Top Gear USA - Fifth Season

Ferrara: Now on "Top Gear"...

Wood: Oh, dear God! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!

We head to Colorado

to test responsible cars not so responsibly...

Holy

As we make our way to a death-defying race

up the world-famous Pikes Peak...

Don't look at the edge! Don't look at the edge!

One of the highest and most dangerous roads in the country.

Oh, he's going off!

When you were young, you wanted to drive a super car.

Practicality meant nothing.

Now you're all grown up.

Practicality is everything.

You have a family. You have responsibilities.

You need to drive a big, slow, boring car, right?

Or do you?

"Top Gear" sent us to Denver, Colorado,

to find out if a vehicle exists

that has room to pick up the kids from lacrosse practice

but is still blindingly fast and ridiculously fun.

We are here in Colorado

to see if you can still recapture the joy

you had in a vehicle when you were 21 years old,

even though now you're a responsible adult.

Sort of.

So I chose the state-of-the-art,

sublimely engineered German wagon.

This is an AMG Mercedes,

which stands for "almighty God, is this is a fast wagon."

Foust: Me, however, I'm a Porsche guy.

And I picked the Cayenne Turbo S

because it drives like a sports car.

It handles and speeds like a super car.

And it's a turbo.

And it's got a little "s" on the back,

which stands for "so freakin' fast"!

Foust: Adam and I have chosen

two of the coolest dad cars money could buy.

Rut, however...

You got a minivan.

You rimmed up a minivan!

How is that a cool grownup car?

You know how it's cool? It's burgundy.

You guys got anything else?

Is that it? You kinda done?

I know you love the Odysseys.

Holy crap!

I can't hear you!

Why don't you guys just try and keep up.

What the hell?

You've got to be kidding me.

He found a minivan that'll do a burnout!

Oh, yeah.

Oh, this thing is fun.

That is a monster minivan. What has he done?

Frankensteined something together.

Oh, my gosh! That thing has got some power.

Oh, Tanner's getting beat by a minivan.

Oh, speed bump!

Oh! Speed bump. Speed bump.

Speed bump. Speed bump. Speed bump.

There's a goose! Watch the goose!

Move the goose! Goose! Goose! Goose!

Is this the coolest van in the world?

What is that?!

There is nothing van about that.

This, my friends, is a monster.

Are they gonna finish building the front of it?

Oh, it's done.

That gigantic intercooler

is what makes this Honda Odyssey so magical.

All right. Start talking.

This is a 2014 Honda Odyssey,

but not just any Odyssey, oh, no.

This was built by the legendary Bisimoto.

Wood: This family-friendly front-wheel-drive minivan

started out with a mild-mannered stock v-6 engine.

The folks at Bisimoto engineering

turned it into a beast

by fitting it with a gigantic turbo,

a 6-speed manual transmission,

and best of all, launch control,

which can propel this Odyssey forward

with an incredible 1,029 horsepower.

You have found your dream car.

That's the face!

1,000 horsepower at 40 pounds of boost?

- Front-wheel drive? - Uh-huh.

That's good. Safety first.

Here's the reality.

It's a $30,000 minivan,

and $48,000 later,

you would have the most rad minivan in the world...

For 78 grand.

My car doesn't really cost much more than that.

2014 Porsche Cayenne Turbo S.

- How much? - $159,000.

What?!

I mean, you could get seven houses in Detroit for that.

You can buy Detroit for that.

Foust: This S.U.V. defies the laws of physics.

At 550 horsepower,

Porsche has translated the ultimate sports car

into an all-wheel-drive, dad-friendly, kid-caring,

grocery-getting super machine.

- Granted... - Go ahead.

I've not been a huge fan of the S.U.V. movement,

but they did it right.

They kept the center of gravity down.

It's actually engineered.

I'm a driver. I want to drive the car.

I want to use everything it's got.

Gentlemen, come with me.

Ferrara: The 2014 E63 AMG wagon.

It has a 5.5-liter biturbo v-8,

577 horsepower.

It does zero to 60 in a stunning 3.5 seconds.

Suddenly, a trip to the mall just got a lot more fun,

even with the screaming wife and kids.

It's a wagon.

It's not really good at anything.

I'm sorry, what?

Are you just saying that 'cause it's faster than yours?

What are we doing here?

Wood: We would journey through Colorado

from Denver to the second-highest road in America

in the majestic Rocky Mountains.

Along the way,

we'd test our cars' heart-pumping performance,

as well as their family practicality,

with a series of challenges

ending with a winner-takes-all race to the clouds

at the highest, most dangerous hill-climb course

in North America... Pikes Peak.

Yes!

We're gonna go fast.

In your mom's Porsche?

Or in your wife's minivan?!

Mount up!

Foust: As we headed out of Denver,

it was Rut's Odyssey that was turning heads.

Wood: The best part about this van

is now it really is a fun family cruiser.

It still holds seven people just fine.

Does have a small roll cage in the back

in case the kids want to go to the race track.

Foust: Porsche had some weight on their shoulders

coming out with an S.U.V.

It could be seen as nothing less than a complete sellout,

and that's why they had to make this car so good.

The seating position is perfect.

The instrument cluster makes you think you're in a 911 turbo.

The fact is this is quicker

than almost any super car from the '80s,

and you can hold your baby seats.

Hey, Adam, what color would you say

that leather is on the seats in the wagon?

'Cause that looks a lot like a woman's purse.

Really? You're driving a burgundy minivan,

and you're throwing stones from your glass house?

Oh, yeah? You want to see what 1,000 horsepower looks like?

Holy crap, that's fast!

What has happened to you?! You're speeding right now!

Oh, my gosh.

You're gonna have to go to confession

when this is over, Rut.

I'm gonna need a change of underpants when this is over.

We've broken free from the city,

and we're winding our way

on some of the most spectacular driving roads in the country...

Heading 40 miles south

to our first challenge at an abandoned airstrip.

This is a nice dusty choice.

How old is this roadway?

Lindbergh practiced here.

I think this is the place, guys.

Whoo! It's windy out here.

Okay. What are we doing here?

A cool grown-up car not only has acceleration

that rivals smaller sportier vehicles,

but is practical, too.

To see which of you has the best of both worlds,

you will load your cars with sporting goods,

accelerate to 120 miles an hour,

then come to a complete stop.

Fastest time wins.

Are you kidding me?

I mean, this is basically purpose-built

for a Cayenne, balls in the trunk.

That's the only way a Cayenne will have balls.

Now, see, that's funny.

I like that dad jacket. That's nice.

Come on.

Don't go away mad, dad!

I am going to lower the suspension,

dominate the acceleration, and kick some serious butt.

All right, I'm ready.

3, 2, 1, go!

Here he comes. That's it.