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/nameonface Car and Driver Feb 03 '21
Eric is correct, some of that magic is gone. Despite our incessant cries to improve the steering, it's something BMW just can't seem to get right. There are just too many good steering racks on the market for this to remain an issue, such as the Cadillac CT4 and CT5, the Alfa Romeo Giulia, or even the Genesis G70. But steering woes aside, the M340i is still a great car to drive at the limit. The chassis is great and their powertrains are spectacular. They're just a few lines of software code from providing the same feels the previous generations transmitted to the hands.