Shadowing Practice: The Smallest Car in the World! Jeremy's P45 | Top Gear | BBC - Learn English Speaking with Video
Creating lesson...
1
You have the engine and the running gear from a quad bike.
2
But you will note it has lights and indicators and a number plate.
3
It's passed all the government tests, which means you can drive it on the road.
4
Are you seriously suggesting that that is an actual car?
5
I promise it's a real car.
6
What's it called?
7
Ah, well, that's brilliant.
8
Because it's shorter and narrower than a P .L .P.
9
50, I've called it the P45.
10
And now I'm going to test it.
11
What?
12
You're going to test a car that you built?
13
Yes.
14
So what are we going to do next week, then?
15
VW tests its new Golf.
16
Shut up.
17
I'm meant to be completely unbiased, as you shall see.
18
I began on the track.
19
And having determined very quickly that the P45 was exquisite in every way.
20
I took it on to the public highway.
21
I should make it plain, this is the base L model that I'm driving now, but there are some option -like should...
22
Oh!
23
Nothing wrong.
24
Edit that out.
25
There is, for instance, the deluxe wash -wipe option, which costs just £1 .99.
26
Good.
27
And also, for just £500, this does come with satellite navigation.
28
There's the sat -nav, you see?
29
Just hold it up, see where you're going.
30
The P45 is designed to deal with all eventualities.
31
I'm relaxed.
32
So I decided to join the main road.
33
Yes, look at this, look at this.
34
Very brilliant.
35
Oh, my God!
36
If you're watching this in the edit, make sure that doesn't go on television when people think it's a death trap.
37
It happened again!
38
I'll edit that out as well.
39
I can't believe how quiet the roads are this morning.
40
I'm barely seeing any traffic at all.
41
Oh, no. As I neared Guildford, I did find a jam, but this was no problem for the super -narrow P45.
42
The speed machine is coming through.
43
Oh, God!
44
Nothing wrong.
45
Oh, yes!
46
This is incredible.
47
Ladies and gentlemen, you're witnessing the birth of the future.
48
I'm just staggered that Ford, General Motors, Toyota, all the automotive giants haven't thought to make a car like this,
49
and yet a pokey little motoring show on BBC...
50
Owww!
51
This is the way to drive the P45, I've just decided, with your face already on the windscreen, then it can't sort of smash into it.
52
So, for local commuting, my car is faultless.
53
But what if you want to go further afield?
54
Well, to find out, I pulled into a petrol station and without even getting out, I brimmed its tank.
55
Good.
56
Damn!
57
I only have a 1 .7 -litre fuel tank, but the minimum delivery here is two litres.
58
Discreetly, I squirted the difference into a bin.
59
Let's see here.
60
Then I fired up the two -stroke 100cc engine and set off to London.
61
Technically, I'm legally allowed to drive the P45 on motorways and dual carriageways.
62
So, to see how it gets on, I'm about to join the fearsome A3.
63
Here we go.
64
I've never been frightened of a century Picasso before, it just was.
65
Oh, man!
66
I'm gonna weave on.
67
Oh, yes, help me!
68
Help!
69
Help!
70
How fast is that, man?
71
34!
72
Oh, no, no, no, no, no!
73
Oh, a lot of poo!
74
Shut out, man!
75
So, while this may be completely legal, it's also completely terrifying.
76
However, the advantage of a car this small is that...
77
But you don't have to take it on dual carriageways.
78
In fact, you don't have to use the main roads at all.
79
What you do instead is you drive it to the railway station, but instead of leaving it in the car park to be vandalised and stolen,
80
you take it on the train with you.
81
Now, I will be honest, none of the train companies we contacted would play ball, so I'm using the coach instead.
82
Coach is good.
83
Coach is better than a train.
84
Fewer diseases on a coach.
85
And, of course, when you get to the big city, you don't have to use the tube or the bus, because you have your car with you.
86
Oh.
87
Oh, dear.
88
Oh.
89
Just cut the cameras.
90
In London, I went for a little drive.
91
Yes.
92
Yes.
93
All sorts of hand signals available.
94
I can go if I want to go left, right, somebody annoys me.
95
And then I went shopping.
96
And with the P45, there's no need to pay.
97
Always time looking for a parking space.
98
Oh, dear.
99
Now, of course, a PLP50 also fits in a lift, but because it has no reverse gear, you can't back it out again.
100
Unless there's a newsreader to hand.
101
This, though, does have a reverse gear.
102
So, here we go.
103
Beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep.
104
Now, I know what you're thinking.
105
There's no way you'd be allowed to drive around here with
106
a two -stroke engine belching fumes into the faces of all the baby children.
107
But here's the thing.
108
You see, the P45 is a hybrid.
109
So when you come inside, you can disconnect the petrol engine and connect up a couple of electric motors.
110
Very simple job.
111
You simply take off a wheel, connect a freewheeling hub.
112
I mean, it takes a couple of guys' minutes.
About This Lesson
You're practicing English with "The Smallest Car in the World! Jeremy's P45 | Top Gear | BBC" using the Shadowing technique — a method originally developed for professional interpreter training.
Focus on sounding like the speaker — not just repeating words. With 15–30 minutes of daily practice, you'll build real-world speaking confidence.
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.