By Rob
We approach Nuerburgring with the greatest respect and caution. Only drivers with the utmost training and experience will drive in our tests. Safety is just part of the concern. Vehicle testing relies on consistent and repeatable driving. That’s hard to achieve anytime, let alone in a super-severe environment like Nuerburgring. The key is to drive each lap as consistently as possible. This normally also means going quite fast. I’d call it nine-tenths driving. Nine-tenths here is incredible. We have a handful of drivers we consider Nuerburgring capable, including our chief engineer, myself and several others. It’s really only after something like 100 laps that you feel even a little bit “familiar” with this track.
Unlike some of our bigger track tests or ride trips in the US, the team at the Ring is a comparatively small crew. The photo here shows the garage where we normally set up. We rent some space from the good people at Manthey Racing, operators of a Porsche racing team. But this garage is a few miles away from the track. So, unlike a normal race track, there’s not much in the way of trackside adjustments. Nonetheless, we bring over a small group of technicians who do a great job dealing with the cars and the people driving them.
We’re harder to take care of than the cars, I’ll bet.
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Comments
Are you sharing the ring with the public or getting dedicated time on it? Will you be running the CTS around the ring with any competitors cars?
Posted by: KB | May 14, 2007 1:27 PM
What has impressed you the most about the car on the track? Are you testing the AWD or 2WD version? Will the 300 hp V6 be the most powerful engine until the V comes out later in the model cycle? I have to admit I have only owned BMW and MB for decades and this CTS has my attention. Hopefully the dealers won't put fake convertible tops and white walls on them like the STS. I hope there is an American made car that can really compete with the Germans.
Posted by: Bob | May 14, 2007 11:08 PM
Will you post any performance numbers for the various runs around the ring? e.g. laptime, peak speed, cornering speed, lateral g's.
Posted by: Wes Brown | May 14, 2007 11:11 PM
I am very impressed with the styling and design of this new model! I leased a CTS in 2006 ('07 Model) and have been very happy with it over all. I would like to lease this newer model now....I am not sure if Lindsey Cadillac will let me though. I am excited about this '08.
Posted by: PAULA WYATT BLAIR | May 15, 2007 8:16 AM
Generally, we're out there with other cars and not just ourselves. Most of the time we're on the Ring is during something called Industry Pool, which I will likely post about sometime soon.
As for numbers, we may share some of that in subsequent posts.
Posted by: Rob | May 15, 2007 3:19 PM
Since the new CTS will not have a handbrake, will the manual transmission version have a "hill holder" like Subaru and BMW have? (I think BMW calls theirs "hill start assist.") It holds the brakes for about half a second when you're starting off on a hill.
Posted by: segfault | May 15, 2007 10:25 PM