Fifty years of testing at Lang Lang

The first vehicle proving ground of its type in Australia, the Holden facility at Lang Lang has notched up fifty continuous years of operation since opening in 1957.

At the time, the FC Holden was the only locally produced model sold by GM in Australia and this was the first of many local platforms tested at the 877 hectare site, located 95km south east of Melbourne.

These days, the site is a major player in testing GM products for the Asia/Pacific region and has the advantage over northern hemisphere facilities of being well placed for hot weather testing during the earlier and later parts of the year.

With 44km of roads, some sealed, some not, the facility provides the venue for over 4.5 million test kilometres each year. The roads include the 4.7km high speed track which is banked for safe top speed runs. Other roads comprise courses to test torsional rigidity, noise, vibration, gradeability and handling/roadholding.

A crash test laboratory is also based at Lang Lang and contributes data for the development of airbags and other safety measures. Barrier crash tests conducted on site involve winching a car at speeds up to 90km/h before it hits a 76-tonne concrete block. These tests are carried out in accordance with standards laid down by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE).

Holden also implements emissions standard testing for local and international certification at the proving ground, which is the leading facility of its kind for GM in the Asia/Pacific region.

Since the early days, the facility's staffing levels have risen from 38 to over 270 and modern testing is much more civilised, with the advent of in-car heating and air conditioning.

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