Every year, Top Gear dispatches correspondents to cover many serious stories around the world. Wherever they go, they ask tough questions and leave no stone unturned in search of the cold, hard truth. Questions such as: Is it possible to drive a Ferrari up a Scottish ski slope? Exactly how far can you drive a bulldozer across the Antarctic before it falls down a big crack? And what happens when you drive a small 4X4 up a volcano, during an earthquake, with a high chance of eruption?

The answers to all of the above – and more – can be found in Top Gear Top Drives, a new book featuring Top Gear’s best adventures, neatly arranged in precise geographic order: top, middle and bottom. These are not Sunday drives to country pubs. You will not find any mentions of freshly cut grass and picnics under oak trees. In fact, you are more likely to encounter roadside landmines and a pack of Chilean llamas with a relaxed approach to personal hygiene. Of course you will also find supercars on winding mountain passes, but this book goes much further, bringing you the most unusual combinations of car and tarmac – or lack of it – from across our planet.

All of which are accompanied by a surprisingly useful collection of travel tips, featuring such useful advice as when to go, what the weather’s like and where to find a reasonably priced beer. Like any classic travel guide, you really shouldn’t leave home without it. Unless you write down the really important bits, in which case you’ll probably be OK.