FUZZ_TOWNSHEND JAMES JEREMY_CLARKSON KATE MIKE_SAMPSON PHIL_CORNWELL TIM_SHAW


PHIL CORNWELL
This time on Car S.O.S.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
This is absolutely amazing.
PHIL CORNWELL
The boys make a shocking discovery about this Land Rover Discovery.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
A thought that might be some burnt out wiring, but it's okay. It's just a plant.
PHIL CORNWELL
And that's not all that's being unearthed.
TIM SHAW
This feels like we've discovered something in an archaeological dig.
PHIL CORNWELL
So can they take this rusty wreck from field,
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
That there is the carpet.
PHIL CORNWELL
To finery?
TIM SHAW
You're witnessing a miracle here.
PHIL CORNWELL
And with a little help from Britain's most famous farmer.
TIM SHAW
Is this the first time you've ever travelled with a body in the back?
JEREMY CLARKSON
No.

PHIL CORNWELL
Moo-ve its owner to tears.
TIM SHAW
Right Fuzzbot, Newmarket. Is this Cambridgeshire around here?
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Yes, it is indeed.
TIM SHAW
Yeah nice. Anyway, listen, I'm gonna make a very bold claim about this car that you might not like. But anyway, the car, first of all, is a Land Rover Discovery Series one.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Land Rover Discovery Series one.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
I love these cars.
TIM SHAW
I think this is the car that saved the company, that saved Land Rover itself.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
What? Really?
TIM SHAW
Yeah.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
What you reckon? Is that a real fact or is that a Timmy fact?
TIM SHAW
Well, it's a Timmy fact at the moment, but I think it's going to become a real fact.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Yeah.
PHIL CORNWELL
Yes, he might actually have a point. Today, Land Rovers may be driven by everyone from the couple next door to Spice Girls and famous farmers. But 40 years ago, things were very different.

PHIL CORNWELL
Back then a top end Range Rover Classic cost about half the price of the average house. But the other end of the market were the forerunners to the Defender, perfect for chasing sheep up a Welsh valley. But a lack of creature comforts, speed and a turning circle on a par with a super tanker meant they weren't so great for the school run.
First SUV with viscous coupling
PHIL CORNWELL
And this is where Land Rover missed an opportunity that the Japanese manufacturers didn't.
PHIL CORNWELL
In the mid 1980s, they flooded the market with affordable, well-built, family friendly four by fours that flew off the forecourts.
PHIL CORNWELL
In a desperate bid to compete the Discovery was rapidly conceived.
PHIL CORNWELL
It offered a blend of family friendly design and farmyard ruggedness.
PHIL CORNWELL
Underneath it was as tough as a Defender. Inside as well built as a Range Rover but importantly cost  10,000 less.
PHIL CORNWELL
To date, over one point two million have been sold, making it Land Rover's most popular model of all time.
TIM SHAW
Right today we're gonna go and meet Kate right. Now the car is owned by her son James, but it was passed down to James by her husband, his dad Jim. So sad thing that Jim is no longer around any more. But the car has been stored, this is the bit you're not going to like, outside in a field for years.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
You've got a dustpan and brush?
TIM SHAW
Yeah, I think we'll need a big one.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
[LAUGHS] 
KATE
Hello. [TALKING OVER EACH OTHER] Lovely to meet you. I'm Kate.
TIM SHAW
Nice to meet you Tim.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
I'm Fuzz, how are you doing? 
TIM SHAW
Right. What's this fancy place?
KATE
This is our friend's farm. His name is John. He's looked after the car for five years now. Two weeks he should have had it for.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Right okay.
KATE
Okay, but now we're five years.
TIM SHAW
Where's James?
KATE
He is working three hours away. Thank goodness.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Right okay.
KATE
We're in the clear.
TIM SHAW
Right. Don't take this the wrong way. What's going on with that horrible sandwich bag.
KATE
Don't you know what it is?
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
That is a Terence Conran designed bag that goes with the Land Rover Discovery Series one with the Terence Conran interior. Can I take a look?
TIM SHAW
Come on, let's go and have a chat about James.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
That this has survived is absolutely amazing, 'cause you can imagine what happens when your farmer takes possession of their brand new Discovery One. That's right. Off it goes. Never to be seen again. It survived and so has the car. But only just from what I can see. Because look, what we have here is a missing wing, and beneath it, galloping rot. So it's rotted out here. It's rotted out at the seams here. That there is the carpet. That's all that's keeping all the rain from getting in.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
And then, have a look down here. I'm telling you, that shouldn't do that. The bodywork should be solidly mounted.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
where the body mounts onto the chassis. It has completely gone.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Interior.
TIM SHAW
What do you do as a family?
KATE
Builders.
TIM SHAW
Right. Okay. So your husband Jim, builder, your son, James, builder, and the purpose of the car was what?
KATE
Meant to be a family car and never did, because he filled it with tools and it became the workhorse. Every single day they went to work in that car with their cups of coffee and their bowls of cereal, and their plans for wherever they were going for the day. And for James, the car is better than any photograph of his dad because that car is his dad. They argued. They slept in it. They ate in it. It's just been a brilliant car and it's a family friend. It's Jim. That car's Jim.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Right, for the moment of truth.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Now, what's that there? Oh. I thought that might be some burnt out wiring, but it's okay. It's just a plant that's grown through the engine bay. Now, this is the 200 TDI engine, which is a really great engine. They last for absolutely ages. They're reliable, and so long as they're regularly serviced, they are a great beast. But at 165,000 miles, [UNITCONVERSION] 265,541 kilometres, I'd be expecting something to go bang or wear out pretty quickly now. So I think what we're going to have to do is take the engine out and fully inspect it. This wheel arch has rotted away on this side. So again, galloping body corrosion. I think we may have got to this car in just the nick of time. Another winter out here. I think it would have been done for.
TIM SHAW
What happened to Jim?
KATE
He became jaundiced. And then James took him to the hospital. And they diagnosed him with liver cancer. And they gave him a year to live, but he actually did last three.
TIM SHAW
How did Jim respond to being told those flooring words?
KATE
Very stoic, really. Yeah, he just accepted it, but worked. Still went to work, sick as anything, and then James took over. He just worked and he's never stopped. He works six days a week. When you're self-employed, you can't take time off to do things like that car.
TIM SHAW
So are we gonna have a problem getting him away from that, to go somewhere to give him his car back?
KATE
Yes, absolutely.
TIM SHAW
What's he into? What would be something he'd go "Okay, I'll go there. I'll do that". Does he watch any TV shows?
KATE
He loves the Grand Tour.
TIM SHAW
Jeremy Clarkson. Feel like I heard of that guy.
KATE
TIM SHAW
Well, we're gonna do it, and we're gonna do it in exactly the way that it was all those years ago when he used to be in it as a young lad with his dad.
KATE
Fabulous. So excited. Thank you.
TIM SHAW
No worries. All right. Give us a kiss. Alright. Take care. See you soon. Thank you.
TIM SHAW
How is it looking?
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
It's terrible. This thing needs a lot a work.
TIM SHAW
When I tell you the story of what this car means to the family, you won't believe it.
TIM SHAW
What?
TIM SHAW
Seriously, it's everything to the family. Like, she said to me, that this car is more important than any photo that James, who now owns it, has of his father.
PHIL CORNWELL
Yes. This car is such a beloved member of the family that the boys not only have to save it from becoming a pile of dust, they also have to do it without removing Jim's spirit from within.
TIM SHAW
Let's go.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Okay.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
It's probably the most rotten discovery that I've ever, ever come across.
PHIL CORNWELL 
Yes, the boys are going to have to dig deep on this one if they're to unearth the memories behind the rust. So they've called in a favour from the Land Rover experts at Britt Park, who are giving over the specialist tools, workshop space and parts they're going to need to pull this discovery back from the brink of extinction.
TIM SHAW
Yeah.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Right just a little bit further, a little bit more. Go on, keep going. That'll do.
TIM SHAW
About there?
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Yep.
TIM SHAW
Try opening the door.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Okay.
TIM SHAW
Oh, oh ho. [GROANS] 
TIM SHAW
What have you done there?
TIM SHAW
It's just literally just collapsed when I was opening the door.
TIM SHAW
Look at the state of it, Fuzzbot.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Yeah I know.
TIM SHAW
Come on then.
TIM SHAW
It's just falling to pieces. Like, literally.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Please don't break any more off it.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Oh, no.
TIM SHAW
Oh wow.
TIM SHAW
Oh, this feels like we've discovered something in an archaeological dig.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Look, we've got the forward rear body mounts here. Look this one, can you see what that's attached to?
TIM SHAW
Well that was supposed to be attached to a sill.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
That's right. Yeah. So where is the sill? It's gone. We've got a big problem here. Because what we need to do, really, is to lift the body off 'cause if we lift the body off, we can get to all the mechanical items. But to lift the body, we need to repair the body first.
TIM SHAW
So it doesn't collapse.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Yeah 'cause otherwise it will collapse like a deck of cards in the wind.
TIM SHAW
So we need to do repairs to the repairs to be able to access the other repairs.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Yeah.
PHIL CORNWELL
Tim and Fuzz have got their hands full with the car that saved Land Rover, but they've just made some alarming discoveries about this much loved 30 year old mark one Discovery.
TIM SHAW
Do you know what happens with me and you? When it's so bad, I've noticed this thing. When things are so, so bad, we just start finding it funny.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
That's right.
TIM SHAW
'Cause it's like it's somebody else's problem.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Laughing in the face of adversity.
PHIL CORNWELL
But there's not much funny about what lies ahead. Because James's discovery is not only riddled with holes, it's also packed full of memories of his dad, Jim. So retaining the originality is key.
PHIL CORNWELL
Starting with rescuing the rust ridden body shell. If the boys attempt to lift it now there's a good chance it will crumble like a cheap biscuit in a hot cup of tea, so it'll need to be strengthened before work can start on the chassis and suspension setup underneath.
PHIL CORNWELL
The 200 TDI engine and gearbox haven't been run for more than five years, so when Doctor Fuzz opens it up, will it be keyhole surgery or a full blown transplant?
PHIL CORNWELL
Finally, the exterior plastics are cracked and brittle from years of exposure to the elements, so will either need to be repaired or replaced.
PHIL CORNWELL
It's also gonna need a full interior, clean and fresh paint job.
PHIL CORNWELL
This may be the car that saved Land Rover, but can the boys save this Land Rover? Or have they bitten off more than they can chew?
TIM SHAW
1989 Frankfurt Motor Show, the Discovery was unveiled and it went on to become the best selling four by four in Europe. And a lot of it came down to one man called Mike Sampson, and he designed that car and he changed the world forever, and he is the reason, in my mind, that Land Rover the company still exists.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
It would be great to meet him. I'll tell you what, though, if you do find him, can you see if he's got any seals?
TIM SHAW
Yeah.
PHIL CORNWELL
Yes with the old ones reduced to compost, it's definitely gonna need some new sills? But if Doctor Fuzz can't resuscitate the original 2.5l, [UNITCONVERSION] 0.66gal turbocharged diesel engine, the boys are gonna be facing a much bigger problem.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
I've got a power pack and a power probe here. The power pack will take the place of the flat battery, while the power probe will do the job of the starter motor.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Now, I reckon these 200 TDI engines are so phenomenal that I reckon this thing will start up, or at least it will have a go. It's worth a try anyway.
PHIL CORNWELL
This engine is legendary thanks to its robust construction and durability, even after hundreds of thousands of miles. That and its low end grunt, which is perfect for off roading and the 30 mile [UNITCONVERSION] 48.2 kilometres, per gallon fuel economy. But after five years cultivating in a field, surely this is pushing it Fuzz?
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
We'll press and hope that it's gonna go.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Look at that. Absolutely amazing.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
There's no loads of smoke or anything. No fuss, no mess. It just started up.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Now that is what I call an absolute brilliant piece of engineering. We've got a real bit of positivity right at the start of this project, and that's exactly what we needed.
PHIL CORNWELL
However, with 165,000 miles [UNITCONVERSION] 265,451 kilometres, on the clock, both the engine and the gearbox will still need a thorough check up before they can tackle any treacherous terrain.
PHIL CORNWELL
And unfortunately, it looks like fixing up the rest of the car won't be as straightforward.
PHIL CORNWELL
With 80% of the bodyshell rustier than the Titanic's propeller, the team need to remove the rot before they can lift it away from the chassis.
PHIL CORNWELL
So while they get on with that, Tim's on a voyage of discovery.
TIM SHAW
Right, now don't ask me how I've got this, but I think we have Mike Sampson's address.
PHIL CORNWELL
Yes, he's meeting the Oracle himself to find out how his design for the Discovery made Land Rovers fortunes bloom.
TIM SHAW
It's said that it's the Discovery, your baby, that saved the company Land Rover.
MIKE SAMPSON
I guess, there is a little bit a truth in that. Anyway, come in and we'll have a chat about it.
TIM SHAW
Come on then. Excellent.
TIM SHAW
Wow.
TIM SHAW
So can we go from the beginning? Where did it all start for you?
MIKE SAMPSON
Well, I guess it started in the way that Land Rover saw a gap in the market. Range Rover was going ever more upmarket, and I think we were seeing a lot of the competition arriving in the marketplace. Mitsubishi with the Shogun.
TIM SHAW
Land Cruisers, all that sort of stuff, yeah.
MIKE SAMPSON
Of course, and something had to be done.
TIM SHAW
Land Rover, were they communicating how much trouble they were in at the time?
MIKE SAMPSON
We knew finances were tight, and there was a lot of other things that went on behind the scenes, and because the budget was very tight, it was decided to use the Range Rover Classic as a basis [TALKING OVER EACH OTHER] for the vehicle.
TIM SHAW
So the chassis, the running gear, all that sort of stuff was the starting point.
MIKE SAMPSON
And pretty much a lot of the bodywork as well. Because we were so limited on cost and budget, we had to use a lot of carryover components, not just from Range Rover, but from other parts were within Austin Rover.
MIKE SAMPSON
Things like the tail lights, which came, as you probably know [TALKING OVER EACH OTHER] from the Maestro van. I look upon that as a sort of happy accident because it actually fits the vehicle very well and it gave us this character of the chamfered rear quarter, which has become part of Discovery language. It was proposed or thought that we probably wouldn't make more than about 300 vehicles a week.
TIM SHAW
Right. And how many did you end up getting made a week?
MIKE SAMPSON
Well, I know that within a very few weeks of production started, we were up to about 1900 and it just just grew from there.
TIM SHAW
Why do you think it is, Mike, that this car did so well?
MIKE SAMPSON
I think it was all things to all men. It was smart enough to go out in the evening, but in the day you could put the dogs in the back, you could put hay bales in the back, you could take, you know, the whole family somewhere with it. And it had a freshness about it.
PHIL CORNWELL
So it turns out the Discovery's stringent development budget arrayed in the parts bin and some ingenious design, are what saved Land Rover. But is Fuzz gonna be able to save the shell of James's Land Rover?
PHIL CORNWELL
The team have stripped it down so that everything is rust free. The trouble is, they've had to remove so much rotten metal it's now as flimsy as a jellyfish's handshake.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
What we have to do is make the body structurally sound. We've gotta be able to lift the body off without it collapsing and folding and wobbling around. It needs to remain in three dimensions really, that's what it is.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
But we're nowhere near getting the body away from the chassis, and we need to do that so that we can work on both of those assemblies at the same time, because that's the only way we're gonna hit the ground running and get this done in time.
PHIL CORNWELL
So the next step for Fuzz is to weld in new metal to give the shell its strength back.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Now we can start building up our side section here, 'cause at the moment this is a little bit wobbly and flappy still. So the next section that we're going to put in is the wheel arches.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
So we've got this folded section here, this section here and then this flat piece here. Then we can offer these in to this space here.
PHIL CORNWELL
This section of new metal will give the shell's inner wheel arch its structural integrity. An outer body panel will then go on top to give this car its iconic shape.
PHIL CORNWELL
To join the new wheel arch to the car, it needs to be welded into place for strength.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
This is our spot welder. These electrodes go down and they clamp onto the pieces that are going to be welded, at which point electricity passes through them and creates heat. Fusing the two pieces of metal together. Now I've got a couple of bits of old scrap here which I can test out.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Clamp together.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
There we go. Absolutely rock solid.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Spot welding is probably the one piece of automotive construction that made cars more affordable and so affordable that we have all been able to get on the roads with it. It's a brilliant piece of construction.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
First weld. If this goes wrong, it's all gone wrong.
PHIL CORNWELL
But for all its brilliance, spot welding does have drawbacks. With the engine blocking access to the back of the panel, Fuzz can't get his jaws into position. So it's time to go full Flashdance and finish it off with some plug welds.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Plug weld is something that we do to imitate a spot weld. It's individual small welds, but done in a different way, and that then allows us to get in there where we cannot reach with a normal spot welder, which requires a lot of access.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
So that's our wheel arch back in place, restoring much needed structural integrity to this Land Rover Discovery.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
A few more little bits, and then we'll be able to lift the body off.
PHIL CORNWELL
Tim and Fuzz are restoring this 1994 mark one Land Rover Discovery that spent the last five years discovering a corner of a farmer's field.
PHIL CORNWELL
It belongs to 39 year old James, who, along with his dad Jim, used it as a workhorse for their building firm for 20 years.
PHIL CORNWELL
However, after mechanical faults took it off the road and Jim tragically passed away, James has had to take on running the family business, putting his plans of restoring this family heirloom firmly on hold.
KATE
He just worked and he's never stopped. He works six days a week. When you're self-employed, you can't take time off to do things like that car.
PHIL CORNWELL
This is one of the biggest renovations the team has ever taken on. They've already put in nearly 200 hours of work, and they're barely halfway through.
PHIL CORNWELL
They're finally ready to separate the body from the chassis. So have they done enough for the shell to survive the lift in one piece?
PHIL CORNWELL
With the shell safely lifted, the team can tackle the chassis and suspension. Just like the shell, they're rusty and rotten. So the spine will need to be blasted and repainted with what can't be saved from the suspension set up and running gear replaced with new parts. The engine and gearbox also need to be serviced and someone still needs to bag that famous farmer.
PHIL CORNWELL
So while the team press on with yet another mountain of work.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
How did you manage to do this? How did you manage to find the oldest existing Land Rover Discovery?
PHIL CORNWELL
Tim and Fuzz are grabbing their wellies and getting behind the wheel of one of the only remaining prototypes of the car that saved Land Rover.
TIM SHAW
Friends in high places Fuzzbot, that you'll never meet. This is a coup, isn't it?
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Oh, this is absolutely amazing. I cannot believe it and to feel where it all started.
TIM SHAW
Yeah.
TIM SHAW
What I love about this is it was shrouded in secrecy. So the world didn't know about these vehicles until 1989. But this thing was out in 1987. 
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Yeah.
TIM SHAW
But this car was actually used in different climates to test it, to see, we need to see if this car works there. Whereas nowadays you'd put a car on a rig and simulate that sort of off road testing. Back in these days you took it to Canada, you took it to Australia, you made it suffer hell to see if it lived and survived and this one did, and does.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Yeah, it still does, and it feels taut and it feels like it could even be new.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Can you imagine being part of the team? 'Cause now I'm driving this for the first time time and I'm just going yeah 
TIM SHAW
We nailed it. 
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Yeah we nailed it. This is it. The company's gonna be saved. It's gonna be all right.
TIM SHAW
What does it feel like to drive it? Then talk to me about it, baby.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
This is not like driving a 40 year old vehicle. It really isn't. But this car is quiet. It's comfortable. It's well mannered.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
This field is absolutely sopping wet, waterlogged, and this is just romping through. I could be here in my evening frock and I'd be absolutely fine.
TIM SHAW
Yeah, and so is your wife and five kids behind you?
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Yeah.
TIM SHAW
You can use this to go out to fine dining, but you can also do what we're doing with it. Use it as a tractor.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Yeah, compared to a Range Rover. I just think that this has a lot more accessibility in a way. It said to people "Everybody can own this". The Range Rover said "No, sorry, you can't come in. Your name's not on the list".
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
It works for all types of people from all social strata. It's just absolutely on the money.
PHIL CORNWELL
Something else that's on the money is the body of James's discovery. Now it's finally been separated from the chassis. The team have been able to fill, flatten and prime it ready for a coat of original matching Air Force Blue paint. To finish it off, it's gonna need its original plastic exterior trim, but there's a problem with that.
TIM SHAW
All this stuff is mega brittle, like this thing here. If I even touched it hard there, it would just punch through again.
PHIL CORNWELL
Yes, it might take hundreds of years to decompose completely, but plastic does start to degrade a lot faster than that. Decades of exposure to UV radiation, water, and changing air temperatures has caused the chemical bonds within the plastic to break down, leading to the brittleness. Sourcing an entire set of exterior trim parts would take an age. Thankfully, Tim thinks he's found a quicker solution to repair them using toys.
TIM SHAW
I'm going to reinforce all these pieces of plastic here with Lego.
TIM SHAW
And Fuzz's lunch.
TIM SHAW
There are two key differences in the main sorts of plastic. There's a plastic called thermosetting plastic, and actually I can use an egg to demonstrate. Oh.
TIM SHAW
The thing about an egg is that once you heat it up, it becomes a fried egg, and you cannot reverse it back into being, you know, a runny white and a runny yolk. That's the way it is. And that is what a thermosetting plastic is.
TIM SHAW
The other one, the other plastic is called a thermo polymer. These plastics, when heated, become soft again and can be reformed, meaning that the contents of that box, despite the way it looks now, can be reformed to reinforce the areas around the back of such components as those brittle headlight surrounds.
TIM SHAW
So in order to do it according to the science, you need this stuff, which is acetone, which is nail polish remover.
PHIL CORNWELL
For Lego fans it's probably best to look away now and definitely don't try this at home.
TIM SHAW
So acetone basically breaks down the molecular bonds of the thermoplastics.
TIM SHAW
Okay I'm gonna put those down there.
TIM SHAW
And in two hours time from now hopefully that will be a paste that we can reform to reinforce parts of Land Rover Discovery.
PHIL CORNWELL
So while children up and down the country hide their Lego sets.
PHIL CORNWELL
The team has a new toy of its own. The chassis has been blasted and repainted, ready for a new set of coil springs to be fitted. One of the key components that gave this vehicle the edge over the inferior Japanese leaf springs.
PHIL CORNWELL
And a Discovery isn't a Discovery without its permanent four wheel drive gearbox, and this one hasn't moved in five years. It's long overdue a service.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Here we have the gearbox out of James's Discovery. Now, we've had a discovery of our own here, and that is that this is not the original gearbox from the car. Meaning that it's likely to have come out of a Land Rover Classic.
PHIL CORNWELL
Swapping out the original gearbox was a common occurrence. Spare Range Rover parts were cheaper, easier to come by and also improve the Discovery's off road capability. Unfortunately, this upgrade came at a cost.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Now, what happened when these gearboxes were fitted into Discovery's was that an unexpected occurrence happened and that was that they started to fail.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Now when that happened, it meant that the whole of the gearbox needed to be rebuilt.
PHIL CORNWELL
So to see if it can be saved Fuzz starts by stripping it down.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
There we go. There's one bit of the gasket off.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Ah, yeah. There we go.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Now I'll just check.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
So looking down here, if there was wear, you would see that the edges of the spline would be slightly worn to an angle instead of being nice and sharp as they are now, and also they would not be smooth all the way along the line inside.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Because of all the problems that Land Rover had with these gearboxes, they did a modification and that was to put in these holes, this cross drilling here, which allowed oil to get through and onto these splines in here, which allowed lubrication. And that solved the problem. This one has already been modified. So I don't think that we need to replace the whole gearbox on this.
TIM SHAW
So you can see what's happening there already. Look at that. It's melting the plastics. This is such a bizarre thing to see.
TIM SHAW
That is liquid plastic in there.
TIM SHAW
It is a bit of a race against time. I mean, you can see. Look at the consistency of it.
TIM SHAW
And all the time that acetone is evaporating, this is becoming thicker and thicker. So I'm literally gonna just [NOISE] start applying this to this area here to begin with.
TIM SHAW
This is massively gonna reinforce this. It's gonna to be three or four times as thick as it was.
TIM SHAW
So overlook the colour because the colour's irrelevant. It's never gonna get seen.
TIM SHAW
It doesn't matter. All that matters is the strength.
TIM SHAW
You're witnessing a miracle here. You really are. That is self-levelling, plastic reinforced rear end parts off a Discovery. That now is a game changer.
PHIL CORNWELL
Yes. Whilst Tim gives himself a pat on the back, Doctor Fuzz is giving James's engine a thorough health check before it's reunited with the gearbox.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
We've already started this engine up, so we know that it runs, and it runs without rattles or smoke. So what we're gonna to do is do a service on it. So we're going to change the cam belt. We're gonna change the water pump. And then it can go back into the car.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
There we go.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
There's our water pump away.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Now the cam belt should be changed roughly about every 50 to 60,000 miles [UNITCONVERSION] 80,467 to 96,560 kilometres. So this engine has done about 150, 160,000 miles. [UNITCONVERSION] 241,401 to 257,495 kilometres. So we're pretty much on cue for getting this changed.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Off with that front plate.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
There we have it. There's our cam belt.
PHIL CORNWELL
This engine is famously about as bulletproof as a tank. But because the off road punishment the old cam belt will have experienced on the building site, it will have worked harder than the one in your average family run around.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Here we have our fresh belt all lovely.
PHIL CORNWELL
So replacing it is essential.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
So all I need to do now is box it all up by putting the front cover on and the new water pump, and then that's our engine service done. Apart from filters and oil.
PHIL CORNWELL
So with just 24 hours before the boys hand James's car back to him, all the major mechanical work is finally done.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
I just wanted you to take a look at this chassis, because this is amazing and we'll never, ever get to see it like this ever again, because there's gonna be an engine on there, gearbox and of course, a body hiding everything. But look, new springs. The axles have all been refurbished. There's been so much work has had to go into this. It's like a brand new car.
PHIL CORNWELL
Now it's a final sprint for the finish as the team brings this family heirloom back together.
PHIL CORNWELL
The original body and chassis are reunited.
PHIL CORNWELL
The old plastic trim Tim reinforced, is fitted back on.
PHIL CORNWELL
The iconic cargo door is rehung.
PHIL CORNWELL
And the cleaned up Terence Conran interior is back in place.
TIM SHAW
There it is. Job done. That'll go for another half century at least.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
This is perhaps one of only two cars that we've ever done on Car S.O.S. that I would love to see in my garage tomorrow morning. It looks great.
TIM SHAW
Dude, this is going to James tomorrow. It's his car.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
I know it is.
TIM SHAW
We're lucky to get to work on 'em Fuzz. You gotta look at it that way. There's nothing we don't know about this car.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Well, I mean, we've seen virtually every single bit of this car. Good, bad and ugly. Talking of which, Clarkson.
TIM SHAW
What?
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Clarkson.
TIM SHAW
What? Jeremy Clarkson?
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Yeah, [LAUGHS] I know what this is.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
What?
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
You couldn't get him, could you? You tried to get Clarkson. You couldn't get him. There's somebody you couldn't get. [LAUGHS] 
TIM SHAW
No, I haven't been beat and I don't know what you're on about. If you want Clarkson, I'll get Clarkson for you no worries.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Go on then. Come on then.
TIM SHAW
No, don't worry about it. No, you don't want him.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
I do.
TIM SHAW
No you don't. Shut up. Anyway, I'm going to the back of the car.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
[LAUGHS] 
PHIL CORNWELL
So whilst Fuzz and the team work long into the night to get James's car finished for tomorrow's big reveal, Tim's got some awkward phone calls to make.
PHIL CORNWELL
After months of painstaking renovation. It's time for the boys to return James's beloved Discovery to him.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Oh, doesn't it look absolutely stunning here in the sunshine in, I've got to say, well done getting this place.
PHIL CORNWELL
Yeah somehow Tim's pulled it out the bag at the 11th hour and managed to harvest James a trip to a very special farm. But has he got the farmer?
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Now I know where we are and I can see the number plate on there. I've got to admit, you've pulled it off. So what is the plan?
TIM SHAW
James is coming down here today because he's a huge fan of Jeremy's farming show.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
So am I.
TIM SHAW
So he's coming down here for a behind the scenes tour.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Fantastic.
TIM SHAW
Which is a bit of a treat by itself, and at a very certain moment in time, this car is gonna get driven round the corner.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Yes.
TIM SHAW
Driven by the one and only.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Yeah Jeremy Clarkson.
TIM SHAW
You've never met him before?
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
No.
TIM SHAW
Today's gonna be a big day for you, mate. Do you want to meet him now? Shall we bring him out?
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Yeah go on.
TIM SHAW
Shall we? All right. Go on then.
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Brilliant.
TIM SHAW
I'll bring him out.
TIM SHAW
Hello. Nice to meet you. It's Jeremy Clarkson here. How are you doing?
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Tell me that's not it. [TALKING OVER EACH OTHER] 
TIM SHAW
Same sort of height, same sort of build, you know, complexion, hair colour, the lot. So you hide with the family. Then I'll drive this round and at the right moment in time, da da, we give him his car back.
TIM SHAW
Fuzz.
TIM SHAW
What's wrong with that? It's a great idea. We got the farm, got the plate.
TIM SHAW
Cows.
PHIL CORNWELL
Ah so near yet so far, Tim.
PHIL CORNWELL
So while a disappointed Fuzz and James's nearest and dearest hide in a barn, he's just arrived for his VIP tour, which means it's go time on the Discovery.
PHIL CORNWELL
Blimey, that mask looks very realistic.
TIM SHAW
Right, here we go. I'm hiding in the back of the Discovery. Jeremy's driving it at the moment, and in a moment, the world's going to change for James.
PHIL CORNWELL
Because completely unbeknownst to him, he's about to get to meet his TV hero and fellow Land Rover superfan Jeremy Clarkson.
TIM SHAW
Is this the first time you've ever travelled with a body in the back?
TIM SHAW
No.
PHIL CORNWELL
Who's driving around in what he's planning to tell James is his new farmyard four by four runaround.
JEREMY CLARKSON
Hi, there. How are you?
TIM SHAW
Here we go. It's game on.
JEREMY CLARKSON
I'm guessing James, is it?
JAMES
I am yeah. [LAUGHS] 
JEREMY CLARKSON
I'm Jeremy.
JAMES'S FRIEND
How are you?
JEREMY CLARKSON
Enjoying the cows?
JEREMY CLARKSON
You all right?
JAMES
Yeah. [LAUGHS] I recognise that car. [LAUGHS] 
JEREMY CLARKSON
I've just bought it.
JAMES
That's my dad's.
JEREMY CLARKSON
What? Your dad's. Really?
PHIL CORNWELL
Yes. Even with the total transformation. Somehow James has recognised this beloved Discovery as his dad's.
JEREMY CLARKSON
Well, if you look in here, 'cause in her, if you look.
TIM SHAW
Come here.
TIM SHAW
Hello, mate.
TIM SHAW
How you doing? You alright? Nice to meet you. Recognise that?
JAMES
Yeah. As soon as it came round the corner.
JAMES
Really? You recognised it straight away. How's it feel?
JAMES
Amazing.
TIM SHAW
Well, there are a few people here that wanna say hello, I think you might recognise.
TIM SHAW
Can we bring out James's family, please?
FUZZ TOWNSHEND
Hey.
JAMES'S FAMILY
[CHEERS] [APPLAUSE] Woo.
TIM SHAW
Yeah, okay.
TIM SHAW
I know it's a lot to take on. Yeah.
KATE
Your luck's just changed. 
TIM SHAW
So Kate, can you explain why you wrote to us?
KATE
'Cause you went to work in it for 20 years.
TIM SHAW
Come on. People always run away.
KATE
You argued in it. You made plans in it. You ate your lunches and breakfasts in it. There were days when you didn't wanna go to work in it. And then when, the car sort of died a death when dad was passing and it's five years this month, as you know, and the cars back to life for you.
TIM SHAW
Your mum said to me that you'd rather lose the photos of your dad than you would lose this car and that's why we did it. That's why we put this car back on the road. But Jeremy only agreed to let us come down here and help us do this if you help him with some groundwork.
JEREMY CLARKSON
Yeah. 
JAMES
Alright.
JEREMY CLARKSON
If we could just stop the blubbing, we've serious problem up here mate. You are a ground worker 'cause we got the water coming down. [LAUGHTER] We've dug a French drain in there to get it into that field.
TIM SHAW
Can you help?
JAMES
Yeah. Give me two weeks. [LAUGHTER] 
JEREMY CLARKSON
No, we don't do two weeks.
PHIL CORNWELL
When James last saw this beloved family heirloom, it wasn't much more than a compost heap in the corner of a field. But after months of hard work from the boys, it's time to harvest the reward.
PHIL CORNWELL
Now, the once rust ridden body shell is stronger and shinier than ever, with reinforced plastic trim and handles that no longer snap at the slightest touch. The engine has had a super service and stands ready to tackle whatever terrain James throws its way.
PHIL CORNWELL
Underneath, the chassis has been stripped, blasted, repainted and fitted with an entirely new suspension setup.
PHIL CORNWELL
Finally, the original interior has been cleaned and scrubbed and for the first time in a few decades, doesn't resemble a building site.
TIM SHAW
Tell me this at what stage did you know that's my car.
JAMES
As soon as it came around the corner.
TIM SHAW
Really?
JAMES
Yeah. I remember sitting in the back of this car at ten years old when my dad bought it.
TIM SHAW
Really?
JAMES
To then leaving school, going to work with my dad, and then this becoming our work vehicle.
TIM SHAW
Yeah. And you've had quite a lot on you in the sense that it was unexpected wasn't it really with your father? And then you've been given the family business. It's all on you. How has that been?
JAMES
It wasn't the side of the business I was struggling so much with. It was not going to work with my dad 'cause he was my best mate. There's not a moment that doesn't go past that I don't think about him and [SNIFFS] now it's almost like he's next to me. He's in this car. He's here now.
TIM SHAW
There is one other thing. There's a guy who we managed to track down, a guy called Mike Sampson, who, he and his team, designed this car, and he created that for you and that is your car. Your dad's car. It's got the number plate on it.
JAMES
Wow. I wish my dad was here to see this.
TIM SHAW
How are you feeling?
JAMES
Emotional [LAUGHS] really emotional.
TIM SHAW
Well, there is only one thing left to do and that is to give you the keys to your Land Rover and tell you that you have been Car S.O.S'd
JAMES
Thank you. I haven't started her up yet. [LAUGHS] 
TIM SHAW
D'you wanna start it up?
TIM SHAW
Yeah.
JAMES
There's the old sound.
TIM SHAW
How's that feel?
TIM SHAW
Like I'm going to work again with my dad.
KATE
What does it feel like?
JAMES
Like good old times.
KATE
This sound in this car, it just evokes so many memories of it starting on the driveway every morning, and it always started without fail, and went to work every morning for 20 years.
JAMES
I'm not used to being able to see the dashboard, though it was normally full of paperwork.
KATE
Dad would be thrilled if he could see this.
JAMES
Oh man, he'd be ecstatic with this. I never thought this dream would come true, that's for sure.

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