The first test of the new series was a closely fought three-round contest. The Barleys won the first round convincingly, but the Munch Bunch stormed to a surprising victory in the second. With everything to play for in the final round, the Barleys were lucky to make it to the finish line: a treacherous mud-hole nearly sank them. The Munch Bunch then had not only to complete the section but to improve on the time set by the Barleys. But it was not to be. Their machine became firmly embedded in the same mud-hole that nearly bagged the Barleys, and they were unable to complete the round. The victorious Barleys will be back in a few weeks.

This week saw a remarkable comeback by the Martial Mechanics, proving once again that nothing is certain on Scrapheap. The Krazy Karters were quicker over both land and water in the first two rounds although they were certainly helped by the Martial Mechanics' 30-second penalty for crashing. Round three looked like a formality, but then disaster struck the Karters: their craft was caught in a strong crosswind and lost air pressure, making it considerably slower over the rest of the course. Seizing his chance and holding on to both his nerve and his craft, the Mechanics' Jason snatched victory.

This week sees two new teams battling to become the fastest golf-ball guns on the scrapheap. The day started badly for the Clean Sweeps. They discovered that their ball-feeding mechanism was jamming and were forced into a last-minute rethink. Unfortunately this turned out to be just the first of their problems. Round one was a test of speed and accuracy, and the Sweeps struggled on both fronts: their aim was wayward and motor problems reduced their rate of fire. The Boat Buoys on the other hand looked the genuine article, delivering a string of balls into the moving target and shooting themselves into the lead in the process. Round two was designed to test the machines' sheer power: the object was to smash a wall of bathroom tiles. The Sweeps were forced to abandon their erratic motor for a cordless drill and, although they made an impact, they were no match for the blazing firepower of the Boat Buoys.

Academics get stuck in a maze This week the teams have been asked to map uncharted territory. The Hammerlocks, a team of wrestlers from Coventry, and the Academics Anonymous, a team from Kingston University, have to navigate their way around a 'hostile environment' in a vehicle with the windows blacked out. The Academics seemed to start well but they had a major problem: they couldn't tell when all four wheels of their bus were off the ground or when the bus was level, and this cost them valuable time. They failed to negotiate the first turn in the 'maze', lost their bearings and crashed into the side or the course. Tension was high as the Hammerlocks took their turn in the 'maze'. They also had problems: their navigational devices weren't reliable. However, they were able to crawl their way around the course using a giant mechanical 'feeler' and eventually made it to within a stone's throw of their target - and into the next round!

The Tunnel Ratz steam to victory This week the Tunnel Ratz, a team of London Underground engineers, took on Formula 1 engineers the Pit Stop Crew in a challenge to build a Railroad Racer. The first round required the vehicles to change from road to rail and then race to the station. Round two requires the Rail racers to pull a heavy load up a gradient. Round three was all about speed, it was a straight dash to the chequered flag. The Tunnel Ratz got off to a flying start, whereas the Pit Stop Crew had trouble lining their machine up on the rails. Round one to the Ratz. In round two the teams had to tow a trailer full of railway sleepers. The Pit Stop Crew posted a respectable time despite losing one of their guide wheels, but again the Ratz were quicker. In round three, a straight dash, the Ratz again posted a quick time. It was all or nothing for the Pit Stop Crew, and they were going like a train! Then disaster: their machine derailed half-way down, signalling victory for the Ratz.

Jailbreakers do not pass go In round one the Young Ones and the Jailbreakers competed to see who could travel the furthest on just one wind-up charge of their clockwork cars. Lightweight Rich of the Young Ones got off to a cracking start. After peddling frantically, he just kept on going � and going. Jailbreakers' driver Andy was left behind, slowly trundling along until he finally ground to a halt just 16 metres from the start. Round two and time for the slalom challenge. The Young Ones went first with captain Tom in the driving seat. Giving his legs a full work-out, he glided through the course, skilfully avoiding all the obstacles. They had a great run, but could they hold on to their lead after the Jailbreakers had added more rubber power to their machine? The Jailbreakers started steadily, also managing to steer clear of the obstacles. Further up the course they picked up speed and flew towards the finish line. But their final charge held them up, costing them valuable time, and they threw the round away to the Young Ones. The final round was a head-to-head race around the track. The Jailbreakers got away well, while the Young Ones were busy losing crucial seconds charging up their flywheel. The pressure was on, but the Jailbreakers' lead was decreasing as the longer running time of the Young Ones' vehicle began to pay off. And when the rubber on the Jailbreakers' machine started tangling, the fate was sealed for the prison posse. The Young Ones took full advantage and steamed into the lead. Proving that age is not an issue when it comes to bodging on the 'heap, the Young Ones go through to the quarterfinals. But the Jailbreakers do not pass go, do not collect the Scrapheap Trophy, and go straight to jail.

Young One swing out of control This week, two returning teams did battle to become the smoothest on the 'heap. The Barley Pickers and the Young Ones were challenged to build a vehicle capable of transporting a brimming vat of liquid over rough terrain. The team that spilled the least would win. In round one the Barleys came out ahead, but only by a drop or two. But the more bumpy terrain of round two was a jolt too far for the Young Ones' machine. The vat kept hitting their supporting frame – major spillage! Round two to the farmers. In round three the teams drove each other's machines and attempted to spill as much as possible. Young One Tom stepped up and tried his level best to swing the Barleys' pendulum, but their suspension system worked a treat and he only managed to spill a few drops. But Barley Picker Robin got really messy. By the end of the course his vat was empty and the Devonshire farmers had booked themselves a place in the semi-finals.

Wrestlers on a roll This week's machines must be right at the top of Scrapheap's 'most bizarre' list – and the test proved fascinating too. With both machines working well at the end of tinkering time, it was likely that the team that proved best at riding a monowheel would triumph. Firstly, the three members of each team had to complete a straight relay race. In round two one team member from each team had to negotiate a series of tricky turns on a circuit of the go-kart track. The team with the quickest aggregate time booked a place in the semi-finals. Round one wasn't the quickest race Scrapheap has seen. The Tunnel Ratz' TC Geraint Owen posted the quickest individual time – perhaps not surprisingly, as he was the only one to have ridden a monowheel before the challenge was announced! At the end of the round the Tunnel Ratz had a 30-second lead. In round two the Ratz' Penfold (James Lackmaker) crossed the start line and promptly lost control, which seemed to dent his confidence, and he crawled around the course. The Hammerlocks selected Steve 'Psycho' Edwards to roll them to glory, and, living up to his name and throwing caution to the winds, he powered them to a comfortable victory.

Boat Buoys bailed out In what was nearly a truly Titanic battle, the Boat Buoys booked a place in the final against the odds. The Boat Buoys' craft was top-heavy and leaked like ... well, like a rusty old skip with lots of holes in it. But the Martial Mechanics graciously helped out: they supplied stabilising barrels and they let the Boat Buoys use an automatic bailer, which stopped them sinking. In race one the Martials built a convincing lead, but a mechanical failure gave the Buoys victory. After a quick repair to a broken drive-line, race two got under way. The Martials were again ahead when driver Dave crashed into a marker buoy, which became tangled up with one of their screws, causing more damage and again handing victory to the opposition. The big points were reserved for the final tug-of-war round, and victory would have put the Martials level and forced a tiebreaker. The Martials were down to one screw, but that was still enough to out-pull the Boat Buoys ... until that screw gave out as well, and the Boat Buoys tugged to victory.

The Coventry wrestlers and the Hammerlocks have to dig deep - the challenge is to build a machine that can dig up as much sand as possible in a given time.

HMS Proper Job sails to glory After 10 highly competitive challenges, two scraptastic teams – the Barley Pickers and the Boat Buoys – were poised to do battle for the coveted trophy. As Robert announced the challenge, thoughts of previous great sea battles flickered through the minds of those present. As did the sinking of the Titanic. But 10 hours later, two formidable destroyers were ready for launch. The teams faced a tough head-to-head race in which they had to bash their way through harbour gates, topple an enemy watchtower and sink an enemy battleship before racing to an island to claim the trophy. The Barley Pickers had some trouble with their steering and the surprisingly quick Boat Buoys were the first to blast through the harbour gates. But rounding the island the Barley Pickers were able to take advantage of a shallower draft and grab the lead. Using their hydraulic prongs, the Barleys then toppled the tower in seconds. The Boat Buoys struggled to tip theirs over with a combination of winch and battering ram, losing valuable time. The Barleys then rammed their enemy vessel at speed, their deadly prongs crashing through the hull. Unfortunately, extracting them proved more difficult, and for a moment it looked as if the Boat Buoys were back in the race. But though the Boat Buoys' combination of claw and battering ram worked well to sink their battleship, they weren't quick enough to overtake the farmers. The Barley Pickers had already pointed HMS Proper Job at the island – and sailed into Scrapheap history.

Triumph, trauma and the trebuchet Scrapheap's grand final 2002 saw the Barley Pickers line up against last year's winners, the Cat-alysts, in our most awesome challenge ever: to fling a Mini over the horizon. As reigning champions, the Cat-alysts were first up. A pink Mini was loaded onto the dolly and the catapult was primed. But the chain used to winch down the Mini and dolly suddenly snapped. As the chain dragged over the ground, lots of the elastic's energy was lost, and the Mini barely made it to the end of the ramp. Zero distance for the Cats. The Barley Pickers' trebuchet was by far the biggest – and scariest – machine that Scrapheap has ever seen. To launch it they had to winch 4 tonnes of lead to a height of more than 6 metres. Two team members then had to go in close to put the firing pin in place. Scrapheap veterans couldn't remember a more tense moment, but all went well and the machine was ready to launch. Then disaster: as the huge trebuchet arm swung down, it appeared to twist, causing the whole contraption to explode. 'I don't think we'll be repairing this,' said TC Paul. However, with the Cat-alysts failing to record a distance for their first throw, the Barley Pickers were judged to be in the lead, as their Mini did move – albeit backwards. Everything depended on the Cat-alysts last throw. They added two extra bungee ropes and prayed. This time everything went according to plan. To a huge cheer from the assembled crowd, a Mini was launched into the stratosphere … well almost. With a respectable distance of 15.5 metres, the Cat-alysts were crowned champions of champions 2002.