How fast could Quick Nick have gone?
Posted by Nick Trott at 10:15AM on Tuesday 01 May, 2007 6 Comments
So, a contemporary F1 car driven by Nick Heidfeld has just done three laps of the 'Green Hell'.
It was a PR stunt, and the very fact that we're blogging about it here (and 45,000 people were at the 'Ring to watch it) proves that it was some kind of success.
Or was it?
Heidfeld's ultimate lap time was knobbled by ultra hard 'demonstration' tyres and the small fact that he was asked, nay, implored to take it easy - by his boss no less.
He was also forced to slow down on each lap for photography.
Now, I've seen Heidfeld in action and he has that uncanny ability to know exactly where the limit is, and how close to get to it.
His run up the hill at Goodwood in the McLaren in 1999 is proof.
He's also a proper racer and you get the feeling that had BMW said 'go for it' he would've done. And some.
As it was, all Heidfeld's 8m34s lap of the 'Ring does is make you wonder how fast he could've gone.
As fast as Clay Regazzoni's 7m06s in a Ferrari F1 car in 1975?
As fast as Stefan Bellof's epic 6m25s in a Porsche 956 in 1983?
As fast as Stefan Bellof's 6m11s during qualifying in the Porsche 956 in 1983?
A (whisper it) sub-5m30?
Right, let's stop all this cack about ultimate lap times here and now. A modern F1 car would be simply lethal on the 'ring; it does not have the ground clearance to deal with the circuit's numerous bumps and dips.
Even if the car's ride height was increased the aerodynamic effect of all the wings and things would decrease significantly. It would be undriveable.
It's a shame that Quick Nick couldn't go for the outright record, but great to see an F1 car back at the 'Ring. Maybe that's enough to make it a good PR stunt after all.
Advertiser links
6 Comments for "How fast could Quick Nick have gone?"
POST A COMMENT USING THE FORM BELOW
Comments are now closed for the blog archives.
Surely you could set up a modern-day F1 car to beat the current lap record?
I'd love to see someone try!
If a Porche 956 has enough ground clearance for the ring, surely an F1 car does.
And the ride height doesn't actually effect the efficiency of the wings, only the effect of the underbody diffuser.
At the end of the day, an F1 car at the 'Ring would be so fast, it really would be pretty lethal. That's the only reason it can't be done. Oh, and having the car fly off the track wouldn't help publicity either!
I was lucky to see Heidfeld in Hatzenbach myself. The speed of the F1 car was really impressive, and I stopped his fastest lap with 8:10 and people in other areas of the track stopped him with 7:30 which is pretty close to the old records which were recorded on other circuit layouts.
He could have gone a fair bit faster had he been allowed to.
But back to the question: A modern F1 car would smash the old records taking into account the improved aerodynamics, more favourable power-to-weight ratio. bettter tyres etc. But in my opinion, it's not worth it, and better to remember some of the old drivers.
Great Stuff!
It's excellent that a marque as big as BMW still puts forth the effort to give something back to their fans, and have a little fun while doing so! The Helicopter cam was breathtaking... and the noise!!
Jackie Stewart once said that it was imposible to do a mistake-free lap at the 'Ring because of the sheer volume of corners to remember.
Plus, even if Nick or any driver could master the 14 miles of track, they wouldn't be able to push to the full extent. Remember: this is the Nurburgring, where you've got (if you're lucky) 30 feet of grass followed promptly by a wall.
I just don't think someone who hasn't spent years there could make a good go at it (and survive, that is). Time to call Sabine Schmitz, then!
I think it's telling us something... to bring F1 back to the 'Ring!!!!
This is still the best circuit in the world bar Monaco and really separates the men from the boys.
I'd love to see Alonso, Raikonnen and Hamilton duke it out on this track. If it was good enough for Fangio, it's good enough for these drivers. I'm off to speak to Bernie.