Ferrari Testarossa to the Sahara. 2000mile adventure to the Sahara desert

if you watch Harry's garage you'll know there's nothing I like better than a proper adventure with a with a car one of the one of the collection and in the past I'm lucky enough to take in the Countach well that's been doing least being across the Alps he's done all sorts of things and the Espada also we did route napoleon it's also been right down to Rome as well but I've got this Testarossa and I've been thinking what can I do with the Testarossa a really good road journey I was thumbing through some old magazines the other day and came across one from 1995 but when it came out I was just spellbound what a story it was it was a good friend of mine now Richard Bremer who did it and he somehow persuaded Ferrari to lend him a Ferrari five one two to take to the Sahara could I do that well I am gonna do it and it's February now is a little bit chilly but tomorrow we're off to the Sahara in my Testarossa is exactly 20 years ago since that story was done and the route from here down to where they got to right by this hour is two and a half thousand miles away I'll show you on a map we obviously just to the left at London you pop down here all the way across France and of course all across Spain but we're cheating we're actually going to take a boat from Portsmouth go round here and actually set off for Santander takes about a thousand miles off it so it's which is sort of worth doing now Morocco isn't marked on this map because it's not part of Europe and you always know you're on a good journey when you have to borrow one of your kids geography books is Morocco and we're going to head down into Morocco Marrakech stay the night there cross the Atlas Mountains the next day hoping there's not snow that's only trouble going in February and you'll see the Sahara is here this bit here there's a dotted line here because that is actually a disputed border and all the guidebooks are telling me that there's potential lying landmines and things like that so going to be quite careful get a guide for this bit so that's the road trip I can't wait to get going it's packing to be done and the next time you join me will be in Morocco okay well this is the moment we take the ferry to Morocco I chose the ferry on looks as you will see it's a it's a sort of hydro ferry that gets across to Morocco from Spain in 35 minutes I shouldn't have done that because I read the guidebook typical bloke read it on the ferry on the between UK in Spain and discovered that the route we're taking which is to refer to Tangier is not the recommended one because they're a bit tricky trying to get your car in that because it glands in Tangier City I've also discovered as to Tangier places where fairies land Tangier med and Tangier City anyone around in Tangier mode which means you should go from Algeciras is a top tip I've now discovered as I wait for this point I'm also a little anxious that the approach and departure angle looks a bit steep and whether it's testa Rossa friendly we're going to find out but I hope things improve on the other side and we're also awfully crowded around if you just spin the camera around anyway there you go it was all part of the adventure but this bit I've sort of been dredging because it's not straightforward getting your car in tomorrow coat all the papers have to match it got my lucky pants on see what happens don't watch it or get on them I was in love I really didn't think that was going to happen supercars and fairies aren't really very pretty up the hill right no idea we've got two sizes sorted the automobile sorting come let's that be the caravans not a sign of anyone so did the Watchers we try that one right with fun and games start explodes what's an 15s next few days okay what's happened so far is signed the papers and then the man I thought it was official but now he's asking for her - I need English money or anybody doesn't matter I said look I'll give you money if we get the car in so now he's gone off to get the official and we'll see if he's little bit of magic touch worlds or not things are going very well about ten minutes in got the papers yes we'll give you a paper and then they just want to inspect the car and the river the the front up and spotted that I had a drone with me and that apparently is not allowed into Morocco so it's all change sort of atmosphere now we're about half an hour in and I'm waiting for some papers to prove that I've left a drone of customs and I can collect it and I want that little bit of white papers that let me out oh dear okay well we're through customs I have this bit of paper that allows me to exit has a little stamp I have to hand it back that they give me for my drove which I go and collect on the way back which I'm absolutely gutted er been using it at home just one of the flight in the dunes for would be amazing photography never mind now we're on to Marrakech guys late quarter three 350 miles and then the adventure police weekend we're in Morocco were free to cavil and 45 minutes actually isn't too bad which way we going he was given way to who Tunde superior straighten Creek continued esposa songs name route out of Tangier and we've run out of tarmac so I wasn't expecting it quite so early we're still trying to get Marrakesh lays in sky very nice place what every 20 hours nice pointed in pushes exception we honestly we discover the payoff is there any insane cash no credit cards she's a right cool that's of your race we just about scraped through the last one right so Tonya's money well yesterday was quite a day a real motorway slob from Tangier and down to Marrakech I have to say I no idea how much police presence there was in Morocco until yesterday just police cameras anywhere I was hoping to get a bit of a move on I mean Richard Bremner and this original story talks about doing a hundred and fifty on the motorways sort of flybys no chance of that yesterday there was 120 clicks absolutely on the button and police a speed trap off the speed trap even coming into Marrakech last night their stingers out on the sort of some of the junctions now I don't know why I have so much police presently anyway we're here now it's been a thousand miles get to get here you look at the map I'll show you where we are we've come all the way down from Tangier last night when we've got food finally through customs all the way round Casablanca down motorway and into Marrakesh and today is the big adventure is where their realtor venture starts because we're going to the Tiki pass here over the Atlas Mountains down - oh is that and then across this way up to our food and in the desert Jews here lord knows what time of day we're going to get there and but it's a huge adventure what are the great things I've discovered about Morocco he's out chic the fuel is ice filled up with super unleaded last night and it was about nine by dormers per litre that's 62 P litre which the UK guy is just incredibly cheap Gaddafi is gonna do 120 kilometres down a motorway were like on the economy driving these things doing 21 miles the gallon so on a 24 25 gallon tank this thing's doing nearly 500 miles per fuel stop she's just ridiculous so today let's burn a bit more fuel go on the hills and I can't wait to get this adventure going see you in a bit I don't understand what that is that's not a good stuff whatever reason the engines turning over spinning like a top and then not fine I can smell fuel which I don't want tea time get to get out right well we started the graph that all stores now and Justin has even brought a cup of tea out which we're going to try next we're going to piss sparks all cup of tea one of them is gonna kill this Ferrari yeah how's that my nose okay just take that other time to get going we got it going we're thinking somewhere in the distributor cap took it off gave it a white professor we have a running Ferrari so well we extracted the silicic Marrakesh I had a bit of excitement Justin is sure it was nothing to do a bit of moisture in there just took the captain's or still with teeth Ct is going to be the thing I have to point to good going around the outside America out this is the wall other if you wanted around something there so the ancient city in there which is no place for Ferrari but just lays in place having been a few times so worth a visit and where we're heading well it's they're taking the bear open the roadsides in Raqqa a nightmare they don't actually put like being one of the into on the side that's all in Arabic so you've got a look for the term you're going to the ski region in Raqqa which I didn't have no idea about okay I just got my the speeding tickets to do 70 to the 67 300 and I get a receipt I show my document extraordinary how much police presence there is mr. there anything needle - couch just stuck behind some trucks on the way of the past in the mode helpful policeman you relieve me of cash for doing 17 to 60 and Austin about the past but is open does get snow at the Astoria so no problem but you brought the wrong car that's not the right car take over my sadness is always very bumpy very rough reside listen to babble Eastern class is open but they all seem quite a lot of snow that's quite snowy to me I reckon that's of Snoopy's the rune is open as good that must be the sign for it here the passes turn into rhythms or Welsh rally across the stage we look outside gravel shrugs not what I was expecting the tool but the blue sky has materializing again very close to the top my dear hope you have much better things on the other side so far this isn't quite why I expect until the gardens all the bit we tell you think you can go for overtake just worry that how many cocktails are the road policeman might have been right this practice of the best route for a Ferrari I never read some winter shalini rainbows of the side is complete this way spiritism where's my place absolutely stinky change it's just normal desert changer to like all three rounds to investigate or about it just wanna enjoy see that this matters way we crossed over the snow there's clouds over I'm Alice just been reading the guidebooks leaders of building here so Hollywood D County when I want to make relegated to base or something like that this there's no more see why we go over this edge it just goes on hundreds of miles Council no straight road just straight through this place in landscape Gale throws like this scenery again driving through in very well serviced there you have to keep the speed sort of in control that shocked me okay well I hoped this morning you would find me next to the dunes it has mean a hotel and when we left Marrakech you might remember a little issue and we thought it was somebody to do with the sparks of something and I'm actually cured it by ticket distributor Kappa started out fantastic last night we hammered through the mountains it Morocco is twice as big as you expect and we didn't quite get to Yasmina hotel and about eleven o'clock we rocked up at this lovely hotel cabbage chunky hotel in it food really nice looked I was really well and we went to start the Ferrari this morning in April so we had the same issue again we've had a cup of tea and as ever when parole does everything's perfect on it but we haven't got any sparks and it turns out it's immobilizer problem which is just the bane of my life 80s and 90s immobilizer when they're 10 20 years old see the pack up so we've gone writing if you look in here here's a little silent thing we've been in here we've been in the circuit boards would be down there Rd doubt and the problem we find is in here from far too deep down in there is a horrible bit of wiring amateur wiring and they gaunt a microswitch on the glove box to take power off and the soldier dropped off always the same with cars mechanically robust but immobilizer gets you every time anyway 60 kilometers down the road all the Jews are going to put everything back together and we'll see you next I hope all the most fantastic rows and in the Sahara mainly they we see the Jew through the distance of lemonade bingo in just over half an hour on the most vicious boss balls track down a hotel Lloris approaches and inching closer to the has leader tell what it is get it all ending outside suspension especially Ferrari this is happening quite a lot as well get over tainted anybody who's this sort of look out the wilderness I think does this thing makes it very slowly I'll get over actually all the way round how friendly the Moroccans are because they utter joy every way we've been coming right later and tears and nothing's too much trouble waves all the way through both of our thought and action stations all the rest of it it's been absolutely what our car get over is driving at night is a bit tricky you can tell they did like to be out on the streets this is me a national game driving lights on smithy on bikes which is be unnerving rock just going deep but my guide follow my guide I'm not getting lost in this basket anyway we have to believe in them being an amazing tree I've seen the test roster as well machine misses me we put it through hell office journey I saw I didn't really know what to expect first big journey we've done with it and it's actually proved pretty comfy I really like the big tank to predict what has been able to do for tomorrow concentrate just this bit what's the magnet is it suddenly we've lost the sound and absorption broad this Rossum name is completely flat so it's got flat floors I'm not too worried is really chattering it's just us we catch this supplement right but it's not that bad probably take this yeah we see seem to cause a bit of commotion with the camera guys we've just agreed a Rach special rate to go on the cows and see the sunset in the desert we still have to do it but he's got quite a lot of camel power here ya go good fun well we made it here we are Yasmina hotel chubby sand dunes of the Sahara we'll just worked it out it's two and a half thousand miles from home here so so different from a sort of drizzly frosty sort of UK we left a mere four or five days ago we're now in 24 degrees beautiful sunshine and the most spectacular dunes I've ever seen I think it's probably the maddest trip I've ever done bringing a Ferrari to Sahara it doesn't that's pretty bonkers I have to thank Richard Bremer for even doing it there's even madder than I realize now I've done it too the highlights for me were some of the roads just seeing those dunes for the first time and I've saw m0z dead arrow straight road hammering along the Jews is getting closer and closer some of the downsides I'd say the the trip over the Tiki pass over the Atlas Mountains was properly tedious as all these lorries there's the snow that was gravel the mud the number of speed cameras and the the ever efficient police just everywhere in Morocco that was it I didn't realize that I thought it'd be completely empty of that sort of thing but they are pretty much everywhere on the other side the fuel stations everywhere I thought we'd be really struggling on fuel the distance here we had diesels out here but no buy fuel anywhere and it's so cheap super unloaded at 62 P litre to a brick that's just astonishing it's half price the car just be mega bringing this across it's a first huge trip we've done in the Testarossa and the things I really liked was sounds ridiculous but them out of space in it we just haven't even thought about and how many bags to takes I mean it's there's no problem carrying stuff some of the other things I didn't expect until we started a book you there's no sort rescue service out here you're totally on your own and having that immobilizer issue that was a bit of a bull that has no way out here RAC you're on your own on this sort of thing I'm so glad we're and sort of picked up a punch or anything just have to say there was just more wrote off road and I expected and the role chess losses suffered a bit but we've kept it to an absolute minimum it's fantastic having tall tires in sort of rocks it just means so today's low-profile tires just really wouldn't cope with what we've been doing picks up quite a lot of dust all over the poor old car it does need a proper clean after this but if you can imagine some of the roads we've been on it's hardly surprised it's hard to used any oil I'm very glad to say I have to say it's the engines been terrific the actual mechanicals no prom at all that ecdysis work great seats are comfy it's been a cool cool car to do it in that's the end of the adventure I hope you enjoyed it you want to watch more adventures more carpet tests then please keep watching Harry's garage and we're off signing off now we've got a have a we're gonna have a day here enjoying the scenery riding camels and then we're heading back to the UK so see you soon all right Oh back here yeah oh okay

Channel: Harry's garage

Views: 1,447,291

Rating: 4.8766551 out of 5

Keywords: ferrari, testarossa, 512, road, trip, Morocco (Country), evo, diary, harrys, harry, garage, uk

Id: ZRjGN--R4pE

Length: 28min 57sec (1737 seconds)

Published: Thu Apr 30 2015

Reddit Comments

[u/312_SixTwo]

the bit with the washboard road made me cringe so hard. hearing all those rattles inside a car like that is something i couldn't possibly live with. what a journey. top bloke.

also, is it just me or do dirty supercars look amazingly better than mint looking ones?

Edit: can anyone find a scan of the car issue of the 512 to the sahara? i'd love to read it, now.

[u/[deleted]]

This guy is like James May's Doppleganger, what a truely great car bloke to actually drive his classic cars and share them with the world.

Spot on.

[u/scream2207]

i can't imagine what a trip was like for the guy in the 90's.. I bet Moroccans looked at him like an alien with that car in a desert

[u/[deleted]]

Such a great Youtube channel, wish it was more popular.

[u/[deleted]]

Did he drive the car back home?

[u/darksideguyz]

Definitely one of the best videos to come from this channel