Vorsprung
0815 Hours
Stuck in an epic traffic jam coming out of the NKVE. Took the Kota Damansara exit to bypass the killer traffic going into the Damansara exit.
0830 Hours
I've moved maybe 10 car lenghts. Listening to soothing jazz, counting how many S Classes i see on the road and I came up with the magic number of 27. 27 S Classes in 15 minutes! And they say our per capita income is low. Pish posh.
0835 Hours
Received a text message from Messer Bratvurst. Told me that he had an additional seat open for the advanced vorsprung driving class we're having today. Since it cost RM 1,200 (or so I was told) and he didn't want it to go to waste, I decided to call the person who lived closest to the driving circuit. And by circuit, i mean makeshift-crappy-carpark in One Utama.
After 4 rings (no pun intended..lol), the petrolhead on the other end finally picked up. No surprises for guessing who that man is. Yup, twas Naem.
0900 Hours
Smack bang on time. Quickly parked the car, rushed to the makeshift tent for some Formula One style breakfast and trundled over for some chitty chats with the nice dudes from Audi.
1030 Hours
After signing some disclaimer forms, we went through a short, but very boring talk on how a car reacts during dangerous situations. I was in front of a 430 bhp Airconditioner which could very well have frozen my soul, and kept thumping my feet in stern protest. "Enough propaganda. I wanna drive." I said.
Okay fine i said nothing and sat there like a 6 year old kid waiting for his turn at the dentist.
1045 Hours
Finally. We got into the Audi A8 W12 6.0 litre. With 450 bhp on tap, it was definately not short on testosterone.
It was leather everything. Let's just say that the cows didn't die in vain. The tech sheet would amaze the people at Sirim. You've got fingerprint recognition, more adjustments for your electric leather seats than you'd get from an OSIM chair, Paddleshifters, LED Pilot lights (which were awesome i must say, first i've ever seen on a road car) and too many more to list down.
Right. First task.
We were told to accelerate as hard as we possibly can over a distance of 150m and then slam on the brakes before the end of the first marker.
Suffice to say that I had little confidence how those teeny tiny calipers could haul a 2 tonne car to a full stop in such a short distance.
So after four attempts, i realised that this braking thing isn't really my cup of tea. I did not have the confidence to really push the car or even 'karate chop' the brakes for a full bore nail biting halt.
Naem on the other hand, trashed the car like he was high on prozac. He passed with flying colours.
1130 Hours
Task Two. Slalom Course.
Ha. Now this was the best fun i've ever had in years. For the second task, we were all given an Audi A6 4.2 Quattro with 350 bhp on tap.
And the course was wet. Yes petrolheads, oversteer was now possible.
Me and Naem went more than 15 laps combined. We literally pushed the car to it's absolute limits. I got a thumbs up from one of the girls who worked there (and i thought she was really cute..she even kept my Pepsi on ice..lol) and felt how it was to be Jeremy Clarkson for one day.
We oversteered wherever possible, and best of all, could chat and laugh while we were doing it!!
Believe me, oversteering an active 4WD car ain't easy. Floor too much before the exit and you end up understeering.
Not enough, get the apex wrong, and you're too sideways.
But get it right...and the heavens open up before you. All 330bhp on four wheels, clawing at the tarmac, eight very hardcore cylinders churning in sequence......it's visceral....primal even. The wheel being turned from lock to lock, communicative, almost instinctive. We're driving like we were born to do it. Like fire and brimstone, every single piece of bitumen is being carved up by the quattro drivetrain.
Intense. Stellar. Marvellous.
It was the best fucking day ever.
Vorsprung. Vorsprung Durch Technik.
Stuck in an epic traffic jam coming out of the NKVE. Took the Kota Damansara exit to bypass the killer traffic going into the Damansara exit.
0830 Hours
I've moved maybe 10 car lenghts. Listening to soothing jazz, counting how many S Classes i see on the road and I came up with the magic number of 27. 27 S Classes in 15 minutes! And they say our per capita income is low. Pish posh.
0835 Hours
Received a text message from Messer Bratvurst. Told me that he had an additional seat open for the advanced vorsprung driving class we're having today. Since it cost RM 1,200 (or so I was told) and he didn't want it to go to waste, I decided to call the person who lived closest to the driving circuit. And by circuit, i mean makeshift-crappy-carpark in One Utama.
After 4 rings (no pun intended..lol), the petrolhead on the other end finally picked up. No surprises for guessing who that man is. Yup, twas Naem.
0900 Hours
Smack bang on time. Quickly parked the car, rushed to the makeshift tent for some Formula One style breakfast and trundled over for some chitty chats with the nice dudes from Audi.
1030 Hours
After signing some disclaimer forms, we went through a short, but very boring talk on how a car reacts during dangerous situations. I was in front of a 430 bhp Airconditioner which could very well have frozen my soul, and kept thumping my feet in stern protest. "Enough propaganda. I wanna drive." I said.
Okay fine i said nothing and sat there like a 6 year old kid waiting for his turn at the dentist.
1045 Hours
Finally. We got into the Audi A8 W12 6.0 litre. With 450 bhp on tap, it was definately not short on testosterone.
It was leather everything. Let's just say that the cows didn't die in vain. The tech sheet would amaze the people at Sirim. You've got fingerprint recognition, more adjustments for your electric leather seats than you'd get from an OSIM chair, Paddleshifters, LED Pilot lights (which were awesome i must say, first i've ever seen on a road car) and too many more to list down.
Right. First task.
We were told to accelerate as hard as we possibly can over a distance of 150m and then slam on the brakes before the end of the first marker.
Suffice to say that I had little confidence how those teeny tiny calipers could haul a 2 tonne car to a full stop in such a short distance.
So after four attempts, i realised that this braking thing isn't really my cup of tea. I did not have the confidence to really push the car or even 'karate chop' the brakes for a full bore nail biting halt.
Naem on the other hand, trashed the car like he was high on prozac. He passed with flying colours.
1130 Hours
Task Two. Slalom Course.
Ha. Now this was the best fun i've ever had in years. For the second task, we were all given an Audi A6 4.2 Quattro with 350 bhp on tap.
And the course was wet. Yes petrolheads, oversteer was now possible.
Me and Naem went more than 15 laps combined. We literally pushed the car to it's absolute limits. I got a thumbs up from one of the girls who worked there (and i thought she was really cute..she even kept my Pepsi on ice..lol) and felt how it was to be Jeremy Clarkson for one day.
We oversteered wherever possible, and best of all, could chat and laugh while we were doing it!!
Believe me, oversteering an active 4WD car ain't easy. Floor too much before the exit and you end up understeering.
Not enough, get the apex wrong, and you're too sideways.
But get it right...and the heavens open up before you. All 330bhp on four wheels, clawing at the tarmac, eight very hardcore cylinders churning in sequence......it's visceral....primal even. The wheel being turned from lock to lock, communicative, almost instinctive. We're driving like we were born to do it. Like fire and brimstone, every single piece of bitumen is being carved up by the quattro drivetrain.
Intense. Stellar. Marvellous.
It was the best fucking day ever.
Vorsprung. Vorsprung Durch Technik.
Comments