You don’t have to fly to Africa. But you can :
After the special ended, May chose to leave the car in Botswana, believing it was "utterly the wrong thing to do" to bring it back. He felt that the car's history was more valuable than its restoration. The Mercedes was later found, having been welded back together, but remarkably still intact.
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Hammond famously bought a white, two-door Opel Kadett for just £400—well under budget. He named it "Oliver." This was the quintessential "Hamster" move: buying a car so old (over 40 years at filming) that it predated most safety regulations.
Sixteen years later, the image of three men pushing a flaming Lancia across a white salt flat remains the definitive image of old-school television motoring. It wasn't about speed; it was about survival. And as long as Richard Hammond keeps Oliver running in his garage, the spirit of that Botswana road trip will never die. You don’t have to fly to Africa
Chosen for its style rather than its reliability, the Lancia was the most "Top Gear" choice possible. Throughout the 1,000-mile trek, it suffered catastrophic suspension failures and constant overheating. Despite Clarkson’s insistence that it was a "supercar," it required more maintenance than the other two combined.
For years, it was believed to have been scrapped. However, as of 2020, the shell was discovered in Maun, Botswana, partially reassembled but missing its wheels and lights [ 0.5.2 ]. 2. "Oliver" – The 1963 Opel Kadett (Richard Hammond) The Mercedes was later found, having been welded
To save weight and prevent overheating during the desert crossings, Clarkson stripped the Lancia down to its bare bones. He removed the doors, the bonnet, the boot lid, and most of the interior dashboard, turning the stylish Italian coupe into a Mad Max-style skeleton. 2. Richard Hammond’s 1963 Opel Kadett (“Oliver”)
