Through the S-Curves

By Rob

This is the car heading into the high-speed S-curves at Phoenix.

Of course, you want to carry a lot of speed through the turns, checking steering response, precision and body-motion control.

The cars were spot-on.

Hot Laps

By Rob

More from Phoenix International Raceway. This is the car entering the hairpin on the road course.

We pushed the cars very hard. And I have to say it was a blast.

A road course like this one – which has some higher-speed sections – is really useful. You can carry a bit of speed into a difficult corner like this one, meaning you really load the chassis. That load, or energy, is what puts strain on the car.

This is not racing . . . the speeds and times are not the point. We’re pushing the cars enough that, in corners like this, we can measure and feel how they respond.

Straightaway

By Rob

This is from our most recent track test. Race fans might have a guess as to what track this is. This is the front straight of the track, before we turn into the infield road course. The car is probably a bit over 100 mph through this section.

Any guesses, race fans, as to what track this is? One of the things we were looking at in this test is powertrain cooling, given that we’re driving the car pretty hard and it was 85 degrees in March.