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The last time a TopGear star tried to break a speed record, Richard Hammond blew a tyre in his rocket car at 464km/h and nearly killed himself.
Now, the team has chosen Auckland for an attempt on the world indoor land speed record - so this time they have sensibly chosen to put Kiwi racing driver Greg Murphy behind the wheel. He will make the attempts next week at TopGear Live, which he is hosting with the BBC's Hammond and Jeremy Clarkson.
"I've never done anything like this before - it will certainly test the reaction skills," Murphy said.
The live show's producer, Rowland French, confirmed the V World Indoor Speed Challenge record attempt. It is to be made in a British Ultima GTR supercar - on a breathtakingly short 66m stage at the ASB Showgrounds.
The previous indoor record was set by British driver Phil Cooper in Birmingham, in a purpose-built car that resembled a beach buggy, but reached 132km/h inside the city's National Exhibition Centre in 2006.
French said: "Basically, the Ultima GTR is the fastest accelerating car we know of, able to do 0-100mph and back to zero in nine seconds, so it seemed the perfect car to attempt the record in. New Zealand is the first place in the world we've been lucky enough to find an owner brave enough to let us do it in their car."
The car is owned by an unnamed Wellington businessman, who was said to be "nervous, but excited".
French said that to get to a decent speed, Murphy would have to get a perfect launch, keep his foot down for as long as he dared, then slam on the brakes before hitting the wall. So, how dangerous is the record attempt? "Well, both Jeremy and Richard would love to be the first people to do it, but out of fairness they have bravely nominated Greg Murphy to do it, so he can have the opportunity to prove his driving prowess," French said. "As we all know motor-racing drivers have no fear and as Murph is a racing driver we thought he'd be the perfect person to drive at a wall at breakneck speed in the near darkness."
Hammond, who will be making his first visit to New Zealand, suffered severe brain injuries when he crashed a rocket car in 2006 - after insisting on one more run, one more attempt to better his fastest speed.
The TV presenter, known as "The Hamster", said New Zealand racing drivers shared that same need for speed, that same quest for an adrenaline high.
It could be to do with the essential and basic human instinct to dominate on the hunting ground," Hammond said, "and once viewed in that light it's a noble, quite beautiful idea. Plus, it makes your tummy go all funny and feels brilliant. And it really impresses the girls."
