Nurburgring Road Trip

booforty · 09-09-2008, 12:17 PM

Took the M to the Nurburgring last weekend with a group of friends and had an AWESOME time!!

Drove from London to Folkestone to catch the Eurotunnel train to Calais in France. Then drove through France, Belgium, Netherlands and into Germany to the Ring.

The weekend was showery so it was difficult to to get a dry lap but I did get a couple of dry laps where I was really able to push the car and I have to say it performed brilliantly!!

The handling was superb and the real winner was traction and acceleration out of the corners which is key around the 140 corner ten minute lap of the Nordsheilfe.

Met several other E92 M3 owners and a E90 335i owner, all great people and enjoying their BMW machines at one of the best circuits in the world. They are on this forum so I hope they pop in and say hello!!

The journey back was brilliant too with stopovers at Zolder Race Circuit in belgium and the lovely town of Gent, also in Belgium.

EDIT - MORE DETAILED REPORT ADDED

We went from Saturday to Monday. There were about 12 cars on the trip. I convoyed over with about 8 of those cars as some of the others took the ferry the night before.

Yes, we drive our cars onto the train and the train goes under the English Channel. It takes 35 mins and we drive out the other side straight onto the French roads! Its about a £100 return. The other alternative is a 3-4 hour ferry and sea sickness. No chance of me doing that as time is critical on a trip like this.

The journey time from the train in Calais, France to the Nurburgring in Germany is about 4-4.5 hours. We got to the Ring mid afternoon on Sat. Checked into the hotel and then headed to the Ring for the evening session from 17:30 to 19:30. I had some passenger laps only to re familiarise myself with the track. Headed to nearby restaurant for the famous "Steak on a Stone" - you cook your own steak on a red hot stone on your table!

Sunday, the Ring was open all day from 08:00 to 19:30 but the forecast was cloudy with showers so it was a case of picking a good time to go out for a dry lap. I did 4 laps in the M3, slowly getting quicker and quicker. My quickest lap (my 4th) I was really hot and completely on it and was probably in the low 9 mins.

My car is stock performance wise. I had the M settings as follows:

Power: Sport Plus
EDC: Sport
DTC: On
Servotronic: Sport

I wished I could have used MDM or had DTC off completely but believe me the conditions were too scary to contemplate either of these. The car was moving around a lot even with DTC on and one mistake and your in the barriers.

The car was brilliant and I'm now falling in love with it having tracked the car in the UK the week before and now the Ring. I had several passenger laps in 335i's and I can tell you the M is so much more balanced, far less roll, and bags more grip!! The M is phenomenal in the cornes and where it really wins is its drive and acceleration out of the corners. This is key on a 73 corner, 10 minute lap!! I have to say, this car was made for the Ring and it shows that it is where the M3 was tested and developed. I loved every moment of driving the car round the Ring, absolutely epic!!

Yes, I saw the Porsche crash. He came down the hill which you can see in the picture of the White M5 Ring Taxi. As he took the right hander his back end stepped out and he was fightting the car to correct the slide but ended up over-correcting. There was tyre screeching for about 50 yards as he fought the car but ended up hitting the barriers at a good 30 mph. Both airbags deployed. Both driver (man) and passenger (blonde woman) appeared unhurt but looked shaken by the incident. Took 30 mins before the car was recovered and removed so the yellow flags were waving for some time.

Steak on a Stone again Sunday night

then we had some fun and games in a tunnel on the drive back to hotel recording our engines. The M3 sounds brilliant in a tunnel!!!

(video on page 2)

Monday we had a leisurely drive back to UK (but just 3 cars this time) with stopovers at Zolder Race Circuit and the town of Gent, both in Belgium. There was a nice memorial at Zolder to Gilles Villeneuve who died there in 1982. There was some bike testing going on so we soaked up the atmosphere for an hour. Awesome circuit by the way.

Gent is a beautiful Belgium town. Typically European and we had a nice lunch in the main square beneth the main cathedral. Then it was back in our cars to Calais in France for the train back under the English Channel to the UK.

All in all, it was an absolutely AWESOME trip. It was my second time at the Ring and I'm definitely going back next year!!

It is a absolute MUST for anyone who has an interest in cars. The Ring is a very special place indeed.

Here's some pics from the trip, hope you enjoy!

Big Windy · 09-09-2008, 12:21 PM

damn! ridiculous showing of cars. must have been a great time!

so you just drive your car into that train and go across?

booforty · 09-09-2008, 12:22 PM

More pics

booforty · 09-09-2008, 12:26 PM

More

Big Windy · 09-09-2008, 12:30 PM

nice helmet!

booforty · 09-09-2008, 12:33 PM

Pics of the trip back to UK - first stop Zolder Race Circuit

booforty · 09-09-2008, 12:36 PM

Lunch in Gent, then back on the Eurotunnel home!

asaulo1 · 09-09-2008, 12:58 PM

that is one sweet trip... Cheers....

GhOsT_E90 · 09-09-2008, 02:25 PM

Sweet pics, hey were did you get the pictures of you and your M3 running the track?

MJC///M3 · 09-09-2008, 02:38 PM

Awesome pics

IND-Distribution · 09-09-2008, 02:44 PM

Your friends have some amazing cars! How was the ring in the wet? I hear it's pretty deadly in weather like that.

booforty · 09-09-2008, 02:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GhOsT_E90

Sweet pics, hey were did you get the pictures of you and your M3 running the track?

Jochen Van Cauwenberge at www.frozenspeed.com. Drop him an email (jochen@frozenspeed.com) and he might have pics of you. Tell him your car model, paint colour and registration plate.

booforty · 09-09-2008, 03:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ilia@IND

Your friends have some amazing cars! How was the ring in the wet? I hear it's pretty deadly in weather like that.

It is daunting in the dry. In the wet, its fookin SCARY!!

Just had to pick the right moments to go out... The weather certainly didn't spoil the trip. It was a great learning experience to drive it in the wet for a change

lizak187 · 09-09-2008, 03:34 PM

sweet trip ...cool pics

revmmm · 09-09-2008, 05:17 PM

Great trip!

Thanks for posting the pics. When you have time post a little more info on the trip. I am sure we would like to hear the full story.

Did you see the 911 hit the wall? Looks like the airbag went off but was everyone okay?

How many of you were on the trip? How much was it to put your car on the train through the tunnel? Some really sweet cars (including yours) in the group. Have you done any mods to your M or was your experience with the Ring based on stock performance?

rzm3 · 09-09-2008, 09:25 PM

wow... thanks for sharing!

M2381 · 09-09-2008, 09:42 PM

Just to let you know I dream of doing this one day too but it'll be a little hard since I live in the US ha ha..

Looks like you had a lot of fun and nice pics! Although the bathroom pic was a little disturbing and it looks like someone took care of business on the wall?

Davinhci · 09-10-2008, 12:27 AM

sweet pics

Blake · 09-10-2008, 12:28 AM

awesome pics! i wish i could take the train to europe

booforty · 09-10-2008, 03:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by revmmm

Great trip!

Thanks for posting the pics. When you have time post a little more info on the trip. I am sure we would like to hear the full story.

Did you see the 911 hit the wall? Looks like the airbag went off but was everyone okay?

How many of you were on the trip? How much was it to put your car on the train through the tunnel? Some really sweet cars (including yours) in the group. Have you done any mods to your M or was your experience with the Ring based on stock performance?

We went from Saturday to Monday. There were about 12 cars on the trip. I convoyed over with about 8 of those cars as some of the others took the ferry the night before.

Yes, we drive our cars onto the train and the train goes under the English Channel. It takes 35 mins and we drive out the other side straight onto the French roads! Its about a £100 return. The other alternative is a 3-4 hour ferry and sea sickness. No chance of me doing that as time is critical on a trip like this.

The journey time from the train in Calais, France to the Nurburgring in Germany is about 4-4.5 hours. We got to the Ring mid afternoon on Sat. Checked into the hotel and then headed to the Ring for the evening session from 17:30 to 19:30. I had some passenger laps only to re familiarise myself with the track. Headed to nearby restaurant for the famous "Steak on a Stone" - you cook your own steak on a red hot stone on your table!

Sunday, the Ring was open all day from 08:00 to 19:30 but the forecast was cloudy with showers so it was a case of picking a good time to go out for a dry lap. I did 4 laps in the M3, slowly getting quicker and quicker. My quickest lap (my 4th) I was really hot and completely on it and was probably in the low 9 mins.

My car is stock performance wise. I had the M settings as follows:

Power: Sport Plus
EDC: Sport
DTC: On
Servotronic: Sport

I wished I could have had used MDM or had DTC off completely but believe me the conditions were too scary to contemplate either of these. The car was moving around a lot even with DTC on and one mistake and your in the barriers.

The car was brilliant and I'm now falling in love with it having tracked the car in the UK the week before and now the Ring. I had several passenger laps in 335i's and I can tell you the M is so much more balanced, far less roll, and bags more grip!! The M is phenomenal in the cornes and where it really wins is its drive and acceleration out of the corners. This is key on a 73 corner, 10 minute lap!! I have to say, this car was made for the Ring and it shows that it is where the M3 was tested and developed. I loved every moment of driving the car round the Ring, absolutely epic!!

Yes, I saw the Porsche crash. He came down the hill which you can see in the picture of the White M5 Ring Taxi. As he took the right hander his back end stepped out and he was fightting the car to correct the slide but ended up over-correcting. There was tyre screeching for about 50 yards as he fought the car but ended up hitting the barriers at a good 30 mph. Both airbags deployed. Both driver (man) and passenger (blonde woman) appeared unhurt but looked shaken by the incident. Took 30 mins before the car was recovered and removed so the yellow flags were waving for some time.

Steak on a Stone again Sunday night

then we had some fun and games in a tunnel on the drive back to hotel recording our engines. The M3 sounds brilliant in a tunnel!!!

Monday we had a leisurely drive back to UK (but just 3 cars this time) with stopovers at Zolder Race Circuit and the town of Gent, both in Belgium. There was a nice memorial at Zolder to Gilles Villeneuve who died there in 1982. There was some bike testing going on so we soaked up the atmosphere for an hour. Awesome circuit by the way.

Gent is a beautiful Belgium town. Typically European and we had a nice lunch in the main square beneth the main cathedral. Then it was back in our cars to Calais in France for the train back under the Channel to the UK.

All in all, it was an absolutely AWESOME trip. It was my second time at the Ring and I'm definitely going back next year!!

It is a absolute MUST for anyone who has an interest in cars. The Ring is a very special place indeed.

BMWI6 · 09-10-2008, 08:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by M2381

Just to let you know I dream of doing this one day too but it'll be a little hard since I live in the US ha ha..

Looks like you had a lot of fun and nice pics! Although the bathroom pic was a little disturbing and it looks like someone took care of business on the wall?

I am about to cry, this makes me want to live in europe so bad!!!!! It is literally my dream to do this.

BMW-320i-Touring · 09-10-2008, 09:00 AM

Hello!

Cool Pics!

Robert

09-09-2008, 12:17 PM	#1
booforty Major General 337 Rep 8,811 Posts Drives: E92 M3 Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: London, UK iTrader: (0) Garage List 2008 E92 M3 [0.00]	Nurburgring Road Trip Took the M to the Nurburgring last weekend with a group of friends and had an AWESOME time!! Drove from London to Folkestone to catch the Eurotunnel train to Calais in France. Then drove through France, Belgium, Netherlands and into Germany to the Ring. The weekend was showery so it was difficult to to get a dry lap but I did get a couple of dry laps where I was really able to push the car and I have to say it performed brilliantly!! The handling was superb and the real winner was traction and acceleration out of the corners which is key around the 140 corner ten minute lap of the Nordsheilfe. Met several other E92 M3 owners and a E90 335i owner, all great people and enjoying their BMW machines at one of the best circuits in the world. They are on this forum so I hope they pop in and say hello!! The journey back was brilliant too with stopovers at Zolder Race Circuit in belgium and the lovely town of Gent, also in Belgium. EDIT - MORE DETAILED REPORT ADDED We went from Saturday to Monday. There were about 12 cars on the trip. I convoyed over with about 8 of those cars as some of the others took the ferry the night before. Yes, we drive our cars onto the train and the train goes under the English Channel. It takes 35 mins and we drive out the other side straight onto the French roads! Its about a £100 return. The other alternative is a 3-4 hour ferry and sea sickness. No chance of me doing that as time is critical on a trip like this. The journey time from the train in Calais, France to the Nurburgring in Germany is about 4-4.5 hours. We got to the Ring mid afternoon on Sat. Checked into the hotel and then headed to the Ring for the evening session from 17:30 to 19:30. I had some passenger laps only to re familiarise myself with the track. Headed to nearby restaurant for the famous "Steak on a Stone" - you cook your own steak on a red hot stone on your table! Sunday, the Ring was open all day from 08:00 to 19:30 but the forecast was cloudy with showers so it was a case of picking a good time to go out for a dry lap. I did 4 laps in the M3, slowly getting quicker and quicker. My quickest lap (my 4th) I was really hot and completely on it and was probably in the low 9 mins. My car is stock performance wise. I had the M settings as follows: Power: Sport Plus EDC: Sport DTC: On Servotronic: Sport I wished I could have used MDM or had DTC off completely but believe me the conditions were too scary to contemplate either of these. The car was moving around a lot even with DTC on and one mistake and your in the barriers. The car was brilliant and I'm now falling in love with it having tracked the car in the UK the week before and now the Ring. I had several passenger laps in 335i's and I can tell you the M is so much more balanced, far less roll, and bags more grip!! The M is phenomenal in the cornes and where it really wins is its drive and acceleration out of the corners. This is key on a 73 corner, 10 minute lap!! I have to say, this car was made for the Ring and it shows that it is where the M3 was tested and developed. I loved every moment of driving the car round the Ring, absolutely epic!! Yes, I saw the Porsche crash. He came down the hill which you can see in the picture of the White M5 Ring Taxi. As he took the right hander his back end stepped out and he was fightting the car to correct the slide but ended up over-correcting. There was tyre screeching for about 50 yards as he fought the car but ended up hitting the barriers at a good 30 mph. Both airbags deployed. Both driver (man) and passenger (blonde woman) appeared unhurt but looked shaken by the incident. Took 30 mins before the car was recovered and removed so the yellow flags were waving for some time. Steak on a Stone again Sunday night then we had some fun and games in a tunnel on the drive back to hotel recording our engines. The M3 sounds brilliant in a tunnel!!! (video on page 2) Monday we had a leisurely drive back to UK (but just 3 cars this time) with stopovers at Zolder Race Circuit and the town of Gent, both in Belgium. There was a nice memorial at Zolder to Gilles Villeneuve who died there in 1982. There was some bike testing going on so we soaked up the atmosphere for an hour. Awesome circuit by the way. Gent is a beautiful Belgium town. Typically European and we had a nice lunch in the main square beneth the main cathedral. Then it was back in our cars to Calais in France for the train back under the English Channel to the UK. All in all, it was an absolutely AWESOME trip. It was my second time at the Ring and I'm definitely going back next year!! It is a absolute MUST for anyone who has an interest in cars. The Ring is a very special place indeed. Here's some pics from the trip, hope you enjoy! Attached Images Last edited by booforty; 09-11-2008 at 12:41 PM..
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09-09-2008, 12:21 PM	#2
Big Windy Major General 152 Rep 5,124 Posts Drives: None Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Bay Area iTrader: (0)	damn! ridiculous showing of cars. must have been a great time! so you just drive your car into that train and go across?
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09-09-2008, 12:22 PM	#3
booforty Major General 337 Rep 8,811 Posts Drives: E92 M3 Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: London, UK iTrader: (0) Garage List 2008 E92 M3 [0.00]	More pics Attached Images
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09-09-2008, 12:26 PM	#4
booforty Major General 337 Rep 8,811 Posts Drives: E92 M3 Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: London, UK iTrader: (0) Garage List 2008 E92 M3 [0.00]	More Attached Images
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09-09-2008, 12:30 PM	#5
Big Windy Major General 152 Rep 5,124 Posts Drives: None Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Bay Area iTrader: (0)	nice helmet!
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09-09-2008, 12:33 PM	#6
booforty Major General 337 Rep 8,811 Posts Drives: E92 M3 Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: London, UK iTrader: (0) Garage List 2008 E92 M3 [0.00]	Pics of the trip back to UK - first stop Zolder Race Circuit Attached Images
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09-09-2008, 12:36 PM	#7
booforty Major General 337 Rep 8,811 Posts Drives: E92 M3 Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: London, UK iTrader: (0) Garage List 2008 E92 M3 [0.00]	Lunch in Gent, then back on the Eurotunnel home! Attached Images
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09-09-2008, 12:58 PM	#8
asaulo1 Lieutenant 38 Rep 577 Posts Drives: 2008 M3 Coupe, alp white Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Santa Clarita, CA. iTrader: (0)	that is one sweet trip... Cheers.... __________________ "What a car.... what a masterpiece...." Jeremy Clarkson on the E92 M3 2008 Alpine White E92 M3 2019 Mineral Grey i3 REX
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09-09-2008, 02:25 PM	#9
GhOsT_E90 First Lieutenant 35 Rep 323 Posts Drives: 2008 BMW 335i E90 Join Date: May 2008 Location: Yelm, WA iTrader: (1) Garage List 2008 335i E90 [0.00]	Sweet pics, hey were did you get the pictures of you and your M3 running the track?
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09-09-2008, 02:38 PM	#10
MJC///M3 Colonel 87 Rep 2,324 Posts Drives: 09 SSII E92 M3 Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Bronx, NYC iTrader: (0)	Awesome pics __________________ "You will get there, but it is up to you and you alone. It is what you are willing to do, and how you are willing to get there. You must be relentless, you must be tireless, you must pursue at all costs, so that you are ready, when the time is right." -Dad
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09-09-2008, 02:44 PM	#11
IND-Distribution BimmerPost Supporting Vendor 9586 Rep 10,877 Posts Drives: G82 M4 / G87 M2 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Chicago iTrader: (3)	Your friends have some amazing cars! How was the ring in the wet? I hear it's pretty deadly in weather like that. __________________ IND DISTRIBUTION \| 866-963-4520 • INSTAGRAM • YOUTUBE • FACEBOOK • FLICKR
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09-09-2008, 03:34 PM	#14
lizak187 Lizak187 24 Rep 505 Posts Drives: 2004 bmw 325ci/2008m3 coup Join Date: May 2008 Location: Boston Massachusetts iTrader: (0)	sweet trip ...cool pics
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09-09-2008, 05:17 PM	#15
revmmm Captain 57 Rep 835 Posts Drives: 2008 E93 M3 Cab SSII Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Toronto iTrader: (2) Garage List 2007 X5 4.8i [0.00] 2008 M3 E93 [0.00]	Great trip! Thanks for posting the pics. When you have time post a little more info on the trip. I am sure we would like to hear the full story. Did you see the 911 hit the wall? Looks like the airbag went off but was everyone okay? How many of you were on the trip? How much was it to put your car on the train through the tunnel? Some really sweet cars (including yours) in the group. Have you done any mods to your M or was your experience with the Ring based on stock performance? __________________ 2008 E93 M3 - SSII, 6MT, 19", EDC,...
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09-09-2008, 09:25 PM	#16
rzm3 Moderator 673 Rep 4,737 Posts Drives: E92 M3 Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: USA iTrader: (18)	wow... thanks for sharing!
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09-09-2008, 09:42 PM	#17
M2381 Major 32 Rep 1,286 Posts Drives: E92 M3, GTI Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: FL iTrader: (0)	Just to let you know I dream of doing this one day too but it'll be a little hard since I live in the US ha ha.. Looks like you had a lot of fun and nice pics! Although the bathroom pic was a little disturbing and it looks like someone took care of business on the wall? __________________
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09-10-2008, 12:27 AM	#18
Davinhci Colonel 55 Rep 2,484 Posts Drives: 08 M3 E92 & 08 E70 X5 4.8 Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Austin, TX iTrader: (6) Garage List 2008 M3 [0.00]	sweet pics __________________ 08 E92 AW M3 \| HRE P40 19" \| APE Air Filter \| BMW Performance Grills \| White Side Gills \| CF Mirror Covers \| BMW Performance Pedals \| F1 Pinnacle Tint \| V1 Hardwire \| Dinan Performance Software \| Gintani Exhaust \| H&R Sports Springs \| RPI Scoops \| BMW CF Spoiler \| Challenge Diffuser \| Lux H8 V3 \| LCI Tail Lights \|
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09-10-2008, 12:28 AM	#19
Blake Banned 754 Rep 4,649 Posts Drives: Chevy Aveo Join Date: May 2008 Location: Parent's Basement iTrader: (7)	awesome pics! i wish i could take the train to europe
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09-10-2008, 09:00 AM	#22
BMW-320i-Touring New Member 3 Rep 26 Posts Drives: BMW 320i Touring Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Germany iTrader: (0) Garage List 03/2007 320i Touring [0.00]	Hello! Cool Pics! Robert __________________ My BMW 320i Website BMW 320i Touring Titanium Silver, ///M-Steering Wheel, Oyster Leather Sportseats, Auto Climate, PDC front/rear, HIFI, Heated Seats, Lighting Package, Cruise Control, Sliding Armrest, Rain/Lights Sensor, Nav. Buisness, Folding and Dimming Mirrors, 6CD, Panoramic Glass Sunroof, 18" Borbet LS Summer, 17" Rial Winter,...
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