Top Gear

Thank you! Relax, relax.

Hello, and welcome to Top Gear.

Which, tonight, is an electric car special.

Yes, we're officially on trend...

..it's a strange feeling.

I can see that, mate. Look at you.

What are them on your feet? You've got bananas on your feet!

So, electric vehicles...

..they got their positives, they've got their negatives.

Battery joke there for... That was just for you, mate.

But I'm going to throw it out there...

..who here drove here today in an electric car? Anyone?

Yeah. Yeah?

Oh! You, madam? Yes.

Which one? Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV.

Oh, dearie me... Ooh, look what you've done to him.

Look what you've done to him!

I don't want to be rude but... I mean...

I mean, do you not feel like you've given up on life?

Oh-ho! Yeah, well done on not being rude!

I do apologise. He gets like this.

Yeah, that's why I'm not convinced with electric cars.

Because, to get an interesting one, you've got to spend a fortune

on a Rimac or a Tesla Roadster.

And then the ones which are affordable, like a Leaf or a Zoe...

..let's be honest, they're just plain boring.

Yeah, no, you've got a point.

So we reckon what the world needs is a budget electric sports car.

And rather than sit around waiting for one to show up,

we each went out and built our own.

Sports car of the future, you say?

Here it is!

Yes, it's a battery-powered Triumph Spitfire.

What I've done here is, I've kept those classic British lines,

and I've ditched that rather wheezy 4-cylinder engine and replaced

it with BMW i3 batteries.

This car used to have well under 100 horsepower,

it now has 260 horsepower!

Whoa, look at it accelerate!

To see what the others had come up with,

I'd found the perfect place to meet up.

A disused fossil-fuel-burning power station on the outskirts of Telford.

Ah, McGuinness is here.

Look at his face.

I can see he looks impressed already. Look at him.

He knows greatness when he sees it.

Ha-ha!

Behold...

..the electric Spitfire.

Forget the electric Spitfire for a second...

..why have you come dressed as Spider-Man's grandad?

I'm getting in character - '70s sports car...

..relive the '70s sports car look.

You appear to have made a car for people who are yet to reach puberty.

W-what is it?

That is a Nissan Leaf GTI Nismo Turbo Sport R.

Have you finished?

GTI, as well.

A weird-looking Nissan Leaf... thing on the outside.

Underneath?

A Nissan Leaf.

Nissan have spent £9 billion developing that car.

Right.

What am I going to do to add to that? I've left it as is.

So you've taken a slow Nissan Leaf,

and not made it any faster?

I've made it more stylish.

Now, you've taken a Spitfire! Yeah.

And what have you done to that?

BMW i3 batteries.

The motor from a...

..from a bus, but we'll gloss over that.

A BMW i3 battery...

..on a Spitfire? Well, IN the Spitfire.

Which is a 1970s car, with 1970s brakes and handling.

Let's just stick to the way they look at the moment.

I'm reliving the glory years of the sports car!

I can't take you serious with them gloves on.

You can't take me seriously, and you've just turned up in that?

You're 45 years old, man!

Oh, my God.

Flintoff's here.

Oh, I quite like that.

Hi, lads!

What is it, though?

It's a bloody Subaru Brat. It's really cool.

If he touches my... Don't touch the coachwork!

What? Don't touch the coachwork.

Not interested in that. Have a look at this!

The Mute.

It's a Subaru Brat on top, Tesla underneath.

How much power? Oh, do you want to know?

Go on.

500 brake horsepower, Chris, yes! Oh, come on!

How have you managed that? In that?! Tesla motor!

"In that?" It's not "that"...

..it's The Mute!

So what's in the back of it? Tesla batteries.

Tesla batteries? Well, I got half a Tesla battery,

I couldn't afford a whole one, just a half.

Why is it called The Mute?

Do you want to do this, Chris, or me? OK.

In Australia, a pick-up's called a ute. Yeah?

It's electric, therefore, it's silent,

therefore it's the... Mute!

So it's neither one thing nor the other?

What do you mean "one thing nor the other?"

Well, it's not a pick-up, it's not a sports car.

It's a sports car, Paddy. It's how the Aussies do sports cars.

You're driving a spork.

What? You've stuck some plastic on a Nissan Leaf.

Have you got eyes?!

Unfortunately. Look at it, it's beautiful!

It's what young people want.

OK, how much power has yours got? Stop deflecting.

Hundred... brake horsepower.

A hundred?

That's 500 horsepower, really?

In a Subaru Brat? 500 horsepower, yeah.

260, and I weigh half as much as you.

So it's between these two, isn't it?

No, no, no...

..because mine's been done by Nissan.

Yours has been done by you two...

..in a shed.

It was time to put our sports cars...

Bang!

..to the test.

See you on the other side.

And with a disused power station at our disposal,

we agreed to a fastest-lap battle

around its network of deserted roads.

It's a bit temperamental.

I'll give you a hand. You're all right, Paddy, I'll do it.

No, it's all right, I've got it, lads. No, come on, Paddy!

No, no, it's forced, it's just a little bit...

What's this?! Yeah, it just...

Go on, get in. Yeah.

It's supposed to do that!

Anyway...

..back to the fastest-lap battle.

And first up to the start line was Flintoff

and his 500 horsepower "Mute".

OK, Freddie, here we go.

3,

2,

1...

..go!

Oh!

Off the line quick. It's got proper grunt, hasn't it?

Look at it go! Go on!

Silence, in motorsport, normally means death. Yeah.

Oh, geez...

Got some locking up a little bit, the front wheels.

I can feel the weight behind me.

Mind the barrier...

Come on, go, go, go!

I tell you what...

..that was all right!

Seemed quick, though. It was quick, but it was lacking drama.

Silent motorsport is nothing. That's what I'm saying.

We need speakers... giving us noise.

That's just showing off.

OK, Fred,

you just posted a 110.56,

which is the fastest-ever lap of the abandoned power station short loop.

Next up - McGuinness's Leaf.

Looks terrible. Oh, it's awful. Awful.

You look like you're going to go and ram-raid an Argos in that.

Look at the state of you!

Start me off.

And can we make sure Harris is doing the stopwatch,

cos I don't trust Flintoff.

Fair enough. OK.

3, 2,

1, go!

He's jumped the start. That was a false start, Paddy!

Oh, he's skidding around... He's having a go!

Wahey! Here we go!

Oh, dear God.

Through there... that's it, that's got it!

Come on, Leaf! Do not let me down.

It's like being on the set of Blade Runner!

Silent assassin, this car.

Oh, hang on, he's going fast here...

I think he's got me!

He's done you by five seconds there.

Did he go the right way?

Eh? Give me the good news.

It's a 105.22.

You've beaten him by 5 seconds.

Come and look at his face.

Do not let him move.

Let me out of my car!

Oh, my God. I'm sorry for you here, I really am.

Hundred brake horsepower, you say?!

500 horsepower?!

Five seconds, lad!

You took one hell of a beating!

500 horsepower.