Once again I’ve been driving a variety of interesting and spectacular cars round the short but very hilly track at Millbrook in Bedfordshire, England. As usual an excellent event organised by the British Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). I also drove one or two round the high-speed bowl.
I started off in the
Honda S2000, to remind me what a good little sports car it is, and to remind myself of where the track goes – it is all bends, and many start on are just over crests of hills, so you need to know where you are going. On this sort of track, the lack of feel in the steering of the S2000 was well evident, as was the flat, surefooted cornering.
I didn’t really get into the groove of keeping the revs up in the 6,000-8,000 band in the short drive as you need to do to make the car fly. A nice car so long as you don’t mind revving it to get ahead.
225 bhp Renault
Next, an ugly duckling that challenges sports cars – the
Renault Megane Renaultsport 225 Renault F1 Team. Yes, I know, the name is as bad as the back end of this hatchback, but this one is a special version of the mechanically similar Renaultsport 225. The name is intended to remind you that Renault won the F1 Grand Prix World championship last year and that it has been making waves with its hot hatches as well.
Powered by a 225 bhp turbo engine, this hot hatch challenges the best. The engine is very responsive, without any turbo lag evident, and the handling is well up to the mark. It is as responsive as the Focus ST, with maximum torque at 3,000 rpm, and peak power at only 5,500 rpm. This torquey engine powers the car along fast enough to keep up with much more expensive stuff, not giving a hint of its heavy front end.
The Megane corners very flat on 235/40-18 Dunlop Sportmaxx tires, thanks to uprated springs and dampers. It is ideal for this sort of track because you can chuck it about. Great fun, and a serious alternative to front-drive sports cars like the Audi TT so long as you put up with the ugly shape.
Impreza WRX STi
Another big name in pocket rockets and hot hatches is Subaru with the
Impreza WRX STi. Now comes the Spec D (Discreet) version for those who want the power but don’t want to alert the police to the fact that they might be driving fast. Like the latest Imprezas available in Europe, it is powered by the 2.5 liter boxer engine used in America for some time.
In the WRX STi Spec D, the engine develops 285 bhp at 5,600 rpm, with maximum torque of 289 lb ft at 4,000 rpm. The interior is improved slightly, but still very simple. However, the electronic analog speedo and rev-counter are very clear, and an improvement. Instead of a big rear spoiler that obscures rear vision, you get a lower one that sits on the trunk lid.
There is plenty of power at most speeds, and with four-wheel drive, the latest WRX STi is very sure-footed, getting that power onto the road without any problem. It corners without much roll, and the ride is quite good.
Driving fast, especially on a track, is as much about getting the power on early as you come out of corners, and here the WRX STi is excellent. Power comes on smoothly, and the car goes out of the corner very fast, with neutral handling. You can also cruise this Impreza at high speed – this on the high-speed bowl – quietly and effortlessly. Definitely recommended.
Mazda’s 235 bhp entry
Next, I tried Mazda’s entry in the hot 4wd category – the
Mazda 6 MPS (or Mazdaspeed). The interior is a bit more plush than in the Subaru, but it has 235 bhp, which is good compared with most cars in this class, but not with the Impreza or Mitsubishi Evo IX.
On this short track, the combination of the willing, responsive engine and good gearshift led to fast progress. The car corners quite well, but was let down by understeer that built up when I accelerated fast out of one or two of the slower corners; these were corners where the Impreza went out faster as if on rails.
Next came the Mazda Miata/MX-5. A 1.8 liter version was waiting, so I hopped in, hood down, despite the chill in the air. As ever, the car proved tremendous fun, with that willing little engine driving the car forward well enough so long as you kept the revs up all the time.
This latest MX-5 has loads of cornering power, as I soon discovered as I was not far behind a Porsche 911 Carrera. Over two laps the Porsche gained a bit here and there, but overall was only an extra 50 yards or so ahead at the end. Of course, I was trying harder than he was!
Now for some supercars
During the day, I also sampled a few supercars, and one real eye-opener, starting with the superbly elegant new
Jaguar XK. Power freaks will wait for the XKR, of course, but the XK impressed, not so much for its trackday abilities but for its ability to get around the place quickly and effortlessly.
First impressions win you over. The seating position feels just right, and visibility is good. Once out on the track, I switched the automatic to Sport. There’s paddle shift now, and the paddles seemed well-positioned. Give the V-8 the gun, and off the car goes, accelerating well. Shift down with the paddles, and the revs build up quickly, the engine responding very well.
So far so good. You’re aware of the luxurious interior and the muffled roar of the engine, and the car treading its way around the track. The XK rolls more than some of its competitors, but the suspension is supple enough to keep the tires in contact with the bumpy parts of the track, when others might be jumping around a little, and it seems very comfortable.
A brief encounter, but one that showed the new XK to be a thoroughbred, and one that benefits from the paddle gear shift.
Porsche 911 Carrera 4S
Now for Porsche. The
911 Carrera 4S – that’s the four-wheel driver version – impressed all round. It has terrific traction, and the superb power delivery characteristic of all Porsches, with a good spread of power from 3,500 rpm to over 7,000 rpm. 911 Carreras have masses of cornering power, but the 4S has the ability to get the power onto the track earlier in the corners than the rear-driver models, giving faster acceleration out onto the straights. A beautiful car with superb performance.
- and the Cayman S
Equally stunning to look at is the new
Porsche Cayman S, it is fabulous from any angle. It shares the simple but instantly readable instruments of the 911 Carreras, the driving position felt just right, and visibility is excellent. These are things you tend to take for granted on Porsches.
The steering is well weighted, and with 295 bhp coupled with plenty of torque in the mid ranges, the car is very quick. The engine has a sporty exhaust which is not too loud, too.
On this short run, everything seemed just right – the handling and steering were great, the suspension soaked up the bumps well. The Cayman S was particularly impressive on the hairpin bends, cornering very flat but fast, and getting the power onto the road early on. This must be a great sports car and grand tourer.
A 326 bhp eye opener
Now for something different. There is usually one car that is a real eye-opener at Millbrook, that you keep saying ‘Wow’ to yourself as you go round. This time it was the
Audi A8 V8 diesel. Yup. The engine in this car is so quiet you would not know whether it was a diesel or gasoline, and you might think it had electric power – actually it is quieter than many electric cars.
This A8 is powered by Audi’s latest diesel with piezo-electric injectors, which allow great precision in the rate and amount of injection at very high pressures. The result is a mximum output of 326 bhp at only 3,750 rpm, with maximum torque a massive 480 lb ft (650 Nm) from 1,600 rpm right up to 3,500 rpm. With this limited speed range you need a six-speed box – and you get it, but an automatic with Tiptronic.
Because the Audi A8 is built from aluminum, it is light. It is a large and luxurious car, yet it weighs the same as the Mercedes-Benz 600 SL two-seater.
Why does this car have the wow factor? First, it is very quiet, yet when you put your foot down it accelerates very fast, thanks to the masses of torque available at any speed. As you’d expect, the car is very smooth, soaks up bumps as you expect a luxury car to do, but the fact that the diesel accelerates so well impresses. Next you come to a corner, and the car goes round, the four-wheel drive system getting the power onto the road with no fuss as you accelerate out. Wow!
So you go into the next corner faster, braking late. The brakes are good, the car feels smaller than it is, and there is none of the pitching or wallowing that you find in many cars of this size. Turn in, and there is no hesitancy, despite the weight of that engine over the front wheels. Round you go, with some roll, but it is all under control, and you shoot out, down to the next corner. Round you go again, hurtle up to the brow, and come down the other side without any dramas, and on you go much faster than you would expect. Wow!
And that was it. Many thanks to the SMMT and the car manufacturers for providing such an excellent day again.
