Our spies have put together a unique collection of shots of prototypes catching some serious air on a certain stretch of the Nürburgring. Every enthusiast knows that the Nürburgring demands a driver’s respect and full attention, but for us, these latest shots put that fact into an entirely new perspective.
Nicknamed “The Green Hell”, the Nürburgring’s Nordschleife has been called “The greatest, and most challenging race circuit in the world” by none other than Jackie Stewart.
The ‘Ring wrings out every strength and shortcoming to be found in a car’s platform. The nuances of a car’s body control and overall vehicle dynamics are laid bare by the “Northern Loop’s” 33 left turns and 40 right turns, many of which are multi-stage corners that bring the grand total of about 100 corners over 20.8 torturous kilometers.
But as our latest collection of spy shots from the ‘Ring show, the corners aren’t the only challenges to the brave ‘Ring pilots. Test cars regularly go airborne at triple-digit speeds, to really crank up the Nürburgring’s “Pucker Factor”.
Take flight
In the course of a week at the ‘Ring, spies snapped a wide array test vehicles taking flight. With its rear wheels still well off the ground, the front wheels of a beefy prototype for the wide-bodied Mercedes SL Black touch down and go up in smoke like a landing 747.
A lightweight Renault catches big air, but it’s flight is almost eclipsed by a porky prototype for the next-gen BMW 7-series.
Another BMW–the upcoming X6 Sport Activity “Coupe” launches repeatedly, but it’s overshadowed by the incongruity of an ungainly VW Eurovan that sails by with all four tires touching nothing but air.
