NickZag

So I had my C63 posted for sale and test drove a beautiful Porsche GT3 which I thought was THE one until my wife talked me out of it. So instead of trading in my C63, I ended up taking it out to Laguna Seca this weekend and it completely reminded me why I bought this car in the first place! Long story short, I'm keeping it (for a little while longer anyway)!

I ran with a group called Track Masters and unfortunately all the passing is done by mandatory point by which caused some slow lap times. I was able to squeeze a 1:52 for my fastest lap which isn't bad seeing as this was my first time using my C63 at Laguna Seca.

Laguna Seca is where they hold the AMG driving academy and they had every just about every AMG model; SLK55's, SL 63's, brand new E63's, C63's, CLK 63 Black Series, even some SLS's and seeing that many lined up was pretty cool.

Anyway, here are some pictures and a video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXC63MLQDew

AlexCim

I've never been to Laguna Seca, but watching that video I knew every turn.... too much Gran Turismo for me as a child I think.

Btw, is the corkscrew AWESOME in real life?

I am Jeff

+1 Awesome Pictures Nick! Glad to hear that you'll be keeping the C63 for a little longer.

NickZag

The corkscrew is fun because it's almost zero gravity if your carrying some speed, but it can get a little dicey in traffic (especially with inexperienced drivers) because your going down it blind and it's a lot steeper then any video game makes it. I thought the uphill portion of turn 1 was a little bit more fun as it's REALLY weightless when your going over it at 110+ mph!

NickZag

Thanks, I am too! I've been tracking my Audi a lot and haven't taken my C63 out in a long time... everyones reaction when they hear the exhaust going down the straights is priceless!

Swiftler

all AMGs...

NickZag

It was a trip seeing all of those just sitting in the elements outside without so much as a single car cover on any of the SLS's

Swiftler

MB mass produce SLS so to them who gives a damn...to us is a trip lol. Do you get to choose any car you want at the Academy?

NickZag

I'm not sure, I've never done it. This event wasn't the AMG academy. After seeing all those AMG's, I'm VERY tempted to sign up though! I'm debating between signing up for that or the Audi driving experience at Infineon were you can a R8, and they are soon to get the RS5.

hhughes1

Thanks for sharing It is always cool to see non race cars on the marquee tracks. The elevation changes must really add some additional pucker factor to the mix especially on the blind approaches. We are contemplating a trip to Road Atlanta this season which is the only track within reach that offers some of the same elements but the esses aren't the same as the "corkscrew"!!

harrower

The academy in Europe let's you choose cars based on skill level and exercise. The choices of car are SLK 55, C63 (Sedan and Estate), E63, SL63 and SLS. I spent most of my two days in SLS in the advanced class and this is well worth the $

NickZag

One of these days I want to run Road Atlanta! I'm thinking about flying in and renting a car just to be able to drive the track. I've heard it's a blast

justthebest

The US AMG Academy just rotates you through the various models.

AlexCim

there is no AMG academy in Australia.

yazid

NickZag: thanks for sharing your experience and just by looking at your pictures with you and the infamous corkscrew is simply awesome!

I have yet to join the AMG Academy.. would love to participate if I have the chance. Alex mentioned there's none in OZ, neither in Brunei and Singapore. Not so sure in Malaysia cos they have the Sepang circuit there. Then an AMG owner would have the limited choice of either EU or US.

NickZag

I looked into the AMG Academy at Laguna Seca and it's almost $3,500

I'll stick to my $185 NASA days with my own AMG

Palladin

NickZag - Looks like a blast, certainly one of the great tracks in the US. Worth the money just for a few trips down the corkscrew in real life instead of a video game. Gotta ask.... What do you do for tires, just leave your everyday rubber on the car or do you have dedicated track tires? Based on what happens to them in normal driving I have to assume that doing laps at Laguna Seca rather rapidly reduces their life expectancy. I'm sure you factor that into the equation, but for me that's the attraction of the driving academy and similar programs. You are killing "their" brakes, tires, gearbox, etc. rather than killing "yours". Still a big difference in price for sure, and really a luxury for those who can afford it.

NickZag

After I got my 19" style V's, I kept my 18" wheels for dedicated track tires. I'm running Sumitomo HTZ III's for now but once I wear those down I'll go for some Nitto NT05's. Laguna is nice change because your really not on your brakes too much. I usually go to Infineon which is notiously hard on a car.

Your right, anytime your on a track with somebody else's car is nice because you don't have to worry about your brakes or tires, but the AMG academy factors that into the cost thats for sure! If you want to do Laguna, the cheaper option is going through Skip Barber. They don't use AMG's, but they have some M3's, Lexus ISF's, Lotus Elises, and Porsche Boxster's and standard Carrera's. It's also close to 1/2 the price of the AMG academy. I've also seen SEVERAL people rent cars like Mustangs and run them with groups like NASA so they don't hammer they're own cars.

No matter which way you cut it, there isn't anything your doing at a track thats increasing the value of your car

hhughes1

The new Mustang GT 5.0 would be a great choice to "Rent n Hammer". Not sure how the additional insurance options they try to peddle would help if an on track incident occured. The phone conversation would start off something like this:

"Hello Hertz?? funny thing about the Mustang that I rented for the weekend......."

NickZag

Best option would be to tow it to the front of the track and say you parked it there, went for a walk, and when you came back you found it that way. "But I brought it back with a full tank of gas..."

Meeyatch1

The funny thing is that all of those track cars are going to end up on a Certified Pre-Owned lot at some point as 'low mileage' cars. LOL!!

I used to know a guy that was one of the driving instructors for these schools and the BMW M schools, and he said that is where all of the cars went. The new owners had no idea what their cars were put through.

ZephyrAMG

Look at all those C63s with P31 packages just sitting there like its buffet...

MiamiAMG

Very cool! Thanks for sharing

ELO168

Going there on thanksgiving weekend with TCRA
Only $189 per day.
Anyone joining?

NickZag

I'd be interested but I work those dates