Gallardo Nurburgring Blowout at 124 mph

Thanks to FrankUhlig for this high speed upload.

We're so used to seeing one car, shipped over from the US, going around the Nurburgring trying to beat the record, it's easy to forget that this is a racetrack that holds, well, races! And scary things happen when you're racing, like when your wheel blows up at 200kph!

Get all the action from inside the unfortunate Lamborghini Gallardo, looking forward and back, and from passing cars. The driver sighs with disappointment at the end. Yeah, that's really gotta suck.

To see how this track is meant to be driven take a M5 taxi ride with Sabine Schmidt

Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR: New Nurburgring Record

ChryslerVideo has something to brag about...and then some.

The battle for supremacy at the Nurburgring is an ongoing one: virtually every month there's a new car trying to best the record set by its competitors.

How does the Viper stack up against its competition? In the hands of Dutch driver Tom Coronel, driving the car for the first time and on only his third lap - following a couple of slight adjustments to the shock absorbers to address an understeer issue - the car can now claim the title of Fastest At The Ring.

Just how fast was the Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR's time? Click here to find out!

By comparison, see the ZR1's 7:26:4 lap

ZR1 vs GT-R at the 'Ring' Courtesy of Garage 419

All hail Garage 419 for this clip.

With all of the latest controversy over who is the KING of the RING, our friends over at Garage 419 decided to do a little creative editing. They matched up the latest videos of the ZR1 and GT-R on the famous track and turned their own timer on. See how both cars performed against each other in ZR1 vs GT-R at the 'Ring.'

ZR1 - 7:26:04 Around The Ring

Patience may be a virtue but we think it's highly overrated and we were just about ready to throw a fit about having had no new ZR1 footage to drool over.

But then Garage419 came to our rescue. And hell if this wasn't worth waiting for. Here, at last, is the video evidence of just how fast the ZR1 lapped around The 'Ring.

Are you ready? Because your first reaction, like ours, is likely to be "no f***ing way"! But it's true. The General's new 638HP, $103,300 supercar completed a lap in just 7:26:04...which means it takes a dump on the GT-R's time.

Worth the wait? Oh Hell Yes, especially since we get speedo, tach and clock read outs, plus a track locater, to enrich our whole viewing experience.

Ride along with Jim Mero on the ZR1 Nurburgring Official 7:26:04 Run

For even more from this epic car, watch as the ZR1 Tops Out At 205mph

Cadillac CTS-V @ The Ring

Here are a couple of CTS-V videos from GMnext100 for you to enjoy.

First off, in case you haven't already seen it, you can experience the 2008 Cadillac CTS-V's flying lap of the Nurburgring. John Heinricy set a blistering pace and pulled out a 7:59:32 lap, a time that some naysayers are still doubting.

Ride shotgun as the CTS-V Hits The Nurburgring

Even more interesting, though, is this second vid of The Ring Man himself, John Heinricy, talking us through the car set up and the his fast lap.

The CTS-V, apart from some added safety features like 5-point belts and a fire extinguisher, was stock. It was also automatic. John was more used to driving the car with that transmission and didn't want to mess things up on 'lap day' by switching to a manual. So he drove it in full auto mode and on the sport setting!

The tires had 2 laps on them, to get them primed and were all at 32psi. He notes how important the setup is given the CTS-V got airborne at least 4 times on the lap!

At one point, the CTS-V hit 175mph on one of the straightaways, hitting the rev limiter in 5th gear...with a whole other gear yet to be explored! Autobahn, anyone?

For more CTS-V action, check out what Cadillac Lead Development Engineer Chris Berube had to say about the new Caddy at the Milford Proving Grounds.

The BMW M Philosophy

Brought to you by TheRing

Where BMW is concerned, "M" stands for "Motorsports". Of course, if you've ever driven one of their M-badged cars, you're probably more likely to think it stands for "motherf***ing fast".

There are plenty of aurally-pleasing exhaust rumbles in this slickly-filmed promo piece and anytime you can be on-board around Germany's famed Nurburgring, it's always worth hitting play. But you'll also learn the philosophy behind what makes an M-badged BMW more than just a standard car with a massive engine shoehorned into the front.

For more BMW action, check out this insane M3 crash footage from mid Ohio. BMW M3 Spectacular Crash

View The BMW M Philosophy Video

Nurburgring Nordschleife falls to the mighty 911 GT2 in 7:32

o Nissan got to enjoy a brief stint in the sun ahead of the 911 Turbo, only to have their 7:38 time in the new GT-R cast aside by the all new Porsche 911 GT2. It's only a matter of time before Nissan debuts their V-Spec, but for now the GT2 has the bragging rights.

[GT2 Wallpaper] [GT2 Video]

Now I have to admit the Porsche destroys your wallet faster than the Nurburgring, but with Nissan dealerships rumored to be charging well over sticker for the new GT-R, I think the price Delta won't be terrible in that first year. We'll have to see. In the meantime though, here are some videos and wallpaper of the new GT2.

A motorcycle holding up a car around the Nurburgring

I love fast cars and fast bikes, and have first hand experience of how the two differ. Indeed bikes are better at some things, worse at others, so when you mix cars and bikes on the track, both tend to get frustrated with the other. Here is a great video from the Nurburgring in Germany that illustrates this more clearly than any I've seen before. The Car overtakes the bike in the corners, the bike overtakes the car on the straights. They both take separate lines causing one to lift when normally it would stay flat. Great Video! Thank you w00sher for the upload!

[Watch Motorcycle vs Car on the Nurburgring video]

Gallardo racing the Nordschleife

A good buddy of mine is hitting the Nordschleife right now in his BMW 335i. I can't tell you how much I wish I was there with him hitting the ring. Seeing this video just makes it worse. ;-) Anyhow here is a great vid from the folks at Lambo-Racing.de showing what a Lamborgini Gallardo can do on the ring. Great Vid!

[Watch Gallardo Video]
[Lambo-Racing.de]

First time in 31 years, a modern F1 race car takes on the Nurburgring Nordschleife

Here are the raw un-edited press videos from Nick Heidfeld's attack of the Nurburgring Nordschleife. It's been 31 years since a modern F1 car hit the full ring. Note: At first the time of 8:34 appears slow, only 1 second faster than e36 M3, so I have to wonder if Nick did a full uninterrupted lap. The in-cockpit video is the fastest I've ever seen the ring fly by so I can only imagine there is a reason the BMW Sauber F1 car was two minutes off the track record.... surely this was the best opportunity to set a new record.

From the Press Kit

BMW SAUBER F1 TEAM - NURBURGRING NORDSCHLEIFE
04/30/2007

"I'll never forget today as long as I live"

Munich/Nürburgring, 28 April 2007. BMW has written another chapter in motor sport history on the legendary Nordschleife at the Nürburgring. Today, Saturday, a modern Formula 1 vehicle was driven round the 20.8 kilometre race track for the first time in 31 years in front of a crowd numbering 45,000 BMW Sauber F1 Team driver Nick Heidfeld was extremely enthusiastic after three laps in the F1.06: "This drive was simply incredible. I thought it would be great to drive on the Nordschleife before I started out. But it was even better than I had expected. This racing track is the best in the world. I'd really like to have emptied the tank. It was a very special moment when I left the grand prix circuit in the direction of the Nordschleife. I was really shaken up at the Bergwerk section and on the Döttinger Höhe. I'll never forget today as long as I live. Another particularly special experience has now joined the many fantastic childhood memories and racing successes."

BMW Motorsport Director Mario Theissen said: "We wanted to give fans a special treat. And I believe we have done this with the entire BMW motor sport programme. The BMW M3 GTR that Olaf Manthey presented today was welcomed like an old friend. The car is actually much too athletic for the museum. Naturally, the high point was Nick's drive with the F1.06. We had implored him to be careful. The day was a homage to the fans and to this unique circuit in the world of racing. For once, the lap times were a secondary consideration."

Despite unusually hard demonstration tyres and short transmission ratio, Heidfeld notched up a top speed of 275 km/h on the long straight called the "Döttinger Höhe". The second lap was his fastest lap and took 8:34 minutes. A camera car took shots of the 29-year-old on some sections of all three laps and Heidfeld slowed down for the photo calls.

The F1.06 was adjusted for maximum ground clearance to drive on this uneven traditional circuit - four centimetres at the front axle, eight centimetres at the rear axle. No other modifications were carried out on the vehicle. One special measure was necessary for wireless communication. Team Manager Beat Zehnder travelled with the camera helicopter in order to secure the radio link over the entire distance instead of sitting on the pit wall as usual.

As far as BMW is concerned, the Nürburgring is rather like a second home, not simply because of numerous past successes - including 18 overall victories at 24 hour races and a one-two Formula 1 win. BMW Motorsport is also the partner for the VLN endurance championship at the Nürburgring, with one of the races being held today (Saturday). BMW Driver Training, BMW Ring Taxis, the BMW Performance Centre and a permanent racing-car exhibition in the "Erlebniswelt" leisure park are fixed institutions at the Eifel circuit.

In addition to the BMW Sauber F1 Team with Heidfeld and test driver Sebastian Vettel and the BMW M3 GTR, the BMW works drivers from the World Touring Car Championship (FIA WTCC) guaranteed lots of exciting action , as well as talking to fans and signing autograph books. Two-times world champion Andy Priaulx (GBR) and Jörg Müller (DEU) also played taxi driver on the Nordschleife, as did Augusto Farfus (BRA). The BMW motor-sport fleet was out in force on the legendary circuit. There was Formula 1 and the BMW M3 GTR, the BMW 320si WTCC to the BMW Z4 M Coupé. Even the smallest of all BMW racing cars put in an appearance: In the morning, Heidfeld took the inspection lap in the Formula BMW packing 140 hp.

[Watch Videos]

Face Lifted Porsche 997 on the Nur

Looks like Porsche has made some minor tweaks to the 997, know what that means? An excuse for the Porsche engineers to hang it out on the Nur... I can see their board rooms now...

Marketing: "Why don't we release a new shade of `Lapis Blue'?"
Engineering: "The Color may reflect heat differently thus changing the aerodynamics, we must test this change at the track"
Marketing: "Oh okay, very well"
Engineering: "Woo-hoo! Another company paid trip to the Nuerburgring!"

Unless there is something more under the skin only the most die hard Porsche fans are really going to notice th changes. The LED tail lights are neat, but that's the only real stand out to me and hardly a reason to do track testing. My theory is there might be some other tweaks in play here.

[New 997 Porsche Video]
[All Vids from Global Motor Spies]

Something Wicked This Way Comes, the new GT-R

Woo Hoo! Global Motor Spies has posted their first video and it's a big one, the new Nissan Skyline GT-R being driven balls out around the ring. In the first few minutes it's lapping with a brand new Porsche 911 Turbo, no doubt to test and make sure the new 997 model is still inside of Nissan's performance reach. Nissan has always stated the 911 turbo is the mark the GT-R strives to exceed, I just can't wait to see if Godzilla returns from it's long hiatus as the champion of the Nur!

[Watch Video]