For the Love of Cars

The Mk1 Ford Escort Mexico is the car that brought speed to the average lad on the street. It was the car that created the boy racer and, for ever after, meant that young blokes could get a bit lairy spinning their wheels on a mod-ed up 2nd hand run around. The humble Ford Escort might have been created as a family car, but when it was taken rallying a true legend was born. Its victory in the 1970 London to Mexico Rally launched the Escort Mexico and British roads were never the same again. Now it's down to Phil Glenister and internationally renowned car designer Ant Anstead to find, rescue and restore an incredibly rare Ford Escort Mexico back to the level that would make any boy racer proud. Unfortunately the only example Ant can find has been sitting in a barn for 15 years, more rust than metal; its engine is in bits and in boxes.

The Land Rover Series 1 is about as an iconic British car as you can get. It is Winston Churchill on wheels, just saying the name makes you want to stand up and salute. Born in 1948 it went on to conquer the world and win the hearts of car lovers everywhere. Rugged, simple, it just gets the job done. However, examples of this national treasure of automotive pride are getting harder and harder to find. It's down to Phil Glenister and internationally renowned car designer Ant Anstead to find, rescue and restore a Landie back to as good as new. Unfortunately the only example they can get their hands on has been sitting in a barn for over 41 years; un-driven, unloved and covered in cat dropping.

The Triumph Stag is a car that represents the best and worst of British motoring. Launched in 1970 with continental good looks and a punchy V8 engine it was the perfect car for the G&T loving set. With more than a hint of the middle aged play boy about its design, the glamour faded all too quickly as the car became synonymous with overheating engines and unexpected break downs. Just 7 years later the last Stag rolled off the British Leyland production line and the car into the motoring world's rogues gallery. Now it's down to Philip Glenister and internationally renowned car designer Ant Anstead to find, rescue and rehabilitate a Stag back to better than new. Unfortunately original Stags are increasingly hard to come by and its only after discounting some particularly sorry examples that Ant finds his car under a tarpaulin, tucked away at the back of a scrap yard.

The Mini Cooper Mk1 was the car that changed everything. From its revolutionary design and front wheel drive to its conquering record as a track and rally car; it was the small car with the big heart that went on to be the first motor to sell over a million. Driven by royalty, 60s superstars and the man on the street - everyone loved a Mini. Created by design genius Alec Issigonis as a direct response to the fuel shortage caused by the Suez Crisis in 1956, the Mini was original designed to be a run around for the district nurse but 58 years later it is widely considered to be one of the greatest cars ever built. Now it's down to Phil Glenister and internationally renowned car designer Ant Anstead to find, rescue and restore a Mini back to its former glory. But no ordinary Mini, Phil has set his hopes on an incredibly rare Mk 1 Cooper. Ant finally tracks one down but has to venture to Dublin to rescue this rusting heap from the back of a barn.

The 1945 MGTC was the little car that broke America paving the way for the mass exportation of British sporty two seaters for the next 30 years. From its birth in a grim post war Britain, when MG took a pre-war model, changed a few body parts and used their new found expertise in mass producing tanks to get a car back on the road, to sunny Los Angeles where road racers and GI's took to this little car with aplomb, the MGTC was the car that people just fell in love with. Everyone, that is, apart from Phil. Now it's down to Phil Glenister and internationally renowned car designer Ant Anstead to find, rescue and restore a MGTC back to its former glory, but while Ant is on the spanners, Phil has to overcome a very real challenge. He doesn't like to drive this car.

There can be few other cars with a more tangled and strange story to tell than the DeLorean DMC-12. The brain child of John Zachary DeLorean the DMC-12 is famous for its gull wing doors, stainless steel finish and staring role in the Back to the Future movies. But there is more to this story than gimmicky doors and time travel. Built for just two years from 1981 to 1983, only 9000 of the cars were completed before the company collapsed amidst a blizzard of scandal, corruption and the arrest of DeLorean on accusations of funding a massive cocaine deal. But it could all have been so different. John DeLorean was an automotive hot shot, rising through the ranks of corporate America, destined for the very top when he decided to risk it all and launch his own personal dream car. A car he wanted to create for the masses with cutting edge safety and environmental features. A car that would change the way we drove. A car that, DeLorean hoped, would look like a spaceship and drive like a super car. Now it's down to Phil Glenister and internationally renowned car designer Ant Anstead to find, rescue and restore a DeLorean back to its former glory. While Ant strips down and rebuilds our DeLorean, including tackling its monster clutch and stainless steel body, Phil travels from Belfast to Los Angeles to untangle the story of the DMC-12.