Inside Fifth Gear presenter Tiff Needell’s ‘surprisingly small’ car collection including Ford Capri & motor he ‘adores’

FAMED PETROLHEAD Tiff Needell has opened up on his “surprisingly small” car collection – including an Italian motor he says he “adores.”

The former racing driver and much-loved TV personality, who was the co-presenter of Fifth Gear, Top Gear and Lovecars: On The Road, revealed the whips he’s owned to podcasters on Fuelling Around.

Needell, 72, who’s competed in the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans mulitple times and even appeared in Formula 1 for two races during the 1980 season, is synonymous with motoring shows in the UK.

So it’s perhaps widely expected that he boasts a sizeable fleet of cars.

However, in a clip from the podcast, the car nut explained that he hasn’t properly owned a car since 1982.

When asked to pick “one car to stick with for the rest of his life”, Tiff said: “The only cars I’ve ever owned is a Morris Traveller, an Anglia Van, two Transit vans, one Vauxhall Chevette, one 1600 Ford Capri and one BMW 323i that I sold in 1982.

“I have not owned a car since!”

The Fuelling Around presenters were left stunned by the revelation, although one of them said: “He gets the freebies!”

“I’ve moved on in my career of blagged cars to a Maserati Ghibli – which I’m adoring!”

Tiff Needell

The long-time car enthusiast did cheekily agree that he’s had multiple ‘freebie’ motors in his time – likely given to him to test for various motoring shows and magazines.

He added: “I’ve moved on in my career of blagged cars to a Maserati Ghibli – which I’m adoring!”

Many of the motors on Tiff’s list are considered classics today, such as the Morris Traveller – which is an estate iteration of the much-loved Minor model with a charming wooden frame – first introduced in 1952.

The Anglia van, which is a van version of the evergreen Ford Anglia – best-known as the car that appeared in the film Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets – and the Ford Transit were staples of British roads in the 1950s and 60s.

Arguably the coolest is the Capri, dubbed “the car you always promised yourself” and is much sought-after by collectors, regularly appearing at classic car auctions – sometimes with intriguing backstories.

The newest motor he mentioned, the Maserati Ghibli, is a luxury saloon with the latest version produced from 2013.

The Italian set of wheels boasts a beastly 3.0-litre V6 engine, with the top-of-the-range Trofeo version able to reach up to 203mph.

Needell recently added his voice to the campaign to save England’s oldest petrol station amid plans to redevelop it.

He told The Sun Online: “It just seems such a shame.

“We’ve got so few of these real-life treasures left and we keep trying to bulldoze them.

“We need to preserve as many of these as we can.

“It’s quite a lovely, quaint little place…a real time-warp.”

Elsewhere, Richard Hammond has teased that he could one day return to Top Gear alongside James May and Jeremy Clarkson.

The 54-year-old was recently quizzed over his future as rumours swirl over the popular trio returning to host the hit BBC show.