Escaping a Flash Flood in our Toyota AE86 and GTI // Road to Enlightenment Ep.2 

Again, we're totally blown away by your comments. This was a real adventure for us, and it's awesome so many of you are coming along for the ride. Episode 3 is hopefully going to be just as epic! And of course, this whole journey wouldn't have been possible without the support of Autotempest. So go to this link, peruse a ton of used car sites, and show them some love! www.autotempest.com/?

I believe schnitz and toe foo already had more offroad time than most of the wrangler sold in the US 😂

50k for a broken Japanese tofu hatchback? James: yeah sure it’s alright

$36k CAD for a beams swapped AE86 with watanabes is still an outrageously amazing deal. Im calling cap on that, I think James spent even more lmao

Absolutely loving this series. Some of the best stuff on youtube

Throttle House has now officially become the benchmark for all other automotive review media, hands down. The journey, the story, the cinematography, the editing. Absolute perfection!

This series perfectly fills the void in my heart top gear specials left behind. The chemistry, the cinematography, the pacing, the challenge and most importantly the cars. I completely forgot I was on RU-vid for almost an hour and rather watching something produced by Amazon prime or Netflix. Hope to see more adventures like this in future!

Shoutout Harrison, the real MVP. Delivering great audio quality and car electronics diagnosting.

I love that this series is being released simultaneously as gears and gasoline’s kei car road trip

I don't think we need to call this "Top Gear Vibes". From now on, all future videos will give Throttle House vibes, you are the kings now 👑

This has old Top Gear vibe that I love, except it's US road trip and it's free to watch.

If someone had asked me what it would take to create a successful “road trip special” in the mold of the original Top Gear, I would have said they’d need extremely creative writers, extraordinary on-camera personalities and chemistry, and stunning production. Even with all that, they’d still need some mysterious extra magic element to really make it work… Well, the Throttle House crew didn’t bother to ask me. They were too busy making this outstanding content. Absolutely perfect!

The in between animations on the route are beautifully made

The chemistry, the drama, the cinematography, the sound design. It's all beautiful

I definitely want to see a sequel to this where you guys upgrade/ restore these cars and do a Canadian road trip in the summer weather.

Honestly the plate at the bottom of the AE86's engine @ 25:59 flopping around sounds like an old cammed mustang 😂

Driving off-road away from civilization is always an adventure. I promise one day you'll look back at this and love every bit of the trip (except maybe the $50k revelation). One time I took a friend up to a campsite about 12,000 feet above sea level in the Rocky Mountains. We had a stock 4x4 truck and it was a blast. Saw beautiful scenery and some animals. We got there in the evening and set up our tents. We were the only ones at this mountain lake and surrounded by a beautiful mountain range. The trail was about 2 hours from our house, and the ride up was about another hour. When it got dark, we finally laid down and we found we were so high in elevation that when we laid down we got light headed and dizzy. We tried sleeping in the truck, without any change. About 11pm that night, we finally decided we would have to drive home. We got home about 3am utterly exhausted. Better believe we weren't happy about it then, but we sure laugh about it now!

As someone who doesn’t comment a lot on RU-vid, I’m writing this half an hour after watching since I just can’t get my head around how great this video and series is. It hits very close to when OG Top Gear was at their best, but without feeling to scripted or cringy. This is an absolute masterpiece and I can not wait for the next episode. Thank you!

Voiceover: The peace and serenity of that beautiful Sedona morning, was shattered by the bellow of a wild animal Thomas: "IT WAS HOW MUCH?!"

how am i just seeing this. how did this not BLOW THE F UP! such a great special. loved it.

Great vid! Thomas pays $16,000, everything works! James pays $48,000, doesn’t realize he’s missing his sun visor until well into the trip! 😂😂😂

As a native Arizonian, it makes me happy to see you guys enjoying this beautiful state. Arizona is one of the most diverse states in the country. From deserts to the south, to forest covered mountains, and canyons to the north.

I think what makes this one of the best non 'Clarkson/Hammond/May' road-trips ever, is how much mire understated, subtle and less brash and bombastic every other Top Gear clone tries to be. This is genuinely interesting, entertaining without forced laughter, loud noises cos you know loud=funny and it's just got that old Top Gear 'vibe'. I can't put my finger on it, but some of the shots, music choices, more 'real' feeling script and a certain level of charm make this really entertaining. If the 'Trio' are retired, let's face it they basically are, then Thomas and James are carrying the torch, alongwith Alex Kersten. Great series, keep it up boys

I don’t comment on RU-vid often but this series merits it. I am a total Top Gear refugee. And the grand tour lived up to the original. But I always felt a little bit guilty. This series proves that you guys are completely up to the challenge of creating a true car adventure show but doing it without the not so casual racism and homophobia. I’ll sure as hell but my next car through autotempest if they’ll help guarantee more fantastic, genuine, car reviews and adventures like this one. Thanks guys. For real, you’re a credit to the genre.

Don’t stop making this series! Last two videos are my favorite videos you guys made so far.

I'm so glad you were able to show the incredible diversity of my native state of Arizona. So many people think it's just a desert. Wish I could have met you guys while you were here, but thanks for all the nice comments about this incredible state

I love how the delirium kicks in after exhaustion and how hard Thomas was laughing at James' car. Almost like a Big Brother teasing a little brother while having the time of their lives.

“We go fast along and long together” On my PlayStation and Steering Wheel, I would drive my favorite cars featured in car and driver and then mimic their experiences. Then, at a young age, would mail my writing to car and driver. Years later, I started writing car articles and counseling young military members on the importance of credit, interest rates and living in your means. You’re channel is a reminder of following dreams, doing what you love, never looking back, and why not? I’ve been watching your channel, thinking of applying to automotive journalist companies, and decided today - I will - but might make my own. I can’t wait for your production to get to the level of peak cinematography. Proud of you two knuckleheads.

Best car series on yt

Honestly guys, you need to do more trips like this. It’s been so much fun to watch and is so well produced, a real credit to all the team involved. Can’t wait for the final episode 😂

Making poor decisions and tempting fate is exactly the best kind of adventure. You guys killed it so far with this series. Love it!

I’ve been watching car content on RU-vid for over 10 years, this was one of the best things I’ve ever watched. I have never left a comment before, but was compelled as it should be recognised and hopefully goads these guys to make more adventurous content like this in the future.

I've long considered you guys the spiritual successor to the 'good old days' of Top Gear. This kinda seals it. Great work.

Can we just take a minute to *really* appreciate the production value here? I mean, really - excellent job chaps! Incredible stuff.

love the fact that Thomas's last name is related to the Dutch, and James's last name being a literal translation to Englishman from Dutch :D

Shout out to the Sound guy for finding the right fuse!! Loving this series! Thank you!!

45:50 that's actually exactly the reason why you are making better progress on these roads at night. I had the same experience on a jungle road in Cameroon at night a couple years ago. I was absolutely flying down this road (at night and rain) because I could see the shadows of the bumps way ahead. Makes me very happy somehow to see you guys having the same experience.

Kudos to the video team. The b-roll supports the story so well without excess. It’s just perfect storytelling.

Imagine how much better this trip would have been if people hadn't messed around with the suspensions and engine. Applause to the manufacturers and designers. You made good cars.

Not James giving a cheery monologue while Thomas is fighting for his life with a Jerry can 😂 7:51

I'm in love with that GTI. The first two generations were imperfectly perfect.

Hold your horses! Episode 2 just dropped!!

I’m sure some of the anger and drama about how much the Toyota costs is for show, but how much was truly an angry reaction? It’s hard to tell! Love this series, love Throttle House! An excellent example of automotive storytelling, entertainment, and journalism.

This is the best series ever,reminds me of Top Gear. You gotta continue,you have to travel the world now. Keep up with the good work guys

I am aware of how much work and time went into making this enlightenment series but it's absolutely worth it! So many laugh out loud moments and two beautiful classic cars, reminds me of when Top Gear (Clarkson and Co.) was funny and watchable. Thank you so much TH

You boys are hitting grand tour level with this one!

WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW!!! Guys, it's so un f*cking believeble what you've done. I was so afraid that after TG/GT great trio, noone will make something this level. Something, that doesn't try to copy anyone, and not just boring technical stuff, not trying to fake something like BBC did, trying to relaunch TG, but something that has such a true, adventurous soul. Thank you so much for what you're doing and I'm wishing you all the very very best from the bottom of my heart. This genre is kept alive and has a future only because of you!

This kind of reminds me of the trip I and my family had years ago offroading through mountains and deserts in our '98 Toyota Corollas in Afghanistan. There were uphills that only animals could climb. My uncle did an amazing job of driving a low car with 4 passengers the entire time and keeping the fuel pipe safe. We would get stuck and push or pull our cars up the mountain. I couldn't recognize myself or my clothes by the end of it because of how dusty we had gotten. It was an adventure nonetheless.

that plate bouncing on the ground was THE EXACT noise my exhaust made when it half fell off my car while driving...ahhh nostalgia

Was watching TV then got a notification and found what should actually be on TV currently. You blokes are amazing.

The "genuinelity" when the unexpected happens brings one of the best episodes of Throttle House. Well done, team. 👍🏻

At the end of it all, you had In N Out, and thus got to experience the best thing America has ever produced. Stay blessed.

Amazed that you can get this type of content for free. Awesome work guys! You deserve your own series on a streaming platform

You guys have hilarious chemistry. This is the closest thing that I've seen to late 2000s Top Gear. Great content!

The expressions and interpretations of events were so pure, made me hard laughing. Thank you very much to remember us how to be on a trip and expecting the unexpected

50:07 look like a wallpaper, best shot yet

Throttlehouse has never been this entertaining to watch! Would love to have a series like this at least once a year :D

Yes yes and yes. That top gear vibe is strong with this one

Damn.. that series really makes me miss my old 1992 Audi 80 quattro... just 210 hp, but also just 1074 kg of turbocharged 5 cylinder magic with swapped 6-speed manual. It also went places it had no business be at and i really miss the lightweight feel. Cars like these are what make driving great. Light and agile, capable of bringing pleasure even at just 80km/h. As for the series - absolutely astonishing work. I was wondering when you guys would go for one of these and talking about hitting the ground running. Simply amazing.

I had the privileged of owning 3 of these, 2 running in the late 90's/ early 2000's, loved that car. Slow af till it gets going then it can do things other cars can't. And an ashtray perfectly placed that held like 5 packs. 4age sounded so awesome with an exhaust and it didn't cut your power at redline. Sounds like its going to blow up but it don't.

I'm 15 mins into this, and I'll say it on this episode like I did the previous episode: I'd have paid for this via Patreon or something. I absolutely love seeing something like this from fellow Canadians from the communities and areas a lot of us grew up in and drove through and everything. Cannot wait to see what's next for you lads :)

This was an amazing episode! I feel like the biggest compliment I can give is that I kept looking for a third car, but at the same time not being disappointed it wasn't there. It felt so often like I was watching you guys film a Top Gear special, which I know is the inspiration behind these adventures. That night drive under those conditions looked stressful as heck.

This is by far the best series I have seen in a long while. Just hilarious moments, one after another. Please consider having more adventures content like this in the future. I love sport cars and super cars as much as the next person, but content like this I can absolutely re-watch over and over again.

Can’t tell you how much I’m enjoying this road trip guys 👍🏻🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

I know everyone said this already, but this is AMAZING. Please don't stop.

If someone showed me this for the first time, I'd have no clue it was a RU-vid video. This is top notch! My compliments to you guys and the crew!

This is like watching top gear. Not an imitation either, everything from the production to the humour, it all grips you like a top gear special used to.

Possibly the best line of the whole episode. “So my contribution to this trail is just the tip?” I laughed so hard I choked on my drink. 😂

The western US is simply packed with incredible scenery. And I'm glad I'm getting to watch you two enjoy some of it. Even with a $36k Corolla. ;)

You guys have officially eclipsed Top Gear in my heart with this series. Love it. Thanks for all your work, guys

Anyone notice how the top of the side view mirror on the Vette is just a little lower than the ROOF in the GT? When this gen Ford GT first came out, I bought one. For my young son of four years old. Who was yet to really get into cars. Yet I bought it for him, dammit. It was in the toy section at Costco, but honestly, I would never have bought it if it didn’t have the license credentials from Ford on the box, and was anything but an exact replica. So I, I mean we, got to gaze at it from every angle, below ground level on the coffee table, you name it. I would take a couple of flashlights to illuminate it with beams shooting out from those flying buttresses, and every gimmick I could create. Simply a divine thing of beauty. The Ferrari 458, not the F8, is right there, and honestly maybe more beautiful, but less dramatic. You look at the GT and are basically forced to wonder, “what’s this all about, and why don’t other cars look like this?”. Obviously low slung, and frankly outrageous curves, which literally could not have been applied to almost any other road going car. That might be said of any super car, exotic design masterpiece, but there is NOTHING in the world even close to the architecture of this car. I honestly never cared for the mid 2000’s GT. It looked like a softened, compromised, styled with a butter knife, even forced design homage to the originals, but more like the way they did the T-Bird, which was criminally sterile. But this GT is a true modern classic already. So is the 458. I think the F12/812 and that line of Ferrari GTs will one day get the masterpiece of design credit they should. Not that anyone thinks they are ugly. But they aren’t just pretty, they make other long hood/short deck high performance cars, including the Vette, look absolutely stupid. I know that not everyone can be Ferrari, and I don’t even care for all of their models. The F40, the Enzo, the LaFerrari, the Testarossa, and even the old classics do nothing for me, but the Magnum PI 308GTi was yet another beauty which is third on my list for Ferrari, for looks, of course. To me the 458 is the evolved 308. Just an opinion. And I too, have the other thing that everyone else has. No, not the rectum you freaks, a beating heart. What’s wrong with you guys? Sheesh.

Amazing series!! So well done, you guys put an amazing amount of love into your channel and it shows. Excited for Ep.3

This gave me fond memories of my dad taking me fishing and camping. He had little hatch back civic from about the same year as these cars and we’d take it on backroads just like this one… right here in AZ!! Best times ever! It’s really cool to see y’all enjoying the beauty of our State. This is what life is all about 👍

As a true fan, I’m trying to write this in proper English for RU-vid purposes. But you guys are my favorite and your friendship really keeps me a solid person: I’d love to see more adventures of you guys testing different class vehicles. I love the car reviews too but this entertainment is unbeatable. If y’all can make it through hours of driving through unfavorable roads together then you can do anything. Can’t wait to see more. I love you Thomas and James no homo (written by a drunk guy who loves voodoo ranger)

I hope you guys do more of these. You guys are seriously the modern day Top Gear

So Good..... You guys are great! Been watching you for years & wondering if/when you were gonna ever do a proper road trip adventure. Glad you have AND, it was a good one.

The closest cover of Top Gear. Congrats to Throttle House for the effort and the typical humor that a car show needs to have. Happy viewer here, you two are benchmark of how a tv series, car reviews need to be made. Stay healthy and strong. @Throttle House

everytime that AE86 is behind another car, I always start playing "Running in the 90's", "Don't stop the music" & "Get me power" Eurobeat music in my mind, just waiting for the car to overtake at the curves. Am I weird for thinking that?

Keep it up guys! This is amazing and enjoyable to watch! Brings back the fun of driving. Thank you!

This is truly an awesome series. Incredible, you both should be so proud. Some of the best content--not just on RU-vid or the internet--just anywhere.

This is documentary worthy 👏🏼 Netflix, Hulu, and HBO shaking in their boots.

The timing of the flood with beamng vids is too good 😂

Now this is what the Grand Tour should have been. Honestly, the soundtrack, filmography, and adventure is as good if not better than some of OG Top Gear best episodes. 11/10

This is such an awesome series. Seriously entertaining and great presentation. I would 100% watch more of these

You guys all of you, Hosts, video team, sound team, editors, writers, you guys all deserve more than 2.5mil subs, you guys deserve your own show I’m in awe of how well this is done! Another common Throttlehouse W

This is just so good! I like the almost no script thing (as compared to late “real” top gear that was 110% script) which makes me feel almost as part of the genuine “low budget” adventure. That I think is the secret sauce that makes it good (and early top gear specials). Keep it this way guys! If nothing “extraordinary” happens, the journey it self if sooo worth it anyways. The drama is just bonus. ❤

This is an amazing series! Glad you guys liked my home state and hometown of Flagstaff AZ! ❤ thanks for coming and glad I saw you guys 😊

Great series of videos! You guys are a blast to watch. Great chemistry and humor. Keep up the good work and stay safe.

1:35 "the anime tax" is something I never thought I would hear in a million years

This is honestly better and more genuine than the new grand tour episode. Well done boys. Hope to see more in the future

This is some of the best content you will ever see. Fantastic and a lot of fun to watch ... Thank You!

This was absolutely amazing. The shenanigans, the misfortune, the adventure. Throttle House and crew, keep setting the bar higher!

Ol' Toe Foo appears to be rockin' some hella camber! A bit "Toe" much maybe?

You guys really are what TG with the trio meant for and was really missed by all of us! Beautiful!

This is some of the best content on TV...and it’s not even on TV.

Wow, what a wonderful episode to a great series! I loved this, hands down my favorite top gear style episode on RU-vid. Something about these cars getting through this terrain and your shear commitment to getting in and out of there together, wow.

FIFTY THREE MINUTES!? This is amazing!

My morning coffee out side in the sun, living vicariously through you gents and your team. Thanks for a great adventure. Can't wait to see what's next. Do one of these in Canada, please.

I wasnt sure about this at first but i loved it! Great job guys! Kinds of reminds me of the old top gear when it was great. You guys did amazing and thanks to everyone who helped make this adventure happen. ! I would love to see more videos like this in old beater cars.

This series is the best thing I’ve watched on RU-vid recently. Incredible work fellas.