Meet your TG TV presenters: Q&A with Matt LeBlanc

What’s your first car memory?

Riding in the back of my grandfather’s station wagon, going camping. So fun.

Who taught you to drive, in what... and did you pass first time?

My father taught me to drive in a 1974 Datsun pickup when I was 12. Yes I passed on the first try. It was in the snow in an AMC Javelin.

Tell us about your best car...

My GT2 RS Porsche. It makes the hair on my neck stand up. I should shave that.

Tell us about your worst car...

My Audi 5000. It was too bland. Other than that it was ok, I guess.

What’s your current daily car?

There’s a few.

What’s the car you most wish you’d owned?

A 917 Porsche. Because it’s the most beautiful racecar ever made.

What was the best drive of your life, and why was it so special?

Going through the Alps on a motorcycle with my wife on the back on our honeymoon. We only crashed once, so all in all a great ride.

What’s your favourite road?

Highway 1 through Big Sur in California. Epic scenery and pavement. Very fun.

What’s the biggest mistake you’ve made in a car?

I put the wrong plugs in my Fiat X1/9 and it ran like s**t. Took me a while to realise why. 

What’s your favourite sitcom? 

I’ll give you one guess.

Favourite band?

Don’t have one. I like lots of different kinds of music. Sorry.

If you could buy just one car to last the rest of your life, what would it be?

A 911. They’re just great.

Who’s your all-time favourite Formula One driver?

Senna. Because he was Senna. Mesmerising.

What car are you most looking forward to driving on TG?

All of them.

Who will be quickest around the TopGear track?

We’ll have to see. I’m guessing The Stig, though.  

Who would be your dream guest for the next series of TopGear?

Niki Lauda.

What’s in your rider?

Nothing. What’s a rider?

What motorsport event would you most like to compete in, in what car, in what era and why?

WRC right now. The cars are awesome, and it looks like a blast.

Front-wheel drive, rear-wheel drive, all-wheel drive?

AWD.

What else do you have a licence for?

Motorcycles and bulldozers. Why not, right?

What’s your biggest fear?

Miniature horses. Don’t know why, really.

What’s the fastest you’ve ever gone in a car and when?

That’d be 174mph on my Ducati 999. Just because.

F1, NASCAR or WRC?

F1. The technology is addictive.

Who in history would you most like to have been driven by and why?

Senna. Because he was Senna.

You have to drive from NYC to LA, you have four seats, who’s in the car with you, what’s on the iPod and what’s in the emergency snack cubby?

My friends, a mix tape and beef jerky.