[MG_2006325i_KG]

I'm hoping to tackle the famous Nordschleife before I leave Germanland.....Has anyone out there been on it?

[crazybones]

Never visited the ring, but plan on doing so later this year.

I've found this site which gives all the information you'll probably need:

http://nurburgring.org.uk/

Hope this helps.

[Gripster]

Never been there and it doesn't fit into my ED itin.

If you can a ride in the 'ring taxi', it might a better experience than taking your own car out there.

[Bimmerista]

RobinHood uses it as his personal training track. PM him perhaps he can give you some tips

[roppongicorolla]

visit their website it gives you all the rules and requirements, plus some recommendations. be aware that you'll be out there with bikes and other traffic, of mixed skill levels. They also have certain parts of the track where passing is prohibited. Featured on different videos, it's apparent that the track does not have the best surfaces. Unless you have a lot of track experience, you want to take it easy.

For lack of anything better, you can try to learn the course using GT4. It's probably not the same as being out there, but you'll get some idea of the layout.

[Flyingdwarf]

Sad but true, I second having a look at GT4 and the PS2. Accurate to within 15mm (or is that cm) I believe, and will at least give you a good idea about layout. Lot of turns to remember, but remember in the real world if you throw it off the track you cant just restart the lap.
ALternatively find the video of Hans Joachim Stuck going round the 'ring in an M3 GTR. Sure it is on E90Post somewhere as it has been posted a couple of times, but cant find it. It is on t'internet anyway, but again, dont get carried away.

Havbe fun

[findtom]

Originally Posted by crazybones

Never visited the ring, but plan on doing so later this year.

I've found this site which gives all the information you'll probably need:

http://nurburgring.org.uk/

Hope this helps.

Great link, thanks.

[akhbhaat]

GT4 is both a terrible driving simulation and carries an inaccurate rendering of the 'ring - albeit to scale. The real world circuit is larger than the game suggests - the most noticible difference is the width of the road itself.

However, the turns are accurately placed, so it could be moderately useful for getting a basic feel of the layout.

Don't bother with Forza, either - it's just completely off. Enthusia does have a fairly decent rendition, though.

When you drive the real thing, just take your time and enjoy yourself, at least until you have a decent feel for the course. No need to bother with lap times or other silliness, especially as a novice driver - after all, you do pay per lap.

[shimshimhada]

Originally Posted by akhbhaat

GT4 is both a terrible driving simulation and carries an inaccurate rendering of the 'ring - albeit to scale. The real world circuit is larger than the game suggests - the most noticible difference is the width of the road itself.

However, the turns are accurately placed, so it could be moderately useful for getting a basic feel of the layout.

Don't bother with Forza, either - it's just completely off. Enthusia does have a fairly decent rendition, though.

When you drive the real thing, just take your time and enjoy yourself, at least until you have a decent feel for the course. No need to bother with lap times or other silliness, especially as a novice driver - after all, you do pay per lap.

Yeah, I thought that the width of the Ring was pretty slim on GT4. I was like, omg how can people push themselves on a track like this?!

I got under 6 minutes in the F1 car though. It was intense.

[gos]

Originally Posted by shimshimhada

Yeah, I thought that the width of the Ring was pretty slim on GT4. I was like, omg how can people push themselves on a track like this?!

I got under 6 minutes in the F1 car though. It was intense.

my best was, I think, like 6:30 or so in the Mercedes SLK Race Car, with the stage 4 turbo and medium race tires

After watching the videos of various drivers, plus playing the game, I think the reason it looks smaller in the game is basically just a viewport issue when rendering frames on a computer, I'm sure the internal model is pretty exact. If they knew people would be playing on larger TVs, they could alter the look a bit and it'd probably look more accurate. The other thing is that in the game, it's tough to get an accurate feel for elevation change... the ring goes up and down a lot, while it isn't as noticable in the game unless you're really paying attention.

-gos

[akhbhaat]

I think these two shots illustrate the width problem nicely. It's not just a matter of perspective. Mind you, the M3 is slightly wider than the 911, but not so wide that it takes up nearly a third of the track. Notice you could easily fit four cars across the width of the real thing - but not in GT4s rendition.

Note that the difference is something like 10 or 15% - not tremendously dramatic - but on a 13+ km circuit, that adds up. One reason that GT4 players can run professional-like lap times on the Ring in the game (besides the fact that the cars have ungodly amounts of grip and are unrealistically stable and obedient when cornering) is the fact that the GT4 course seems to be at least half a km shorter than the real course.

[Ghunger]

Games seem like they give a good introduction to a track but little more. Most the comments I've read comparing either GT4 or Forza to the Nurburgring commented on the sense of speed throughout the track being higher in real life, the road being bumpy compared to the glass smooth game, and the elevation changes being much greater in real life. Watching real videos of the track would probablly give you more information than a game imo.