Richard Hammond Drives American Cars In France
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- Опубліковано 9 лют 2025
- Richard Hammond tackles four iconic American cars in France. From the exhilarating Chevrolet Corvette, the world's best-selling sports car with a 5.7L V8 engine, to the luxurious Cadillac Seville catering to corporate elites.
The adventure continues with the robust Chevrolet Blazer, a mighty American off-roader, and concludes with the value-packed Chevrolet Camaro, proving that it's a sports car that delivers bang for the buck despite handling nuances
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Hammond is really an American at heart
+TheAKBUDDHA1 We here in the states have always known that, we suppose he'll be moving here soon.
+TheAKBUDDHA1 oh hell yeah........ma nigga.
IKR? He even said KAMAYRO not KAMAHRO properly
No that should read "Hammond is really an American at teeth"
Perhaps thats why so many Americans love him?
The only small thing in a Corvette in Hammond
frozenman82 *is
frozenman82 in more ways than one
In most of Europe the Vett IS a big car, especially for a two seat 'roadster'. In Portugal a Mini Cooper looks plenty big...seriously.
yeah you can tell he is small by how close he is to the wheel lmao
@@Mrbfgray It's not the cars that are big it's the roads that are too small, on some roads 2 small cars don't even cross
The Seville had night vision? I never knew that. And to think I was amazed when Clarkson was talking about the S-Class having night vision on Top Gear in like 2007. The Cadillac Seville had it 10 years earlier. Clarkson really doesn't give American cars their credit. Glad Hammond does though.
I'd be willing to bet (yes I'm an American) that the Cadillac system was not on par with Mercedes... And I'd be willing to bet that the Mercedes engineers engineered it themselves... They weren't using old GM tech to make their night vision system
Paul Carmi lol Mercedes was with Chrysler not Cadillac at the time. GM engineered the night vision system along with magnetic ride and the small block LS and LT motors. Sure Mercedes has a better night vision system but it took them years to have it. Give credit where credit is do.
@Umbra Mortis that’s because that Cadillac could only be bought by extremely rich people, the Austin could be bought by a regular dude with regular salary. And let’s be honest, the night vision may be the only good thing about a Seville.
@@paulcarmi8130 It's the same tech. MB just used a higher resolution updated version. Also, it was originally created by defense contractor Raytheon for use in the Gulf War.
@@Eidrian111 No.
Funny how he considers the Blazer big, meanwhile it's a compact SUV stateside (or medium at best). I wonder what he'd have to say about the Tahoe, or better yet - the Suburban... OR the Ford Excursion :)
+mardamek Damn, my thoughts exactly.
+mardamek The Tahoe and Suburban are rolling cathedrals. Well, unless you're American, I suppose?
appelpower1 "Cathedral" is a good description. They do command a religious devotion in the States.
crusherbmx That... was hilarious! XD
+mardamek love the excursion
Wow i never knew the 90s Corvette was so gorgeous. Amazing pop-up headlights and beautiful red color! 😁
TheRazer43 that's the 1997 to 2004 corvette the 84-96 corvette looks different
C5 Corvette is the one you like 43, They look pretty cool with aftermarket flush mount headlights as well
I love those cars. One of my favorite generations of Corvette (C5). Honestly the only one I think is better looking is the 63-67 (C2).
Vettes had pop up head lamps from 1963-2004. For some the loss of pop ups was a tuff pill after 4 generations of pop up.
90s cars in general were gorgeous.
"They killed an entire field full of cows and spread their skin all over inside this thing." LOL BEST description of a leather interior I've ever heard. Well done, sir.
OMG I totally didn't know that some Caddy's have night vision ... wow! Makes me think modern cars aren't very fancy. XD
Man, the Cadillac Seville was a more revolutionary car than I thought...
A few fun facts.
ABS systems were available on top range luxury cars from Lincoln, Cadillac, and Imperial (Chrysler) in 70-73.
71 Buicks had the first traction control, called MaxTrac.
75 You could fit air bags to certain full size GM cars.
96 Cadillac rain sensing wipers, will come on automatically and sweep based on rain fall
Richard needed back then to measure a Porsche 911 or one of it's offspring to notice the length was nearly identical to a Corvette while the Vette was only an inch wider. The weights were about the same as well.
Carmaro and vett are considered small cars over here with big power
The voice is the same but Hammond looks like a teenager!
I am watching this 7 years after it was uploaded and the one thing that struck me the most was his amazement at the Camaro being so much cheaper than an Audi. What should amaze him is the Camaro being much more reliable than the Audi.
its about 20 years old dickhead
The only thing I noticed is how little power that 5.7L V8 was putting out. These days a turbo 2L 4 banger can put out over 350 BHP
@@Psythik To compare a naturally aspirated engine with a turbo engine is not really equal. The 5.7L does it without any modifications like turbos or superchargers. Put turbos and superchargers on the engine and performance increasers dramatically.
@@mgreg8134and the lifespan decreases drastically. Who cares what you squeeze out of a tiny little sack of crap if it’s going to die in a few years? Very unamerican to buy like that
@@Psythik But it lasts about a month in the real world. Stick your turbo's just something to stress the engine and go wrong.
I was in London once and by chance the London Auto show was underway just a few blocks from my hotel. I thought, why not? I could go see the British Museum some other time (Next Day). In the entire show the was one display that was packed with a massive crowd and a long line of people waiting for the chance to sit in the car and what it was is a Pontic Firebird, the sistercar to the Camero we see in this video. People were drooling and gawking and completely delighted over a Pontiac while the BMW, Mercedes, Ferrari and other stands seemed almost empty.
It was funny because in the US the perception of Pontiacs is they are about as unique as a loaf of bread. But to be fair I was fascinated by several European cars a European might consider creepy or nerdy. I enjoyed the Citroens and others I never was sure what they were. My favorite car I sat in was the Audi A8. It completely blew me away because the outside was so conservative but In my opinion the inside was better than a Mercedes S class.
Night vision in a Cadillac..way ahead of European cars..plus at the time this Caddy was as luxurious inside as a merc...
Corvette? Big??? You're MAD!
lol you forget he is hamster sized 😂
The corvette really is a big car. Compare it to my Saturn Sky and it’s a foot and a half longer. You sit 2 inches shorter than my car but overall, it is a big car. At least when compared to the European sports cars of that time
To add to other comments, it feels really big when you actually sit in one. It's unlike anything. Never have I sat in a car and was more reminded that I was surrounded by metal. You're positioned in a really weird way that changes perception while driving.
Right? I'm not dogging on the Corvette. I'm not a fan of it but it puts other cars that cost twice or 4 times as much to shame. I just wish it was the size of my sky lol.
VideeoJunkee I own a C5 vette and like most sport cars interior room is not it's selling point!
I like that they let Richard Hammond do all these tests as soon as he got his license at age 16
dude caddie had a night vision before Mercedes?
General Motors system is passive, Mercedes is active
Will Poundstone so. they had it first! first plains crashed, doesnt mean the idea was crap, ya someone came along and made it better, so what, they didnt invent it, thats the hard part.
*****
GM didn't invent night vision.
Will Poundstone
Passive is good.
If you spot paparazzi in the dark. You can run them over without the car automatically applying the brakes.
ECURB511 I like your reference.
LMAO killed an entire field of cows. 😂
Travis Lmfao
HOW MANY SHOWS DOES HAMMOND DO?!
This was Hammond's start to what eventually got him into Top Gear.
As many as his pimp makes he do.
All of them.
I love how the HUD and night vision were on these old GM cars, and euro cars are now copying.
not really.. it's a gimmick really and a potentially dangerous feature as trying to watch both a little heads up IR display plus the actually view out the screen is confusing plus say it worked fairly well, (unlike old US systems and more like modern Euro ones) people will just drive faster inappropriately as they think they the infared camera allows them to do so safely..
madstu666 so what! they had it first, nothing is perfect the first time they make stuff, someone always takes someones original good idea and make it better, look at computers, GPS nav, cars themselves, Mercedes Benz first cars SUCKED then ford took the idea and made it better, same thing ass hole, no one likes america but that doesnt mean they didnt come up with cool stuff sometimes. cred where its due dude.
I love how you're talking about something you're completely clueless about.
derbigpr500 enlighten me then.
derbigpr500 You are truly ignorant. You probably live in Europe don't you? typical cookie cutter Mercedes/BMW/Audi etc. fan/owner. Thinking you're all high and mighty, and that your cars are better. I'd like to see you come to any Midwestern area of the United States and say European cars have always been better. In 100 out of 100 cases, you'll get laughed at. Fact.
This was a great throwback. Thanks for sharing. By the way, when Prince says , Little Red Corvette, he was talking about one of the original. Corvettes were talking like 1959 to 1965.
The blazer is like the size of a 3 series...
It's larger to Europeans
@@papajhonsreal the 3 series he compared it to is European though.
Very cool, you still see a lot of this cars on the road in Europe.
Stefan P There are still a lot of Cadillac Seville and Chevy Blazer here in Switzerland.
+Daniel28021991 I've never seen any of these cars except the corvette on European roads.
+Tyler Durdon Maybe it depence on the country, here are still a lot of this.
Yes, the UK does not seem to buy into American cars, I think we are too intelligent :)
+Tyler Durden I'm guessing you're joking, gg XD
Watching this in 2021 and amazed at how far cars have come.
Richard Hammond. The polar opposite of Jeremy Clarkson when it comes to America and its things lol. I find it funny he calls the vette huge when hes been at the wheel of equally big if not larger(dimensionally) euro exotics such as Lamborghini.
To add. May he only called the Corvette big in keeping with the theme of the video. The same could be said for calling the blazer big when they have Land Rover.
The Corvette is a large car. Sure, not as big as a Lamborghini Aventador, but that's apples and oranges. But it's interior is still more spacious than that of an Aventador. It is perhaps the most spacious twoseater sports car on the market (definitely the one with the most luggage space).
Same goes for the Blazer, the blazer is supposed to be a mid size SUV and you are comparing it to a full size SUV.
Jeremy doesn't hate american cars, In an interview he seriously said that he totally loves them.
@@stephans1990 That was my point. They would still act like the blazer was "big".
Edit for clarity: Im aware the land rover is apples to oranges. I was saying that despite them having full size land rovers, they would act like the american blazer is "huge" because american.
@@MohitPratapSingh95 I know. At the end of the day, hes just an auto journalists entertaining an audience. And his american jokes are just comedy, hes just playing to his mostly British audience. But sometimes he lays it on thick lol. Jokes aside, him and James do seem to have a dislike for American things compared to Hammond.
The C5 Corvette is such a looker.
Remember in the UK a Ford Contour was considered a full sized car.
Only Hammond would get into a Corvette and say it was enormous
Richard the American.
+ilcool90 Richard J. "cheeseburger" Hammond the 3rd
ilcool90 Hammond can sell us any car!
it's interesting seeing a review of cars when they were new back in the day
Just when I thought Hammond couldn't get any shorter
I love the catfish camaros :) it really was the bang for your buck king when it came to American V8 muscle, and still are on the used market
20 something grand is "no money"..............and heres me strugling to keep my central heating on.
ewww gross poor person, get off the internet! We don't take kindly to your types around here
MGT don't worry, half of the rest of UA-cam is also underpaid
A British🇬🇧 man driving a German🇩🇪 plate American🇺🇸 car in France🇫🇷. If this isn't the most ambitious crossover ever, I don't know what is.
I can't imagine many people in the UK bought many of those cars, maybe just a handful.
None of these are particularly big here in the States. The S10 Blazer was considered a toy. I guess the Caddy is kinda big "for a car", but our roads and parking lots EASILY accommodate 3/4-ton trucks. Outside of a couple cities with housing crises, there's always plenty space for these.
In fact, the 95-05 S10 Blazer is 183 in long, the exact same as a 2018-present Equinox.
It's America
lol they think the chevy blazer is big
That thing starts looking huge in the cramped streets of a European city.
the 90s... when 0-60 in 5 seconds is "ridiculously fast"
Ha. I have a sedan that goes 0-60 in 3.8. Times change! Lol
Richard hammond now owned by GM
That cadillac sevile is not huge, its as big as an eclass.The only reason why richard hammond calls it huge is for the theme of the video
Actually the Caddy is a foot longer, 4 inches wider and has 9 cubic feet more interior space than an E class...
That version Seville is 3 inches shorter than the one sold in the US.
Does anybody else find it ironic how the "well put together cars" like an Audi, BMW, or Merc are less reliable than the implied poorly put together American cars? xD
The only thing the Germans have on American cars are interiors, and that is quickly fading away.
American Vehicles are always bang for your buck... and they will often drive longer than others...
Albeit may fall apart but still last longer.
Steven Stringer And japanese vehicles fall right in the middle. They're just more expensive because of "japanese" tax and "reliable" tax.
Ryan Holmes yup!
Only mercs have crappy quality, not Audis or BMWs. The bad quality in the merces strangely wasn't there until they merged with Chrysler.. Strange.. :)
Geir Erling Gulbrandsen actually you're kinda right there lol
It seems liek this...
European cars in north america fall a part...
American cars in europe fall apart...
They just arent built for the same people in the same climate
C5 Corvette a classic..brilliant car..not only the amazing looks but performance.even today it looks fantastic..the Corvette is a great buy ..bit once it arrives in UK..yeah you get ripped off by taxes..buy if in states..there isnt a car as good for the money.
They want to surprise France with American cars ?? France have her own drag racing federation. I mean the real drag racing, Pro Mods, Pro Stock, Nitro Top Fuel Funny Cars, Nitro Top Fuel Dragsters, Top Alcohol Funny Cars, Top Alcohol Dragsters, Top Fuel Altereds, Nitro Top Fuel Bikes, Pro Extreme Bikes, Pro Mod Bikes, Pro Stock Bikes, Jet Funny Cars, Jet Dragsters and a very well known fearless Rocket Bike rider Eric Teboul. There was even a very brave drag racer named Bob Feeler, he was setting records with his Rocket Funny Car. I don't think Hammond knows this and I don't think he will surprise France with that red Corvette.
Damn that camaro is nice
Oh, a 2cv parked on the side of the road... Now that is an awesome car !
in what way does it inspire awe?
that youd be awestruck anyone would want the wretched little rotbox?
Size anxiety would be a huge problem owning one of these in the EU, especially something like the Blazer. Look how big it looks on the road!
Back when 343hp was “enormous”
Still is depending on weight
Our cars are so far ahead of Europe and japan.
The funny thing about the Seville is it's actually 3 inches shorter than the version sold in the US.
All American cars, all being driven in France, all with German license plates from Gross-Gerau?!? Weird...
Back in 1999 road tax in France was extremely expensive ;)
GG is the Euro HQ of GM.
Crazy how 5.2 0-60 was considered "ridiculous" and now even FWDs can do under 5, Mini JCW GP for example does in 4.7
The upside of this is you can still build the snot out of a C6 and reduce that time to something 'modern'. 5.2 is plenty quick enough for me, thank you. I was looking at an 80k silver 6-speed coupe for 14k but I just acquired a new project so I had to pass. They won't get any cheaper...
I remember at age 11 on a European tour with my parents in 1978 going past a car dealership with about a dozen Pontiac Trans Ams. I forgot which country that was in.
That's awesome. I've heard that Germans love Trans Ams, especially the 70s ones
When was this programme first aired on tv? Hammond looks very young here, and most of the Top Gear tests I have seen about the Cadillac Seville, they had nothing good to say about the car, yet Hammond here seems to be really singing its praises.
Gary Dunn Probably somewhere between 98 and 02.
OK Thanks, I guessed it would have been sometime in the late 90's or thereabouts.
What year was this made? The Seville was discontinued in 2004 and the other cars look to be at least two generations old.
What year was this shown in
America is very nice
Damn so much power at picking up
the Seville is big? hahh! try a seventies Deville. heck my 05 is bigger
Dace Browning You forgot the 1977 Cadillac Eldorado
I had a corvette 2001 6 speed black interior 12 disc CD player HUD display chrome wheels etc from 2011-2013
Now i Know That Hammond Is American Since Early Days, Like Clarkson Said " Fundamentaly American" .
Hammond is more like a Canadian. Not quite brash or big enough to be an American. Now Clarkson on the other hand, he is pretty American. And James is quintessentially British.
I'd like to see a segment in The Grand Tour where they watch clips like these...a blistering 5 SECONDS
5 seconds is still incredibly fast for 340 horsepower..
The ball joints in those s10's / blazer wear and tear real fast.
What year was this filmed? 2002?
They say American cars are big but when Euro cars are this size they do not go on about it Ferrari Marranello , Aston Martins etc are huge . Brit journalist are bias
If you think an S-10 Blazer is big try getting a full-size Taho or Suburban around the skinny roads in Europe and the UK. Same for the Ford Expadition and Excursion. You would need a phone book to sit on to see over the steering wheel
1:29 the only small thing in that Corvette is actually *You* 😂
That Corvette C5
American cars are underrated! Everyone loves Corvettes and Camaros!!
Makes me want to take a 1970's Suburban to France or any other country with small roads
8:17 Hammond really looks like a middle schooler
I was in a Mercedes-Benz C class at an auto show and the plastics in that thing were sharp and it had a poor quality interior and they were selling for $70,000, then I sat In a ford Taurus and it had MUCH better quality and the fact the more expensive german car had a poor build quality blew me away
Both the C class and the Taurus are trash. Mercedes' built to cost entry level luxury cars are a joke and the Taurus has got to be the worst car Ford ever built.
+Genes I agree
Corvettes are small cars yet so cool and quick
Great looking Camaro..nothing like it in UK at the time. Its far better than a boring looking audi..for the price its fantastic..
It's a shame that he had the Camaro. The Firebird is not only a better looking car, but better overall.
Richard Hammond rocks! Top Gear rules!
Two things:
1. I thought Hammond nowadays is hot as hell. He was a cute guy back then, too!
2. Wait...is he testing the Seville or the DHS? The former was used in every segment regarding Cadillac, but the latter was used during the night vision segment. I’m a bit confuzzled...
I am amazed he can see over the steering wheel!!!
And so his transformation into becoming the 'Secret American' begins...
I thought this was the STS, not the Seville?
Seville touring sedan
Imagine if they took a deville instead of a Seville, it would of been bigger
Yep. And the European Seville was 3 inches shorter than the American market Seville.
I love how the s10 blazer is large
Richard hammond looks so young in this
I love how these used to be comically big
French version of C5 had different version of tail lights, didn't know that. It looked prettier :)
It mentions in the description the Corvette being the worlds best selling sports car. I was pretty certain that was the MX-5.
MX-5 is just a roadster.
1:59, they really made the cameraman curl up in the trunk to film this. lol.
Richard Hammond, the secret American!
All still drive to this day
The 'Vette is about the same size as the 550 Maranello, but they don't go on about the size of that. Typical.
Poor Hammond, everything is just big in his book. He looked like a child running around the cars at the beginning lol
The Cadillac shown with night vision is newer than the Seville originally shown.
1:05 “This thing’s enormous!” No Hammond, you’re just tiny 😂
Never thought the old blazer was “large”
I saw a C5 Vette the other day & he was going like a Stabbed rat naturally I gave him the thumbs up
Oh common, the fit and finish of GM cars are EXACTLY as good as Opel, Vauxhall, Citroen, Peugot... even better.
richard had a kid, then became that kid, then grew up lol.
The Corvette and Camaro prob still running. The Cadillac and Blazer prob in junkyard n recycled for parts several times over
What color is that Vette? Ketchup red?!
Nope torch red
I was being facetious.
+PGTMR2 He was being factual.
I know it's not communism red for sure.
That smile tho
Love em all except Corvette