Autoblog

Pagani Huayra sets new Top Gear Test Track record in season premiere

John Neff — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 12:33:00 EST

Filed under: Videos

The season premiere of Top Gear aired last night in the UK, and did so in typical Top Gear fashion. We've yet to see the episode for ourselves (it's available via Final Gear on bittorrent, and as we reported earlier, will air on BBC America in the US just a week from now on February 4), but reports are coming in that a new record was set on the Top Gear Test Track by the Pagani Huayra.

Piloted by The Stig, the Huayra reportedly posted a time of just 1:13.8. It's remarkable, really, given that the car it displaced atop the rankings was the Ariel Atom V8 500, which it beat by a full 1.3 seconds.

Scroll below to watch the power lap performed by The Stig for yourself. The lap starts at the end of the first video and continues at the beginning of the second. Hurry up and click play, though, as we don't except these to be up on YouTube for much longer.

Continue reading Pagani Huayra sets new Top Gear Test Track record in season premiere

Pagani Huayra sets new Top Gear Test Track record in season premiere originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 28 Jan 2013 12:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Caterham SP/300.R claims new record at Cholmondeley [w/video]

Noah Joseph — Thu, 21 Jun 2012 10:31:00 EST

Filed under: Performance, Misc. Auto Shows, UK, MISC

We don't envy the British for many things - certainly little in the dental or gastronomical fields - but they do know how to put on a car show, we'll give them that. While the conventional London Auto Show may not be at the same level as the shows in Frankfurt, Paris or Geneva, the English take things one step further with moving expositions that put any other to shame. Forget Top Gear Live, we're talking about the Goodwood Festival of Speed that's coming up soon, and the Cholmondeley Pageant of Power that just concluded.

Dubbed the Goodwood of the North, Cholmondeley is built around a similar idea: take some drool-enducing supercars and race them up the hill on the grounds of an old castle. This year's event included Astons Martin, Bentleys, Bugattis and Lamborghinis aplenty. But the fastest vehicle there was a Caterham.

Beating the 62.68 lap record set by Lamborghini in 2010, the Caterham SP/300.R set a new record at 61.89 seconds. Granted, it's not worth quite the same in bragging rights as, say, a Nurburgring or Laguna Seca lap record, but all things being equal, it shows just what Caterham and Lola's new track car is capable of.

In case your unfamiliar with Cholmondeley, scroll down to watch a video of the hill climb from this year's event being run in a Radical SR3 SL.

Continue reading Caterham SP/300.R claims new record at Cholmondeley [w/video]

Caterham SP/300.R claims new record at Cholmondeley [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 21 Jun 2012 10:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pagani Zonda R reportedly sets new Nürburgring record

Noah Joseph — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 16:58:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Coupe, Performance, Europe, MISC

Pagani Zonda R - Click above for high-res image gallery

If you were blown away a couple of months ago when Ferrari broke the 7-minute barrier at the Nürburgring, then hold on to your hat, dear friend, because the Prancing Horse has just been bested by its own next-door neighbor.

Reports from the Old World indicate that a new Nordschleife record has been taken by the Pagani Zonda R. And by some margin, too: After Ferrari lapped the ring in 6:58, its cross-town rival reportedly scrubbed over ten seconds off that time with a 6:47.

Now before you protest that the Zonda R isn't road legal, we'll point out that the 599XX with which Ferrari scored its time isn't, either. Both these Modenese supercars belong to a new category of vehicle known as the track car, bridging the gap between street-legal and race cars with production-based forms. And the Zonda R, it would seem, is the new king.

Gallery: SEMA 2009: Pagani Zonda R

[Source: PistonHeads]

Pagani Zonda R reportedly sets new Nürburgring record originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 30 Jun 2010 16:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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VIDEO: Inside the cockpit of the Viper ACR's record lap at Laguna Seca

Noah Joseph — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 18:44:00 EST

Filed under: Performance, Videos, Dodge

Dodge Viper ACR laps Laguna Seca - Click above to watch the video after the jump

Pushing a performance monster like the Viper ACR around a race track at ten tenths takes some pretty massive cojones. But few tracks require the testicular fortitude of Laguna Seca.

The iconic circuit in Northern California is packed full of decreasing radius corners, off-camber turns, and the indomitable corkscrew. Fortunately, Dodge test driver Chris Winkler was up to the task, and pushed the ACR around dry lagoon to a record-breaking lap time of 1:33.944, edging out its cousin the Devon GTX in the process to claim the fastest road-car lap time around the track.

Now we've got footage that takes us inside the cockpit for the record run, which may seem like old hat to the video game crowd, until you realize this was happening in real life. Follow the jump to check it out.

[Source: Chrysler via YouTube]

Continue reading VIDEO: Inside the cockpit of the Viper ACR's record lap at Laguna Seca

VIDEO: Inside the cockpit of the Viper ACR's record lap at Laguna Seca originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 18:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Shanghai Surprise: Cadillac CTS stunt team dazzles in China, Heinricy sets F1 track record [*UPDATED w/VIDEO]

Chris Paukert — Fri, 15 May 2009 12:28:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Sedan, Performance, China, Etc., Marketing/Advertising, Cadillac

Cadillac's V-Day stunt driving exhibition - Click above to watch the video

Although things are understandably more than bit somber in General Motors' U.S. operations as of late, over in China, the mood is a bit more upbeat. The evidence? Check out this CTS stunt-driving exhibition held last weekend on Shanghai's Formula One circuit.

According to GM's Cadillac Notes blog, some 19,000 fans gathered to watch the show and celebrate the arrival of the CTS-V in China last weekend - this, despite the heat (with temperatures at around 86°, it was reportedly the hottest May 9 in over a century).

In any case, the professional Hollywood stunt team delighted the masses, as did GM test engineer supremo John Heinricy, who (aside from apparently not being all-the-way retired), marked the occasion by setting a record in the CTS-V for the quickest-ever lap (2:32.80) of the course in a production sedan. Heck, even Spider-Man showed up! Check out the high-res hijinks in our below. Thanks for the tip, Scot!

UPDATE: YouTube video of V-Day added after the jump.

Gallery: Cadillac V-Day in Shanghai

[Sources: Cadillac Notes; YouTube]

Continue reading Shanghai Surprise: Cadillac CTS stunt team dazzles in China, Heinricy sets F1 track record [*UPDATED w/VIDEO]

Shanghai Surprise: Cadillac CTS stunt team dazzles in China, Heinricy sets F1 track record [*UPDATED w/VIDEO] originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 15 May 2009 12:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Unseating Koenigsegg: Ascari A10 sets new Top Gear lap record

Noah Joseph — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 09:25:00 EST

Filed under: Europe, Supercars

Sweet Lord, how we do love progress! Cars just keep on getting faster and faster. Unfortunately drivers aren't getting any better - as evidenced by the seemingly endless stream of supercars crashing into unforgiving immovable objects - but leave it to Top Gear's anonymous pilot extraordinaire (all we know is he's called The Stig) to show the way.

The Top Gear lap record has been broken again. The new king of the Power Lap board: the Ascari A10. On this week's show, The Stig coerced the British supercar around the show's private test track in a scant 1:17.3, beating the previous record-holder, the Koenigsegg CCX (complete with special Top Gear rear wing), by three tenths of a second. The A10's more "civilized" brother, the KZ1, took a more leisurely 1:20.7 (still good enough to best the likes of the Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano, Lamborghini Murcielago and Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren, to name just a few).

Although the Ascari may be king today, it has to watch out for potential usurpers who have some serious gripes: the Caparo T1 posted an even faster time than the Ascari (much faster, actually), but was disqualified on a technicality. Meanwhile the Ultima GTR, in an unsanctioned (read: non-televised) test, lapped the track four and a half seconds faster than the Ascari, too. Should Top Gear give either (or better yet, both) a proper run by the books, the A10's reign could be short-lived. But in the meantime, the Koenig is dead, long like the king.

Jump for the Top Ten Top Gear Top Super Cars Lap Times.

[Source: Top Gear]

Continue reading Unseating Koenigsegg: Ascari A10 sets new Top Gear lap record

Unseating Koenigsegg: Ascari A10 sets new Top Gear lap record originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 11 Dec 2007 09:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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