Thomas and the Runaway Car

"Oh no!"

- Arthur's horror at upsetting the fish

Thomas and the Runaway Car is the seventeenth episode of the eleventh season.

Plot
Thomas has been given the important job of taking the Fat Controller's new car to the Sodor Show. Gordon has been giving the job of taking the bandstand to the show and challenges Thomas to a race. Gordon manages to get a head start and Thomas impaitently tells Rocky to hurray up, but Rocky tells Thomas to wait because he needs to be careful. The car was on the flatbed, but Thomas started so quickly he didn't wait for the Dock manager to couple him up to the flatbed. Rocky and the workmen tried to tell Thomas, but he was already gone determined to beat Gordon.

But when Thomas puffs to the top of Gordon's Hill, the flatbed rolls away from him & Thomas chases after it. While Percy was waiting at a red signal, Arthur was pulling into a sidding with heavy trucks of fish. Percy saw the runaway car coming & warns Arthur. Arthur piffed the buffers with fish flying to the air & splattering all over him. Up ahead mud was all over the track, & Rosie had just left the washdown. She sees the runaway car & mud splattered all over her.

The flatbed raced passed Gordon & went into a siding crashing into some buffers and the car goes flying into a haystack. When Thomas caught up he was shocked & Gordon chuffed to the show. Thomas realizes that he lost the race & the Fat Controller's hat would never get to the show. Thomas set off to the Docks to get Rocky, but he stopped knowing that he's not strong enough to pull Rocky on his own. When Gordon came back after delivering the bandstand, Thomas asked Gordon if he could fetch Rocky, Gordon was happy to help his friend & went to the Docks. After getting the car back on the flatbed, Thomas thanked Gordon by giving him the car to deliver & they arrived at the show together.

Characters

 * Thomas
 * Gordon
 * Percy
 * Arthur
 * Rosie
 * Rocky
 * Sir Topham Hatt (does not speak)
 * Lady Hatt (does not speak)
 * James (cameo)
 * Cranky (cameo)
 * Stephen Hatt (cameo)
 * Bridget Hatt (cameo)
 * Jem Cole (cameo)
 * The Mayor of Sodor (cameo)
 * "Dusty" Dave (cameo)
 * Sodor Brass Band (cameo)
 * Alice (cameo)
 * Farmer Trotter (cameo)

Locations

 * Brendam Docks
 * Sodor Shipping Company
 * Gordon's Hill
 * Whispering Woods Halt

Trivia

 * The "new" car model is actually the same old one.
 * The crowd scene from Toby's Triumph is reused only with the people changed around slightly.
 * This marks the only time Rosie had an angry & shut eyes faces.

Goofs

 * Gordon's buffer is crooked at the docks.
 * At the top of Gordon's Hill, the couplings clang and drop before the flatbed moves away; but it was said that the flatbed was not coupled up.
 * When the flatbed speeds past Arthur, he speeds up after his trucks to clear the points.
 * When the fish fly out of the cars on to Arthur, he appears to have two fish stuck on his smokebox before the fish hit him.
 * When the flatbed passes Rosie it splashes mud all over her, but when Thomas runs by he does not.

UK

 * The Complete Eleventh Series

US

 * Safety First

DVD Boxsets

 * Classic Collection

AUS

 * The Best of Thomas and Friends - Volume 2
 * The Complete Eleventh Series

DVD Boxsets

 * The Essential Collection (5 DVD Boxset)

GER

 * The New Steam-pipe