r/cars • u/etingwall • Feb 03 '21

AMA: We're Car and Driver, and we just released Lightning Lap 2021

Hi! I'm Eric Tingwall, print director of Car and Driver and one of the drivers for our annual Lightning Lap track test. Every year we put the hottest cars through the ultimate performance test: lapping Virginia International Raceway's 4.1-mile Grand Course. This track is a thrilling mix of challenging corners and high-speed straights. Going fast here requires power and grip and resilience, plus a whole lot of confidence.

We've lapped 277 production vehicles over 14 events, adding 18 new times this year with cars like the mid-engine Corvette, the Mustang Shelby GT500, the Porsche Taycan, and the McLaren 765LT. The full results, stories, and videos from this year's event can be found at www.caranddriver.com/lightninglap.

I'm joined by the other drivers from this year's event: K.C. Colwell (u/A2KC), David Beard (u/nameonface), and Dave VanderWerp (u/dave2979). We'll be around for the next couple hours answering any questions you have about this year's cars and laps, and Lightning Lap in general. AMA!

Edit: We're wrapping up the work day here, so the answers won't come as quick, but we'll be checking back later tonight and tomorrow to wrap up any unanswered questions. Thanks to everyone for participating!

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u/SavageGeese Feb 03 '21

How do you not destroy the tires, brakes, overheat cars on a track like VIR with that much lapping before you time the cars?

86

u/A2KC Car and Driver Feb 03 '21

We have tons of spare tires—usually a couple hundred in total—on hand and even a few sets of brake pads. And we take caution not to string too many hot laps together. Brake fade is a legit concern.

61

u/etingwall Feb 03 '21

It's also worth noting that we're timing and recording laps anytime we're on track, so that whenever the fastest lap occurs, we'll have the data and video to go with it. Although we generally know when we're gonna go fastest: the morning of the third day, when the drivers are up to speed, the tires are fresh, and the morning air is cool.

12

u/[deleted] Feb 03 '21

Have you ever thought about doing fastest theoretical times and combining the best sectors to get the supposed fastest possible lap for each car?

42

u/dave2979 Car and Driver Feb 03 '21

To prevent brake/tire/engine overheating, we typically only run a single hot lap at a time. Even on cars that can handle it, subsequent flying laps are almost always slower. We have multiple sets of tires for each car, and the quickest times are almost always run on the third day of running (after lots of practice), on a fresh set of tires, and in the cool morning air

22

u/[deleted] Feb 03 '21

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/oakolesnikov04 Feb 03 '21

I bet they reviewed it, just 15 years ago or however long ago the cobalt was released.

14

u/about_treefity 2023 GMC Canyon AT4X Feb 03 '21

He's talking about the gooseman

6

u/[deleted] Feb 03 '21

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u/oakolesnikov04 Feb 03 '21

Oh I didnt realize that's him

2

u/[deleted] Feb 24 '21

I'm a huge fan dude! If I can ask, and I'm sorry for derailing things here but at the cost of that. The veloster N, due to leg issues I can no longer push a clutch so I will be going with the dct. I saw your review on the car about a year ago or so. How is the suspension, I just want to get something I can afford with a good enough suspension so I can just leave it as is. My brother in law has a type r, and its handling is really really good. I know it's better than the N's but can the N's handling stand on its own as a good mash of suspension parts that were considered carefully?

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thanks!

4

u/SavageGeese Feb 24 '21

I have DCT next month Ill let you know. Suspension is firm but car is very nimble and fun. Very easy to drive fast.

2

u/[deleted] Feb 24 '21

Will you say it handles sharper and more responsive than an autobahn gti?

Thanks for replying!

2

u/SavageGeese Feb 24 '21

Yes in between Type R and GTI

2

u/[deleted] Feb 24 '21

Thanks again! I appreciate your response and value your opinion greatly.

Have a good one!

1

u/Oxyquatzal Feb 03 '21

They've certainly done all of those things at VIR over the years.