Must go! It's awesome. Did mine at COTA in Austin and will be going back next year.

 

 

COTA in Austin TX is an amazing track. World class for sure. Done the basic and advanced courses. Will be going again next year. Fantastic program! Enjoy

 

 

​​​​​​At COTA they recorded our lap time while in the GT R which you can then download from their website and keep. Included video from the cabin and telemetry.

 

 

I've done both and would be hard to choose as both are great.

 

You don't need any as the cars are numbered and you don't know which car you will be in till last moment as they try to get groups that are same speed so one car wont' drop back and slow all.
You get to drive most all the AMG models at on time or other for drags/slalom//autocross/track work/skid pad etc.

 

I haven't done their Performance class, but I did do the Advanced course approx a year ago, and the Pro+ course in October, both at Laguna Seca, which is a fantastic track.

I haven't done COTA yet, and I know it's an amazing track too. I think which course you go to really depends on your goals. If you just wanna have fun, timing is convenient, etc, it doesn't matter. And you'll improve your skill as a driver irrespective of the track you go to . But if you're really trying to improve your skill on a controlled fashion (ie same track, just you getting better at it), I think Laguna Seca is the easier one to handle. Not cuz the track is easier, but because it's not as technical as COTA. So you can easily memorize the entire track and then really focus on improving your actual driving skill on that track. And that's why you'll find a lot of guys are actually on their 6th or 7th Pro+ course when they go there. Focusing on getting better as a driver, at the same track.

The Pro+ course offers a RIDICULOUS amount of seat time. To the point that by the end of the third day, many of us (myself included) were just BEAT. And were almost to the point of "ok I've driven enough" lol. And that's what you want the most out of a course. Not classroom time...actual seat time. I was able to shave a full 2 seconds off of my time by the end of the 3rd day of Pro+, and my times were already respectable to begin with.

Highly recommend...

 

 

I'm not saying you're wrong, but are you comparing apples to apples? Which AMG course did you do? Have you done Pro+? The lower level courses are a lot of into, discussion, class time, and yes, AMG advertising. But the Pro/Pro+? SO MUCH driving time, it takes a beating on you. That was the consensus between us.

My partner during the AMG course actually frequents both Porsche Masters classes and the AMG Pro courses, over and over. And he told me the seat time was pretty much the same, and he enjoys both the AMG Pro/Pro+ and the Porsche Masters equally.

One of the AMG instructors was a former Porsche instructor, and felt we get more track time in the AMG course than Porsche's.

If you want actual track time, you gotta compare the on-track focused courses: AMG Pro/Pro+ with Porsche Masters/Masters RS

 

I did the started AMG school....I've done all 3 Porsche schools. Comparing the AMG vs Porsche starter school...to me the Porsche school was more about learning high performance driving techniques than the AMG school..AMG did go over some techniques but it was all based around a huge sales pitch towards AMG cars and technology. Porsche does that a little but not like AMG it seems. The lead follow track driving with both schools...seemed like a lot more track time driving a 911 than the AMG school where you'd drive 2 laps at a slow pace in 1 car...get out switch cars and do 2 more laps then off to an other section of the school.

I only went to this because my wife didn't want to go...We bought her a AMG C63 and got the school as a perk with it. I had time to kill and went. Im not saying I am Mr Perfect driver but I instruct for Porsche Club and Chin Motorsports... so my driving skill is pretty high. I felt like between the AMG starter school vs the Porsche starter school...Porsche gives more driving instruction.

 

Ok gotcha. You may be right about Porsche *starter school* vs AMG's *starter* class (Performance). To my understanding, that class IS primarily an AMG marketing tool and a "look what your AMG can do, if you were a better driver" typa situation. But from the feedback I've received (Pro+ and Masters class within the past 3-4 months), the advanced classes of both schools are very comparable.

As for open lapping, Pro+ was all about open lapping. Yes you started with a few lead-follows on Day 1. By Day 2, and ALL of Day 3, it was lap after lap of open lapping. No instructor (unless you wanted one riding shotgun with you). With tons of track time. If you weren't behind the wheel, you were getting real data feedback on your lap and where you could improve. Then back out you went. To the point that the universal feedback among us attendees were just how efficient with their time management. If you weren't actively learning something, you were behind the wheel. ALL. DAY. LONG.

Having said that, I still wanna take the Porsche Masters class myself...

 

Good to know on the AMG and Porsche Pro classes. Its honestly amazing that a manufacture even does classes like this in todays world. Awesome stuff for sure.

If you love track time...and want to check out Sebring...I will be at the Dec 9th Chin Motorsports event at Sebring. Come out and look around and hang out if you want...its free. I'd be happy to meet you and tell you what's going on.

see ya, Mike

 

Darn. Registration is closed. I woulda registered and came down if it was still open. I joined Chin as well, but just haven't made it out to the track. And I'm SCCA license eligible from the Pro+ course I took, but I wasn't going to register for it this year, being that the year's almost done. Lemme know if you're going to any future events at Sebring; will try and come as well

As for the manufacturers, word is, AMG actually subsidizes approx 80% of the event's cost. So it must be a REALLY good marketing tool that pays dividends in their AMG sales...

 

Was great for me. May do more, including the more advanced events like drifting.

Oddly, three people in my my sub-group of 10 pulled out by 11am! These appeared to be people that had bought AMGs because they were an expensive MB rather than because they loved to drive. Now that AMG purchasers get a performance event for free I guess this happens a lot.

I used to do the AMG Challenges (basic and advance; predecessor to the driving academy) in 2004-2008 and those events always cost $$$ and nobody dropped out. Some of the tracks were different then, too. California Speedway in Fontana was used until 2007, with some sub-events on the big oval and some on the oval and the road course combined. We were told to not exceed 155 (in the cars not limited to that), but the pro drivers would ignore that for "demonstration" purposes and when giving ride-alongs to guests. In 2006, as I recall, Tommy Kindall commented that a ride-along he gave in an SLR was the first street car he had ever topped 175 in.

Alas the events went to slower tracks after 2007. Two clowns showed up for a May 2007 event that looked like trouble (attitude, not listening to the pros, and ignoring group instructions). On the first or second sub-event of the day the one driving promptly went up into the wall of the big oval doing 130+. Nobody was hurt but the E55 was totaled and I understand the instructor was given the rest of the day off (he was in the front passenger seat, less than a foot from the wall when the sparks flew). The next year the California event was at a slow road course North of Sacramento and I stopped going after that (more due to the 2008 economy than anything else).

Laguna Sega is fun but not fast. A month or two earlier a Lambo in testing for Motor Trend set a track record of 154mph. AMG recorded us in GTRs, but only one lap each so we did not get to really learn the cars. The telemetry said my lap was 111mph, which felt about right.

 

Going over the straightaway at Laguna is REALLY hairy. As you come over the crest, there's a sudden dip, and it slightly unsettles the car. You HAVE to be on the throttle (and remain on it), otherwise, if you get a little skiddish, the car will unsettle itself and you can quickly go offtrack, or spin out, or hit the wall, etc etc. They actually instituted a mandatory lift area before you go under the bridge in Laguna Seca partly for that reason, to drop your speed for a bit, so you aren't carrying as much speed going over that dip - which is immediately followed by a heavy braking zone, while coming all the way from the left, to the outside of the upcoming turn on the right.

I asked my instructors about that dip (cuz the car gets really light for a moment, and its straight up scary, and you gotta really work to keep the car braking in a straight line after that), and they told me it scares them as well, but you just gotta have confidence in the car...

 

Do you mind to share the link for the driving academy ? Thanks

 

https://www.amgacademy.com

 

i will be attending COTA this weekend. excited and will report my experience.