Driving James May's legendary Top Gear rally car to the limit on track! Ft. Tiff Needell

[@Drivetribe]

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[@Ian-te9io]

Apart from that 1 F1 season in 1980.

[@brymills]

“Season” is stretching it a bit. 1 start with a DNF and one fail to qualify to race. Still, better than my record in F1!

[@DashcamAdelaide]

I know why he got rid of it. Because, it is no longer up to his STANDARD!!!s

[@VerdeMorte]

Any chance Tiff will come back in future videos?

[@camarocharger8180]

"I remember little bit about the car but remember lots about the passenger in it" I see Tiff is also a MAN OF CULTURE 😏

[@jcgabriel1569]

Well, which one would you prefer writing home about, the car, or the said passenger?

[@RealMash]

@@jcgabriel1569 Neither. The car is nothing to write about...her? A Gentleman could never even talk about. Either because of the embarrassment of not succeeding, or if you could succeed-a Gentleman does not brag about his achievements. Admittedly, a notable achievement that would be, but still. You could bring her home but not talk about.

[@joshstiltner]

Huge, suple, heaving culture.

[@jcgabriel1569]

@@joshstiltner Or, in the words of James May himself, *"the work of the Divine Potter..."*

[@Hoganply]

@@jcgabriel1569 Always cringed at that line. lol

[@zanemurcha9742]

Am I the only one who remembers that 15 months ago Drivetribe said that they'd put Tiff in a Porsche 962, like he drove in the late 80's and early 90's? I haven't forgotten Mike, I'm still gonna make sure that happens.

[@mikedrivetribe8314]

I haven't forgotten either, don't worry, there's something in the works...

[@OsellaSquadraCorse]

@@mikedrivetribe8314 Make sure it's the Kurzheck version too - like the 1990 Alpha car, which Tiff was instrumental in testing to decide between the high and low downforce versions; choosing the high downforce (kurzheck) as the new chicanes meant that the ultimate top speed of the low downforce/low drag car could barely be reached, and the stability and reduced tyre wear of the higher downforce short-tail car was more beneficial.

[@sunzero1]

You two looked like a couple of absolute lads out there, just having a right ol time. 🤣 😁 Just amazing.

[@mikedrivetribe8314]

It was one hell of a day, Tiff secretly loved it too...

[@0Blueaura]

@Gnome Whyte of course there is, its a mixture of both, going offscript is what made top gear legendary, they try the same thing here.

[@Markustajahoyrylaiva]

apart from irish bloke

[@5ebra1]

Tiff is a real star. KZbin needs more of him.

[@bonelesswatermelon420]

KZbin does have a lot of Tiff content, he presents on the channel Lovecars, another online motoring show you should check them out too

[@bonelesswatermelon420]

But I do agree we need ~more Tiff

[@ColinGarner-h1t]

He’s the most irritating person on tv .

[@jonthedoors]

If this video tells me one thing, it's that you're not getting Tiff on here anywhere near enough

[@bigdillan9612]

I loved that brief second where the suspension was locked in place then just popped up again like it remembered it has a job to do🤣

[@tnmoe-]

Haha, it's like it shut it's eyes in fear then had a tentative look about.

[@sweaspurdoddd5466]

Just like the French?

[@elonmust7470]

@@sweaspurdoddd5466 With 2000 years of wins, no.

[@SilverHyozanryu]

I love that a bunch of the old top gear cars have either stuck around or been rediscovered.

[@freddieparrydrums]

Apart from H982 FKL and the rest :(

[@andysandy362]

Yes! It’s so nice to see some of the cars that survived til this day, shame a lot since have been scrapped though

[@Sid3300]

Still need to find the Uganda Special Cars, Burma Lorries, and Jeremys Jag from India.

[@MrWolfSnack]

There's a guy in the Midlands that still has Clarkson's green painted Alfa but the green paint has all about washed away.

[@rust5846]

most of them have been scrapped in Southampton in different locations after being sat in thr boneyard for a while

[@martijnkosters9024]

Tiff turns 70 in October, yet nobody has told him about acting like a pensioner.

[@richardw64]

He's a natural in-front of the camera, for sure.

[@mikebutler6308]

Don't think he'll be collecting a bus pass any time soon...

[@thomaselwood12]

What a great tv persona, he's a lovely guy. I have met him in person, has so much patience. I spoke to him a little too long and tried to end it and he kept asking questions and it was awesome

[@aaroncable4739]

Hes like one of those cool grandpas who never really grew up and Mike's acting as if it his grandpa I like it too be honest it's how youd expect it to be spending time with your grandpa

[@cafesociety8525]

I'm half his age and he's twice as spritely than me.

[@ManasD30]

It was so oddly satisfying to see Tiff Needell frustrated and annoyed after seeing the Citroën Ami of James May

[@Jay1330]

I love how Tiff says he hates it but you can see when he’s driving he’s loving it

[@Sweaty__Sheep]

Tiff Needell is a timeless classic. Fantastic 😂

[@ProjectRescues]

The body roll on that thing is just epic!

[@jeanackle]

i've never seen one of these in the wild. but many years ago, you could still see a 2CV... It really was a marvel watching how close those things were to doing a barrel row at any corner, at any speed, but didn't!

[@tommyfred6180]

i'v had two 2cv's and the best bit about them was the roll and the handling in snow.

[@sparrowlt]

ironically they are notoriously hard to actually roll over ..they were legendary by that.. they roll like crazy but wont tip over

[@jeanackle]

@@tommyfred6180 Sometimes, when I watched a 2CV on the street, I did wonder how it would be to be inside one. But then again, wathing from the outside... scary! How did they handle in the snow? (hardly ever snows where I live)

[@jeanackle]

@@sparrowlt The Ami or the 2CV?

[@LunringNassar]

Does it include a drive with Madison Welch?

[@skrillah6259]

I would like to drive madison welch

[@EconomicsMate1]

@@skrillah6259 😂😂 Im sure you would

[@lazycalm41]

@@skrillah6259 It would be inhumane to drive a super model and cruel to even try!

[@skrillah6259]

@@lazycalm41 If you are allowed to drive supercars why not super models?

[@lazycalm41]

@@skrillah6259 I was making a joke reference from something Jeremy once said on Top Gear!

[@sanderrehepapp5219]

The breaking after the acceleration test was some serious driving skill

[@e28forever30]

What broke? I didn’t see anything break here??

[@sanderrehepapp5219]

@@e28forever30 not my first language, and thanks for the correction, you still understood me though.

[@justin_time]

Tiff's driving was legendary! I thought they were going to roll too. I can't wait to see Lucy's behind the scenes on this one!!!

[@HologramJones]

2CV chassis, hard to roll

[@toolshed7652]

Not only did James and Madison take this beast on a rally, but they handily beat Clarkson and Hammond as well :D

[@Kronos0999]

He beat Hammond and Clarkson in the race, then he beat them by getting the girl, then the girl beat his meat

[@freddieparrydrums]

@@Kronos0999 ahahahaha

[@carlbirtles4518]

Hammond had a 1953 Lanchester Fourteen and Clarkson had a 1969 Austin-Healey Sprite.

[@michaelshaw1245]

@@carlbirtles4518 It was also a timed rally and Clarkson has no time for time.

[@lukegauci1159]

"Tiff, Vicky stop burning our things!" - Clarkson (2010) Tiff ends up on the trios youtube channel testing James's little Citroën Ami 8

[@Case16710]

I’ve never seen a car nearly crash into the ground while attempting to go straight before.

[@TheKRU251]

The pairing. Mike and Tiff. Spot-on. I genuinely laughed out loud. Entertainment value? Turned up to 11!!!!

[@combatwomble5584]

Tiff Needell is an absolute legend, watching him drive that barge about was the best 4 minutes of my life.

[@vigunfighter]

That panic stop showed what a brilliant driver Tiff is.

[@emanuelceccarini9632]

One of the few times I had fun watching a Drivetribe video, they looked like they were genuinely having fun. Which is exactly what we are missing from the TG days!

[@Carlos-bp1vp]

Engineer at Citroen: "what is dis antii-roll bar contrrraption you speak of?"

[@babaganoush6106]

Anti roll bar was standard fit on ami 8….not on 2cv or dyane

[@TomSilver_42]

There is no need for roll cage on old Citroen cars .. because their suspension is so soft that no mater what the wheels will always touch the ground :-P

[@carsandguitars116]

I never drove the Ami 8 but I had a 2CV 6 for years and went from France to Marocco with it (and back !) and it's still the funniest car I had to drive. I now own a Subaru STI, it's fun, fast but it's definitely not the same fun. I had that car (the 2CV) when I was a student, and I always took my friends with me to go to any place, they loved it, made fun of it, but there was always something to remember from any trip with that car. It's just brilliant !

[@nivlick]

You have to give it to Citroen. That car actually took it well. And the two of them where having a blast.

[@allanmacbadger5692]

Marvellous little car for a classic rally

[@JSchroederee]

Top Gear has often made the point that it can be more fun to drive a slow car to its limits.

[@Kronos0999]

That's true though. You can feel the car straining yet it still hasn't reached crazy unmanageable speeds, but do that with a Ferrari and you're already too fast while sipping coffee.

[@MrWolfSnack]

not just a slow car but a slow car with suspension made of jello

[@francoskorubski7902]

I have that car and i agree it´s too much fun with a 2 cylinder engine and a weird suspesion hahahah

[@ThistleThings]

This week on the ‘top gear retrospective KZbin channel’ …

[@arewhyayen2968]

Its like the presenter i didnt bother remembering his name, lives in the times of topgear and dismisses the grand tour

[@Chippaaaaaaaaaaaa]

Makes me cringe how much they cream other their own bosses

[@pavel7284]

He trys so hard to be a fanboy its so sad hahaha even bought the mondeo that they all like 🤣

[@captainric2364]

Hands down, that Citroen probably does many more smiles per hour than any supercar ever could

[@badkittynomilktonight3334]

Of all the cars James has driven, this is the one I would have.

[@pushingbroom]

Amazing !! finally a fun DriveTribe video to watch. That was fun !

[@JCTsFascinatingHobbies]

The 71 to 73 Boat tail Rivera, one of my all time favourite cars, what a gorgeous, striking looking machine!

[@theninethrees8044]

2 Motoring experts whose opinion I respect the most The Stig & Tiff Needell

[@deepsteep4748]

Wow, this thing surely never runs out of traction.

[@robertstratford1242]

My grandad has a 1969 ami 8 which he bought brand new. I spent many hours wedged in the back between camping gear! I love it!

[@nicklasjensen9043]

How nice of them to make sure you couldn't get thrown from side to side in the bends

[@arthurturner3080]

more tiff pleeeease he's great

[@dimashevchenkoua]

What a legend Tiff is! Funny, likeable, and a fantastic driver!

[@jonathanratcliffe5714]

Brilliant, can we have more Tiff please?

[@EpicAwesomesauce]

More Tiff please! I didn't know that he'd be game to be in DriveTribe videos but now that I know that, we definitely need more of him. Maybe you guys would be able to get Vicki Butler-Henderson! That would be absolutely amazing.

[@JJSmith1100]

The Focus might be a little bit ;) more stable around the track, but take both through a ploughed field and see who get to the other side first!

[@LurpakSpreadableButter]

Making Kaleb shout at Clarkson for not shooting them down

[@worthingtonmodelrailway8628]

I had an AMI back in 80’s I bought it for £35 at an auction it had no back seat! I drive it for over two years and spent almost nothing on it. I did discover it had 3 different sized wheels-I managed to get a matching set from a scrap yard! Happy Times!

[@Rasscasse]

I like this little story 👌😄

[@revolver265]

9:47 the moment where the suspension forgets what to do and the body attempts to clip into the ground like a Bethesda game's physics engine, right before rebounding backwards to the correct height!

[@fedorsamokhin4495]

Tiff is hilarious! Thanks for the vid and keep them coming up!

[@zakk_rx-7fd969]

This video boosted my mood by an insane amount. I love DriveTribe!

[@oz3393]

That car looks so much fun

[@stuborn-complaining-german]

I would take the Citroen anytime. Just imagine how scared all the other people around you must be when you drive that thing on public roads and it leans like that. I think that would be great fun!

[@babaganoush6106]

Try the 2cv van it looks incredible when going around a bend….most car drivers hit the brakes

[@stuborn-complaining-german]

Yeah, that's the one with the corrugated body panels, right? That thing is supercool!

[@techtoth1]

I totally can't understand why, but this "station" version of the Ami gets to my heart... :)

[@inboxnews]

Loved this. Thanks!

[@marsgal42]

Corner on the door handles, every roundabout a full power four wheel drift. A hoot, in other words. 😍 And no danger of a speeding ticket...

[@whitelightning4031]

You can’t not love Tiff, his exaggerative delivery on anything cars is brilliant. Back in the early 2000’s I had a VHS called Burning Rubber with Tiff Needell & Russ Swift… love it

[@Metal-Possum]

Nice to see Tiff here. I'm glad the whole Top Gear/Fifth Gear rivalry was never in disrespect for Mr. Needell.

[@c.spencer2338]

Tiff Needell is always a great to have on the show. Love his input.

[@Jaydcoke]

Mike has become very enjoyable to watch if the last few videos are anything to go by. I put it down to a reduced fawning of the Three Old Guys and a greater confidence in himself. Well done, I say! This will help DriveTribe grow beyond just a fan channel.

[@Joker-yw9hl]

Got to love a bit of Tiff. Would be nice to see him, Clarkson, May and Hammond have a bit of fun

[@carlcassidy185]

Great to see Tiff talking cars again. I grew up on Tiff/Quentin/Clarkson era original Top Gear, and then Fifth Gear, always loved Tiff.

[@agent_soshi]

Love seeing Tiff drive

[@neychev]

Just wow, Tiff is mad, respect for inviting him

[@amranard]

Watching Tiff Drive is always a treat

[@grayfool]

I had the 1100 four cylinder Ami Super version. It was hilarious and made every journey a total hoot.

[@SrinivasAston]

I never knew james had this

[@kalachar]

Legends: let's go to comment section first 😂

[@darrinnoble]

Not to be the ignorant American. But I don't know who these two guys are, yet I could hang out with them all day and never get bored.

[@Rasscasse]

You are a lucky man, you have so much more to discover, especially about Tiff.

[@callumhardy5098]

The wing mirror was literally scraping the tarmac! 😂😂😂

[@garymcmahon3981]

I think I preferred James's co-driver lol

[@tonyzhu403]

That maneuver was amazing. I remember Tiff from 5th Gear. Cool Gentleman.

[@rkl233]

70 years old and he still has all the reactions of a racing driver tiff is a legend

[@chrishines6048]

I remember the episode when James May did the rally in the Citroen Ami came out it was a classic and I still watch it today

[@Robert_B_445]

“Ladies and gentlemen, we’re coming up to the last lot. This is the last lot...”

[@chrishines6048]

@@Robert_B_445James May: "What!?"

[@iexplainjokestomakethemles1560]

i remeber the passenger pretty well

[@cameronhall6733]

Tiff still has the reaction speed. It was cool seeing him turning the front wheels during that slow motion emergency brake test. I would have rolled it😂

[@superchickenlips1]

We will always love you, Tiff Needell.

[@TheSpectre223]

Truly is a pleasure watching Tiff doing what he does best, what a masterclass on effortless presenting as usual

[@VonLycaonsDogCollar]

it's like seeing a best friend in a really long time, i loved every bit of it

[@huwdavies6650]

Tiff, as HubNut would say "Power, Less is More."

[@CaptHollister]

Yeah, but Ian still hoots and hollers when he occasionally drives a more powerful car.

[@RWL2012]

oh him...

[@joeuncoolio]

I would love to see Tiff drive that Riviera around a track.

[@jeremie8730]

Leaning towards the bend, just about to break traction, adjusts sun visor, while having a giggle. What a legend!

[@Vandal42]

This is one of the best shot drive tribe vids. Beautiful

[@Rhowhat]

All videos are better with Tiff.

[@kagesong]

8:55 that suspension squeeze on the front right, I LOVE IT.

[@iantownsend500]

That lap looked pretty terrifying & the emergency stop at the end of the 0 to100 kph test I thought you rolled it. More Proof you’re a driving legend

[@mogelbar1020]

Mikes shirt: Patagonia goes Mordor 😂

[@khaven1656]

Glad I'm not the only one laughing at that.

[@TheNismo777]

Hardest braking I've seen! Jesus christ! totally side to side :D

[@KingEddo8]

Woah! I'd love a video on that Buick. Especially with Tiff behind the wheel.

[@platypushatstand]

Don’t forget 80kph is 50mph in 29.2secs, that makes a Land Rover Defender 90 at 16.5secs look blisteringly ‘quick’.

[@eunhyuekpark6159]

Tiff Needell...the OG of Top Gear! Always love seeing him on anything car related.

[@robbybobbyhobbies]

We had one of these when I was primary school age, after a couple of Dyanes. Only thing I remember is the vinyl seat covering and the way your shorts-clad legs melted to the seats on a summer’s day. After this Mum got an Alfasud and life improved immensely.

[@basithph8958]

The bodyroll in the Citroen is hilarious hahahaha

[@NickG40]

I have two big memories of that Citroen.

[@Rasscasse]

I think I know where you’re going with this, it’s the suspension and the big yellow headlights right?

[@crstothard]

Yes, more Tiff, please! Greetings from NYC!

[@SAMann729]

I picture Tiff and James being friends that can carry on for hours at the pub or in the garage, but friends that get on each other’s nerves for their opposite personalities 😂

[@WalterBurton]

That shift into 3rd at ~8:26 is the funniest thing I've seen in months. Absolute belly laugh. What a fantastic fun silly episode. 👍👍👍

[@janpruijser8649]

Mike Fernie and Tiff Needell are the duo we all need in our lives. That was hilarious.

[@ΚώσταςΜπέκος-ι4ι]

Two observations: we need more Tiff Needell and Tiff Needell is a braver man than I am.

[@claas6504]

This is what drivetribe episodes should be like!

[@Texplainedeverythingdetailed]

This brings a warmth to my heart.

[@geethmadusara7337]

Tiff is one of my favourite motoring journalists

[@iexplainjokestomakethemles1560]

yes mine too

[@Staatus_Quo]

Tiff with one of Mays' cars is quite the ambitious crossovers of all time!

[@dbrandon4528]

These two need a show!!

[@rrshse6704]

I loved it! That's definitely a test drive worth watching :))

[@basithph8958]

Seeing Tiff Needell driving that Citroen is pleasant fun!

[@Screamifyoumeanit]

My Dad bought us(me & my brothers) an Ami 8 to go on 'supervised' drives around the local farmers fields in... I must have been 10 or 11 at the time... Me & my brothers found where he hid the keys, that nearly went horribly wrong!