The fourth episode of the tenth series of Top Gear aired on the 4th of November, 2007. It was presented by Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, James May and The Stig's African Cousin.
Synopsis[]
The trio goes to Botswana to see if they can find two-wheel drive cars that can "get up leafy lanes" for less than £1,500. Starting out at the Zimbabwean Border, the trio are to head to Makgadikgadi once they have chosen a car with no off-road pedigree whatsoever. James chooses a Mercedes-Benz 230E due to its reputation on the African continent, Jeremy goes for a Lancia Beta Coupé due to Lancia's other models being successful rally contenders, and Richard goes for an Opel Kadett for no reason in particular. The Back-Up Car was a Volkswagen Beetle.
To test the performance of the three cars used by the presenters around a dirt rally track, Jeremy Clarkson introduced "The Stig’s African cousin." This incarnation of The Stig was black, wore only Puma shoes, a loincloth and his iconic white helmet. He set lap times for two of the cars but walked away from the track when Clarkson’s Lancia Beta failed to start. The others joked that African Stig was trying to get a respectable time by walking the course, and didn’t bother using the car as it was too slow.
Cars[]
| Image | Vehicle | Driver |
|---|---|---|
 |
Opel Kadett "Oliver" | Richard Hammond |
 |
Mercedes-Benz 230E | James May |
 |
Lancia Beta Coupe | Jeremy Clarkson |
Trivia[]
- This is considered the first special by the trio and fans, as it involves the trio achieving a set goal or feat together using their cars, in this case being the "first cars to cross the Makgadikgadi salt pan" (although they achieved this indirectly, the main goal was to cross Botswana).
- This is despite USA, Winter, and Polar specials releasing earlier, however these specials do not follow the same trend as Botswana or the later specials.
- This special marks the debut of the Back-Up Car, a fourth vehicle in the event one of the presenters' cars were to fail during the trip. This vehicle is often inappropriate and/or embarrassing. The Back-Up-Car for this special was a VW Beetle.
- The BBC was banned from operating in Zimbabwe until the Elections of 2008, almost 5 months after this special aired, because the then-president Robert Mugabe deemed BBC News a "terrorist organization".
- As of October 2024, This special is no longer available on BBC iPlayer (UK) — It is rumoured that Amazon have bought the rights to the episode. As footage from this episode appeared in the final episode of The Grand Tour
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