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Post by johnc on Jul 25, 2022 8:21:19 GMT
For Christmas my son bought me a Supercar experience which I took on Saturday at Ingliston in Edinburgh.
The basic voucher gives you 3 laps in a Porsche 911 (991.1), an Aston Vantage convertible or and Audi R8. You can upgrade to more laps and also to different cars such as the Lamborghini Gallardo or Huracan, Ferrari 458, McLaren 570S, the new AM Vantage, or Nissan GTR.
I upgraded to the Huracan but kept the 911 and also upgraded to 6 laps each, which including the damage waiver, cost me c£145.
The circuit is a bit less than half the lap of the old racing circuit and it has been neutered in the faster sections by the introduction of straw bale chicanes. It is really just an opportunity to try out cars you would never get to drive rather than a proper driving experience. However it was still fun and I think I caught and passed most of the cars on the track in both cars. The braking points were ridiculously early and once I had the confidence of the instructors, I was changing in to the next gear as we passed the boards. However the braking point was more often dictated by someone trundling along at 30mph in the middle of the road.
The 991.1 is still a sublime driving experience. Plenty of torque, plenty of power and a supple but well controlled ride with little roll. The front end was also pretty eager on turn in and traction was absolute on exit. It is very easy to drive and just feels really well sorted with the wonderful howl of the naturally aspirated 3.8 litre flat 6.
The Huracan is a different experience altogether. The throttle action is very direct and the engine feels as though it wants to rev at the slightest hint of throttle. For those who have experienced a race engine with a light weight flywheel, that is what this felt like. On the track the car felt quick but not ballistic as I expected. The M5 felt quicker. However after a couple of laps the instructor switched the car to race mode and that changed things considerably: the exhaust note changed and as the car revved it gave that Lambo scream as it neared the red line. It was also a good bit sharper in acceleration and much more of what I was expecting. Unfortunately the traffic on the track was building up and on most laps I only got about half the lap before I had to slow (very considerably in some case) before it was safe to pass. The instructor gave me a couple more laps to try to make up for it and I have to say I came away impressed by the Lambo. Like the Porsche, the suspension was relatively supple, the sound was tremendous and it turned in, gripped and handled really well.
It wasn't a PalmerSport experience but for someone who wants to say they drove a Ferrari or a Lamborghini and had the opportunity to floor it, it is a great experience. I was surprised that there were people there who had spent £600/£700 to drive 6 or 7 cars for 6 laps each. I would far rather throw another few £00 at it and have a proper day at PalmerSport. Memo to myself to start the process again and get a group booked for PalmerSport this time next year.
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Post by Boxer6 on Jul 25, 2022 11:55:25 GMT
I suspect any of those cars would be too much for me, though I must say you do sound like you had fun!
Ingliston was always a small track - 1.13 miles seems to ring a bell - tight and twisty, with only the main straight down to the hairpin offering anything like top speed for most. What bit did they use John, the main arena past the pits/paddock area, or the esses/hairpin complex?
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Post by johnc on Jul 25, 2022 13:28:17 GMT
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Post by Alex on Jul 27, 2022 10:20:36 GMT
Sounds like a good experience. What were the cars like condition wise. I did one of these experiences a few years ago in an Atom, Gillard and Ferrari 360. The latter two were pretty ropey tbh and the instructors made you change up to 6th almost the moment you left the pits and kept you in a high gear most the time. It was one of the cheaper experiences however (the sort they sell at WH Smith).
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Post by johnc on Jul 27, 2022 11:26:38 GMT
Up close the cars has obvious wear marks and in some respects weren't pristine. Most had seat covers on and a few I saw had been wrapped. However mechanically they were very strong with no steering or suspension play and strong engines with good gearchanges. The instructor in the Huracan told me that the gearboxes all got rebuilt on an annual basis and the engines every two or three years depending on use.
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Post by Big Blue on Jul 27, 2022 11:46:58 GMT
When I did the Porsche GT day the instructor told me the slightly older GT3 than the one I was in did about 30 full bore standing starts every day and the PDK never went wrong.
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Post by Alex on Jul 27, 2022 16:12:07 GMT
When I did the Porsche GT day the instructor told me the slightly older GT3 than the one I was in did about 30 full bore standing starts every day and the PDK never went wrong. I wouldn't start betting the house on any Lambo managing that! |
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Post by Blarno on Jul 28, 2022 11:48:11 GMT
The one supercar experience I did back in early 2002 was a great laugh, but some of the cars were uber shonky - mainly the 2 fastest ones: A Viper and a Diablo SV.
The Viper was the only LHD car and consequently had a lot of rubber marks on the RHS from where people misjudged their entry into corners and they'd moved the side exit exhausts to rear exit, as it had previously set 2 people on fire...
The Lambo had no functioning AC, the dash was lit up like the London Eye at New Year and it would overheat after a few laps and have to be left to cool down. It was also covered in battle scars and rubber, but at least it had been used properly.
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Post by humphreythepug on Aug 24, 2022 11:24:31 GMT
I did a Race Car Experience yesterday at Thruxton, the wife and girls bought it for me for my birthday in January, I've always been a bit skeptical about these as you do hear stories about how many are generally a let down, however the wife assured me she did alot of research (which to be fair she is good at for most things), have to say it was a very enjoyable 2.5 hours.
After the briefings, safety talk and do's and don't we went out to the track, 3 of us in a Puma with an instructor showing us the track, pointing out the coloured cones which help with where to brake, turn in and show where the apex is, this was 3 laps, each lap getting gradually faster, then it was 3 laps driving a Caymen with an instructor helping and advising, filling out a score card at the end, there was no attempt at making me slow down, no limits on the revs etc.
Then 5 laps on my own in a Formula Renault, which was fantastic, managed to lap most of them who went out at the same time as me, bloody hard work though then a final 2 laps being driven at great speed in a Focus ST.
Overall I had a great time, saw Tiff Needell too.
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Post by Alex on Aug 25, 2022 9:53:30 GMT
Sounds good Humph and definitely an experience that's done correctly to give you something to remember. The one I did was much more of a pile em high sell em cheap affair and I think if I were to do one again I'd want one that was a bit more than just driving.
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Post by Big Blue on Aug 25, 2022 15:03:40 GMT
Thruxton one sounds good; might look into it as a suggestion. Nice fast track as well.
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Post by PG on Aug 26, 2022 7:53:40 GMT
Sound like a good time was had by John and humph. All these race and test days sound really good. But the two I've done in my life - both when I was younger - plus a cart race day and the i-Pace morning I did a couple of years ago, all taught me the same thing. I may be smooth and reasonably good at car control, but I am not fast. I'm not even warm. Tepid maybe..... At humph's I'd be the one that you were all lapping in the Formula Renault. As it happened to me in a Formula Ford. There I was thinking I was doing OK and then about six people took me at the first corner.  |
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Post by Stuntman on Sept 3, 2022 18:37:09 GMT
I took my Dad and younger brother to a similar Experience at Thruxton back in 2004 for their respective 60th and 30th birthday presents. From memory, we started out in MG ZS cars for a few laps, then 986 Boxster S, then a 996 Turbo, then the Formula Renault. Neither my Dad nor my brother is a particularly keen or fast driver and all three of us enjoyed the day very much. My only frustrations were that the instructor that I had for the Boxster was very reluctant to trust me (I owned an E46 M3 and VX220 Turbo at the time and knew how to drive quickly and smoothly) and that the Formula Renault had a rev limiter set to the lowest common denominator. But the single seater was still ace, and the other two instructors I had were both helpful and trusting after watching me drive the first half-lap. I would certainly recommend Thruxton. Forum meet, anyone? |
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Post by Martin on Sept 3, 2022 20:50:24 GMT
My eldest bought me a driving experience for my Birthday which sounds excellent. It’s an official Silverstone one, new shape Vantage and an F430 with an ARDS instructor and no speed limits. The reviews suggest you’re pushed rather than held back. Really looking forward to it!
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Post by johnc on Sept 5, 2022 7:57:45 GMT
I took my Dad and younger brother to a similar Experience at Thruxton back in 2004 for their respective 60th and 30th birthday presents. From memory, we started out in MG ZS cars for a few laps, then 986 Boxster S, then a 996 Turbo, then the Formula Renault. Neither my Dad nor my brother is a particularly keen or fast driver and all three of us enjoyed the day very much. My only frustrations were that the instructor that I had for the Boxster was very reluctant to trust me (I owned an E46 M3 and VX220 Turbo at the time and knew how to drive quickly and smoothly) and that the Formula Renault had a rev limiter set to the lowest common denominator. But the single seater was still ace, and the other two instructors I had were both helpful and trusting after watching me drive the first half-lap. I would certainly recommend Thruxton. Forum meet, anyone? My first single seater experience was a gift voucher for the Tom Brown Formula Ford experience at Knockhill, about a year after I started doing hillclimbs and Sprints - it was such a massive disappointment because of the rev limiter. I hadn't even reached the pits on the main straight when it was flat out at about 4,000rpm. I did try to entertain myself by trying to take all the corners flat (not quite possible) and I got a black flag for dangerous driving because I 4 wheel drifted around Duffus at the end of the main straight. "You're too f****** dangerous so that's you off". Tom Brown always had his own special brand of customer care. Needless to say I never went back and I never recommended him. As I said in an earlier post, if it's something you are organising yourself, save up and go to PalmerSport. |
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Post by Stuntman on Sept 5, 2022 13:11:31 GMT
I took my Dad and younger brother to a similar Experience at Thruxton back in 2004 for their respective 60th and 30th birthday presents. From memory, we started out in MG ZS cars for a few laps, then 986 Boxster S, then a 996 Turbo, then the Formula Renault. Neither my Dad nor my brother is a particularly keen or fast driver and all three of us enjoyed the day very much. My only frustrations were that the instructor that I had for the Boxster was very reluctant to trust me (I owned an E46 M3 and VX220 Turbo at the time and knew how to drive quickly and smoothly) and that the Formula Renault had a rev limiter set to the lowest common denominator. But the single seater was still ace, and the other two instructors I had were both helpful and trusting after watching me drive the first half-lap. I would certainly recommend Thruxton. Forum meet, anyone? My first single seater experience was a gift voucher for the Tom Brown Formula Ford experience at Knockhill, about a year after I started doing hillclimbs and Sprints - it was such a massive disappointment because of the rev limiter. I hadn't even reached the pits on the main straight when it was flat out at about 4,000rpm. I did try to entertain myself by trying to take all the corners flat (not quite possible) and I got a black flag for dangerous driving because I 4 wheel drifted around Duffus at the end of the main straight. "You're too f****** dangerous so that's you off". Tom Brown always had his own special brand of customer care. Needless to say I never went back and I never recommended him. As I said in an earlier post, if it's something you are organising yourself, save up and go to PalmerSport. Nice! I did much the same, and from memory I think I may have been able to take all the corners flat although I'm not quite sure whether I needed a slight lift before Campbell and before the entry to the chicane at the top of Woodham Hill. I stopped short of a four wheel drift though... |
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