Canadians foil ‘unstoppable’ Top Gear off-roader

Canadians foil ‘unstoppable’ Top Gear off-roader

Top Gear’s Matt LeBlanc and Chris Harris may have described it as an unstoppable 4×4 – but this video proves the Canadians know how to stop this unrelenting off-roader.

The Sherp ATV appeared in episode two of the recently-finished series of Top Gear, where LeBlanc and Harris searched for Big Foot in California – and they showed off the rugged, go-anywhere capabilities of the Russian vehicle.

However in this video, uploaded to YouTube by Canadian David Ostapiw on his Ostacruiser channel, the Sherp was stumped by a deep pool of “Texas clay”.

After two quad bikes got stuck in the mire, the Sherp attempted to get through it – but rather than surmounting it like most other obstacles, it got stuck and made very limited progress.

A post shared by David Ostapiw (@ostacruiser) on

Even the video had to be sped up to show how badly trapped the vehicle was.

With the Sherp floundering in the pool – described as like driving through “wet concrete” – the Russian craft needed the help of quad bike-mounted winch to set it free.

Fitted with specially-patented self-inflating tyres that are 160cm tall and 60cm across, the Sherp is equipped with a 1.5-litre diesel engine that produces 44bhp.

It can take the 1.4-tonne ATV up to a top speed of 27.9mph on land and 3.7mph on water.

The Sherp was developed in the Russian wilderness, where it took on swamps, tundra and freezing cold – making it one of the toughest and most dependable vehicles ever built.

By employing skid-steering – rather than a conventional steering wheel – the Sherp drives more like a tank than a car, but it can take on 35-degree gradients and pretty much any terrain – apart from glutinous mud it would seem.

The Sherp ATV is built to drive almost anywhere – even on water!

Costing $65,000 (roughly £46,500) for the base spec model with a tent-like soft shell, you can buy the ‘Kung’ version that costs $70,000 (£50,000) and comes with a hard body and adaptable interior.

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