Fan Finds Chris Harris’s Stolen Car Before Cops Could Even Finish Their Coffee
  • Former Top Gear host Chris Harris was the victim of auto theft in Bristol overnight.
  • The stolen vehicle was his classic BMW M5, which he’s owned and loved for 19 years.
  • Fans helped track it down within a day, and the car was returned mostly undamaged.

The feelings that come along with being the victim of theft are fierce and wide-ranging. In most cases, victims have little recourse but to let authorities go after the perpetrators. For celebrities, the world works a little differently.

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Take, for example, Chris Harris, the former host of Top Gear and certified car nut. When someone stole his classic E28 BMW M5, he put out the word to fans and they found it faster than the coppers.

More: Thieves Are Using Stolen Toyota Priuses To Hunt Down Land Cruisers

Harris has almost 900,000 followers on Instagram alone. Early this morning (7/21/2025), he informed them that the M5 was stolen in Clifton, Bristol overnight. “Pls share and help me find it. Had it 19 years,” he said. Within roughly three hours of the post, one person claimed they’d spotted it.

A Real-Time Recovery

Harris initially posted an update in real time as he headed toward that fan. “The world’s a mad place, why would you leave it on a residential street,” Harris said, referring to a claim that the stolen car was just sitting there, parked like any other vehicle, out in the open, on the street.

Upon rounding the corner where the M5 sat, Harris simply exclaimed “Look at that, there it is, my M5 up on a paver.” A follower, Lee, found the car, messaged Harris, and told the celebrity that he’d stay with the car til Harris could arrive. Sure enough, that’s exactly what happened. 

Not Unscathed, But Intact

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“It’s a bit of a mess, but I’ve got it back and I feel incredibly lucky,” said Harris. He’s speaking about the damage done to the car in the short time it was gone. The thieves curbed one wheel and damaged the ignition to get the car to start. That’s not too bad in a world full of chop shops and black markets that ship cars to far off countries.

Evidently, it didn’t have much fuel in it when they took it and even less when Harris found it. Despite that, he was able to crank it up on camera and confirmed that everything sounded normal. That’s about as good of a result as anyone could ask for, and even more impressive considering that authorities weren’t the ones to figure it out.

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A post shared by Chris Harris (@harrismonkey)

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Credit: Chris Harris

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