I don't think it is bad luck, I think it is Rob.He is always to much in a hurry. Different stick-shifts around the world have different patterns, he just tries to force the car into where he thinks the gear settings are and thus does a number on the transmittion. As for tires, I would not be surprised if his hurrying about causes him to ride on or rub a lot on the side of curbs, I am sure he does not slow down to avoid potholes.
There are too many break-downs for it to just be chance, and the only common factor is that Rob is driving.
Here's the recap of the whole show.The models leave first, by 8 minutes over the beauty queens and 46 minutes over Rob & Kimberley. Directions: drive to Kiev airport, get flight to Casablanca, connect to inland Morocco. Beauty queens get to airport first and book through Milan on a tight connection. Models and R/K book through Paris on same flights. Bama gets on same flight to Paris but get stuck on later flight to Casablanca. However, although BQs arrive in Milan ahead of schedule, Italians refuse to allow them on connecting flight because they don't have any ties to the Mafia. They end up getting to Casablanca last and barely make the connecting flight -- but everyone is on the same flight once again.
BQs get out of airport first, and get followed by other two teams. Bama used its layover time in Paris to buy a map and locate the "casbah." When the BQs get mobbed by young Moroccan men, Bama gets the lead and picks up the first pendant (each team gets one), plus gets directions to the next stop, a movie studio. The BQs are last after the guys take them in the wrong direction.
On the drive to the studio, Bama talks constantly about yielding the blondes, because there is a yield box there. But the movie studio is closed until 8 AM, and all the teams are in their cars sleeping until then. In the sprint to the yield box, the models get there first and choose not to yield anyone, as do R/K. The blondes are third and yield Bama. Bama cusses and flips the blondes the finger, then spends the rest of the episode cussing the blondes out for doing to them exactly what Bama said repeatly that they'd do to the blondes.
But...
In the roadblock, a chariot race, the blondes win, followed by R&K, followed by the models. R&K get a flat on the way to the detour, their next stop -- the third car breakdown in the race for R&K. While they're fixing the flat, Bama passes them.
The blondes get the detour clue first. It's a choice of spinning pots or crushing olives. Ultimately, all of the teams select olive crushing -- but there are only three stations at each activity. The blondes drive past the olive station ... and by the time they realize that they've gone too far and come back, the other three teams have reached the detour and the blondes have to wait.
The models finish the detour first, and Bama finishes second despite the yield. The models park at the pit stop (a Bedouin camp) -- but they realize that they've forgotten their pendant in the car. When they go back to get it, Bama passes them ... but they get back to the car, grab it and just pass Bama on the way to the pit stop mat. They check in first AND have the winning pendant for Sprint Sidekick service. Bama gets second, R&K third and the blondes get marked for elimination.
Preview: Bama fight with each other, and Kim quits a tomato-sorting challenge when the locals start throwing tomatoes at her.