The defining moment of the special is, of course, the dune. Not a hill. A mountain of sand. Clarkson, in a fit of "power and arrogance," floored the BMW. He made it 200 meters. Then the sand swallowed the Bavarian beast whole.
By Jason Barlow (for Top Gear Magazine)
The cars rebelled. Plastic trim melted. Glue seeped out of the windscreens. Hammond’s Golf began to smell like a burning toaster. The production crew, following in air-conditioned Land Cruisers, wore hazmat suits just to hand the boys water. The Rub' al Khali is a beautiful liar. It looks solid. It is not. top gear middle eastern special
This is the oral history of the most sweaty, sandy, and spiritually enlightening road trip in Top Gear history. The formula was classic Wilman. The budget: £3,500. The rule: It must be a convertible. The setting: The Empty Quarter (Rub' al Khali), a place so inhospitable that NASA uses it to test Mars rovers. The defining moment of the special is, of course, the dune