Has Top Gear wrecked a Matra Bagheera?
Warning: the new series of Top Gear contains scenes of a Matra Bagheera S nature which some viewers might find distressing.
Yes, Top Gear is back (again), with a fresh bunch of presenters (again), and a new approach (again). Which means social media will be alive with criticism, complaints and carping (again).
This blog isn’t about the rights and wrongs of modern Top Gear. It’s not a yearning for a return to the ‘good old days’; many people seem to forget that there was life before Clarkson et al. A return to the good old days should mean watching Angela Ripon piloting a Ford Capri on the roads of the West Midlands.
Instead, this is what I suspect will turn out to be an obituary for the Matra Bagheera S. You may have seen the trailer for the new series: the one which shows a pedalo enthusiast and one half of Max & Paddy subjecting a Bagheera to what appears to be a slow and painful death.
Many of the tabloids refer to the car as an “obscure French 1970s Matra Bagheera”, but it’s not immediately clear why Top Gear selected the car for death by television. One can only assume it’s because it was named after a Jungle Book character and the episode is set… in a jungle.
If this is the case, could they have chosen something less ‘obscure’? A Mitsubishi Shere Khan, for example. Maybe a Ford Kaa. Or even a Vauxhall Baloo.
Admittedly, the Matra Bagheera wasn’t the finest sports car of the 1970s. Build quality was poor, mechanical failures were plentiful, and rust was a big issue. It was so poor, ADAC named it the most troubled new car in Germany.
It was designed to capitalise on Matra’s successful motorsport heritage, with the company signing a deal with Simca to expand its road car business. The agreement gave Matra access to Chrysler’s engineering might and the ability to sell cars through Simca’s vast dealer network.
The result was a mid-engined, rear-wheel-drive sports car powered by the 1.3-litre engine from the Simca 1100 TI hot hatch, which was mated to a four-speed gearbox. The later Bagheera S – as seen on Top Gear – gained a 1.4-litre unit.
‘All God’s children liked the Bagheera’
A certain L.J.K. Setright likened it to the Lamborghini Uracco, saying: “I liked the Bagheera. All God’s children liked the Bagheera. If they did not, it must have been because it did not have enough horsepower or enough gears.
“It was good that car, like a poor man’s Uracco. Long serving readers will remember how both the editor and I were profoundly impressed by the supple ride, sweet steering and incomparable road-holding of the little Lamborghini, and were even more pleased because it was a little one…”
A total of 47,802 Bagheeras were built before the three-seater sports car made way for the much-improved Matra Murena in 1980. As a side note, during the Bagheera’s development, the plan was to have a three-seat layout in the same manner as the McLaren F1, but the final version received the three-abreast treatment.
According to the How Many Left website, there are five Bagheera S cars on the road, along with a further 13 listed as SORN. While these figures might not be entirely accurate, the number of cars on the road is likely to drop once the Top Gear car’s MOT runs out in September 2019.
Worse still, DHP 794T just happened to be an original press car and was used in the Bagheera brochure. How do we know this? Because the car in question was for sale on the Car & Classic website, with the vendor providing a detailed description of the “VERY RARE 1979 Matra Bagheera”.
This isn’t the first time Top Gear has trashed a rare car in the name of entertainment, and it won’t be the last. I’m also acutely aware that there are far bigger things to worry about than the ill-treatment of an “obscure French 1970s” sports car.
To be honest, I’m not even sure why I’m writing this ode to a car that very few people seem care about. Maybe I should be pleased that the Matra Bagheera is going to get its long overdue moment in the sun.
You never know, the Bagheera might return to the UK, receive a complete restoration, and all will be right in the world…
Meh, I’m probably just bitter that I didn’t get to rescue this particular slice of French Tat for the fleet. And on that bombshell…
Read more:
- Talbot-Matra Murena: Europe’s forgotten sports car
- Whatever happened to the Talbot Matra Rancho?
- Whatever happened to the Top Gear challenge cars?
Hat tip to Ben Hooper for the intel on the Top Gear Matra Bagheera.
14 Comments
Thanks for bringing this to light Major, I really hope the next series of TG is good, I think the presenters have a good chance of making it work, I just hope that a poor little Matra doesn’t have to ‘die for our amusement’…
Many Thanks
Ben
Thanks for the tip, Ben. I’ll be watching this particular episode from behind the sofa.
Looks like this bagheera is a right hand drive version, one of only 14 made/ordered I seem to remember, not just rare but extremely rare.I hope it’s not scrapped, are pretty easy to get the rust issues sorted. These days when mucking about with cars on the tv, if it doesn’t command a 6/7 price figure then it’s dispensible, Used to have a Bagheera when I was out on the continent, used to thrash the rich German kids in their Porsches and Dinos, well for the first 100 feet or so. Don’t think it’s entertaining seeing a rare car abused in this manner, not got a problem with Morris Marinas having pianos dropped on them, 👍just saying😜
Fifty series two Bagheeras were converted to RHD by Hodec Engineering and sold through Chrysler dealers as ‘factory’ RHD conversions. I’d be surprised if more than a couple of these survive, which makes TG’s actions in choosing such a rare care for such an undertaking more than a little disquieting.
The Bagheera was a capable little machine, good enough for Motor’s 1977 road test of a series two ‘S’ model to conclude with the words, “other manufacturers please copy.” It’s just a pity that the chassis wasn’t better protected against rust.
hi matra never actually produced a rhd bagheera.it was an English company called hodec who unsuccessfully took the lhd and converted it to rhd but it was frought with probs,mainly gear linkage and weight distribution.the original bagheera was stiffened in the suspension on one side to compensate for driver only performance.
to Steve Clews – just saw a picture of your Murena in practical classics. I used to own this! From 1989.
Real car enthusiasts wouldn’t trash a rare classic for a few minutes entertainment when, in reality, any car would do for their stunt…..but the question is…are the new TG team really car enthusiasts or just entertainers?
Maybe I’m just sad I didn’t save a rhd Matra-Simca Bagheera before they all rusted away
In fairness, the first episode was rather good, and they seemed to respect the old cars (up to a point).
I don’t think the Bagheera will fare quite so well…
Those pieces of shit should have their asses kicked all over that mud for mistreating the poor car.
Its official. Its borked. I didn’t like the look of this “new” Top Gear mob any more than the ubiquitous hairy old codger trio, but I clicked “RECORD SERIES” on the Apple Box just to see if the Bagheers survived.
Of course it didn’t. What a bunch of overpaid arseholes, desperately trying to emulate the last bunch of obscenely rich arseholes.
RIP little Bagheera, you deserved better than this lot and the idiot previous owner who knowingly sold it to them.
I yearn for the days of Wally Woolard.
The sale advert for this is still on google and car and classic website. Such a shame as it is actually a brocure featured car and the original press car with stacks of history!!
Get a life it was only an old car not much to right home about, what about the allegro it was prestine and I would say there are fewer of them around now than the Matra and more revelant to people than the Matra, but again just an old car, there are very few cars in history that deserve a great reputation or keeping and not some rusty old french car from the 1979 watch the show and look at the close up of the sills to see the rust!
Michael Ireson,
you Sir, are an idiot.
very true