GT5 C7 Corvette Testing...at the Nurburgring!

Judgment at the Ring

I know this is scary as it sounds but a couple of weeks ago, back in December 2012, the producers ordered us to take on the New Year's Holiday Challenge. Nothing's special about this but there was a time attack challenge featuring the Corvette C7 Test Prototype at the fearsome Nurburgring Nordschleife. The description says...

"This is an expert-level time trial on the Nurburgring Nordschleife coruse, using the Chevrolet Corvette C7 Test Prototype.

No tuning is allowed, making this a pure test of your skill and skill alone. Test the very limits of the car to mark that super lap!"

...I know that it's a bit harsh but for the sake of Chevrolet science, I'd accepted the challenge to find out how can the next generation Corvette stacks up at the most feared racetrack in the world.

Based on Gran Turismo calculations, it is predicted that the C7 Corvette will reach the Nurburgring in 7:50.000. I know this is a prediction but if that came into reality, where would the C7 Corvette sits? Spoilers...

Because the predicted time of 7:50 is the time to beat, I'm saddling up on the pre-production mule and find out if the next Corvette has the guts to conquer the Nurburgring. The first attempt isn't just practice, it's torture and once you're in here, you'll be easily enslaved by the twists and turns of the Nurburgring while driving a car under development stages. When the session gets longer, the fear gets even more intense and I have less chances to beat the predicted time of 7:50. After one lap, I did it in 7:54.180, which is not bad for someone in a first try. Sadly though, I need to try even harder to prove if the new C7 Corvette is capable of mastering the Ring.

At my second attempt, it begun to make an impression out of my skill and the lap time is 7:53.464. Later on, it's 7:51.208, which means I'm almost there to mark that super lap. While taking a break, I have to take a look at some of the replays I've saved to study what went wrong with my driving skill. Seems that it's the driver, not the car, that makes a big difference and if I was one of the elite few to drive the C7 Corvette mule, I knew that I have processed the major difference between numerous drivers who have taken the big challenge.

And now...IT'S SHOWTIME! I'm trying to correct the past mistakes I have done in previous attempts and  with all that practice paying off, I have successfully beaten the target time and I did it in...7:48.096. I may have beaten the target time but to me it feels like an unofficial record. Maybe only the Corvette experts will tell what will it be when it hits the Nurburgring soon but this is a remarkable achievement for Chevrolet. The next Corvette is surely be a track weapon of its own right and seems that I got myself a well-deserved break. Maybe I shall cook some souffle while waiting for my next mission...