Car and Driver Lightning Lap is back, throws two trucks into the mix [w/video]

Damon Lavrinc — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 20:01:00 EST

Filed under: Videos

Car and Driver is back with its annual Lightning Lap roundup for a sixth year, with 20 of the world's best vehicles taking to Virginia International Raceway to lay down the quickest time around VIR's 4.1-mile Grand West Course.

Included in this year's running is a suitably diverse spread of sports cars and sedans, ranging from the lowly Volkswagen Jetta GLI to the formidable Porsche Panamera Turbo S - a difference of 350 horsepower and over $168,000. And, just to add a bit more spice to the festivities, C/D introduced a new class (LLT) to include two trucks in the running: the BMW X5 M and Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8.

But what C/D gives, it taketh away. Gone is the LL5 class ($250,000 and up) and so are the LLU cars, like the Mosler MT900S, the current Lightning Lap champion. And we're perfectly okay with that. After all, we're more interested in how the Lotus Evora S hangs with the Porsche Cayman R and where the BMW 1 Series M Coupe stacks up against the Ford Mustang Boss 302 Laguna Seca - and not just for convoluted naming conventions. Check out a video after the break for a taste and then head over to C/D for the full story.

Continue reading Car and Driver Lightning Lap is back, throws two trucks into the mix [w/video]

Car and Driver Lightning Lap is back, throws two trucks into the mix [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 24 Jan 2012 20:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Car & Driver runs this year's Lightning Lap at VIR

John Neff — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 11:57:00 EST

Click above to view high-res gallery of C&D's 2008 Lightning Lap

Every year Car & Driver does something we can only dream about doing: take the whole gamut of today's hottest cars and run them around the 4.2-mile track at Virginia International Speedway. It's called the Lightning Lap, and it's basic purpose is to discover which cars give you the most bang for your buck. The invite list reads like a who's who of sportscars, and this year ranges from the 2008 Chevy Cobalt SS to the 2008 Mosler MT900S. Twenty-two cars in all were tested, and other notable participants include the '09 Cadillac CTS-V, '09 Nissan GT-R, '08 Dodge Viper ACR and '08 Ferrari F430 Scuderia (sorry, apparently the Corvette ZR1 wasn't available, which would have made this the most epic event ever).

Think of the Lightning Lap as the biggest comparison test you've ever seen, and a great way to figure out how much performance you're getting for your dollar since the cars are judged strictly on lap times only. The cars are divided up into five classes according to price with vehicles like the Cobalt SS and Dodge Cailber SRT4 taking up residence way down in the LL1 class and the Ferrari and Mosler holding court in the most expensive LL5 class. This year there was no LL4 class, but LL3 contains the bulk of participants. We've got a gallery of shots from the event below provided courtesy of Car and Driver and a list of all the entrants after the jump, but you'll want to click through and read the whole thing for yourself. We're already angling with our friends over there to see if we can sit trackside and watch next year when the next Lightning Lap goes down.

Gallery: 2008 Lightning Lap - Car and Driver

[Source: Car and Driver, Photos by Rich Chenet]

Continue reading Car & Driver runs this year's Lightning Lap at VIR

Car & Driver runs this year's Lightning Lap at VIR originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 25 Sep 2008 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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