Most people would be stunned to find out their car was originally driven my none other than Jeremy Clarkson on Britain’s most entertaining motoring show, but not this guy.
According to The Sun, Rob Willis, 27, decided to treat himself – and his family – right, and bought a used BMW M3 for £50,000. Over the pond, that translates into roughly $75,800 – an enormous price considering the car developed brake and steering problems soon after buying it from the dealership, as he stated:
“When I bought it, I was told it was an ex-demo which one of the managers had been driving. The brakes were constantly squeaking and the steering wheel made a clunking noise every time I came off the motorway.”
Unfortunately for him, the Bimmer’s past was way more …ahem, volatile than he expected, as his fiancé – while watching a Top Gear rerun together – pointed out that the M3 Clarkson was driving, had the same number plate as his. Nevertheless, the man wasn’t very pleased by the circumstances, saying:
“It’s outrageous, I have an eight-year-old daughter and three young nephews whose lives have been risked. The dealers told me it was a mistake and the car should never have been sold as it was unfit for the road.”
Well, even if a a twin-turbocharged, inline-six, 425PS and 550 Nm (410 lbft) of torque machine isn’t exactly the ideal family car, he’s right in the sense that, it’s outrageous for a dealer to sell a vehicle in that shape, but other than that, the story (probably) ends here.
Of course, Clarkson’s style of driving is known to be eruptive, and the BMW was most likely put through its paces during filming the fourth episode of season 22 by the stunt drivers as well, but saying Clarkson broke it is a longshot. As a “demo-car”, the BMW was probably offered to other test drivers as well, and the bottom line is that the dealer should’ve fixed the car before offering it for sale.
This is not the first time tabloids have tried to give Clarkson a hard time, as The Mail stated the TV presenter demanded gravy and cigarettes to be delivered to him by helicopter, in which Jeremy responded with a series of funny tweets.