Richard Hammond has spoken of the difficulties he experienced when using a classic British Aston Martin during The Grand Tour: Sand Job.
In the latest special, Clarkson, Hammond and May embarked on one of their most complex journeys so far, navigating across the Sahara Desert and dangerous river crossings.
The hosts were tasked to recreate the historic Paris-Dakar rally with second-hand sports cars, modified by themselves.
Despite getting hounded by the other two hosts, Richard Hammond described his complicated relationship with the Aston Martin Volante V12 throughout the Mauritanian trip.
Richard Hammond crossed Mauritania in an Aston Martin Volante V12
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The British supercar brand has been a staple on roads for decades, although Hammond noted that they are not great for crossing deserts, with most people opting for a Toyota Landcruiser.
He said the older V12 engine was “not the best place to start when you want a rugged machine for crossing deserts”.
Hammond continued, saying: "The problem with my car, as you see in the special, is that it came from an era just as the whole idea of computers running the show was taking hold.
“So cars were becoming clever but mine hadn't become quite clever enough. It would have been better to have had something earlier or later. Mine was exactly the wrong period when it thought it was clever, but it wasn’t.”
Richard Hammond said there were problems between the internal 'brain' of the car and the sensors
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He said he needed to deal with the car having issues with sensors and the internal “brain” couldn’t distinguish the difference between a sensor issue and a legitimate problem with the vehicle.
The presenter, who also hosts Richard Hammond’s Workshop, said the sensors had incorrectly found that the gearbox wasn’t working, forcing him to only use one gear for parts of the adventure.
The former Top Gear host attempted to remedy the issues by screaming at the car and driving in first gear until he reached an area with Wi-Fi, allowing him to diagnose and fix issues with his laptop. There were additional problems with the car overheating given that he had to install a large plate to prevent the car from being damaged.
He added: “What I hadn’t foreseen is that this massive V12 engine, which is normally open underneath, was now covered by a big bash plate which kept hot air in.
The Grand Tour: Sand Job launches on February 16
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“I was cooking my own engine, basically. It was a constant battle between leaving it open to damage or closing it in and making it overheat.”
The 54-year-old was the target of jokes from the two other hosts, mainly down to his vehicle choice when navigating the difficult terrain.
Jeremy Clarkson said both hosts made “unwise choices” with their vehicles, heralding his own Jaguar F-Type V6 Supercharged VS, saying he bought the same model when he returned home.
James May also poked fun at Hammond, calling his decision to choose an Aston Martin Volante “frank stupidity”.
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The other hosts teased Hammond over his choice of car
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He added: “There are sophisticated electronics in all modern cars which can go wrong, and small faults can be quite difficult to fix if you haven't got the right diagnostic equipment, which generally you don't have in the middle of a desert.
“So, the generous reply would be that it was just bad luck, but I prefer the response that it was due to uselessness.”
The Grand Tour: Sand Job launches globally on Friday, February 16, 2024, on Prime Video.
