The cars rebelled. Plastic trim melted. Glue seeped out of the windscreens. Hammond’s Golf began to smell like a burning toaster. The production crew, following in air-conditioned Land Cruisers, wore hazmat suits just to hand the boys water. The Rub' al Khali is a beautiful liar. It looks solid. It is not.
"Traction," May explained, laying the carpet under the wheels. "It’s the same principle as the Egyptians using logs to build the pyramids. Except we are idiots, and the pyramids are a 1996 Fiat Barchetta." top gear middle eastern special
It worked. Sort of. After 45 minutes of pushing, sweating, and Clarkson threatening to sue the entire Arabian Peninsula, the cars popped free. The BMW had a cracked sump. The Golf had no reverse gear. The Fiat smelled of burnt clutch and regret. They found Ubar (sort of). They got sunburn in places the sun should never go. Clarkson wore a tea towel on his head. Hammond tried to race a camel (the camel won). May spent 20 minutes explaining the geological history of the sand dunes while the other two threw rocks at his head. The cars rebelled
"We are going to die here," said Hammond, quietly. "Yes," replied May. "But at least the stereo in the Fiat still works." Leave it to Captain Slow to save the day. While Clarkson wanted to set the BMW on fire (a recurring theme), May produced a roll of carpet from the Fiat's minuscule boot. Hammond’s Golf began to smell like a burning toaster