The headline facts are this – German investors have decided to build an alternative facility to the Nürburgring Nordschliefe, because as demand has increased the existing facilities such as the Nürburgring cannot provide the required track time for automotive engineers, driver training services and manufacturer launch events.

So the grounds of a former British/NATO ammunition depot are the venue of an extraordinary new test and private driving facility with the atmosphere of an automobile country club. The terrain is approximately 84 hectares and is located in the undulating forest landscape in the heart of Germany, 30 kilometres east of Paderborn, near Bad Driburg, in the southern part of the Teutoburger Wald.

Modelled on the likes of the Ascari Resort in Spain, the entire circuit has been designed from scratch by Hermann Tilke, the industry’s most experienced circuit architect. He is best known for renowned F1 circuits such as Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Malaysia, Istanbul, Shanghai and has now turned his hand to creating a New Nürburgring, “The natural ‘Nordschleife flair’ with high safety standards will continue to enthuse every driver. With various ideal lines, the corners allow for approximately identical lap times, while nature itself dictates the unmistakable signature of the test track.”

Walter Röhrl, the legendary rally driver and Porsche development driver has been involved in the project from its conception, “A dream! Here, we have succeeded in returning to the origins of motoring. At Bilster Berg, the unmistakable lay-out of the track is recognisable right away: harmoniously and dynamically, it offers unique opportunities to the drivers and makes them feel the car again. This circuit can take on major natural tracks like the Nordschleife or Spa-Francorchamps.”

Hans-Jürgen von Glasenapp, former managing director of the Hockenheimring GmbH, contributes his entire experience in running a motoring circuit as the managing director.

“The seclusion, the atmosphere, the track – it will be the German Goodwood! The terrain is unbelievable: we will build a track to FIA standards that will meet all safety requirements, to prevent anything happening during tests, development, driving programmes or incentives.”

Location

Bilster Berg Drive Resort is approximately 200 km from Düsseldorf, 150 km from Hannover and 270 km from Frankfurt. The nearest airport is at Paderborn some 35 km away.

Due to its prior military use, Bilster Berg doesn’t yet have a postal address but it’s nearby to Gräflicher Park Hotel & Spa in Bad Driburg.

Prices and availability

The circuit is on schedule to be open by July 2012 and it’s already getting booked up by car manufacturers, but Bilster Berg is also a resort for enthusiasts so they’re formulating several attractive packages that will differentiate it from the Nürburgring.

The company is currently inviting further investors to join the programme with the minimum sum of 100,000 Euros. One of the benefits being offered to shareholders is use of the facility during exclusive shareholder days with various cars and drivers (friends & family) using the facilities simultaneously. The planned circuit usage fee for shareholders is € 2,500 (incl. VAT) which buys approximately 80 days per year and is likely to be fixed for the first five full years of operation.

Garages can be rented in the resort which will provide for all-year-long storage, whilst maintenance support will also be available on-site by experienced motorsport partners (e.g. Heggemann, Raeder, Sautter), both for modern and historic vehicles.

For the time being, it’s not possible to visit the resort individually (unless you are a shareholder), so if like me you don’t have a spare 100,000 Euros kicking around, you’re most likely to experience the Bilster Berg when attending a manufacturer’s launch or driving event.

Can’t wait..

Track Layout

LFA test driver and professional racer Akira Iida recorded a lap time of 7:14.64 in a fully road-legal LFA Nürburgring Package car, running on standard specification Bridgestone Potenza RE070 tyres. In conquering the famous German race track from which it takes its name, the LFA becomes the fastest series production car around ‘ring.

The Nürburgring Package will be fitted to 50 of the 500 LFA that are being built, with customer deliveries from next year. It includes a carbon fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP) front spoiler and fixed rear wing, track-tuned suspension and custom wheels. Compared to the standard LFA, output from the 4.8-litre V10 engine has been increased from 552 to 562 bhp, maintaining the car’s 3.7-second zero to 62mph acceleration time.

Factory tester and Gazoo Racing driver, Akira Iida, who set the lap record time.

The result was recorded on 31 August 2011 during a performance test on the Nürburgring Nordschliefe (North Loop), where the LFA has been extensively developed and honed since 2004, but Lexus have actually been developing the LFA over a period of ten years and the lessons learned from the programme have been indispensable in developing future models in the range.

The Lap

The legendary Nordschleife played host to 2 of Germany’s finest drivers, Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher, who took to the Northern Loop track in two very iconic Mercedes grand prix cars. First, Michael chauffeured his team-mate in a Mercedes SLS AMG around the complete North Loop, then they both covered a section of the route in separate W 196 Formula One racing cars. Michael took the wheel of a W 196 ‘Stromlinie’ (streamlined model) while Nico drove a W 196 with open wheels.

“At the wheel of the W 196, I was driving a piece of motor racing history,” said Michael, who also spoke in glowing terms of the engineering that had gone into this particular Silver Arrow. “What better way could there be to motivate ourselves for our second home race in a fortnight than to go for a drive in a proven winner?”

Michael believes that the achievements of the drivers who had to contend with circuits such as the North Loop cannot be overestimated: “Hats off to these guys for what they accomplished with the resources they had available at the time.”

Nico also described his journey in the open-wheel W 196 as a fantastic experience: “From a modern perspective, the upright sitting position feels very strange, but the drive itself was great. It must have been tremendous fun driving these cars back in the Fifties. Compared with our modern safety standards, though, it was much more dangerous when racing on tracks like the Nordschleife.”

The W 196 was the first Formula One Silver Arrow. Statistics for the car in the 1954 and 1955 seasons: 17 podiums, 9 wins, 9 fastest laps, 8 pole positions and two world titles, both for Juan Manuel Fangio.

In addition to the streamlined version, there was also a single-seater with open wheels from the 1954 Nürburgring race onwards. The car was powered by an eight-cylinder inline engine generating 257 horsepower (1954) and 280 horsepower (1955). It reached a top speed of between 280 and 290 kilometres per hour (175 – 180mph).

Heroes indeed. In the meanwhile enjoy the pictures..

Gallery

For decades it has held an irresistible fascination for racing drivers, enthusiasts and spectators: crests and hollows, rapidly winding bends and a relatively narrow width make the Nürburgring Nordschleife one of the ultimate race tracks, demanding all the skill a driver can offer.

Every model produced by BMW’s M Division has graduated top of the class from the Northern Loop Academy – it’s a tough job but someone’s got to do it – and the man responsible for putting the final touches on BMW’s M cars is test driver Mario Metko.

The following video, produced for BMW Magazine, shows Mario putting the BMW M3 Coupé through its paces around this tortuous circuit, spending the day doing what plenty of BMW fans dream of – driving the Nordschleife at the limit.

Earlier today, KTM published their financial performance for the fourth-quarter of the 2009/2010 business year with a net income of 11.3 million EUR against revenues of 459 million EUR, whilst positive cash flow in the period enabled debts to be reduced and liquidity reserves to be increased. This is positive news and bodes well for the X-Bow to remain with us for some time to come.

KTM’s CEO Stefan Pierer said, “Since we focused on our core business, off-road competition and on a competitive cost structure – with a slight increase in results, compared to the previous period – we found a fast and sustainable track with which to overcome the crisis. We are back in the front row and have exceeded all expectations for the fourth quarter results by far.”

KTM confirmed alongside these financial results that production of the X-Bow R would commence as planned, with orders commencing from spring 2011.

The X-Bow R is powered by the 2-litre turbocharged engine found in the Audi S3, with further changes to the engine electronics and peripheral devices boosting output up to 300-bhp. In addition, a considerably lower positioning and a modified mounting of the engine will lead to even higher cornering speeds and increased driving precision.

Two optional equipment packages will allow customisation of the X-BOW “R” to the customer’s specific requirements: The road legal and homologated “Sport” package; and the “Race” package, which is optimised for track day and racing use. The packages each include a vast number of completely new developed parts, which increase the performance of the car dramatically. Many of these parts will be also available separately in the PowerParts programme, so all current KTM X-BOW owners will enjoy the benefit of the new developments.

The prototype shown above is pictured at it’s first roll-out on the legendary Nürburgring Nordschleife. As you can see the aerodynamic features alone make this new R model stand out from the crowd.

More detailed information, prices and pictures will be available at the beginning of 2011 together with some data on the X-Bow R’s Nürburgring lap time…

You’ve just been eaten for breakfast by a fettled Suzuki Swift and a GTR that seems to be piloted by the ghost of Stefan Bellof and you understand the Nordschleife is a place where you could spend your entire life getting it wrong.

It was my first time in Nürburg (Germany, in fact) and its undulating centrepiece was every bit as terrifying as its lauded reputation. Just the afternoon before a biker had had a big one, closing the circuit for several hours. So when – on a sighting lap – someone binned their FWD Seat Ibiza at 35mph on the fourth corner, I became more than a little anxious.

The briefing before was the first confidence shaker. Although it was a Destination Nürburgring trackday, where no motorcycles and coach tours could cause issues, the message was simple: “Of the 250 cars out there we expect 20-30 incidents today… don’t drive like a cock.” I read that as “you will crash but try not to, and if you survive you wouldn’t be able to pay the bill anyway.” I’ll take the Pearly Gates, then.

The fact I was with friends using one of their cars meant there were further punitive consequences, should an M3 CSL find itself buried in the Adenauer shrubbery. But I suppose if there’s one way to ruin your life, turning the M-car connoisseur’s codpiece of choice into an inferno of twisted metal and carbon is one of coolest methods…

Aside from the aforementioned Ibiza mong, the laps behind the pace car were free from drama yet humbling. One thing a PS3/Xbox cannot prepare you for is the dramatic change in elevation that increases momentum quicker than you anticipate (eg Foxhole) and instantly makes you regret the last round of Bitburgers the night before. Not exceeding the 120km/h limit for this first hour may have seemed churlish to those experienced ‘Ringers, but trust me in greasy conditions getting close to this around the high-speed corners requires an inordinate amount of focus.

The Green Hell. Sounds scary, but it’s a friendly place when you get to know it

Soon after people were taking to the track for their ‘hot’ laps unconcerned with the nice layer of drizzle one of the Eiffel’s microclimates had just issued. Not wanting to seem a bit limp, Team CSL (as I shall refer to us) exited the pit lane with ephemeral optimism. It was a poignant, spiritual moment. The leaden skies draped over the rich green hills resonating to a soundtrack that was mostly Porsche flat-6. Now was the time.

Dipping into Tiergarten the asphalt appears wide and inviting and the compression mild compared to the upcoming sections. Through the pit straight you plunge down the Hatzenbach in a section of fast left-rights then over the infamous Flugplatz where you are uncertain about where to lift and where to put the anchors on. The lap seems to extend into a series of fast lefts before a long hairpin down into the dreaded Foxhole, which some can take indecently fast before braking into Adenauer Forst.

From here it gets a little blurry and confusing as you continue to descend to Adenauer Bridge then immediately start climbing back up passing the Lauda Kink, through the Bergwerk hairpin and then a ridiculously quick section on the way to the dreaded Carraciola Karussell – named in deference to Rudolf Carraciola, the original regenmeister I’m told. The ascent continues around to Brünnchen (Spyshot Central) then delivers some delicious sweeping, cresting left-rights that take you to the mini-Karussell before the long right-hander onto Döttinger Höhe and the 1+ mile drag back to the Bilstein Bridge where you decide if you want to go again.

Team CSL wasn’t completely lacking in talent – a racing licence holder, a former competitive karter and an existentialist with balls the size of Galia melons (not me and I’ve seen) – but we were rinsed lap after lap as we tentatively tried to navigate our way around. One particular German in a black R26 R really made me feel like Taki Inoue when he barged passed and disappeared out of sight within 4 corners.

If our own performances were unimpressive, the circuit complex was certainly not. Restaurants, hotels, local trade all depend upon the hallowed asphalt of the ‘Ring and bask in its rich history. People understandably worry about it turning into a sort of automotive Disneyland, but really it’s only the dedicated who want to travel across Europe to test their mettle on such a demanding circuit.

And, to be honest, it’s a guy thing. Of the 400 people in the pits there were probably 30 women and most of them looked heroically bored.

Often when you view laps of the ‘Ring they’re poorly shot and grainy affairs that are saved by their content rather than their production quality.  Subaru however when they decided to put their 2010 WRX STi to the German test decided to not only bring in four time WRC champion Tommi Mäkinen but then also make a series of seven videos about the feat.

The Mak is back ...

The first video sees an interview with the softly spoken Finn as he speaks about how this project came together and his thoughts on the 2010 WRX STi as Subaru revert back to the saloon shape of earlier models.   Mäkinen is admittedly a better driver than he is a public speaker, but it’s always nice to hear ex-racers still have a passion for driving long after they retire from the racing scene.

The full onboard lap is available to view on SkiddPlayer

The lap itself sees Mäkinen tear around the course comfortably under eight minutes, pushing the all wheel drive car to its very limits.  The video features a non-intrusive digital rev counter, Gs and gear display, throttle and brake bars plus current speed.  The map of the track also helps you get your bearings as the Finn carries corner speeds most track day heroes could only dream of.  Judging by the number of crunching 5^th to 2^nd gear changes we’ll assume this isn’t Mäkinen’s daily driver …

Then take some time to enjoy some lovely aerial views of the track

Following this there are a series of interesting videos with the Japanese engineers from Subaru as they talk about the philosophy of the Impreza and their experiences of the Nürburgring.  Despite the cheesy narration voice there is some interesting information packed into these snappy clips as well as some lovely aerial shots and use of graphics – for example stating how the total elevation change of the Nürburgring is equal to the Eiffel Tower from top to bottom.

The series is well worth checking out whether you’re a Subaru fan or not, it’s just nice to see well produced clips of most people’s favourite strip of tarmac in the world.  Also, isn’t it a welcome relief to see a standard car (bar roll cage and rally seatbelts) set a very strong lap time that you can actually go out and buy?

Subaru Impreza WRX STi - 7:55:00

As you’ll see in the videos, the top speed Mäkinen reached on his lap is 255km/h, which compares to the 280-300km/h top speed many of the cars around this lap time set – a lap demonstrating the art of cornering speed, then.  Well done Mäkinen and Subaru.

Click to view the videos on SkiddPlayer:

• 7:55:00 Lap Onboard With Tommi Mäkinen
• Interview with Tommi Mäkinen
• Nordschleife Fact File
• Faster & Faster
• Conquering the Track
• Goals of Development
• Behind the Wheel

Need to know

There are several important facts you should be aware of regarding this new 911 GT2 RS. Firstly and most obviously, this is the first ‘RS’ version of the GT2 variant, so it’s worth pondering on this for a moment. Porsche engineers have long been aware of the general public perception of the GT2, from it’s chilling nickname in 996 GT2 guise as “the widowmaker” through to the belief that it’s sibling GT3 variants were the ‘real’ top of the Porsche tree in terms of driving enjoyment and sporting appeal.

In reality that positioning was turned around with the Gen1 997 GT2, which was more predictable on the limit that the 4WD 997 Turbo and at least as much fun to drive hard as the Gen1 GT3 RS.

When Andreas Preuninger and his team set to work on the Gen2 997 GT2 his objective was nothing less than to put clear water between the GT3 and GT2, placing Porsche’s forced-induction model at the very top of the food chain – fastest in a straight line, fastest on track and most fun to drive. Simple really.

Porsche’s press release for the new 911 GT2 RS addresses this point in the simplest of manners – “The time: seven minutes, 18 seconds on the Nürburgring-Nordschleife.” Enough said.

The statement then points out the power output of the GT2 RS, 611 bhp (620 hp) which is some 90 bhp more than the Gen1 911 GT2. And to demonstrate the ‘RS’ principle they declare that the new GT2 RS weighs 1,370 kilograms (or 3,021 lb) in road trim which is 70 kg lighter than the Gen1 GT2 that is succeeds.

The Gen1 GT2 wasn’t exactly ‘lardy’ with its stripped out, no-nonsense interior, so removing a further 70 kg from its frame can only mean the application of some pretty special light-weight materials. The new 911 GT2 RS has a power-to-weight ratio of just 2.21 kilos or 4.9 lb per horsepower, by far the best power/weight ratio in its class.

To put such performance potential in perspective, the new GT2 RS weighs the same as the current GT3 RS… but it carries 167 bhp more. Dwell on that little bit of information for just a moment.

This is the fastest and most powerful road-going sports car that Porsche have ever built. The boss is very definitely back.

This just about sums up how we feel about the new GT2 RS. Click to view on SkiddPlayer.

What does this mean on the road

The GT2 RS continues to be powered by Porsche’s venerable 3.6 litre six-cylinder boxer engine boosted by twin variable turbine geometry turbochargers, rather than the new 3.8 litre engine used in the 997 Turbo, GT3 and GT3 RS.

Power is delivered through the rear wheels via a six-speed manual gearbox, using sports tyres developed especially for the 911 GT2 RS and measuring 325/30 ZR 19. This converts its massive power into equally massive performance and acceleration on the road: 0 to 62.5 mph in 3.5 seconds, 0 to 125 mph in just 9.8 seconds, and 0 to 187.5 mph in 28.9 seconds. The GT2 RS is claimed to achieve a top speed of 206 mph, and we have little doubt about that being on the conservative side.

As if to rub salt into the wounds of its more outrageous competitors Porsche have been able to ‘reduce’ the 911 GT2′s CO2 emissions – down by approximately 5 per cent to 284 g/km and reflecting a fuel consumption of 23.7 mpg imp (11.9 ltr/100 km).

No-nonsense specification

Equally supreme stopping power on this ultra-high-performance sports car comes from PCCB composite ceramic brakes. Appropriate longitudinal and crosswise dynamics are ensured by the sporting RS set-up of the springs, PASM Porsche Adaptive Suspension Management, anti-roll bars, as well as the dynamic engine mounts and PSM Porsche Stability Management.

In its looks the new 911 GT2 RS stands out clearly from the 911 GT2 above all through the lavish use of carbon-fibre-reinforced (CFR) components in matt-black surface finish, even wider wheels and flared wheel arches at the front, new 911 GT2 light-alloy wheels with central locking, as well as ”GT2 RS“ model designations on the doors and rear lid. The upgraded front spoiler lip and the rear spoiler lip made of CFR and now 10 millimetres or almost 0.4 inches higher, again in surface carbon finish, ensure the right aerodynamic precision as well as extra downforce.

Visit the 911 GT2 RS microsite for further details and the chance to configure your own GT2 RS.

The interior also exudes the flair of sporting performance in virtually every detail, featuring lightweight bucket seats made of carbon-fibre-reinforced plastic in carbon surface finish and lightweight door panels with door opening straps. The basic interior colour is black, contrasting attractively with features such as the seat centre sections and the roof lining as well as segments on the steering wheel rim. The gearshift and handbrake lever are both finished in red alcantara.

Should you buy one?

We are in no doubt that the GT2 RS will be a ‘great’ Porsche, perhaps one of the greatest of all time, however getting hold of one will be something of a challenge.

Limited to just 500 units, the 911 GT2 RS will be available in Europe from September 2010 and in the USA from October 2010. The retail price in Germany will be 237,578 Euro, some 48,000 Euro more than the car it replaces. But as with previous generation models, if you’re only hearing about the GT2 RS now then you’re probably already too late to snap up one of the planned 500 cars.

AUDIO FILES

• 

  GT2 RS – Engine revs at standstill

• 

  GT2 RS – Accelerating away

• 

  GT2 RS – Drive-by at full throttle

The video above shows the 2010 Viper ACR crossing the finish line on one of its record breaking runs, setting a time of 1:33.944, which was then improved upon after further laps.

Okay, full-fat isn’t a very apt description since this Viper ACR is lighter than the regular car, produces 10 times as much downforce and this final run-out version for 2009 is faster (with a claimed top speed of 202 mph) thanks to a revised 5th gear.

The 2009 Viper ACR currently holds the record for the quickest lap around the Nürburgring Nordschleife, so rather than beat its own record with this updated Viper the team decided to tackle an iconic track closer to home.

In honour of the Viper ACR’s record time Dodge will now rollout a Laguna Seca Special Edition Viper ACR, just 33 units of this special edition Viper will be produced, presumably with that equally ‘special’ paint scheme.

According to Dodge CEO Ralph Gilles, Dodge will end production on the Viper in July 2010, but plan on bringing its replacement to the market in 2012.

Pictures courtesy of : Red Letter Dodge