ABDC: Lapping it up

Baskerville Raceway Track Test
Australia's Best Driver's Car

After almost a week driving Tasmania's toughest roads, the motoring.com.au crew got to know all 13 contenders for ABDC 2016 on a pretty intimate basis.

But when it comes to measuring a car's outright braking, cornering and acceleration performance, and determining just how it behaves at and beyond its dynamic envelope, there's no substitute for a racetrack.

And so this year we again headed to Hobart's short but challenging Baskerville Raceway, a tight and undulating 2.01km track with enough cambers, banking, surface variety, inclines, declines, hairpins and fast, bumpy corners to sort the real driver's cars from the also-rans.

Once again it was our resident racer, V8 Supercar enduro pilot Luke Youlden, who performed the driving duties, aided by guest tester and industry legend Greg Crick, who again turned out lap times within about a second of the much younger Youlden in all 13 cars.

Each car was given a warm-up lap, two hot laps and cool-down lap. Only the fastest lap was measured and both drivers were asked to leave nothing on the table.

Sure, that's why racers get the big bucks, but the sight of all 13 performance cars being manhandled at and beyond their limits into Baskerville's daunting uphill right-hander and back onto the main straight around the fast, bumpy final turn – and all corners in between – is testament to the skill, bravery and commitment of both these professionals.

Indeed, Youlden later admitted to driving most cars closer to 11 rather than 10 tenths, and none of us left the track in any doubt he didn't extract every hundredth from every car on the day.

Once again each car was tested with driver-only, a full fuel tank, traction/stability control off and maximum pressures according to its tyre placard, using a Qstarz 6000S GPS lap timer.

The most popular tyre type was Pirelli P Zero, as fitted to the Audi RS 3 Sportback quattro (dual-clutch), Ford XR6 Sprint (auto), Ford Mustang GT Fastback (manual), Jaguar F-TYPE S AWD (auto) and Porsche 911 Carrera S (manual).

Next most popular was the Michelin Pilot Super Sport as seen on the BMW M2 (manual), Mercedes-AMG C 63 S (auto), Peugeot 308 GTi 270 (manual) and Renault Clio RS220 Trophy (dual-clutch).

The MINI JCW (manual) rode on Dunlop Sport Maxx rubber, the HSV ClubSport R8 LSA (manual) on Continental ContiSport Contacts and both the Holden SS V-Series Redline (manual) and Mazda MX-5 Roadster GT (manual) on Bridgestone Potenzas – RE050 and RE5001 respectively.

The difference this year was that instead of a sodden, rainy day, the ABDC 2016 track day was met with clear skies, allowing us to line up the first batch of front-wheel drive hatchbacks at 9:00am on a drying Baskerville track at a balmy ambient temperature of 17.8 degrees.

As is Tassie's want, however, black clouds and rain quickly brought an end to proceedings after the first three runs. Play resumed after photography and lunch, by which time glorious sunshine, a temp of 22.5 degrees and a clean, dry track provided the perfect, level playing field.

First up was the MINI, which cranked out a time of 1:05.319 thanks to its massive mid-corner grip, progressive lift-off oversteer and beefy 2.0-litre turbo four power.

"Predictable, progressive and super-fast mid-corner," said Youlden, adding: "You can make mistakes but it's almost foolproof."

Almost as fun and foolproof for different reasons is the naturally-aspirated 2.0-litre rear-drive MX-5, which posted a 1:05.786 lap time, less than half a second slower than the MINI.

Like us road testers, Youlden said the MX-5 was a blast to drive hard thanks to precise steering and predictable oversteer at the limit, but said its suspension was too soft.

"Of course it lacks grunt compared to everything else here, but it also body rolls and the brakes went off. It settles and grips nicely at the limit, but it needs better springs and shocks."

The Clio proved quicker than both the MX-5 and MINI at Baskerville, with a 1:05.149 lap. Youlden said its diminutive 147kW 1.6-litre turbo engine and six-speed dual-clutch were a delight, but criticised its lack corner exit grip.

"Fun to drive hard, but needs a proper diff. It spins the inside front wheel and bottoms out too easily; just can't get its power down."

In contrast, the biggest surprise was the Peugeot, which many testers said was a handful on the road thanks to a big dose of torque steer induced by its giant-killing 200kW 1.6-litre turbo four, despite its clever torque-sensing mechanical front diff.

On track, the Pug excelled with time of 1:02.643 – sixth-quickest on the day ahead of the SS V-Series Redline, F-TYPE S AWD, XR6 Sprint, RS 3 Sportback, Clio RS220 Trophy, MINI JCW and MX-5 Roadster GT.

"This thing's mega – what a surprise – it steers well; the torque steer is no problem here. I hate the reverse tacho and it needs a DCT [dual-clutch transmission], but the grunty engine, big tyres and big brakes work really well."

Then the Jag ripped around the track to a feisty blown V6 soundtrack, its rapid-fire torque converter auto sounding and performing every bit like a dual-clutch.

It's time of 1:02.716 was 2.5sec quicker than all the four-cylinder cars run so for except the 308 GTi 270, but it wasn't as fast as it looked and sounded. Youlden concurred, and said the sleek Brit was held back by a rear-end traction, despite its broad, sticky rear hoops and all-wheel drive.

"It's a quick car, but feels faster than it is – a bit taily right at the limit and lacks a bit of power up top," he said.

Next up was the RS 3 Sportback, the unrelenting turbo-five power and quattro AWD system in which instilled supreme confidence in all testers on Tassie's most greasy, cambered road surfaces.

Unlike the AMG A 45, which was a stand-out performer at a wet Baskerville last year, Audi's new luxury hot hatch contender didn't impress as much on a dry track, lapping a tenth slower than the Jaguar in 1:02.842 – ranking it just 10th overall.

"It's a different car on the track – it just understeers and bottoms out," said Youlden. "The car oversteers when the tyres are cold, then understeers when they're hot. It's almost the reverse of the 308 GTi; the harder you drive it the more it loses its composure and lacks body control."

As expected, the M2 came out all guns blazing and slammed down a new benchmark of 1:00.588 – more than 2.5sec quicker than anything else so far, even with its manual gearbox.

A big gap between second and third gears, a propensity for too wheelspin out of corners and less top-end power than expected were Youlden's only complaints.

"[It] turns well, stops well, has more grip than just about anything else and can drive sideways on the throttle with ease. Great fun," was the verdict.

But if the M2 was the star so far, the more powerful turbo-six powered (and much more expensive) 911 quickly eclipsed it, smashing out 0:58.630 to be almost two seconds quicker – and the only sub-minute car on the day.

This was despite tall gearing that made third too tall to hold through the turn five 'bowl', and an understeer moment that wiped off a few tenths in the penultimate corner.

"Even better brakes and more speed than the M2, but the advantage is all in a straight line," said Youlden of the other German coupe, which nonetheless generated the highest lateral cornering force of the day at an astonishing 1.71g.

To the rear-drive Aussie sedans and, despite its sheer size and 1766kg kerb weight, the crowd-favourite SS V-Series Redline and it's 6.2-litre V8 not only reeled off an impressive 1:02.645, but was deemed more rewarding on-track than any other car on the day.

"[It's] so much fun, it turns in so well and power oversteers so effortlessly it's real easy to drive on the throttle. But it also stops and turns so well for a big car..." said Youlden, who later added: "By far the most fun overall, even on track."

Unsurprisingly, the $25,000-pricier HSV used its more powerful blown V8 to good effect, belting out 1:01.410 to be more than a second faster than the SS V-Series Redline; but its tauter chassis didn't attract praise.

"It felt quicker than the SS V, but only because of its straight-line speed. The HSV's ballistic on the straights but skates and ploughs rather than grips and goes in the corners. The SS V turns in better and it's less stiff. This understeers too much and is nowhere near as much fun."

Next, the XR6 Sprint showed a respectable turn of speed with 1:02.830 – within two-tenths of the SS V-Series Redline – thanks to its ballistic turbo-six and well-sorted chassis; though Youlden was less than impressed with its power delivery, steering and ergonomics.

"Very surprising – much better on the track than the road. There's lots of power but it's all too high in the rev-range; it should pull from 2000rpm but only really gets going at about 5000, so it all happens too late.

"It's nice to steer on the throttle but needs too many revs. The suspension's a bit soft, the steering's too light, it needs more midrange or shorter gearing, and the seating position is atrocious."

The pretender to Ford Australia's performance throne, the Mustang GT Fastback, was quicker at 1:01.680, splitting the GM sedans and just 0.25sec behind the heavier HSV despite its smaller, less powerful 5.0-litre atmo V8.

"[It] does everything well," said Youlden. "[It] lacks the punch of the HSV but turns in better – not as well as the SS V though – and is more progressive at the limit, and easy to drive on the throttle."

An undoubted surprise package was the Mercedes-AMG C 63 S, which slammed down a 1:00.396, beating all but the Porsche despite being criticised by all for its lack of grip and poor ride on rough public roads.

Proving its smoother-surface performance credentials in no uncertain terms, Youlden said the ballistic twin-turbo V8 AMG was "the only car I couldn't hold flat onto the straight" but "far too easy to lose grip in".

"What an engine! It's quick on the straight, but it's far too loose in corners. You can fry the rear tyres in any gear... feels like it has bald rear tyres. I'm surprised the time was so quick, but it made all it's time on the straight and up the hill."

And so three distinct groups of lap times emerged, with the Porsche, Mercedes-AMG and BMW a second ahead of the rest, and separated by less than two seconds.

The HSV ClubSport R8 LSA led the biggest pack including the Mustang GT Fastback, 308 GTi 270, SS V-Series Redline, F-TYPE S AWD, XR6 Sprint and RS 3 Sportback – all separated by less than 1.5sec – with the Clio RS220 Trophy, JCW and MX-5 Roadster GT more than two seconds behind, but just 0.6sec apart.

So while the MX-5 proves an enormous dynamic threshold isn't a prerequisite for a good driver's car, the AMG shows stratospheric handling limits don't always make for a great one.

No, a fast lap time in the hands of a racing driver isn't the ultimate mark of a sportscar. But, as evidenced by the 911 and M2, when it's combined with the right amount of power, grip, balance and feedback at and beyond the limit, you have the makings of the best driver's car for most people.

Porsche 911 Carrera S - 0:58.630
Mercedes-AMG C 63 S - 1:00.396
BMW M2 - 1:00.588
HSV ClubSport R8 LSA - 1:01.410
Ford Mustang GT Fastback - 1:01.680
Peugeot 308 GTi 270 - 1:02.643
Holden SS V-Series Redline - 1:02.645
Jaguar F-TYPE S AWD - 1:02.716
Ford XR6 Sprint - 1:02.830
Audi RS 3 Sportback quattro - 1:02.842
Renault Clio RS220 Trophy - 1:05.149
MINI JCW - 1:05.319
Mazda MX-5 Roadster GT - 1:05.786

Related ABDC reading:
motoring.com.au’s 2016 Australia’s Best Driver’s Car

>> Get the full story of Australia's Best Driver's Car here