Scaling the Guallatiri volcano | Now in Full HD | Top Gear | BBC

We can either go that way... which is very long. Or we can go that way, which is short, but does mean driving over an active volcano. -Short. -Volcano. -Short. -I agree. -Short. -Let's do it. As we climbed, the air became thinner and thinner. 15,400. And climbing. We are definitely the highest motorists in the world. Apart from George Michael, obviously. Hammond's really got to think ahead with no clutch. He's got to think ahead with a brain starved of oxygen. What is frightening is when I need to come to grab first to get up a steep bit. Changing down is harder. You've got to guess how high the engine will need to be revving and slot the gear lever in without a clutch. James too was having problems. Oh, God, chaps, my transfer box is jammed. But these niggles were overshadowed by the big one. Up at this altitude, this engine is really struggling. For every litre of fuel vapour it gets through, it needs 14 litres of air. And there isn't any. So, it's just like me... That means it's just so down on power. Up here, James's car had, at best, 20 horsepower. And as we climbed higher, we started to suffer as well. The breathlessness now is pretty acute. Just talking is... hard work. I'm starting to feel a bit... Jesus... No. I'm feeling really quite weird. The terrain levelled out so we pulled over to catch what we could of our breath. Do you feel sort of drunk, but it's not pleasant? Yeah. Exactly that. My whole head feels like I've got room spin. It was time for drastic action. -Cyanide? -No. Viagra. Eh? Is this the time? Apparently, Viagra, for reasons unknown to science stops you having an oedema in your lung. I thought it was more the trouser department it concentrated on. Well, that might be a side effect of what you're about to do. -Down the hatch. -Here we go. -I can't swallow it. -Doesn't work. -Nothing's happening. Nothing's happening. -I can't swallow it. I need a drink. I'm going to get a massive neck if I don't have some of that. Apparently, that will save our lives. -Oh, God. -Don't make me laugh. I've just taken Viagra on top of the Andes. Sadly, though, it didn't seem to have any effect at all. I'm getting a headache and I'm feeling sick. Come on, come on. The big question now was this, which would give out first, the cars or the men?' Come on. Come on! Come on. Every gear change is so critical now. I get tense about it, that raises my heart. And then I need oxygen all the more. Still there, Hammond? Yeah, I'm still here. I'm having to go slow. I daren't risk changing up to third. I won't make it. Okay, mate, we'll slow down. We're a team up here 'cause this isn't funny. Jeremy's talking about being a team. Must be the altitude. At 16,700 feet, the Toyota broke down again. I think my transfer box has just gone. James and I stop to help. And then we couldn't get going again. The engines just aren't getting any air... at all. There's just no... James can't get his started. I can't get mine started. I haven't got any air to work. Once we get the Range Rover going, and that's the most likely to start, we can get everything started. -Right. Can we move it? -On three, two, heave! And go! And go! Pushing a Range Rover at this altitude damn near killed us, but eventually the big beast fired and once again, the most unreliable car in the world got the others going as well. Oh, yeah. Bloody hell. My lips are now tingling. I get the feeling something's got to give soon. Jesus Christ, my head! At 17,200 feet, we pulled over... again. -Hammond? -Yeah. Even if the cars could get over that and I seriously doubt that, I can't. Just pushing on's just stupid. -Seriously, I'm calling it a day. -I think you could be right. We really were in trouble. So, we turned round and headed back down... fast. 16 two. Still feeling weird. Breathing's better. With every foot... the engine's going to run smoother. My body's going to run smoother. We then went the long way round and finally, drunk on oxygen, we made it to the other side of the Andes. Air! -It's so underrated. -It's thick. It's like breathing soup. You can bite off pieces of it and chew it. It's like lung nectar. There is just one small thing that's occurred to me, chaps. What? Where the hell are we?

Channel: Top Gear

Views: 11,058,374

Keywords: BBC, BBC Worldwide, Top Gear, Top, Gear, Topgear, Cars, Car, Autos, Auto, Motoring, Jeremy Clarkson, Jeremy, Clarkson, Richard Hammond, Richard, Hammond, James May, James, May, The Stig, Toyota Land Cruiser, Donkey, Range Rover, Suzuki Samurai, Altitude sickness, volcano, active volcano, Guallatiri volcano, George Michael, oxygen, clutch, transfer box, fuel vapour, air, catch breath, edema, lung, viagra, gear change, push start

Id: NOcJOn0nxnU

Length: 8min 10sec (490 seconds)

Published: Mon Jul 22 2013