Rather quick

Porsche is getting plenty of coverage with this video so sorry if you have already seen it but it is good.

I know the "farewell tour" modified 919 doesn't meet any Endurance regulations  etc, etc but it is PROPER racing car IMHO.

Low weight, masive downforce and 1,000 bhp+ grunt means warp speed round the ring.

https://www.autocar....ring-lap-record.

The frequency that it reaches the 200 mph zone is amazing.

Edited by mariner, 30 June 2018 - 10:56.

What I find shocking is the way it deals with jumps and drops in the circuit.. that track has a LOT of elevation change and bumps... it is quite uncomfortable in a quick road car.. and this guy is doing 100 kph more everywhere.. Also that track has no runoff and  is quite dangerous .. Timo has balls of steel..

That's fun. You are going to hate this... when seat belts were introduced they were worth about 2 seconds improvement in lap times, according to a driver I knew. The driver's head is bobbing about, so why not restrain the helmet against the seat. This gives the drivers eyes and inner ears a more stable platform.

Perhaps there is a higher slip-angle in the wet because there there is A) Tess rubber in contact with the road and B) The tread blocks are more mobile.

What I find shocking is the way it deals with jumps and drops in the circuit.. that track has a LOT of elevation change and bumps... 

I have questions about how the car was able to perform.

Formula Two cars raced at the Nurburgring after F1 went away -- and teams were applying "ground effects" principles on those cars at the time, without floating skirts. The Porsche 956 raced by Stefan Bellof was a "grounds effect" car too. Skirtless? My first question is about the past. How did teams get "ground effects" cars to work on the humps and dumps?

How close is the modified Porsche 919 to an LMP1 prototype? I presume that it has a higher ride height, reinforced suspension and steering members, reduced mass, electric trickery and maybe some ergonomic tweaks.

Does the modified Porsche 919 rely much on under floor downforce?

I would say that the huge downforce that 919 evo has makes it stick to tarmac and not launch into air all the time. There are some videos on the changes between lmp1 919 and 919 evo and it has to do with more downforce from larger rear wing + no restrictions on fuel flow and electric motor power. What is interesting is that they are doing this on shoestring budget and there is no budget for better engine or even gearbox ratio change...

I would say that the huge downforce that 919 evo has makes it stick to tarmac and not launch into air all the time. There are some videos on the changes between lmp1 919 and 919 evo and it has to do with more downforce from larger rear wing + no restrictions on fuel flow and electric motor power. What is interesting is that they are doing this on shoestring budget and there is no budget for better engine or even gearbox ratio change...

He braked hard (like everyone do) before the crests at Flugplatz and Schwedenkreuz so they obviously weren't 100% confident in the downforce being able to keep the car glued down in every condition.

of course, but he did get to flugplatz at something like 311 kph and did the corner at 280.... I  mean, those are crazy numbers and cars have flown at much less before.. Actually I am not surprised so much about the car staying on the ground but with the driver going trough it... those dips are really nasty from within the car..

Agree kiki. I wonder if the human body is limiting the performance at any points?

Agree kiki. I wonder if the human body is limiting the performance at any points?

That is a good question... aerobatic pilots do 8 or 9 G .... question is what would happen in a full ground effect car... My guess, from being on Nurburgring, is that Timo did drive with a bit of reserve because you really do not need an accident there at those speeds. I am impressed at the way he manages those bumps because from my time on that track the worst were the bumps and dips in the road... Corners you get used to..

Has anyone done a lap simulation to make an educated guess what a current F1 car might do around the Nordschleife?

Impressed with 919 but it is a one off and if Toyota did it could they break the record?  Most likely yes, especially with their dollars and more development on the chassis.  I think this is one conundrum of racing is the cars are held back so much. Timo definitely had a lot of balls doing that.  Would be some pucker factor going over the "jumps", and making sure you are going slow enough.  To fast, and I am sure you become an airplane pretty quickly and wonder what their tolerance was on speed +/- 20kph around those dangerous parts or less?

Hopefully pretty soon we will see a documentary on Netflix

If you have active aero.. you should/could be able to steer it in the air Up to a certain (is it called yaw angle?) point at least.

Edited by MatsNorway, 27 July 2018 - 20:07.

I just watched the video again as it is so impressive.What really stands out is how once it gets over 290 kph the corners , which look quite sharp up ahead , simply don't exist thanks  to massive downforce.

BTW the latest Motor Sport has a " behind the scenes" article on this demo.

Quite informative, it says Michelin did special tyres for it and only three separate laps were done with car checks  in between. 

Porsche flew a helicopter with the car , to get aerial video I assume, but it would also give a safety factor if he went off as there must have been very limited marshalling cover on a private test day.

Edited by mariner, 29 July 2018 - 16:23.

3 flying laps, but they did a test session some weeks before..

I guess  it will be interesting if Toyota tried for the lap record  too