Makes › Opel › Kadett › Kadett A "Oliver" (Top Gear Botswana Special car) · Historically significant · Film & TV
Opel
Kadett A "Oliver" (Top Gear Botswana Special car)
The Opel Kadett A that Richard Hammond bought for £1,200 and drove across Botswana in the 2007 Top Gear Botswana Special, named Oliver on screen and kept by him ever since.
Still being researched: full specifications. Everything shown is checked against the cited sources. Know more? Send us a source.
Photo: John K · CC BY-SA 4.0
Contents
01Overview
At a glance
- Built
- 1 Built
- Years
- Not yet verified
- Engine
- Front-mounted inline four, base engine (as on the car) · 1,000 cc / 1 LFactory: 1 L
- Power
- 29.8 kW / 40.6 PSFactory: 40 hp · converted
- Top speed
- Not yet verified
- Body
- Not yet verified
- Designer
- Not yet verified
- In this archive
- Not yet verified
- Surviving
- 1 (independently researched)
Sources and any conflicting figures are in the sections below.
Why it matters
Oliver became one of the best-loved cars in Top Gear's history after the 2007 Botswana Special, in which the presenters crossed Africa in cheap two-wheel-drive cars. Hammond's attachment to the little Opel, and his shout when it was swamped in a river, made it a TV personality in its own right. Unusually for a challenge car, it was shipped home and kept.
How rare is it?
Six separate kinds of rarity – never combined into one number.
Each kind of rarity is rated separately and never combined.
02Production & history
Production
Every figure says what it counts.
| What is counted | Figure | Basis | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total model productionthe car survives and is kept by Richard Hammond | 12 | Surviving examples | Independently researched |
| Total model productioncar bought and driven by Hammond in the Botswana Special | 11 | Factory production | Independently researched |
Independent counts (e.g. engine and colour) are never combined into a calculated figure. Surviving examples are never presented as original production.
History
For the Botswana Special, broadcast in series 10, each presenter had to buy a car in Africa that was not four-wheel drive; Hammond paid £1,200 for a 44-year-old Kadett A and named it Oliver within a few miles. It completed the 1,000-mile journey despite electrical problems and being submerged in a river crossing.
Shipping the car to the UK took two years because of paperwork. It later appeared in Top Gear and on Richard Hammond's Blast Lab, and was used by Hammond's family. After damage while lent out, it was put right by Hammond's workshop The Smallest Cog in 2022, returned to its on-screen colour and steel wheels.
Variants
How each version differs from the standard Kadett A "Oliver" (Top Gear Botswana Special car).
No variants documented yet. Have a source? Contribute it.
03Specifications
Technical specifications
Engine
| Engine family | Not yet verified |
|---|---|
| Engine code | Not yet verified |
| Layout | Front-mounted inline four, base engine (as on the car)2 Independently researched |
| Displacement | 1,000 cc / 1 LFactory: 1 L2 Independently researched |
| Bore | Not yet verified |
| Stroke | Not yet verified |
| Compression ratio | Not yet verified |
| Fuel system | Not yet verified |
| Power | 29.8 kW / 40.6 PSFactory: 40 hp · converted2 Independently researchedBase Kadett A engine figure quoted by Motor1; rating standard not stated |
| Power at | Not yet verified |
| Torque | Not yet verified |
Transmission & drivetrain
| Gearbox | Not yet verified |
|---|---|
| Gears | Not yet verified |
| Driven wheels | Rear2 Independently researched |
Chassis, body & dimensions
| Chassis | Not yet verified |
|---|---|
| Front suspension | Not yet verified |
| Rear suspension | Not yet verified |
| Brakes | Drums front and rear2 Independently researched |
| Steering | Not yet verified |
| Body construction | Not yet verified |
| Wheelbase | Not yet verified |
| Length | Not yet verified |
| Width | Not yet verified |
| Height | Not yet verified |
| Front track | Not yet verified |
| Rear track | Not yet verified |
| Kerb weight | Not yet verified |
| Dry weight | Not yet verified |
Performance
| Maximum speed | Not yet verified |
|---|---|
| 0–100 km/h | Not yet verified |
| Fuel tank | Not yet verified |
“Not yet verified” means no source has been checked for that value yet. Nothing is estimated to fill a gap.
04Colours & options
Factory colours & interiors
Original paint and trim, with the number of cars in each where a source gives it.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
Factory options & codes
Codes are shown exactly as written by the manufacturer.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
05Individual cars
Chassis register
Every documented car, with its colours, history and where it is now. Open a row for the full record. Known chassis are not automatically authenticated originals.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
Competition history
Every race result of the individual cars, in date order. Click a chassis number to open its full record in the register.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
Auction & sale history
Documented public sales of the individual cars. Click a chassis number to open its full record in the register.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
See one in person
Museums where an example of this car can be seen.
No example is documented on public display yet. Have a source? Contribute it.
06Reference
Identification guide
How to tell an original from a replica or later conversion.
Being verified against factory or registry sources before it is published. Have a source? Contribute it.
Sources
Each number links to the exact facts it supports.
-
1
Richard Hammond's Oliver the Opel from Top Gear has been restored (Motor1) Level C
- 1 car bought and driven by Hammond in the Botswana Special
-
2
Richard Hammond's Oliver the Opel from Top Gear has been restored Level C Motor1 · 2022-11-21
- Restored and presentable
- 1.0-liter four-cylinder
- with 40 hp
- sending power to the rear wheels
- drum brakes front and rear
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