But that's the way it is, we've got to learn and get on with it.
0:24:59 > 0:25:01We're supposed to be at the top of our game,
0:25:01 > 0:25:04but you've got to be able to push. In Formula 1 it's about us boys
0:25:04 > 0:25:07- absolutely on the limits all the time.- It should be, yeah.
0:25:07 > 0:25:10It should be. There's a big regulation change next year.
0:25:10 > 0:25:11We're going to have to save fuel.
0:25:11 > 0:25:15- 1.6-litre engines.- Yeah. So...
0:25:15 > 0:25:18My Ford Cortina had a 1.6-litre engine.
0:25:18 > 0:25:20So are you going to miss your team-mate?
0:25:20 > 0:25:24Um... LAUGHTER
0:25:28 > 0:25:30Am I going to miss Seb?
0:25:30 > 0:25:35Uh...probably not a huge amount. No.
0:25:35 > 0:25:37I think in a competitive environment
0:25:37 > 0:25:39there's always going to be a bit of needle.
0:25:39 > 0:25:42There's a lot of history between us, obviously, that's gone before.
0:25:42 > 0:25:44- Mmm.- And...
0:25:44 > 0:25:48Did it start in Malaysia when he suddenly lost the ability to hear?
0:25:48 > 0:25:50Yeah.
0:25:50 > 0:25:52It was basically, "Don't overtake Mark,"
0:25:52 > 0:25:54and then he heard...
0:25:54 > 0:25:57- Well, he heard everything apart from the "don't".- Mmm.
0:25:57 > 0:26:00I mean, you're an Aussie. Have you never felt tempted to...
0:26:00 > 0:26:03- VOICES:- Yeah! - This is for Gallipoli. Blam.
0:26:03 > 0:26:06A lot of people are saying yes. I'm really concerned.
0:26:06 > 0:26:10I think, my dad always says, "You shouldn't hit boys, mate."
0:26:14 > 0:26:16Good one.
0:26:17 > 0:26:20- Now, you're here for the second time, in fact.- Different studio.
0:26:20 > 0:26:23Everything's a bit different. I was a bit nervous today.
0:26:23 > 0:26:25- Were you in the old studio? - Yeah, mate.
0:26:25 > 0:26:27You actually looked half-decent back then.
0:26:31 > 0:26:34I've gone. I've absolutely gone.
0:26:34 > 0:26:37I've gone grey too, mate, you've gone grey.
0:26:37 > 0:26:40- Richard Hammond hasn't gone grey. It's really weird. - That's incredible.
0:26:40 > 0:26:43- I don't know how he's keeping it at bay.- It's perfect.
0:26:43 > 0:26:46Anyway, let's find out how you got on on your laps.
0:26:46 > 0:26:49You came here once before, and let's be honest...
0:26:50 > 0:26:53- It was chucking it down, and I was nowhere.- You were 1.47
0:26:53 > 0:26:57but it was the wettest day in human history. Well, today was...
0:26:57 > 0:27:00- Very good. Very good conditions, I would say.- Good conditions.
0:27:00 > 0:27:03The right temperature for a Suzuki Liana.
0:27:03 > 0:27:05Who'd like to have a look at this lap?
0:27:05 > 0:27:07- AUDIENCE:- Yeah!
0:27:07 > 0:27:10- Come on, Mark, let's have a look at the lap.- Right-o.
0:27:10 > 0:27:12TYRES SCREECH
0:27:12 > 0:27:13Right-o, here we go.
0:27:15 > 0:27:17Coming to get you.
0:27:17 > 0:27:19Lewis and Sebastian.
0:27:19 > 0:27:21Right, those are the two targets,
0:27:21 > 0:27:24and the first corner, nice and wide on the way in.
0:27:24 > 0:27:26It is interesting how you lot all do that.
0:27:28 > 0:27:31Look at the Liana. What a machine. You all drive that.
0:27:35 > 0:27:37What is it about Formula 1 drivers?
0:27:37 > 0:27:39Kimi was looking at the helicopters and the planes,
0:27:39 > 0:27:43and now you're adjusting your clothing. Where are you going?
0:27:44 > 0:27:47- Pay attention. - Steering's very responsive.
0:27:47 > 0:27:52That'll help with your time. Right, Hammerhead. Keep it tight.
0:27:52 > 0:27:55- It's horrible, Hammerhead! - What's that?
0:27:55 > 0:27:57You pick the grip up. There's new asphalt there.
0:27:57 > 0:28:00It's good grip on that. Really good grip.
0:28:03 > 0:28:06Don't scrub any speed through these fast ones.
0:28:07 > 0:28:09Turning lightly, here we go.
0:28:14 > 0:28:18Here we are. Ooh... That's cutting it nicely.
0:28:20 > 0:28:24How much speed have you got going into that? That's impressive.
0:28:24 > 0:28:26Well, you're bound to be, really.
0:28:26 > 0:28:29And here... Oooh, no, I wouldn't have changed down there.
0:28:29 > 0:28:31But there we are, across the line.
0:28:31 > 0:28:33CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:28:33 > 0:28:36I just said I wouldn't have changed down there to you!
0:28:38 > 0:28:43- That second gear last corner? - Yeah.- Second?- Yeah.
0:28:43 > 0:28:45- I use third in Gambon.- Do you?
0:28:45 > 0:28:48On the basis that it's the end, so it doesn't really matter
0:28:48 > 0:28:51- if you roll it or... - There's no weight transfer in third.
0:28:51 > 0:28:54I want to get the weight on the front tyre.
0:28:54 > 0:28:56You want to get the weight on the front? I trail brake.
0:28:56 > 0:28:59- Trail brake into it?- A little bit. - There's still not enough inertia.
0:28:59 > 0:29:01Well, it gets the weight of the nose...
0:29:01 > 0:29:04- I'll give you some lessons after. - LAUGHTER
0:29:04 > 0:29:06Least I can do.
0:29:06 > 0:29:08Anyway, where do you think...
0:29:08 > 0:29:10Obviously you said you were going for Sebastian and Lewis
0:29:10 > 0:29:12who are at the top.
0:29:12 > 0:29:14- That was the goal.- That was the goal.
0:29:14 > 0:29:18Well, I've got the time here, I shall have a look. Hang on a minute.
0:29:18 > 0:29:21I love the way that Formula 1 drivers actually...
0:29:21 > 0:29:24It's like you really care about this.
0:29:24 > 0:29:28Because it is quite funny, I mean, Rubens was dead chuffed -
0:29:28 > 0:29:30when he was fastest, he was absolutely...
0:29:30 > 0:29:31He was running around, handing out
0:29:31 > 0:29:34- "I Beat The Stig" T-shirts. - He was, he gave me one.
0:29:34 > 0:29:36Anyway, Mark Webber...
0:29:38 > 0:29:43..you did it... Well, I'm going to start with the bad news.
0:29:43 > 0:29:46- Really?- Yeah. You're not the fastest.
0:29:46 > 0:29:48Ah! AUDIENCE: Aw!
0:29:48 > 0:29:53So, once we've got that one out of the way, the big question is...
0:29:53 > 0:29:54ze German.
0:29:59 > 0:30:04Did you beat ze German, who did a 1.44 dead?
0:30:04 > 0:30:06- It's quite tight between those three. - It is very tight.
0:30:06 > 0:30:11In the 1.44s, it's all very tight. So, Mark Webber, you did a 1...
0:30:13 > 0:30:16- ..40... - The next number's important.
0:30:21 > 0:30:23- ..3...- Oh!.- Point one. - CHEERING
0:30:23 > 0:30:25You beat Seb.
0:30:28 > 0:30:30Only 0.2 off Lewis.
0:30:30 > 0:30:32Mate...
0:30:37 > 0:30:38That...
0:30:40 > 0:30:41I reckon that did it.
0:30:44 > 0:30:46I reckon if you'd just taken my advice about
0:30:46 > 0:30:48- third at the final corner.- Yeah.
0:30:48 > 0:30:50The thing is, you're not faster than Lewis,
0:30:50 > 0:30:52- but you don't have an earring. - OK.
0:30:52 > 0:30:54That's worth three-tenths, isn't it?
0:30:54 > 0:30:56It's got to be three-tenths, with his earring...
0:30:56 > 0:31:01But you have beaten Sebastian Vettel in the same car.
0:31:01 > 0:31:04Ladies and gentlemen, Mark Webber.
0:31:04 > 0:31:07APPLAUSE AND CHEERING
0:31:12 > 0:31:18Now...now, if you want a car that's fast, you're spoilt for choice.
0:31:18 > 0:31:21Same story if you want a car that's economical
0:31:21 > 0:31:23or cheap or has a big boot.
0:31:23 > 0:31:26But what if you're a massive show-off, and your main requirement
0:31:26 > 0:31:30is for a car that makes you stand out in your home town?
0:31:30 > 0:31:32Well, that can be a lot trickier,
0:31:32 > 0:31:36depending upon the town where you live, as I shall now demonstrate.
0:31:47 > 0:31:51Welcome to the United Arab Emirates, where, as you can see,
0:31:51 > 0:31:55it takes quite a lot to stand out on the car front.
0:31:58 > 0:32:02Out here, your common or garden Ferrari or Lamborghini
0:32:02 > 0:32:05can no longer cut the mustard.
0:32:05 > 0:32:08So what do you do if you want to turn heads?
0:32:08 > 0:32:12Well, I think I may have the answer.
0:32:12 > 0:32:14ENGINE ROARS
0:32:16 > 0:32:20You see, everyone thinks about blinging their wheels.
0:32:20 > 0:32:22But nobody ever thinks of adding MORE wheels.
0:32:28 > 0:32:34This is the new six-wheeled version of Mercedes's iconic G Wagon.
0:32:34 > 0:32:39And beside the extra wheels, it also ticks the rarity box,
0:32:39 > 0:32:43because it's one of only two in existence.
0:32:43 > 0:32:46More will be built, though I suspect not many
0:32:46 > 0:32:53when you consider the price, which is a trouser-troubling £370,000.
0:32:57 > 0:32:59The six-wheeled G Class was originally built
0:32:59 > 0:33:01for the Australian Army,
0:33:01 > 0:33:06who demanded standard equipment like seats and doors.
0:33:06 > 0:33:10In this civilian version, however, you get heated and ventilated
0:33:10 > 0:33:13electric leather chairs,
0:33:13 > 0:33:15a leather-trimmed dashboard,
0:33:15 > 0:33:18and a bamboo-lined cargo bay.
0:33:18 > 0:33:23You really do get a lot of car for your money, as in a lot of car.
0:33:23 > 0:33:25I mean, look at it.
0:33:25 > 0:33:27It's nearly a metre longer than a Range Rover,
0:33:27 > 0:33:29and it's got 37-inch wheels.
0:33:29 > 0:33:32I reckon I could get my head in the gap between the wheel
0:33:32 > 0:33:34and the wheel arch.
0:33:35 > 0:33:39Yeah, I can. Try doing that in a Range Rover.
0:33:46 > 0:33:51The 6x6 also weighs 3.75 tonnes,
0:33:51 > 0:33:54or the same as three VW Golfs.
0:33:54 > 0:33:59So, engine-wise, it can't afford to mess about.
0:33:59 > 0:34:05It's actually got a 5.5-litre, 536 horsepower, twin turbo V8,
0:34:05 > 0:34:08from Mercedes' in-house nutterists, AMG.
0:34:11 > 0:34:12Oh, we're getting a move on!
0:34:14 > 0:34:17560 pounds-feet of torque.
0:34:18 > 0:34:210-60 in under six seconds.
0:34:24 > 0:34:28That's sports car stuff, in something the size of a shopping centre.
0:34:30 > 0:34:31Fuel economy?
0:34:31 > 0:34:33Well, I doubt this will be the official transport
0:34:33 > 0:34:35at the next Greenpeace annual conference...
0:34:37 > 0:34:40All I'll say is, they thought it best to fit two fuel tanks.
0:34:40 > 0:34:44You change over using this switch, up here.
0:34:44 > 0:34:47And everybody loves an overhead switch.
0:34:47 > 0:34:49If I drove this down Ross-on-Wye high street,
0:34:49 > 0:34:51I would be lord of all I survey.
0:34:53 > 0:34:55The undisputed king of Herefordshire.
0:34:55 > 0:35:01Never mind Herefordshire, this thing attracts attention even round here.
0:35:01 > 0:35:03SIREN WAILS
0:35:03 > 0:35:05Seriously?
0:35:06 > 0:35:08Really?
0:35:08 > 0:35:10Yeah, he's serious.
0:35:10 > 0:35:11As it turned out,
0:35:11 > 0:35:14the policeman had never seen such an unusual car before.
0:35:14 > 0:35:20There's six wheels. And guess what, it's the same on the other side.
0:35:20 > 0:35:23And was on his way again after he'd had a look.
0:35:23 > 0:35:25Bye!
0:35:25 > 0:35:27Lamborghini Aventador police car.
0:35:27 > 0:35:29They don't have those in Ross-on-Wye.
0:35:30 > 0:35:33Or these.
0:35:33 > 0:35:34Ferrari FF.
0:35:36 > 0:35:38SLS AMG.
0:35:39 > 0:35:40What a funny day.
0:35:44 > 0:35:47Now, although the 6x6 is seriously quick on tarmac,
0:35:47 > 0:35:50and turns policemen's heads,
0:35:50 > 0:35:54where it's really built to shine is as an off-roader.
0:35:55 > 0:35:57Let me give you an example.
0:35:57 > 0:36:01A Land Rover Defender can wade through half a metre of water,
0:36:01 > 0:36:06and that's very good. This can wade through twice that.
0:36:07 > 0:36:12However, this being the desert, water is quite hard to find.
0:36:12 > 0:36:16So if you want to test it, you do have to improvise.
0:36:30 > 0:36:31Morning, sorry.
0:36:33 > 0:36:35Sorry.
0:36:35 > 0:36:38This is, unless I'm very much mistaken, a metre of water...
0:36:40 > 0:36:43..and the 6x6 is wading through it.
0:36:45 > 0:36:47Even dealing with the rubber rings.
0:36:48 > 0:36:51Yeah, not having any difficulty with this at all.
0:36:51 > 0:36:54But how does it cope with sand?
0:36:54 > 0:36:59Well, the good news is, sand is one thing we're really not short of.
0:37:02 > 0:37:05Welcome to the Empty Quarter.
0:37:07 > 0:37:11The largest sand desert in the world.
0:37:11 > 0:37:14Covering some 250,000 square miles.
0:37:16 > 0:37:19Out here, temperatures hit 50 degrees centigrade.
0:37:19 > 0:37:24And there are dunes more than 800 feet high.
0:37:34 > 0:37:37OK. We have six-wheel drive
0:37:37 > 0:37:41with the power split 30-40-30 across the axles. Check.
0:37:41 > 0:37:44Stronger front springs from the armoured version of the G Class.
0:37:44 > 0:37:45Check.
0:37:45 > 0:37:48Locking diffs. Oh, we've got those.
0:37:48 > 0:37:51The most you'd expect normally would be three. On here, five.
0:37:51 > 0:37:55And you lock them using these buttons in different ways.
0:37:55 > 0:37:58Right, let's go.
0:38:04 > 0:38:06These are big, big dunes,
0:38:06 > 0:38:09this is more of a sand mountain I'm on right now.
0:38:15 > 0:38:19Oh! 3.75 tonnes of Mercedes
0:38:19 > 0:38:21is doing this.
0:38:21 > 0:38:23It just doesn't feel right.
0:38:33 > 0:38:36This extra axle, these two extra wheels,
0:38:36 > 0:38:40it changes the way the 6x6 travels over the ground.
0:38:40 > 0:38:42It undulates, it feels supple.
0:38:44 > 0:38:47It's like blasting through the desert dunes...
0:38:48 > 0:38:50..riding a sinew.
0:38:53 > 0:38:54Come on!
0:38:54 > 0:38:57Oh...!
0:39:00 > 0:39:02BLEEP
0:39:03 > 0:39:05I got some air. Sorry, everybody.
0:39:09 > 0:39:12Intoxicated by what the Merc could do,
0:39:12 > 0:39:16I drove deeper and deeper into the Empty Quarter.
0:39:16 > 0:39:17Right, where does it go now?
0:39:19 > 0:39:22Oh, my God! Oh!
0:39:30 > 0:39:33Oh, for crying out loud!
0:39:35 > 0:39:36I wouldn't SKI down that!
0:39:40 > 0:39:41OK.
0:39:44 > 0:39:47Oh! Ah! Ah!
0:39:47 > 0:39:50Over the top. Oh!
0:39:50 > 0:39:53All very unpleasant. Not nice.
0:39:53 > 0:39:55HE LAUGHS
0:39:55 > 0:39:57It's vertical.
0:39:59 > 0:40:01I'm in a car, I'm having a plane crash.
0:40:03 > 0:40:05I'm still going down!
0:40:10 > 0:40:13Oh, what a stupid place, I hate it.
0:40:15 > 0:40:18Ahead, I saw a nice, flat desert floor
0:40:18 > 0:40:22and decided that was a much safer place to be.
0:40:26 > 0:40:29Ha-ha-ha! It's drifting.
0:40:29 > 0:40:33Now it's a rally car. A gigantic rally car.
0:40:38 > 0:40:42And let's not forget, I'm not having to shout over this,
0:40:42 > 0:40:46it's not "rarrrhh!" in here. I'm still cocooned in luxury.
0:40:47 > 0:40:49It's an amazing device.
0:40:54 > 0:40:58Now, when you take an off-roader across sand,
0:40:58 > 0:41:00the standard practice, as I've done,
0:41:00 > 0:41:05is to let some air out of the tyres to give them a bigger footprint.
0:41:05 > 0:41:09Now I'm going back on tarmac, so I need to reinflate them.
0:41:09 > 0:41:13All I've got to do is operate these overhead switches.
0:41:13 > 0:41:14I feel like a jet pilot.
0:41:14 > 0:41:16Compressor on.
0:41:16 > 0:41:18Going up.
0:41:19 > 0:41:24They can reinflate all of these tyres in under a minute.
0:41:24 > 0:41:27Oh, I love this.
0:41:27 > 0:41:29If I did this in Ledbury I'd be mobbed by now.
0:41:32 > 0:41:34Leaving the Empty Quarter behind,
0:41:34 > 0:41:37I headed back towards civilisation.
0:41:41 > 0:41:44I'm not going to pretend this is anything less than
0:41:44 > 0:41:46a preposterous machine.
0:41:46 > 0:41:54It's a six-metre, 3.75 tonne, £370,000 six-wheeled dinosaur.
0:41:54 > 0:41:57But as dinosaurs go, it is a magnificent one.
0:41:57 > 0:42:01Magnificent to behold, magnificently made.
0:42:01 > 0:42:04It's one of the car world's mad moments.
0:42:04 > 0:42:07A day off from Priuses and Leafs.
0:42:09 > 0:42:14Even in a country as chock-full of showy-offy cars as this one,
0:42:14 > 0:42:16it's still really rather special.
0:42:18 > 0:42:21You can forget your chrome wraps and whatever -
0:42:21 > 0:42:23I don't think you can beat
0:42:23 > 0:42:25just having more wheels than anything else.
0:42:25 > 0:42:29And I can say with absolute confidence that I have more wheels
0:42:29 > 0:42:31than any other... Oh.
0:42:38 > 0:42:39No matter.
0:42:39 > 0:42:42One thing I can say for sure is that this is
0:42:42 > 0:42:45the most extreme Mercedes out here.
0:42:45 > 0:42:48I doubt there's anything with a Mercedes badge in these parts
0:42:48 > 0:42:50that can draw as much attention...
0:42:50 > 0:42:52as that.
0:42:58 > 0:43:01All right, so I don't have the most wheels,
0:43:01 > 0:43:04it's not the most extreme Mercedes out here
0:43:04 > 0:43:07but the 6x6 does have size on its side.
0:43:07 > 0:43:11Bigger than any Range Rover, bigger than any Land Cruiser,
0:43:11 > 0:43:13bigger than that old Jeep up there.
0:43:13 > 0:43:15And that's the thing -
0:43:15 > 0:43:18a car can be beautiful, but when it's big, it's got presence,
0:43:18 > 0:43:20and they don't come much bigger than...
0:43:22 > 0:43:25Oh, my...
0:43:25 > 0:43:26God!
0:43:46 > 0:43:48I want this one.
0:43:57 > 0:43:59Now...
0:43:59 > 0:44:06this is the brand-new £866,000 McLaren P1,
0:44:06 > 0:44:10probably the most advanced and jaw-dropping car
0:44:10 > 0:44:12the world has ever seen.
0:44:12 > 0:44:16Mmm. The attention to detail in this thing boggles the mind,
0:44:16 > 0:44:18it is... It's almost science fiction.
0:44:18 > 0:44:22And so there was only one place on Earth
0:44:22 > 0:44:24where I could test it properly.
0:44:24 > 0:44:26Belgium.
0:44:26 > 0:44:27LAUGHTER
0:44:40 > 0:44:41This is Bruges.
0:44:45 > 0:44:50It's a quiet, friendly, cobbled sort of place.
0:44:50 > 0:44:52And it's just a stone's throw from Brussels,
0:44:52 > 0:44:56home to all the environmental EU law-makers.
0:44:56 > 0:45:00All of which makes it an ideal starting point
0:45:00 > 0:45:02for my test of the new McLaren.
0:45:06 > 0:45:12Because behind the front seats there are 324 laptop-style batteries,
0:45:12 > 0:45:18which power a silent, polar-bear-friendly electric motor.
0:45:19 > 0:45:24This means that even the most frizzy-haired sandal enthusiast
0:45:24 > 0:45:27would welcome this car into their city centre.
0:45:27 > 0:45:31It's like that other two-seater electric car, the G-Wiz.
0:45:31 > 0:45:34It's Al Gore with a windscreen wiper.
0:45:37 > 0:45:41Do not think, however, that it has the get-up-and-go of Jabba the Hutt.
0:45:43 > 0:45:45Because the electric motor in this
0:45:45 > 0:45:50produces a whopping 176 horsepower.
0:45:51 > 0:45:54And that's about what you get from a Volkswagen GTI.
0:45:54 > 0:45:56So it's pretty nippy.
0:46:01 > 0:46:05The only problem is that after just six miles,
0:46:05 > 0:46:07the batteries will be flat.
0:46:07 > 0:46:10So you'll need to plug your car into the mains
0:46:10 > 0:46:13and sit about eating a chocolate shoe for two hours
0:46:13 > 0:46:16until they're charged up again.
0:46:19 > 0:46:22Or, if this doesn't appeal,
0:46:22 > 0:46:24there is an alternative.
0:46:25 > 0:46:29Because, you see, the P1 is fitted as standard
0:46:29 > 0:46:33with an onboard petrol-powered generator.
0:46:33 > 0:46:35And it is quite a big one.
0:46:35 > 0:46:39In fact, it's a 3.8-litre twin-turbocharged
0:46:39 > 0:46:43722 horsepower V8.
0:46:43 > 0:46:46If we push this button...
0:46:46 > 0:46:48There it is, firing up.
0:46:48 > 0:46:50And the great thing is,
0:46:50 > 0:46:52it's not just charging the batteries.
0:46:52 > 0:46:56It's also working alongside the electric motor
0:46:56 > 0:46:58to power the wheels.
0:47:00 > 0:47:06So the P1, then, is not like a G-Wiz at all, in any way.
0:47:06 > 0:47:08Thanks to that generator,
0:47:08 > 0:47:10you can take this out of the city centre
0:47:10 > 0:47:13and onto the open road.
0:47:22 > 0:47:26And that's another reason I've come to Belgium.
0:47:27 > 0:47:29Because there are so many roads to choose from.
0:47:31 > 0:47:34Belgium has three times as many roads
0:47:34 > 0:47:37and 50% more cars per square mile
0:47:37 > 0:47:39than we do in Britain.
0:47:39 > 0:47:43And the stats from this remarkable country
0:47:43 > 0:47:46just keep on coming.
0:47:46 > 0:47:48There are so many miles of street-lit motorway here
0:47:48 > 0:47:53that Belgium is officially the brightest country on Earth.
0:47:54 > 0:47:57It's a little-known fact that Buzz Aldrin's first words
0:47:57 > 0:48:00when he set foot on the moon were,
0:48:00 > 0:48:02"Good God! You can see Belgium from up here!"
0:48:04 > 0:48:05I made that up.
0:48:12 > 0:48:16On the road I chose, there was rain.
0:48:17 > 0:48:19There was sunshine.
0:48:21 > 0:48:23There were clear stretches.
0:48:23 > 0:48:25And there were traffic jams.
0:48:27 > 0:48:31And the McLaren was quiet and comfortable through it all.
0:48:33 > 0:48:37But it was not what you'd call luxurious.
0:48:38 > 0:48:42It is, frankly, as well equipped as a pair of monk's underpants.
0:48:49 > 0:48:55And that's because this car was designed to be as fat as Iggy Pop.
0:48:56 > 0:48:59Inside, there's no glove box, and no carpets.
0:49:01 > 0:49:04The glass is just 3.5mm thick,
0:49:04 > 0:49:081.5mm thinner than the glass in normal cars,
0:49:08 > 0:49:09except in the back windows...
0:49:09 > 0:49:12where there's no glass at all.
0:49:12 > 0:49:16No lacquer is added to the carbon fibre trim
0:49:16 > 0:49:18to save 1.5kg.
0:49:18 > 0:49:22The whole chassis weighs less than James May.
0:49:24 > 0:49:25The trimmings are titanium,
0:49:25 > 0:49:29and the body is made from just five panels,
0:49:29 > 0:49:32which means less glue and fewer bolts are needed
0:49:32 > 0:49:34to hold it all together.
0:49:35 > 0:49:39All of this means that, despite the bank of batteries
0:49:39 > 0:49:41and the fact it has two engines,
0:49:41 > 0:49:45this car weighs less than a Vauxhall Astra.
0:49:47 > 0:49:49That, of course, makes it economical.
0:49:49 > 0:49:51And fast.
0:49:51 > 0:49:53Really fast.
0:49:54 > 0:49:56Mind-blowingly fast.
0:50:11 > 0:50:13Oh, my God!
0:50:15 > 0:50:17Ohhh!
0:50:17 > 0:50:19HE CHUCKLES
0:50:21 > 0:50:24The speed, in fact, is the main reason
0:50:24 > 0:50:26I've brought this car to Belgium.
0:50:26 > 0:50:30Because Belgium is home to this place.
0:50:33 > 0:50:39Spa - the longest, wildest racetrack on the F1 calendar.
0:50:43 > 0:50:45How do they make something go this fast?!
0:50:49 > 0:50:53OK. OK, let me just slow it down while I explain
0:50:53 > 0:50:54what's going on here.
0:50:54 > 0:50:57The electric motor and the big V8 generator
0:50:57 > 0:50:59are working together
0:50:59 > 0:51:03so that I have at my disposal
0:51:03 > 0:51:06903 brake horsepower.
0:51:09 > 0:51:11Ohh!
0:51:13 > 0:51:16Obviously I've driven a Bugatti Veyron
0:51:16 > 0:51:18that has more than that,
0:51:18 > 0:51:20but a Bugatti Veyron...
0:51:22 > 0:51:24Oh!
0:51:24 > 0:51:26..it has four-wheel drive
0:51:26 > 0:51:29and it weighs more than most mountains.
0:51:29 > 0:51:32This is rear-wheel drive,
0:51:32 > 0:51:35and the only significant weight comes from the air
0:51:35 > 0:51:37passing over the body.
0:51:38 > 0:51:40Right, Eau Rouge.
0:51:41 > 0:51:43Flat in a Formula 1 car.
0:51:43 > 0:51:44Not flat in this.
0:51:46 > 0:51:50Oh, they should have called this the widow-maker!
0:51:53 > 0:51:56The throttle is a hyperspace button.
0:51:56 > 0:51:58Step on it...
0:51:58 > 0:51:59and you're gone.
0:52:02 > 0:52:06And yet, somehow, even in this appalling weather,
0:52:06 > 0:52:08it got round all of the corners
0:52:08 > 0:52:10without crashing once.
0:52:11 > 0:52:13So, how?
0:52:17 > 0:52:22Well, that's partly because it's made of stuff from the future.
0:52:26 > 0:52:29And partly because it's clever.
0:52:30 > 0:52:35It adapts. It moves around to suit its environment.
0:52:37 > 0:52:40As the speed climbs, the rear wing rises
0:52:40 > 0:52:42to generate more downforce,
0:52:42 > 0:52:45but as you go past 156mph
0:52:45 > 0:52:48it starts to go back down a little bit,
0:52:48 > 0:52:51otherwise the weight of the air passing over it
0:52:51 > 0:52:55would be so enormous it would break the suspension.
0:52:55 > 0:52:59Then you have the exhaust, which works with the rear diffuser
0:52:59 > 0:53:01to generate an area of low pressure
0:53:01 > 0:53:05into which the back of the car is sucked.
0:53:05 > 0:53:09The wheels are made from military-grade aluminium,
0:53:09 > 0:53:12the brake discs from a material that's only ever been used
0:53:12 > 0:53:14in the Ariane space programme.
0:53:14 > 0:53:18And they're coated with something called silicon carbide.
0:53:18 > 0:53:21Apparently it's the hardest substance known to man.
0:53:21 > 0:53:24Apart from dried Weetabix, obviously.
0:53:24 > 0:53:26And then, the whole thing sits
0:53:26 > 0:53:31on four tyres that were designed and made by Pirelli.
0:53:32 > 0:53:37All of this means you really have the confidence to open it up.
0:53:44 > 0:53:48This thing goes from 0 to 160mph
0:53:48 > 0:53:52faster than a Golf goes from 0 to 60.
0:53:53 > 0:53:55130, 140, 150,
0:53:55 > 0:53:59160, 170, 180, 190...
0:53:59 > 0:54:01Bloody hellfire!
0:54:03 > 0:54:08And, as you hurtle round in a puddle of your own faeces,
0:54:08 > 0:54:10gurning like an infant,
0:54:10 > 0:54:14the car is working on ways of going even faster.
0:54:19 > 0:54:21Let me give you an example.
0:54:23 > 0:54:26The electric motor is used
0:54:26 > 0:54:29to fill in the little gaps when the petrol engine
0:54:29 > 0:54:32isn't working at its best - like, for example,
0:54:32 > 0:54:35during gear changes or
0:54:35 > 0:54:38while the massive turbos are spooling up.
0:54:40 > 0:54:42And what I find hysterical about that is that
0:54:42 > 0:54:46McLaren has taken this hybrid technology,
0:54:46 > 0:54:49which is designed to reduce the impact
0:54:49 > 0:54:52of the internal combustion engine,
0:54:52 > 0:54:55and is using it to INCREASE the impact.
0:54:55 > 0:54:59That's like weaponising a wind farm.
0:54:59 > 0:55:03Or buying the Rainbow Warrior and turning it into an oil tanker.
0:55:10 > 0:55:14For years, cars have all been basically the same
0:55:14 > 0:55:16but this really isn't.
0:55:16 > 0:55:20It's a game-changer. A genuinely new chapter
0:55:20 > 0:55:23in the history of motoring.
0:55:24 > 0:55:28In a town, it's as eco-friendly as a health food shop.
0:55:28 > 0:55:31On a motorway, it's comfortable and produces no more carbon dioxide
0:55:31 > 0:55:33than a family saloon.
0:55:33 > 0:55:37And on a track, it can rip a hole through time.
0:55:38 > 0:55:41And it's all been achieved using something that's been around
0:55:41 > 0:55:45for centuries - brilliant British engineering.
0:55:47 > 0:55:49You could argue that it doesn't have
0:55:49 > 0:55:52the passion or the flair of a Ferrari,
0:55:52 > 0:55:54and I'd probably agree with you.
0:55:55 > 0:55:57But look at it this way.
0:55:57 > 0:56:01It was passion and flair that built the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
0:56:02 > 0:56:05And it was British engineering that built
0:56:05 > 0:56:09the plumb-dead-straight Westminster Abbey.
0:56:34 > 0:56:36CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:56:43 > 0:56:46Hair on end.
0:56:46 > 0:56:48But weren't we supposed to test that against the hybrids
0:56:48 > 0:56:51- that Porsche and Ferrari are developing?- The Ferrari isn't ready.
0:56:51 > 0:56:54- The Porsche is.- But it wasn't when I filmed that.- But it is now,
0:56:54 > 0:56:57- and I shall be driving it on the show in a few weeks' time.- Yes,
0:56:57 > 0:57:00and after you've done that, we're going to put The Stig
0:57:00 > 0:57:04in both of them, and do some timed laps around our track.
0:57:04 > 0:57:07Now, that should be quite something, I think.
0:57:07 > 0:57:10- I don't think it will be.- Eh? - Why not?
0:57:10 > 0:57:13- Well, because... Were you not listening to the film?- Yeah.
0:57:13 > 0:57:15The speed of this is beyond anything I've ever experienced.
0:57:15 > 0:57:19It's animal savagery. It's beyond belief.
0:57:19 > 0:57:22- Yes, yes, yes, but the Porsche might be faster.- It won't be.
0:57:22 > 0:57:25- Yeah, but it might be. - No, but it won't be.
0:57:25 > 0:57:27But...it might be.
0:57:27 > 0:57:29- I guarantee it won't be. - But it might be.
0:57:29 > 0:57:32Hammond, I'll do you a deal.
0:57:32 > 0:57:36If the Porsche is faster round our track than this,
0:57:36 > 0:57:40I will change my name, by deed poll,
0:57:40 > 0:57:41to Jennifer.
0:57:41 > 0:57:43LAUGHTER
0:57:43 > 0:57:45- Really?- Yes. - Promise?- Yes.
0:57:45 > 0:57:49And on that potential bombshell, it is time to end.
0:57:49 > 0:57:52Thank you so much for watching. Good night!