Top Gear Specials Middle East _hot_ -

The ending is what elevates this special from "great" to "legendary." After hundreds of miles of breakdowns, fistfights over rooms, and near-misses with local militias, the three arrive in Bethlehem. But the hotel is full. As snow begins to fall on Christmas Eve—a meteorological miracle in the Middle East—they are turned away.

Nothing is funnier than seeing three middle-aged British men, dressed in waterproof jackets (why?) in 120-degree heat, trying to fix a Chrysler LeBaron with a hammer and a copy of the Quran they found in the glove box. The juxtaposition of ancient history (Babylon, Petra) and modern automotive stupidity is perfect. top gear specials middle east

Unlike the cold of the North Pole, the Middle Eastern heat actively destroys cars. In the 2010 special, you can see the camera lenses fogging up from the inside. The cars didn't just break; they suffered . Electronics fried, coolant boiled, and the leather seats became human griddles. The ending is what elevates this special from

The premise was quintessential Clarkson, Hammond, and May: to prove that modern cars had lost their rugged souls, they would drive three cheap, two-seat roadsters from the northern tip of Iraq to the birthplace of Jesus. Their chariots? A deliberately tragic trio of £3,500 convertibles: an Oxford-beige Fiat Barchetta (Clarkson), a hideously "chameleon" purple Mazda MX-5 (Hammond), and a perpetually leaking BMW Z3 (May). Nothing is funnier than seeing three middle-aged British

Originally aired in December 2010, this is the "definitive" Middle East special. The Mission: Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May fly into Iraqi Kurdistan and must drive to to deliver gifts to the baby Jesus.

No discussion is complete without the 2010 Middle East Special . Technically titled "The Babylong Adventure," this episode is the benchmark by which all road trip specials are measured.