We're gonna put these hay bales
in there...
- Okay.
- And then we'll do a slalom,
then we'll dump the hay bales
down by the cones,
see down there?
And then we'll plow
comin' up here.
Okay. Have you ever...
[chuckles]
- Have you ever plowed?
- Have I ever plowed?
Have you ever...
- Have you ever plowed a field?
- All I ever wanted was
Tonight, on Jay Leno's Garage:
[yells]
- Just like Universal.
- Get ready for a wild ride,
'cause we're leaving
boring behind
and checking out some of
the most fun vehicles to drive.
- What?
- Arrghh, that's glorious!
[Jay]
We have an exclusive
off-road test drive
of the new Ford Bronco
Raptor edition
with actor Titus Welliver,
who you probably know as Bosch.
- I don't have insurance.
- Don't worry about it,
it's not mine.
We go back in time
with cars from actor
James Marsden's childhood.
[James]
Oh yes, so many romantic
memories in this car.
[Jay]
And race in rally car royalty
with Tanner Foust,
which just might cause
permanent kidney damage.
D'oh!
Picked a bad day
to give up Advil.
[Jay]
I'll even go head-to-head
against Kelly Clarkson...
- That's what I'm talkin' 'bout!
- In the very first high-tech
carbon neutral
methane-powered tractors.
We need more cow farts!
That's all comin' up
on tonight's episode
of Jay Leno's Garage.
[engine roars]
[bluesy rock music]
If you take a drive
about 40 miles west from L.A.,
the concrete jungle
gradually turns into
the bucolic landscape
of Moorpark
and California's
Underwood Farms,
where I'll be meeting
a good friend of mine.
Well, that's Stevie
and that one's Piper.
- Okay.
- You've had animals, right?
You're on a farm kinda deal.
Yep. We had a rescue ranch
in Texas, my family.
[Jay]
And that's why
there's no one better
than Kelly Clarkson
to join me today.
Kelly and I go way back
to her American Idol days.
Recently, she's been busy
producing hit shows
like American Song Contest.
And of course, she's hosting her
Emmy-nominated
daytime talk show,
where she only books
the finest premium blend guests.
But Kelly also owns
a 40-acre ranch out in Montana,
so I know she'll be excited
to see the exclusive
I've got for her today.
[Kelly]
Um, you know I love you
and you know I love
hanging out with you.
I'm just curious:
Why we hangin' out with pigs?
Well... you see,
the cool thing is,
this is what they call
a self-sustaining farm...
- Love.
- In the sense that
you have a tractor,
but the tractor runs on methane,
which is really just
the manure from the pigs.
- I mean, it sounds...
- That's incredible.
[Jay]
Well, I got a friend,
I'll show you the tractor.
This is really kinda cool,
let's bring him in.
Hey, Dan!
[Kelly]
That's a big tractor.
- It's a big tractor.
- Yeah.
Okay, Dan.
- Bucket loader, okay.
- It's like a dinosaur.
[Jay roars]
Don't get me wrong...
This is far from
dinosaur technology.
In fact, this may be
the future of farming.
Starting at about $213,000,
the T6.180 methane tractor
is New Holland's revolutionary
carbon neutral machine,
the first of its kind
in a competitive
global tractor market.
Right now, John Deere
is the leader when it comes
to domestic tractor sales,
but New Holland is hoping
their methane tractor
will help then capture some
of the global tractor market,
which is expected to reach
nearly $98 billion
by the year 2030.
- Dan, how are you?
- Good, yourself?
- Say hi to Kelly Clarkson.
- Hi, Kelly.
- I'm Kelly, nice to see you.
- Nice to meet you.
[Jay]
I've worked with New Holland
for years.
They make tractors
and all sorts of equipment.
- Fill us in a little bit.
- What we have here is
the world's first
methane-powered tractor.
From the waste products
on the farm,
we can actually put it
in something called a digester
and be able to produce the
methane directly on the farm.
So it's basically free fuel.
- What? That's incredible.
- Well, every human carries
a digester...
and we emit methane as well.
But, I mean, it's the idea
of you using... 'cause you figure
when the cows and all
the animals release methane,
it just goes
into the atmosphere.
In fact, methane gas
produced by livestock
is one of the main sources
of greenhouse gas... no joking!
So rather than letting it
escape as a pollutant,
it can be captured
by putting the manure
in a biodigester.
This produces
a renewable source of energy
called biomethane,
and fossil fuels are cut out
of the picture altogether.
- That's incredible.
- I mean, it's really amazing.
We take the negative and
we turn it into a positive.
[Kelly]
But it's the same,
you can use it the same
like we use on my ranch,
you can use it the same.
It will do everything
that the diesel tractor does,
it is 100 percent
the same performance levels.
So I'm about to spend
the summer on my ranch
and I wanna get one of these,
'cause I didn't even know
this existed.
[Dan]
In fact, this is the first one,
the very first one
here in the United States.
They just went into production.
[Kelly]
My goal is
a self-sustaining ranch,
- so I love it.
- Well, listen.
We got a little farm course
set up.
With your experience
on the farm and everything,
you may just be
a natural at doing this.
- I'm amazing at everything.
- There you go.
Let's give it a shot.
We're really gonna put
this statement to the test
with Kelly today,
'cause on Jay Leno's Garage,
we don't just race in cars.
[laughter]
What we're gonna do here
is we're gonna put
these hay bales in there,
then we'll do a slalom,
then we'll dump the hay bales
down by the cones,
see down there?
And then we'll plow
comin' up here.
Okay. Have you ever...
- Have you ever plowed...
- Have I ever plowed?
- Have you ever plowed a field?
- All I ever wanted was 40 acres
of good bottomland.
That's why I'm in this business.
Just for 40 acres
of good bottomland.
- Have you ever done this?
- No, this is my first time.
- This is my first time.
- All right, there we go.
If you're lying,
I'm gonna be able to tell.
- I'm not lying, I'm not lying.
- Okay.
[Jay]
Okay, before we get
ahead of ourselves,
time for a quick lesson
behind the wheel.
- You ready?
- Yes.
- This is a clutch?
- That's a clutch.
Can you drive
a manual transmission car?
[Kelly]
Oh my God,
in case of an emergency.
[laughing]
[Dan]
Push in the clutch to start,
kinda like an old-fashioned car.
Couple of controls,
forward and reverse.
Forward is there,
reverse is back like that.
To control the loader,
it's this thing here.
- You push that button.
- Okay.
[Jay]
Okay, this one is yours
and I'll take
the one over there.
- I'm calling this one Frank.
- All right, Frank is good.
- Mine is And Beans.
- And Beans!
[Kelly]
Frank... And Beans.
[Jay]
Because they run on methane.
This should be
our new venture together.
[Jay]
To keep it self-sustaining,
you pack the cabin
with Taco Bell
- and the seat flips up...
- There's a bathroom.
[Jay]
it becomes a toilet seat,
and so you can keep
the thing running.
[Kelly]
It's all about
self-sustaining.
[Jay]
That's right.
Enough potty talk.
It's time to see
what these tractors are made of.
- Kelly, you all set?
- Yeah, I've never done this.
- Kelly Clarkson, pioneer woman.
- Yes!
[Jay]
On your mark, get set,
alright, let's go!
[Kelly]
Okay... okay... okay...
[grunting]
In there!
[screams]
[Jay]
Finally, it's time
to put all my years
of tractor-racing training
to good use.
[mechanized roar]
Uh-oh. Looks like Kelly's
having a rough start.
Dammit! Jay!
[upbeat rock music]
♪
Are you freakin' kidding me?
[Jay]
This methane-powered tractor
can move.
Well, at least mine does.
[Kelly]
I don't feel like it's gonna...
♪
[Jay]
I can almost smell
the sweet scent of victory.
All right.
♪
Didn't I drop 'em?
Well, it's too late now.
♪
I thought they fell out...
All right.
♪
[Jay]
Oh. Okay.
[Jay]
Clutch is in, okay.
[Jay]
I think my producers
have sabotaged me.
Through some kind
of trick editing,
Kelly appears to be in the lead.
How do I dump these...
How do I turn the scoop?
[thud]
[Kelly]
That's right, Jay.
I'm amazing!
♪
- Let's start plowing here.
- I'm gettin' Jay and I had
a slow start, y'all,
a slow start,
getting the hay in the bucket.
Is he going over the hay bales?
[chortles]
Need more cow farts!
[Kelly]
Victory!
That's what I'm talkin' 'bout.
Frank for the win!
♪
[Jay]
I think Kelly's
been on a farm before.
I gotta give it to her,
she won fair and square.
She is country girl, after all.
I won, I won...
slow start, slow start.
He didn't know what to do,
though.
Hey!
Yeah, that's right,
that's right!
[laughs]
Jay's never allowed
to operate equipment
on my ranch.
[laughs]
- You forgot to drop your bales.
- I know.
Let's go get some burritos
so we can power these things
up again.
- All right, all right.
- Come on!
Coming up: a car exclusive
with Titus Welliver
that makes thrills out of hills.
[yells]
And later,
my kidneys take a beating
for the sake of good ratings.
Oh yeah, those bumps are big,
by the way.
Ow!
[laughing]
[menacing Western music]
♪
[chair creaking]
[Jay]
It's time to saddle up
and head west,
where I've invited a very
talented thespian to join me
in checking out
a vehicle exclusive.
♪
Jay.
What are we doing here?
[Jay]
Uh-oh, cops are here.
At least one
who plays one on TV.
Titus Welliver
has been on your screen
for more than 30 years,
playing serious roles
with serious gravitas,
most recently as
an LAPD homicide detective
in his title role as Bosch...
Which is a great show,
by the way.
But it looks like he didn't
get our production memo.
I thought this was gonna be
some sort of crimefighter thing.
It's a Western.
See, Broncos are from the West.
You're taking this
Method acting thing
a little too far.
I'm wearing the hat, right?
But all I'm saying is, Jay,
maybe next time,
a little communication,
call me crazy.
Crazy!
Where's the car?
[rock music]
[Jay]
Hang on, folks,
'cause it's now time for
a Jay Leno Garage exclusive!
A city fella like yourself,
you might not be familiar
with this vehicle.
This is the new Bronco Raptor.
- I have a Bronco.
- You have the...
-First edition
-Oh, you have the first edition
that came out six months ago?
Yeah, that's the old Bronco now,
yeah.
That had 35-inch tires, right?
- Yeah.
- This got 37.
- How many horsepower is yours?
- It's a 330-something, yeah.
Yeah, see, this is 418.
- Are you trying to make me...
- No, no!
- You're emasculating me.
- I'm just trying to enlighten
you as to what's going on.
You know, you wanna be able
to keep up.
And keeping up is
exactly what Ford is doing
with the 2022
Ford Bronco Raptor,
a racing-inspired SUV capable
of topping 100 miles an hour
on just about any terrain.
This Bronco's got
a 418-horsepower twin turbo
three-liter V6 engine
with 415 pound-feet of torque,
making it
the beefier big brother
to the standard Ford Bronco,
and it all starts
at around $70,000.
The engineering is what
really makes this stuff
amazing to me,
because, you know,
the smaller a gear is,
the stronger it has to be.
The bigger a gear,
the stronger...
With four speeds, you got
these big, giant gears,
so they're strong,
but when you're putting
this kind of torque
through a transmission
and the gears are literally
almost the size of a quarter,
they've gotta be incredibly
tough and incredibly strong.
- Yeah.
- And this is one of the few
SUVs you could travel off road
at well over 100 miles an hour
if you chose to... in fact,
there's a class
where they race these.
That's beautiful.
I mean,
I love the Raptor trucks,
but this is a whole
next-level thing.
[Jay]
You wanna take it for a ride?
- Can we?
- Yeah, yeah, sure.
- I like the color.
- Nice color. Hop in.
- No, you drive.
- I don't have insurance.
[Jay]
Don't worry about it,
it's not mine.
♪
You can kick it a little bit,
see what she does.
♪
[engine rumbles]
Oh my God.
♪
[Jay]
See, it'll take...
It'll take... whoa! it'll take
all kinds of punishment.
♪
Try and climb the hill this way.
[Titus]
I'll try it.
[Jay]
Should downshift on its own.
♪
There you go.
I have no idea
what's on the other side.
Be careful!
Help!
- This is like Universal.
- Help!
♪
[Titus]
No issues at all.
[Jay]
That's pretty amazing, huh?
[Titus]
That's the thing that
I've been talking about.
- This one has the...
- It's got the FOX shocks.
- The super, super FOX.
- It adjusts, yeah.
- You don't feel anything.
- No, no, it's pretty amazing.
Can I tell you why you're
my favorite kind of actor?
- Please.
- Because you're one
of those actors, "Oh, there's
that guy I like again."
I would see you
in these little parts,
like, especially
on Law and Order.
'Cause I know when I watch
Law and Order,
most people only get one shot
as playing the lawyer,
but one time I'd see you,
you'd have, like, a moustache.
And then you'd be back
with a beard.
'Cause you're such a good actor,
they'd want to use you
all the time,
but you couldn't look
like yourself.
And I'd always go,
"That's that Titus guy
that I like," you know?
And then, of course,
once Bosch hit, I mean,
then you just became
a huge star.
I understand you do
impressions too, don't you?
Did you ever do stand-up?
No, I never... well,
one time, I attempted it.
Tom Wilson... you know, Biff
from Back to the Future,
great comic, he tried
to get me to go up on stage
and read Green Eggs and Ham
as Christopher Walken.
Can you do Christopher Walken?
[doing Walken impression]
I tell you, Jay,
drivin' along
this new Bronco Raptor,
it's crazy.
I'm not an off-road guy.
That's very good!
I have to see it again.
[Jay]
Now, what Pacino do you do?
Early Pacino or later Pacino?
- You pick the time.
- Let's start with early Pacino.
[doing Pacino impression]
You know, Jay, I gotta tell you.
- [Jay chuckles]
- I really like this car.
All right, now give me
the later Pacino.
[doing Pacino impression]
Jay, here we are.
You're bringing me out
into the middle of nowhere.
- [Jay laughs]
- In the Ford Bronco Raptor.
- Where the hell are we gonna go?
- That's very good!
Hey, listen, it's all right,
you know.
[Jay]
But let's get back
to talking cars.
What was your first car?
My first car was
a Volkswagen Beetle
- FV Formula.
- Ooh!
[Titus]
Which I got when I was 14...
- That's funny.
- But I drove that thing
until I crashed it into
a grove of pine trees one night
driving around...
We used to play a thing,
my brothers and I,
called Student Driver,
where we'd drive
through the woods
and turn the lights out.
[crash]
Yeah, very smart.
You know,
that's a classic example
of the teenage brain, isn't it?
So were you always
an off-road guy?
I know you came up
with your new Bronco...
What is it,
about six months old?
- Yeah.
- What inspired you to buy that?
[Titus]
You know, I have to say,
it's nostalgia.
Ford has been
really good about that,
and that's... in 2005,
I bought the Mustang GT,
and I saw the Bronco,
an older model, on the internet.
I got the car and I have to say
that I love it, I mean, it's...
[Jay]
Well, that's what's cool,
you know,
because the news ones are
basically just cars
you can drive off road.
[Titus]
This feels like
you could drive it
on the surface of the moon
and not have issues at all.
[engine roars]
[siren wailing]
[Jay]
Is that a...
Is that a cop behind us?
[Titus]
Yeah, looks like it.
[Jay]
It looks like the same car
you came in.
Where'd you get that car?
Uh...
It was idling outside
of this doughnut shop.
[Jay]
What?
[voice of "officer"]
Put your hands
where I can see 'em.
[Jay]
Hopefully, the officer is a huge
fan of Al Pacino impersonations
and maybe we can
weasel our way outta this.
Coming up: an automotive
blast from the past
with actor James Marsden.
Now, did she know
you were doing this?
No, of course, not.
No, no, no; I was
going to the store
to get a loaf of bread for her.
[majestic music]
[Jay]
Welcome back to Jay Leno's
Garage and another edition of
This is Your Automotive Life.
Today, actor extraordinaire
James Marsden.
Now, I know you
from the X-Men movies,
- the hedgehog movie.
- That's right,
the hedgehog movie, Sonic.
This... this could be the one that
puts it over the top for you.
I'm peaking, you're watching me
peak right now.
[Jay]
Well, I know that's not true,
because James Marsden's had
a long and successful career
in Hollywood.
You might remember him
sh**ting lasers out of his eyes
for X-Men.
And he's certainly been busy
walking the red carpet
for all the shows he's been on,
including HBO's Westworld
and Netflix's Dead to Me.
But today, he's just
another guy from Oklahoma
with a real car lover's
automotive past
that's worth exploring.
What kind of cars do you like?
[James]
I'm... I love them all.
I grew up in Oklahoma
taking my mom's old Cutlass
down these dirt roads
at 13 years old
when I shouldn't be driving,
learning how to fishtail
and counter-steer,
and I always loved...
[Jay]
Now, did she know
you were doing this?
No. Of course not.
No, no, no;
I was going to the store
to get a loaf of bread for her.
Yeah.
Well, we have some artifacts
from your automotive life.
Let's see if these bring back
any memories.
Blow the horn.
[cricket chirping]
Oh, the horn doesn't work?
Oh, I know this car.
Let's start this car up,
see if this brings back
any memories.
I don't think
the horn is working.
I was gonna blow the horn...
[engine starts, revs]
Okay, sounds like a V8.
[bell dings]
It's a Pontiac Firebird,
would that be right?
[Jay]
Pontiac Firebird.
[buzzer]
I mean, I think you're
in the GM family.
[James]
Oh, okay, okay.
Then maybe... did I let
the cat out of the bag
with my storytelling earlier?
Is it an Oldsmobile Cutlass?
[Jay]
Let's open the door
and take a look and see.
- Oh boy.
- The tears of excitement
and joy when he finds out
what it is.
[James]
Oh, man.
- Yes! There it is.
- Whoa, whoa!
- There it is.
- Oh my God, the smell, even.
[Jay]
That smell,
ladies and gentlemen,
is the smell of
'80s midsize luxury.
Well, at least I hope it is.
Actually, Oldsmobile came out
with a range of Cutlass Supremes
from 1966 to 1997,
and it became so popular
in the mid-'70s,
it became the highest-selling
model in its class.
This 1986 version has
a five-liter V8 engine,
and a four-speed
automatic transmission.
And its original price point
of $11,286 was just right
for anyone looking to make
a little muscle-car mischief
back in Oklahoma.
Well, you wanna sit
behind the wheel,
see if it brings back
any memories?
[James]
I do. I'm not sure
they'll be great memories,
but let's see.
- Any romantic, uh...
- Oh yes, so many romantic
memories in this car.
[Jay]
You have the tufted interior,
- which was very popular.
- With the lower-back support.
And you've got
the cracked windshield.
How did you know I had... oh, I do
have a story about this car.
- Okay, go ahead.
- So when I was much younger,
we were driving this car around,
and we never wore the seatbelts.
- You never wore the seatbelts?
- We were not wearing seatbelts,
and we should've been.
And we were driving
through a parking lot
and my mother hit a pothole,
and I was in the passenger seat,
and I flew up
and my head hit the windshield
and cracked the windshield.
[Jay]
But you didn't wear the seatbelt
'cause you wanted
to be thrown clear.
I thought it was safer
at the time
to be just thrown clear
of the car.
[laughs]
[Jay]
All right, well,
are you ready to move on
- to our next car?
- Yeah.
[Jay]
What was the first
automotive treat
you treated yourself to
when you got successful?
The first car I bought
when I felt like
I could afford it
was a 1966 Corvette,
four-speed, loved it.
[Jay]
And what happened to that car?
[James]
I wasn't driving it
as much as I should have been.
- And you sold it?
- I sold it.
[mock shriek of horror]
I know.
My automotive history
is riddled with mistakes.
[Jay]
Yeah, checkered, yes.
And you wanna know
another one I sold
- and I should not have?
- Well, go ahead.
[James]
A 2019 991.2 GT3 Touring.
I sold it with 500 miles on it
'cause I felt like,
"What am I doing?
I haven't put my kids
through college yet."
[sad trombone-type music]
[Jay]
Wow.
You know, you can have
another kid like that.
Trying to find a 991.2, geez!
- I don't like anything nice.
- Well, you ready to move on
- to the next car?
- I am.
[Jay]
Let's see if this brings back
any memories.
See if the horn works
on this one.
- Does the horn...
- [horn blows]
[James]
Ooh. That sounded like it had
an alarm for a second.
Um, that sounds
like a four-cylinder
Japanese something...
Uh, was that a Honda Accord?
Like, an '80s Honda Accord?
Well, let's... let's open the hood
and see if it is indeed
a Honda Accord.
I say, let's open
the garage door
and see if it is a Honda Accord.
[James]
You've never slummed so much
with these cars,
- have you?
- No.
- Ahh!
- Yeah, there you are.
- There we go.
- There you are.
This is a second-generation
Honda Accord,
one of the most popular sedans
ever produced.
And with a low original MSRP
of only $7,691,
you can probably see why.
In late 1976,
the first-generation Accord
was introduced
as a two-door hatchback
with a 68-horsepower
and it was a hit
almost immediately,
as demand for the Accord
outstripped Honda's supply.
It's hard to believe,
but there have now been
all largely know for being
reliable and affordable.
So there's a good reason
you'll be seeing
a load of them around forever.
- This is beautiful.
- Any romantic encounters
in the Honda Accord?
[James]
You keep making me feel bad
- by having to answer no.
- Really?
There weren't many
romantic encounters
for me period, growing up.
Oh. Life was tough for you.
- I was a late bloomer, Jay.
- Yeah.
This was basically,
I bought it to get me
from Oklahoma to Los Angeles.
So it got you to L.A.,
and is the the car
you went to auditions in, and...
[James]
I did,
this was it, this was it.
So it was reliable, did its job.
It was,
but I had the five-speed,
and it was not fun
in L.A. traffic.
[Jay]
Right, right.
Let's move on to your next
automotive memory.
Could we blow the horn?
[horn blows]
[James]
Well, that's not
jogging any memory.
- No?
- Can I get it again?
[horn blows]
- Boy.
- Let's start it up,
see if this brings back
any memories.
[engine starts, revs]
- Well, that sounds racey.
- Sounds racey,
as my mom would say.
"It sounds racey."
I'm flummoxed.
- And flummoxed!
- I'm flummoxed.
[Jay]
As an actor,
these terms you use...
[James]
I mean, I had a...
again, my high school car was
a Pontiac Firebird,
but that doesn't sound
anything like that.
No, no.
- Shall we go right to it?
- I guess so.
- Let's open the door.
- Boy, I'm at a loss.
Oh, my God! The Miata!
- Didn't you have a Miata?
- Yes!
[Jay]
The Mazda Miata is
one of those sports cars
that is so beloved
because of how affordable
and capable it's been
right from the start.
The first Mazda Miata appeared
at the Chicago Auto Show in 1989
starting at $13,800,
just an incredible value,
considering what you got.
And Miatas are one
of the most popular cars
to modify for speed.
A stock 1996 Miata
makes about 130 horsepower,
but this one has
a Jackson Racing supercharger
and makes about 150 horsepower.
[James]
This is like somewhat recent.
My son and I got an old Miata
and we put some...
We wanted to get it track-ready
to take to Willow Springs.
- Oh, cool.
- Yeah. So why didn't
I think of this?
Of course, we, uh...
I don't know why
you didn't think of it.
[James]
But we took this driving class
out at Willow Springs
and one of the gentlemen
who worked on...
One of the "wrenches" out there
said,
"Hey, if you ever wanna build
one of these cars,
I can find you one
and help you build it."
So I thought...
My son was 16 at the time,
but we had the nice memories
of putting this car together,
which we still own,
I did not sell.
And you still have the car.
- Still have it.
- Well, that's great.
It's for sale
if you wanna buy it.
I don't wanna buy it
but I think that's great.
All right, let's go back,
we have one last car for ya.
[James]
Okay.
Coming up: a surprise
dream car for James Marsden.
Arrggh! That's glorious!
[Jay]
And later,
we're going old school
for a not-so-smooth
off-roading experience.
Yeah, I'm starting to notice
bumps that aren't even there.
[chortling]
[rhythmic music]
Now it's time to take
wild driving to another level
in a car you might not expect.
♪
You know, California's
the most populous state
in the union,
and it's hard to believe that
within 60 miles of Los Angeles,
you can find places that
there are literally no people
for hundreds and hundreds
of miles.
I'm out here
in a place called Hungry Valley.
This is about 60 miles
north of Los Angeles.
I'm driving
the Volkswagen ID.4.
This is their new
electric crossover,
four-wheel drive,
about 295 horse.
This 2022 version starts
at just over $41,000.
See, this is
the new kind of Volkswagen.
It's got air conditioning,
they got electric windows,
it's electric,
it's the complete antithesis
of what I remember
Volkswagen being.
'Cause when I was a kid,
they were 36 horsepower
but they were rugged as heck.
I mean, you couldn't k*ll 'em,
and that's how
they built their reputation
for being rugged,
simple machines
that you couldn't break
that you could drive anywhere.
And that's what
we're gonna do today.
I'm gonna put this
modern one away.
We're gonna see Tanner Foust,
who is one of the world's
great drivers.
We're gonna step back in time
about 50 years,
drive some vintage Volkswagens.
So I think this is gonna be
a lot of fun.
Let's give it a shot.
[vibrant music]
Tanner, how are you?
I'm doing great,
how are you doing?
[Jay]
Meet Tanner Foust,
one of the most talented,
versatile drivers around.
I've known Tanner since
he was a host on Top Gear,
and not only is he a respected
stunt car driver, dr*fter,
and rallycross driver,
he's also been one
of the leading proponents
of electric rally cars.
♪
You know,
this ID.4 is pretty cool,
and it's primarily stock,
isn't it?
[Tanner]
Yeah, just a little bit
of skid plate stuff,
some reinforcement
on the suspension,
but otherwise,
it's the stock shocks,
stock interior.
[Jay]
Yeah. Well, you're
one of the frontrunners
of this electric car thing
in terms of racing, aren't you?
You're on the ground floor
of this, aren't you?
[Tanner]
Um, I've been getting
more and more involved in it.
I really love it.
I mean, easy to drive off road,
right?
- Right, right, yeah.
- You don't have to worry
about what gear you're in,
there's always torque.
Pushes kind of the boundaries
of, like, range and reliability
and safety and performance
through motorsport,
and to hopefully keep
the motorsport world
going around.
But this is a new...
I wanna go back to my era of VW.
Come on, let's take a look.
- So what do we got here?
- A couple beauts.
Yeah, I mean,
maybe the blue is for you.
[Jay]
The blue denim!
I think this works.
- I'll take the blue one.
- Makes sense; that is a '67.
This is a '69.
'67 is the year of the
first Mexican 1000, the race,
where Volkswagen competed.
[Jay]
VW Bugs really became
synonymous with rally cars
over the last 50-plus years
after a Volkswagen Bug won
the very first Baja 1000,
an infamously tough
off-road rally in Mexico,
forever cementing
the VW Bug as a light,
strong, and reliable car
perfect for off-road
modification.
Time for Tanner and me to see
what these cars are like
to drive off-road.
Let's give it a shot!
[engines puttering]
[upbeat music]
♪
[chuckling]
[Tanner]
Well, you sure can feel
that you're climbing a hill
in these things.
You know, they say
before an accident,
your life slows down
in front of you.
I just think
these are just slow, though.
[Tanner]
Agreed.
You definitely notice
every bump, that's for sure.
[Jay]
Yeah, that's true.
[Tanner]
It's like every single rock.
I mean, you know
exactly where your tires are.
Yeah, I'm starting
to notice bumps
that aren't even there.
[Tanner]
This is a big jump.
- Oh, God!
- Ow!
[chortling]
[Jay]
That was a big jump.
[Tanner]
Picked a bad day
to give up Advil.
[Jay]
So, Tanner,
I've gotta ask you this.
I know you do
a lot of stunt driving
for movies and things.
As a race car driver,
do you ever feel silly
when the director says,
"Okay, I want the car
to do this"
when you know
the car can't do that?
That happens, like, every day.
But a lot of directors,
you know, are from New York,
maybe they don't have
a driver's license.
But a lot of the action films
now, to be honest,
the directors were
stunt guys themselves,
so they actually have
a huge amount of experience.
It makes it really nice.
Woo-hoo-hoo!
Now, you do have double
the horsepower that I do.
Yeah, but I'm twice as big
as you are.
I got double the weight.
Oh yeah, those bumps are big,
by the way.
[Jay]
They are big.
Ow!
[tires sliding]
Well, Tanner,
thank you, my friend,
we certainly appreciate this.
Thanks for doing the show
and being a good sport.
Oh, man, it's been
so much fun, Jay,
thank you very much.
[Jay]
Yeah, can we find
a chiropractor around here?
Hello? Anybody?
Woo-hoo-hoo!
♪
Coming up:
Some of my favorite
British GTs go up in value,
but which one
has appreciated the most?
[Donald]
Well, Jay, I'm not here
to make it easy for you.
[Jay]
And later...
I mean, look at just
how sexy this thing is.
[Jay]
James Marsden gets
to drive his dream car,
which is actually my car.
If you feel comfortable
with that.
I'm not comfortable with it,
but it's a TV show.
Buckle up, folks.
It's time to assess and caress
with Donald Osborne.
[twinkling chime]
Well, both Donald and I are huge
fans of British sports cars,
and even though
everything's gone crazy
in the last few years,
price-wise,
a lot of British sports cars
are still reasonably attainable,
and we have three
of the best here.
Tell us what we have, Donald.
Jay, we've got a 1965
Jensen C-V8,
a 1969 Lotus Elan S4,
and a 1953 Jaguar,
three syllables,
XK120 SE Roadster.
Let's dig in a little deeper
to this Jaguar.
The performance
of the Jaguar XK120
in the late 1940s
and early '50s was
absolutely otherworldly.
To have this kind
of performance,
and it's surprising
to think of today,
but the fact that the Jaguar was
a car built to a price.
So the person that didn't want
to lay out for a Bentley
could have this
amazing performance.
The whole idea is Jaguar
was a car at a discount,
- which is unimaginable today.
- Right.
Pretty amazing car.
I mean, I tend to think
of a Jaguar as, like,
an Aston Martin that only went
to a two-year college,
do you know what I mean?
An Aston Martin really was
basically the same car,
a little more upscale,
but I think you got
more value for your money
with the Jaguar.
Certainly equally as fast.
Absolutely. I think that
we could probably gain
a lot of enemies
among Aston Martin owners
to compare the 1953
Aston DB2/4 to an XK120.
The XK120 was so much more
a modern car in its time
than the Aston was.
[Jay]
Handling-wise,
sound-wise, performance-wise,
very impressive car.
This is the car that really got
General Motors
to build the Corvette,
Ford to build the Thunderbird,
because they looked at the
type of people buying these...
You know, suave Hollywood...
Clark Gable had one, you know?
So this was in
all the magazines,
and when you see a lot of
the early movies of the '50s,
the dashing cad would
show up in one of these,
so it was just a wonderful car.
And so, thinking about
the leap forward in sports cars,
theoretically, for the people
that this represented
in the late '40s,
let's look at a 1960s example
of a great leap forward
in sports cars
and something that could only
have come out of the U.K.
This is, of course,
the car that really saved
Lotus Cars as a company,
because they could sell cars
in volume now
to support
Colin Chapman's racing,
and this car was
so revolutionary
in so many ways.
[Jay]
Yeah, and you know,
as a young person,
I didn't appreciate
this car at all,
because it was a four-cylinder
with about 125 horsepower,
$700 to $1,000 more money
than a Corvette,
but the light weight,
the handling,
this is a car that Jim Clark
won all his victories with,
it's a car that inspired
Gordon Murray as a young man.
It was revolutionary.
It was so light... I think
this weighs 1,400 pounds?
About 1,400 pounds exactly.
Most people think a light car
is 3,000 pounds and under.
- Today, that is a light car.
- Yeah. This is so light
as to be just amazing,
it was like you were just
floating down the road.
[Donald]
And it really pioneered
a lot of ideas and thinking
that came out of
race car development.
It's got a steel
backbone chassis,
and it's also
a really unique thing,
because normally,
the identity of a car
is found in the chassis.
But it's perfectly acceptable
that the chassis can rust.
And so, people actually
replaced the chassis.
Lotus itself built replacement
chassis for the car,
as well as other companies,
and then, sometimes, if the body
has too many cracks in it,
they replaced the body,
and so it becomes sort of
- George Washington's axe.
- And the build quality
was not great.
[Donald]
It is remarkable
to think of the concept
and the execution of this,
because this is exactly
the Mazda Miata.
So, the last of our three cars
is something, again,
totally different indeed.
This is a car that probably
three out of four
car enthusiasts would say,
"What the heck is that?",
the Jensen
More like four out of four.
They only built 500 of these
total, I believe.
This has a 383 Chrysler V8.
This is a hybrid car
in the sense that it had
European styling,
English chassis,
with an American power plan
for reliability,
and an automatic transmission,
which was unheard of in England.
I mean, it was, oh my God,
that seemed like such a luxury.
This was sort of
a poor man's Aston Martin
with American reliability
and way, way more power
than a DB5.
And these were probably
- of an Aston Martin.
- This car, apparently,
was originally designed
to have covered headlights,
so I think it would have been,
given the entire look
of the car,
completely different aspect.
What is the German word
for "ugly attractive"?
- Ich kann mich nicht erinnern.
- Exactly, yes, yes,
that's what it is.
So, of our three cars
that we have here,
which do you think
the market has recognized
in appreciation
the last five years the most?
[Jay]
I'd probably say the Jensen,
just because it's so rare,
and then the Lotus,
and then the Jag.
Well, Jay, as you know, I'm not
here to make it easy for you.
That's... that's been
your calling in life
ever since we met, yeah.
Thank you very much.
So we'll see how right you are.
[Jay]
Coming up:
Behind the scenes of this
perfectly ex*cuted show.
Blow the horn.
[cricket chirping]
No...
[laughing]
For more cool cars,
go to jay lenosgarage.cnbc.com.
And we're back
with Donald Osborne.
[twinkling chime]
[Donald]
So, of the three cars
we have here today...
Our 1965 Jensen C-V8,
our 1969 Lotus Elan Series 4,
or our 1953 Jaguar
XK120 Roadster,
the way they performed
in the market
in the last five years is this.
Five years ago,
you probably could've
picked up the Elan
for about $44,000.
Today, it would cost you
about $50,000,
so a good appreciation
but not extraordinary.
The Jensen, again, very rare,
trades very, very infrequently.
But there has been some
movement in the market.
The Jensen five years ago
might have been about $60,000.
Today, it'd be $75,000.
Still a great bargain
compared to an Aston Martin
of any sort.
The Jaguar.
Five years ago,
an XK120 Roaster
special equipment
would've been about $160,000;
today, that would be $225,000.
- Really?
- Really.
The winner of the appreciation
sweepstakes is the Jaguar.
[Jay]
That's interesting,
'cause I've seen them...
all right, okay.
A fool and his money.
No... a fool and his Jaguar.
[funky music]
[Jay]
Earlier in the show,
James Marsden guessed
two out of three cars correctly
from his automotive life.
Oh my God! The Miata!
[Jay]
But before we go,
can he identify
the fourth and final car?
All right, after hearing
your checkered past,
is there any dream car,
any car, oh,
you always wanted to drive?
I'd say a McLaren F1,
I'd say a Lamborghini Miura,
I'd say an Enzo Ferrari.
Well, it's one of those.
Let's open the door
and see what we got.
Oh boy.
I don't wanna look yet.
Wait till the door
is all the way up?
Yeah, no, I don't wanna.
All right, turn around.
- Oh!
- It's the Miura.
[James]
Whoa!
[Jay]
James isn't the only one who
considers this a dream car.
It's mine too.
This is my 1969
Lamborghini Miura S,
what many consider
the world's first supercar.
It's got a 375-horsepower
transverse 4-liter V12 engine,
and it's a five-speed manual.
And no, James,
you can't have it.
Yeah, you'd probably
just sell it anyway.
[James]
I mean, look at just how sexy
this thing is.
[Jay]
Have you ever driven
one of these?
- Never.
- Wanna give it a shot?
Why don't you drive first?
All right, I'll drive first.
We'll go up to the hills
and then I'll let you take over.
All right.
If you feel comfortable
with that.
I'm not comfortable with it,
but it's a TV show.
[James]
Oh my God.
[engine starts, rumbles]
Yeah!
Ha-ha!
Oh, that makes me so happy.
Woo!
Oh, man.
[James laughs excitedly]
Oh, God!
Arrggh, that's glorious!
It makes the best noises.
[engine revs]
That is one
of the greatest sounds.
Oh, it's a great sound.
[engine revs]
- Very metallic.
- That is just racing.
[engine roars]
[James]
Ha-ha!
Oh...
[engine whining]
Oh, my lord.
That was a good jolt
of adrenaline there.
[Jay]
Oh no, she goes good,
this thing.
[James]
Woo!
The fact there's
that kind of power
in a 1969 car is insane.
with 2,600 pounds is like...
- 550 horsepower.
- Right.
[engine roars]
- And no stability control.
- No, no.
[engine whines]
[James]
Yes!
Oh my God.
I've driven some fast cars.
This is an event.
Well, you know, most fast cars,
- This, 60 feels like 100.
- Right.
- That's kind of the fun part.
- That's the point, right.
Oh boy.
Where are the...
Where are the airbags?
You're looking at 'em.
[laughs]
- Okay, we'll switch up here.
- Oh boy.
[rock music]
[engine roars]
Ohh. I could get used to this.
Oh yeah.
[James]
That nice torque.
[engine roars]
[James chuckles]
That just makes me so happy.
Woo!
I like to fall behind
and then catch up.
[engine roars]
Ah, thank you for trusting me
with this baby.
[Jay]
Well, thanks for doing
the show, my friend,
- appreciate it.
- Thank you, sir.
I hope you have me back.
- Oh, we'll do it.
- This has been too much fun.
[Jay]
Maybe take the F1 out next time.
Oh! Hey, you don't gotta
put a nickel in me.
- I'll be there in a heartbeat.
- There you go.
[James]
Woo!
[Jay]
And now,
ladies and gentlemen,
time for outtakes.
[snap]
I'm so excited,
I've never rolled it.
I think I know...
this way, and...
- Never rolled in the hay?
- Never rolled in the... no.
It's such a sad life.
[laughs]
[Jay]
Blow the horn.
No...
[James laughs]
I'm sorry, I was...
I was speaking English.
[James]
Did I... did I drive a tank
at some point in my life?
How's the dust back there?
Oh, Jesus! Delicious!
This looks like a puppy's paw.
[Kelly]
First of all,
these are hands...
- Look how pink this is.
- Feel how dry these are.
- Look how pink this...
- Feel how dry those are.
- Those are working hands.
- This is a new puppy's paw.
[Kelly]
These are... I do dishes,
laundry.
- Really, yeah?
- Yeah!
What?
[James]
I missed the note
you gave me early on,
which is take a little time
going from first to second.
[Jay, accented]
Like the woman,
you cannot just jump on.
Cannot just jerk
into second gear.
[Jay]
You must use the finesse.
[James, accented]
You must take it slow.
No, that was Russian.
Yeah. Maybe that...
I think that was Russian, yeah.
Welcome to our World! Where we serve you cookies to ensure you get the best viewing experience on our site.
Did you know that you can remove censorship board-wide, use our advanced search functions, be notified when new content is posted, join our memberships, set episodes to show in any order you want & more if you are logged into your account?
Register or sign in here: ucp.php?mode=register
Did you know that you can remove censorship board-wide, use our advanced search functions, be notified when new content is posted, join our memberships, set episodes to show in any order you want & more if you are logged into your account?
Register or sign in here: ucp.php?mode=register
07x07 - Visionaries
Watch/Buy Amazon
Leno does car and motorcycle reviews on classic cars, super cars like the McLaren P1, restored cars, vintage and sports cars.
Leno does car and motorcycle reviews on classic cars, super cars like the McLaren P1, restored cars, vintage and sports cars.