UPDATE: |Manchester lads turn £1,500 banger into bar for 2,000 mile Arctic trip News

Josh Kerr, 25, and his mates Jack Birtwistle, 26, and Elliott Barrott, 29, from Manchester, embarked on an outragious Top Gear-style challenge

Three pals have made a splash with a Top Gear-inspired trek from Manchester all the way to the Arctic Circle, driving budget motors – one of which boasts a Barbie theme and another equipped with a drinks bar.

Josh Kerr, 25, along with mates Jack Birtwistle, 26, and Elliott Barrott, 29, who are all from Manchester, embarked on a Top Gear-style escapade in May 2024, when they adventured to Ibiza in cars worth no more than £500 each.

Come November 2024, the trio plotted their next journey to venture as far north as the Arctic Circle. With a higher budget of £1,500 this time, Josh secured a 2003 Toyota RAV4, Jack opted for a 2004 Honda CR-V, while Elliott snagged a 2008 Jeep Patriot.

Their epic 2,050-mile round journey kicked off on February 28 when they took a ferry to Rotterdam. In an intriguing twist, the friends enlisted a bystander to randomly assign them a vehicle for the remainder of their quest.

The trio, who boast a following of over 30,000 subscribers on YouTube, carved their path through the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, and finally into Norway. Along the way, they managed a spot of snowmobiling with a fan and braved the local delicacy of fermented fish eaten off their car bonnets until they triumphantly reached the Arctic Circle amidst a March 5 snowstorm.

After Elliott swiftly left for the airport due to work commitments the following day, Josh and Jack concluded their escapade in Bodo, Norway. They attended a football match at Aspmyra Stadion before heading home on March 11.

Reflecting on the journey, Josh said: “The bar in the boot came in handy when we were up there because all the places were so expensive to buy a drink, you’d be paying 20 quid for a cocktail.

“The Arctic Circle was like another planet… I can’t believe we made it.”

Last November, Josh and his friends were compelled to tackle the formidable Arctic Circle after a similar adventure left them craving more.

Josh said: “We had so much fun last time and you don’t meet many people who have drove to the Arctic Circle.

“We were inspired by Top Gear – just by having fun doing a driving challenge with your mates.”

They set a budget of £1,500 each for purchasing a four-wheel-drive vehicle, allocating an extra £400 for essential winter tyres.

Josh chose a 2003 Toyota RAV4, which he equipped with a custom bar complete with a cocktail set, fridge, chopping board, blender, and LED lights.

Jack went for a 2004 Honda CR-V, giving it a striking hot pink spray paint job, adorning it with the Barbie emblem, and fitting a ‘BARBIE’ number plate.

He didn’t stop there, revamping the interior with pink leather and a plush fluffy steering wheel cover.

Elliott secured a 2008 Jeep Patriot, painting it brown and emblazoning it with the iconic gold Louis Vuitton ‘LV’ logo.

In January 2025, they tested their vehicles’ mettle by bravely completing the NC500, a 516-mile picturesque journey encapsulating Scotland’s northern coastline.

They also pitted the cars against one another on a racetrack, Elliott’s Jeep taking the crown for speed.

After returning home, they had a “few issues to sort out” like the Toyota having an “over boost” where the turbocharger delivered more boost pressure than intended.

On February 28, they embarked on their journey from Manchester to Hull, where they caught a ferry to Rotterdam. Accompanying them was a cameraman named Brad, who captured the adventure from the passenger seat.

Once aboard the ferry, they decided to let fate determine who would drive which car for the rest of their trip.

Josh said: “We just said we’d ask the next person who walks past us and we did.”

Elliott ended up with the Toyota, Jack had the Honda and Josh drove the Jeep.

They arrived in Rotterdam the next morning and since they had all previously visited the Netherlands and Germany, decided to drive through both countries as quickly as possible.

By the following day, they had made it to Denmark, stopping in Copenhagen for a “look around”.

They continued on to Malmo and Gothenburg in Sweden and onto Oslo in Norway, where they challenged themselves to eat fermented herring off the car’s bonnet, which they thought was “the smelliest thing ever”.

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Next on the route was the fjords before a follower, called Knut, invited the group to go snowmobiling.

“It wasn’t just any snowmobile… it was like one of the fastest accelerating machines in the world,” Josh added.

“He said it could do 0 to 62 miles per hour in 1.7 seconds so I flew straight off the back when I tried to accelerate.”

Their next destination was Oppdal, a ski town in Norway, which required navigating a mountain pass.

They stayed in an Airbnb overnight, and on the morning of March 5, headed up to the Arctic Circle.

Josh said: “As we were getting close, we were thinking, ‘We’re about an hour away, we’ve done it, it’s all been so easy, it’s completed’.

“And then it started to snow… after 20 minutes of sitting there in silence, concentrating really hard and driving we just got to the sign, and we got a photo, basically showing we got there.”

However, Elliott needed to reach Bodo Airport the next day.

“He had no annual leave left at work so he had to carry on driving for another two hours, an hour in the snow blizzard,” Josh explained.

“As soon as he pulled out of the Arctic Circle Centre, he span out, that’s how bad the snow was at that point.

“The next day we went to the Arctic Circle Centre in daylight, so we saw what was all around us.

“It was just endless, like snowy mountains and just constant snow everywhere.”

The following day, Josh and Jack drove to Bodo, picked up Elliott’s car, and watched FK Bodo/Glimt play against Olympiacos.

They arrived home on March 11, with the group spending around £3,500 on fuel over the entire trip.

Josh has since listed his car for sale on Facebook Marketplace, noting there is an “optional bar in the boot”.

They have started sharing the journey on their YouTube channel, The Three Hombres, where they have 33,500 subscribers.

To find out more, visit: www.youtube.com/@TheThreeHombres.