Now that The Grand Tour is calling it quits, Richard Hammond picks his favorite cars from his time on the show
The Grand Tour is grinding to a halt, which means that it’s the perfect time to look back on the Amazon Original program. And that’s exactly what host Richard Hammond is doing with a tournament-style bracket to decide which of the cars he drove on the show was his favorite.
While the video’s conclusion may end up being ‘blindingly obvious,’ as Hammond puts it, there are a few unexpected choices made along the way. At the very least, it provides a unique opportunity to gain some behind-the-scenes insight into the production of The Grand Tour’s specials and offers a nostalgic look back at the show
The competition pits 16 cars from the motoring program against one another, and isn’t limited to just cars. In addition to the obvious participants, there are offbeat choices, like the cigar boat from the Seamen special, the TVS Star motorcycle from the Feed the World special, the Dune Buggy from the Namibian special, and the self-assembled off-roader called “John” from the show’s Mongolian special.
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Read: The Grand Tour Is Done, As Clarkson, Hammond, And May Call It Quits
Although The Grand Tour rarely drove straightforwardly normal cars, there are still some less unusual entries into the competition. Cars like the Buick Riviera from Lochdown, the Ford Focus RS with tank tracks from a Massive Hunt, the Matra Murena from Carnage a Trois, two Dodge Challengers (a Hellcat and a Demon), as well as a Maserati 430 and a Chevrolet SSR.
Oddly, it’s the last car, the Chevrolet SSR, that takes down the charmingly flawed Fiat X19 to become the first finalist. Hammond points to its inherent silliness and the fact that GM should have known better than to build it as reasons for his love of the convertible pickup truck.
It goes up against the Subaru Impreza WRX STI from a Scandi Flick for the win. The Japanese car beat the Buick Riviera in the semi-finals to make to the final round, and Hammond calls it a properly made, mechanical car that feels like the rally car it was designed to be.
So fond was he of the Impreza WRX, that he actually bought it after he finished filming the episode in which it was featured. That may provide you with a hint as to what the final result of this video will be, but it is interesting to hear Hammond talk about all the cars he drove for the show — there’s a reason he’s been paid to do it for so long.