All The Grand Tour Specials, Ranked

After eight years with Amazon, Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May have called time on their tenure on The Grand Tour – and on their two-decade-long working relationship. To say we're sad is an understatement, so to cheer ourselves up, we've done the only thing we know – a good, scientific ranking.

We've looked back at all 13 specials the show has put out and ranked them in descending order. We’re counting a ‘special’ as any episode (or two-parter) that saw the entire show dedicated to one big film. That includes the eight shows since The Grand Tour moved to its irregular, feature-length episode format from series four, but also the ones that were produced during the three seasons of the show’s regular, studio-based format.

Oh, and obviously this is our list, and therefore contains personal opinions. If you disagree with our ranking, please don’t shout at us. 

13. Feed the World

This series two episode saw the team travel through Mozambique, transporting live fish under the pretence of ‘solving world hunger’. It was a rather flimsy setup that led to some pretty repetitive gags.

May getting soaked by his own fish tank or Hammond falling off his motorbike were funny the first few times, and the only real challenge was navigating Mozambique’s muddy roads. Feed the World felt like it ran its course pretty quickly, and is the least memorable of all the specials in our book.

12. Seamen

We know there are plenty of people without the slightest interest in cars who still enjoy the work of Clarkson, Hammond and May, and maybe to them, Seamen is a more enjoyable episode.

The show, which saw the trio travel through the Mekong Delta in boats, had a proper sense of adventure through some gorgeous scenery, with some genuine peril and the odd serious topic thrown in. However, you’re not reading a website called Boat Throttle, so Seamen doesn’t really leave us feeling fulfilled. No, wait…

11. A Massive Hunt

Taking place across the French overseas department of Réunion and the island nation of Madagascar, A Massive Hunt was perhaps the first special that truly showed how much money Amazon was throwing at TGT, as it featured three relatively new, expensive cars which were then subject to serious modification.

This perhaps denied it some of the ramshackle charm that earlier specials of both TGT and Top Gear had with their knackered old cars, and the whole treasure hunt plot was a bit contrived. It certainly had its moments, though, and the sight of a mud-covered James May behind the wheel of a Caterham will always be a funny one.

10. Colombia Special

Oddly the only TGT episode full stop to not have some sort of punny title, this series three two-parter had all the hallmarks of a classic Clarkson/Hammond/May special: three mismatching, mechanically questionable cars all united under a single theme; plenty of challenging but beautiful scenery; and some very genuine-feeling arguments.

It’s certainly an entertaining watch, although it’s held back by some pretty cheap-shot jokes and the fact that we’d already seen the trio tackle dense South American jungle in knackered off-roaders years earlier, with Top Gear’s legendary Bolivia special.

9. International Buffoon’s Vacation

Oft-forgotten as a special, this series three episode nevertheless counts as the whole show was given over to it. The trio explored the concept of the great American RV holiday with a trip across the searing deserts of Nirvana.

Yes, it had some fairly contrived set-pieces, but at this point we all should have learned to suspend our disbelief a bit with TGT. Moreover, it featured some genuinely hilarious mechanical maladies, was propped up with a bit of genuine car reviewing, and most importantly, introduced a wider audience to the endless entertainment of the anal caravan game.

8. Lochdown

The first of two UK specials filmed under Covid restrictions, Lochdown gave us the wonderfully mismatched sight of three vast American land yachts traversing Scotland’s rugged beauty.

The episode made the best of the circumstances, with a proper mini-adventure feel that also took some left turns to examine various aspects of car culture – something we always appreciate. Throw in some standard pranks and hijinks and some always-welcome caravan destruction and you have a good, if not great, episode.

7. The (Beach) Buggy Boys

The very first TGT special was also one of the stronger ones in our opinion. It’s more classic Clarkson/Hammond/May fodder – three vehicles (beach buggies being an inspired choice), and an arduous journey across a beautiful but inhospitable landscape – in this case, the sand dunes of Namibia.

In among the standard japes involving rhino poachers, helicopters and, erm, unusually-shaped gearknobs, this felt like one of those episodes with proper peril involved. Perhaps the setting of endless sand dunes got monotonous after a while, but The (Beach) Buggy Boys kept us entertained throughout its two parts.

6. Sand Job

The most recent special did a pretty good job. Again, it featured some reasonably new, high-value cars, which will certainly appeal to some, although I personally found myself cringing every time May’s Maserati clattered into a rock.

The setting of Mauritania was a fascinating one, though, providing genuine insight into a country we hear very little about. Meanwhile, the premise of retracing the original route of the Dakar Rally satisfied our inner geeks and culminated in one of the most epic, stirring sequences the trio has ever produced as they drove side-by-side down the rally’s iconic waterfront finish.

5. Survival of the Fattest

This was one of a couple of specials that strayed from the traditional formula of an arduous journey undertaken in three vehicles, and was all the better for it. It saw the presenters dropped in the middle of a remote part of Mongolia, and left to assemble a rudimentary kit vehicle that could get them back to civilisation.

Like an extended version of that Top Gear segment that saw them race to build a Caterham, this film really allowed each presenter to lean into their established personalities, leading to plenty of hilarious moments. This continues as the second half of the episode transitions into a more traditional journey-based plot as the trio make their way across Mongolia’s beautiful and varied landscapes.

4. Carnage A Trois

Perhaps a controversial one to place this high, but our abiding memory of Carnage A Trois – an off-formula Covid-spec episode which took a look at the weirdness of the French car industry – is joy.

Perhaps it was the infectious giddiness of the presenters – this was one of the very first things they were able to film together after months of restrictions – but we can’t remember laughing as much at a TGT special as we did at this one. It’s an unashamedly car-focused episode, and that appeals to us as much as it might put some other people off, but this stands up as one of the greatest, most memorable TGT episodes.

3. A Scandi Flick

We’re back to the standard special recipe now, but A Scandi Flick – centred around a journey into the Arctic Circle in rally-bred saloon cars – satisfied all our cravings.

Content that satisfies us as car nerds? Check. Beautiful scenery? Check. Plenty of properly funny pranks? Check, check and check. Genuine danger? Just ask May about driving at high speed in an unlit tunnel, or along a sheet of thin ice. A Scandi Flick didn’t break any new ground (unlike May’s Evo), but it delivered the classic formula very well.

2. Euro Crash

And we can say the same about our number two pick. Euro Crash had everything we could ask for from an epic Clarkson/Hammond/May adventure, even if the location wasn’t as remote and the roads not as extreme as some others.

You had the hilarious contrast between the three cars the trio selected, plenty of wanton but entertaining destruction, and – something that really wins it points for us – serious looks at some often unexplored corners of motorsport and car culture. What tips it over the edge for us, though, is the B-plot which sees a terrible Nigel Mansell waxwork go on the adventure of a lifetime. Comedy gold, quite frankly.

1. One For The Road

One For The Road is an era-closer, the culmination of nearly 22 years of Clarkson, Hammond and May working together. Thankfully, they nailed it. The final episode of the show as we know it serves as a heartfelt thank you to those who’ve been along for the ride since the very beginning.

Perfectly balancing humour, adventure and tenderness, it felt like everyone involved in the creation of One For The Road was working at their very best, aware that this was one last chance to make a truly wonderful bit of TV. We couldn’t think of a better way of rounding off something that’s been a constant source of joy in so many people’s lives for over two decades, and while we’re sad it’s over, we can be very grateful that it ended this way. You can read our full review here.