Challenges Cheap Car Challenges Epic Roadtrip Top Gear Series 18 Top Gear Specials

Top Gear: Series 18, Episode 0 – India Special

  • Jeremy, Richard and James go on a British trade mission to India.
  • Each selects a car which will help represent Britain.
  • Jeremy – Jaguar XJS, Richard – Mini Cooper, James – Rolls Royce Silver Shadow.

Episode Guide

Watch this episode on Amazon Instant Video

This special episode of Top Gear begins with the boys outside of Number 10 Downing Street – where they reveal the PM, David Cameron, personally dismissed their suggestion to run a British trade mission to India, in an effort to increase business between the two countries. Top Gear ignores Mr Cameron anyway and the boys each purchase a British car for under £7,000 and begin their journey to India.

Upon arriving, the boys meet up in the city of Bombay to see what cars the others had bought. James arrives first in a Rolls Royce Silver Shadow – a car hand wrought in Britain during the 1970’s, using the very finest British car making materials. Jeremy turns up next in a Jaguar XJS – a car notorious for being utterly unreliable due to cheap electrical connectors and relays. Richard rolls up last in one of the last Mini Cooper Sports’ ever made – it looks immaculate and proudly displays the Union Jack on the roof. The boys argue about which car is best, and for good reason – ahead lay a 1,300 mile journey across India and up into the Himalayas.

The boys head out into the streets of Bombay to get to know their cars. Richard loves the “chunky” power producted from the Mini’s tiny engine, whilst simultaneously wincing in pain from the car’s rough ride – thanks to its lowered suspension. Jeremy feels extremely confident inside the XJS – all the dials are reading as they should, the engine is smooth and every single electric item in the car works. James agrees the 210bhp available in the Rolls is “adequate” and is happy to report that the car has no faults whatsoever. For their first challenge, the boys take on a mission of revolutionising the Indian “Dabbawala’s” – a group of people who deliver hot, home cooked meals from housewives, directly to their husbands at work. Despite over 200,000 tins being delivered every day – only 1 mistake is made for every 6,000,000 deliveries. Rather than delivering the tins by train, the boys decide to deliver them by car to help bring the efficiency up to 100%. Put simply, they fail miserably due to spilt tins and a slow delivery due to traffic jams.

After their dismal failure, the boys have to head north to the city of Jaipur – however instead of driving, the producer decides to put them on an overnight train. The cars are loaded and James queues to buy the tickets – with Jeremy and Richard going to have lunch instead. Over lunch, Jeremy gives Richard a present – in the form of a massive bass guitar. They discuss the idea of having a trade party once they arrive in Delhi and perhaps even resurrecting the Top Gear Band. They purchase a drum kit and a keyboard and then board the train to Jaipur. During the trip, Top Gear’s producer Andy Wilman is roped in to do the vocals – and they hold a practice session much to the dismay of the other passengers. Later on, the boys decide to hang large banners down the side of the train to help advertise Britain as it travels across the country. The banners are created and Jeremy attempts to feed it out one of the side doors, along the side of the carriage – it gets caught on something and is ripped clean out of his hands. At the next stop, the banners are successfully put in place the the train continues on – without James. At Jaipur station, the boys disembark and the train splits – causing the banners to break in half and change their message completely.

Upon unloading the cars, Jeremy and Richard discover that the air-conditioning in the Rolls is actually fully functional – and they proceed to drain the refrigeration gas before he catches up with them all. Outside of Jaipur, the boys find a nice 1 kilometer section of road in the hills, and hold a traditional British Hill Climb event. A group of locals turn up with a selection of vehicles and post their own times on the course – before the boys each have a go. Richard and James hold back, so they didn’t decimate the local’s times. Jeremy however, went flat out and ended up winning the event. Afterwards, they all split up and decorate their own cars. Richard paints the flag of Mexico on the Mini’s bonnet, Jeremy applies floral wallpaper and a boot mounted toilet to his Jaguar – and James fits British and Indian flags along with floral arrangements to his Rolls. The boys then head north to Delhi, to hold their ambassadorial party. The roads are among the most dangerous in the world – and night fell when there was still 80 miles to go until the overnight stopover point. After a nervous 2 hours, they arrive.

The next morning, the road chaos continued – with the only difference being that you could now see what was about to kill you. Eventually they arrive in Delhi and begin to set up the party – which doesn’t go well. The following day, the boys modify their cars further – to prepare them for the journey north into the Himalayas. Jeremy fits chunky off road tyres on his Jaguar, along with open exhaust headers which exit vertically out of the bonnet. James also fitted off road tyres to the Rolls, as did Richard with his Mini – along with a front mounted winch. Jeremy an James argue for an hour about who ruined their car more – before stopping and swapping cars to compare. Jeremy only lasts a few minutes in the Rolls before asking to swap back. Eventually they begin the ascent into the Himalayas and finally find a bit of peace and quiet is found – well until Jeremy rolls through in his Jaguar running an open exhaust. After passing Shimla, the roads turn from bad to worse – and eventually the tarmac disappears all together. The front of Richard’s mini gets ripped off after an attempt to pull James’ Rolls up a steep incline – which later forces the boys to stop early and camp for the night due to him having no headlights.

The next day, Richard mends the Mini whilst Jeremy moans about his poor night’s sleep. After a brief game of Straight Six Cricket, Jeremy, Richard and James reach the Chinese border and have the cars put on giant plinths by the roadside. Jeremy sums up the gesture. “The Mini, the Jag and the Rolls would be mounted on plinths, here, high in the mountains, by the road connecting India and China. So that forevermore people traveling between these two great economic superpowers will be reminded that far away there’s a smile island called Britain. Great Britain.”

Music

01.51 – 01:55 – Le Duc – Touareg
01:55 – 02:18 – Toirés – Menara (Nomadbrothers Remix)
02:52 – 03:02 – Roxy Music – Love is the Drug
04:13 – 04:21 – Quincy Jones – On Days Like These (Reprise)
05:34 – 05:38 – DJ Knuf – Come to My Body
05:51 – 06:09 – Ramin Djawadi – Release the Kraken
06:10 – 06:42 – Kasabian – Re-wired (Instrumental)
06:47 – 07:29 – Brian Eno & David Byrne – Regiment
07:36 – 08:05 – Kasabian – Acid Turkish Bath (Shelter from the Storm) (Instrumental)
08:20 – 08:42 – Brian Eno & David Byrne – Number 8 Mix
09:24 – 10:13 – Talvin Singh & Niladri Kumar – Ananta
10:16 – 10:42 – Thomas Newman – Welcome to the Suck
11:28 – 11:31 – ?
11:31 – 11:58 – Thomas Newman – An Unscheduled Stop
12:59 – 13:17 – Thomas Newman – An Unscheduled Stop
13:17 – 13:53 – Thomas Newman – Unfinished Business
13:57 – 14:08 – Antonio Pinto – Hunt
14:26 – 15:02 – Antonio Pinto – Hunt
15:02 – 15:10 – ?
15:10 – 15:57 – Antonio Pinto – The Bomb
16:00 – 16:20 – Ramin Djawadi – Be My Weapon
16:27 – 16:48 – ?
17:09 – 17:41 – Thomas Newman – An Unscheduled Stop
17:41 – 17:53 – Thomas Newman – Unfinished Business
17:56 – 18:22 – ?
18:40 – 18:48 – Masaladosa – Jungly Baba
19:24 – 19:31 – ?
19:35 – 20:10 – John Ottman – Mumbai Max
20:39 – 20:50 – John Ottman – Max Factor
20:53 – 21:01 – John Ottman – Bad Business
21:01 – 21:48 – Masaladosa – Shiva Express
21:55 – 22:00 – Masaladosa – Shiva Express
22:00 – 22:07 – Masaladosa – Biryani
24:20 – 24:29 – John Ottman – Mumbai Max
24:33 – 25:03 – Shri – East Rain
25:56 – 26:19 – Antonio Pinto – The Bomb
27:03 – 27:23 – John Ottman – Fake Out/Cool Reception
27:30 – 27:39 – John Ottman – Fake Out/Cool Reception
28:11 – 28:28 – John Ottman – Fake Out/Cool Reception
29:01 – 29:37 – Stereo MC’s – Fever (Steve Hillage Mix)
29:59 – 30:17 – Hans Zimmer – Tribal War
30:55 – 31:13 – Brian Eno & David Byrne – The Jezebel Spirit
31:48 – 32:08 – Roy Budd – Free Tarrant
33:15 – 33:23 – Talvin Singh & Niladri Kumar – Together
33:47 – 33:59 – ?
33:59 – 34:46 – Kasabian – Let’s Roll Just Like We Used To (Instrumental)
34:49 – 35:00 – Masaladosa – Madhuvanti
35:00 – 35:22 – Malachai – Anne
35:23 – 35:36 – Masaladosa – Yassa Masala
35:58 – 36:34 – Kasabian – Days Are Forgotten (Instrumental)
36:40 – 37:15 – Kasabian – Days Are Forgotten (Instrumental)
37:50 – 38:25 – Holy Fuck – The Pulse
38:43 – 39:37 – Mozart – Symphony No. 35 in D ‘Haffner’ K385: IV Presto
40:06 – 40:17 – The Hives – The Stomp
40:25 – 40:43 – The Hives – The Stomp
40:49 – 40:54 – The Hives – The Stomp
41:27 – 41:51 – Malachai – Snake Eyes
42:09 – 42:34 – Brian Eno & David Byrne – Number 8 Mix
44:20 – 44:27 – DJ Knuf – Come to My Body
45:38 – 45:56 – Secret Machines – Dreaming of Dreaming
46:52 – 47:39 – 101 Strings – Karma Sitar (David Holmes’ Essentials Mix)
47:42 – 48:48 – ?
48:48 – 49:38 – Massive Attack – Butterfly Caught (Version Point Five)
49:39 – 50:02 – Radiohead – Separator
50:03 – 51:00 – ?
51:12 – 51:25 – Masaladosa – Ganpati
51:50 – 52:13 – Masaladosa – Ganpati
52:21 – 52:52 – John Barry – Twice is the Only Way to Live
53:26 – 53:44 – Malachai – No More Rain Maureen (Instrumental)
54:34 – 54:47 – DJ Knuf – Come to My Body
55:33 – 55:41 – Malachai – No More Rain Maureen (Instrumental)
56:05 – 56:10 – 101 Strings – Karma Sitar (David Holmes’ Essentials Mix)
56:38 – 56:57 – Ravi Shankar & Yehudi Menuhin – Dhun
58:17 – 58:30 – Ravi Shankar & Yehudi Menuhin – Dhun
58:40 – 58:50 – Hans Zimmer – Mogadishu Blues
58:50 – 59:50 – Atlantic Five Jazz Band – Here’s That Rainy Day
59:50 – 60:03 – Roy Budd – Free Tarrant
60:03 – 60:27 – ?
60:27 – 60:40 – Roy Budd – Free Tarrant
61:14 – 61:28 – Atlantic Five Jazz Band – Night and Day
62:27 – 62:42 – Goldfrapp – Voicething
63:22 – 63:33 – ?
63:33 – 64:01 – Mike Post & Pete Carpenter – Theme from ‘The A-Team’
64:01 – 64:31 – Beastie Boys – 14th St. Break
64:54 – 65:08 – The Kills – Damned If She Do (Instrumental)
65:15 – 65:49 – The Kills – Damned If She Do (Instrumental)
65:59 – 66:18 – A.R. Rahman – Mausam & Escape
67:02 – 67:37 – Genesis – I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe) (Live)
67:37 – 67:44 – Thomas Newman – No Standard Solution
67:44 – 68:08 – Gustav Holst – The Planets, Op. 32: IV ‘Jupiter, The Bringer of Jollity’
68:24 – 68:55 – Thomas Newman – Unsick Most Ricky-Tick
68:58 – 69:48 – Masaladosa – Jungly Baba
70:01 – 70:17 – Gustav Holst – The Planets, Op. 32: IV ‘Jupiter, The Bringer of Jollity’
70:16 – 70:27 – Antonio Pinto – World Champion
70:42 – 70:51 – ?
71:01 – 71:36 – Thomas Newman – Rain Hammers
72:12 – 72:47 – Florence + The Machine – Shake it Out (Instrumental)
72:55 – 73:39 – Thomas Newman – Lexington Hotel, Room 1432
73:40 – 73:58 – Genesis – I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe) (Live)
74:06 – 74:37 – John Ottman – Mumbai Max
74:40 – 75:11 – Antonio Pinto – Home Peace
75:17 – 75:28 – Brian Tyler – Atrocities
75:28 – 75:38 – Talvin Singh & Niladri Kumar – Together
75:41 – 76:17 – Harry Gregson-Williams & David Buckley – Nuns with Guns
76:50 – 77:50 – Thomas Newman – Pink Mist
79:12 – 79:35 – Genesis – I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe) (Live)
79:35 – 79:38 – Thomas Newman – Dickskinner
79:38 – 80:20 – Thomas Newman – How to Die (Main Title)
81:34 – 81:50 – M83 – Farewell/Goodbye
82:07 – 82:57 – Red Hot Chilli Peppers – Brendan’s Death Song (Instrumental)
83:41 – 84:55 – Talvin Singh & Niladri Kumar – Together
85:00 – 85:08 – Ramin Djawadi – There is a God in You
85:08 – 85:25 – Ramin Djawadi – Release the Kraken
85:25 – 85:56 – Ramin Djawadi – There is a God in You
85:56 – 86:19 – Ramin Djawadi – Perseus
86:19 – 87:47 – M83 – Outro
87:47 – 88:17 – The Beatles – Hey Jude

Screenshots

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8 comments

Nicolas Molli February 7, 2018 at 7:25 am

Very good episode

Reply
Randal Matthews July 22, 2016 at 12:42 pm

What happened to all the videos?

Reply
Shane Fell May 18, 2014 at 3:45 am

That dual carriageway traffic looked bloody terrifying.

Reply
andrew May 18, 2012 at 7:30 am

Haha love those show. People need to grow a pair. Men these days need to start hiding their va****s better. They are comedians. Its their jobs.

Reply
Matthew January 6, 2012 at 11:41 am

where can i watch this in America?

Reply
Chris January 8, 2020 at 2:19 pm

Streaming services. I actually order all the series from Amazon

Reply
Chris January 2, 2012 at 4:18 am

Come on top gear, this episode was too predictable, I usually enjoy your cheap car challenges but in this one you wrecked 3 really nice cars, the mini would have made a fantastic first car for someone. I myself own an xjs celebration, I wash it every time it goes out and treat it like royalty, they only made 1000 uk models and they are the best and rarest most reliable and expensive xjs models you can buy. Im only 23 and I saved for mine for 10 years, and spent 3 years looking for the right car travelling all over the country. You wrecking one belittles all of this. It’s acceptable to wreck a car that is a mess to start with like the 928 in your cheap Porsche challenge… But three beautiful useable classics is criminal. You talk about public service workers being shot clarkson. You should be shot…and James may i thought you were better than them two apes i had faith in you that you actually liked england and didnt want us to look like a load of clowns. Now the indian population think we are a laughing stock. PULL YOUR SELF TOGETHER. Create a decent show for once. 5th gear is actually better these days!! Either start making a show worth watching or don’t bother.

Reply
Renaldo December 29, 2011 at 2:35 pm

Is there a way to watch this in canada? 🙁

Reply

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