Back in my high school baseball days, a wet day was a great excuse to play around on the practice field sliding around and doing goofy things. Yesterday, our track day was rained out. As we waited and hoped for the sun to come out as the weather report had indicated, a wet track and a selection of high-powered, rear-wheel-drive cars was simply too tempting to resist sliding around and doing goofy things.
Our long-term Infiniti G35 Sport just happened to go up yesterday for logistic purposes and in between my own hooliganism, I broke out the Scorcese cam. May I now present to you Mr. Jacquot and the G. Enjoy. James Riswick, Associate Editor
SubyTrojan says:
11:00 AM, 02/21/08
Those are some sweet J-turns by Josh Jacquot in the first and third videos! Maybe ya'll should call him the "J-man" or "Triple J." Or how about J³?
louiswei says:
11:25 AM, 02/21/08
Nice videos. By the way, where is this place? How can I get in...
jederino says:
11:28 AM, 02/21/08
Nice! How easy would it be to replace/refurbish the LSD if you wanted to get into drifting that thing? I heard on the show "Best Motoring" that a serious drifter would want to replace the LSD frequently. What about occasional weekend hooliganism?
langjie says:
11:57 AM, 02/21/08
it means don't buy the edmunds G at the end of the LT test
caroscuro says:
12:01 PM, 02/21/08
That's awesome. I KNEW you guys didn't work on "test days at the track"!
stovt001 says:
12:15 PM, 02/21/08
Beautiful driving. I can't wait to get back into a RWD car.
So what other cars did this track day involve? By high-powered, RWD cars, might you mean something that starts with G and ends in 8? Or perhaps the world's heaviest pony car? Maybe a Korean upstart?
estreka says:
02:21 PM, 02/21/08
I second the great J-turns. Very expertly done. *sigh* I can't wait to get my own personal skidpad.
SubyTrojan says:
02:37 PM, 02/21/08
Don't you have one on that waterfront property in Nebraska, estreka?
estreka says:
03:50 PM, 02/21/08
Absolutely, and it's still for sale to any Californian. Did I mention it also has a Nurburgring-style racetrack? Reeeeeeeal cheap! $7.8mil, no refunds, no photos, no takebacks....no address.
boxermike says:
06:03 PM, 02/21/08
Anyone else's speakers/headphones good enough to notice the rumble at the 8-second mark of the first video (and throughout the second).
Who (that does not work here!) wants to take a stab at what makes that noise?
redliner says:
06:15 PM, 02/21/08
Your resale value just droped $1000.....and it was soooooooo worth it!
SubyTrojan says:
06:35 PM, 02/21/08
LOL! I wouldn't have said/written anything, Mike. :o)
Where do I submit a request for Chris or Josh to put my car through the skidpad, slalom, and braking tests? :o)
zach101 says:
08:21 PM, 02/21/08
Boy, don't you just love rainy days? :)
sddoc07 says:
02:59 AM, 02/22/08
love it love it....but please don't complain about tire wear, brake wear, etc etc etc...and i guess we can say that this car is no longer being tested under "normal everyday use?"
vq356mt says:
08:29 AM, 02/22/08
Boxermike,
That rumble is a little tricky. The starter whine is very Japanese but the engine isn't a Nissan VQ which should leave the Honda S2000 since this was for rear-wheel drive cars. The confusing part, for me anyway, the engine sounds boxer-like. Maybe a Porsche?
Concerning the video, I've enjoyed similar experiences in my G here in MN, but in the winter. All I need is a big empty parking lot after a fresh snow. Turn off the VDC, tell the wife to hang on, then slide and pirouette for awhile. Always a good time...
boxermike says:
08:51 AM, 02/22/08
"That rumble is a little tricky. The starter whine is very Japanese but the engine isn't a Nissan VQ which should leave the Honda S2000 since this was for rear-wheel drive cars. The confusing part, for me anyway, the engine sounds boxer-like. Maybe a Porsche?"
Good analysis, but no.
louiswei says:
09:50 AM, 02/22/08
About the rumble...
Is it the new E92 M3?
jriz says:
10:04 AM, 02/22/08
Nobody's getting this one. Nobody. I didn't even know exactly what the heck it was, and I was standing next to the thing.
vq356mt says:
10:08 AM, 02/22/08
It is a production, non-limited edition model, right? Can we get a clue, American, Euro, or Asian?
louiswei says:
10:18 AM, 02/22/08
I got a hunch that it's not a car...
jriz says:
10:27 AM, 02/22/08
You got us. We were testing a Fendt 930 agricultural tractor.
No, not really.
louiswei says:
10:42 AM, 02/22/08
My final answer would be an airplane.
So what did I win? A ride in the 308?
vq356mt says:
11:10 AM, 02/22/08
Last guess for me: Lotus Exige 260
boxermike says:
11:25 AM, 02/22/08
Not even close.
louiswei says:
11:34 AM, 02/22/08
Hey mike, in "not even close" is that for the Lotus or the airplane? Between the rumble noise and a few hangars I've spotted in the videos I think an airplane should be a fairly resonable guess.
No?
boxermike says:
12:01 PM, 02/22/08
It's a car. It seats four.
stephen987 says:
12:34 PM, 02/22/08
Hyundai Accent? Nope, too close to the Escort, I mean Focus.
m_thrizzle says:
12:38 PM, 02/22/08
Nice moves!
vq356mt says:
02:38 PM, 02/22/08
More obvious and (really this time, I mean it) last guess:BMW 1 series
boxermike says:
06:12 PM, 02/22/08
Sorry, VQ, that ain't it.
joefrompa says:
07:29 PM, 02/23/08
Boxer,
I'm gonna say def. not Porsche (unless it's the new Panamera). Not BMW...didn't sound like an inline six ( I'm using a dell laptop from work and it's speakers are pretty threadbare...).
The starter sounded a little rough, but the exhaust note was definitely tuned (like Maserati or Jaguar does). It sounds powerful, but muted.
Can we get a continent here?
Joe
jupiterg says:
08:57 PM, 02/24/08
I'm gonna guess that sound is either a an Evo or WRX with an aftermarket exhause. It's definately not German nor an 8 cylinder.
Nice driving btw.
louiswei says:
10:57 AM, 02/25/08
Okay, my final final guess:
Maserati Gran Turismo.