Top | Gear Botswana Cars [work]

Clarkson, in a move that surprised absolutely no one who knows his love for flawed Italian flair, bought a rotting, rusty 1981 Lancia Beta Coupé for just over a grand. The Lancia Beta is infamous in car history for catastrophic rust issues—body panels literally dissolving in European rain. Taking one to the salt-crusted pans of Botswana was automotive suicide.

Hammond found a baby-blue 1969 Opel Kadett in a muddy used-car lot. It looked like a fragile toy from West Germany, but Hammond immediately bonded with it, naming it “Oliver.” The Kadett was slow, underpowered, and had no business crossing the Makgadikgadi salt flats. top gear botswana cars

Oliver lives on. The Lancia was scrapped. The Mercedes probably still starts on the first turn of the key. Clarkson, in a move that surprised absolutely no

But Oliver became the star of the episode. Hammond treated him like a beloved pet, talking to him, fixing his failing fuel pump with a rock, and nursing him through floods and heatstroke. Oliver never broke down catastrophically. He just kept going. The little Opel finished the challenge with its dignity intact, and Hammond was so attached that he shipped Oliver back to England, where he still owns it. No other Top Gear car has ever received that honor. “The Dignified Survivor” Hammond found a baby-blue 1969 Opel Kadett in

And yet. After a near-catastrophic suspension collapse and endless bashing, this Lancia refused to die. Clarkson named it “The Indestructible Lancia”—a title no Lancia has ever deserved less, yet earned through sheer spite. It finished the challenge, albeit with every panel dented, the rear window held in by tape, and the exhaust dragging. It remains a glorious monument to stubborn Italian spirit. “Oliver”