Top 5 Mistakes on the Nürburgring Nordschleife
15th June 2018
The quest to conquer the Nürburgring Nordschleife is a long one, requiring years of experience and thousands of laps racing or on trackdays. The team at RSR Nurburg (Ron Simons Racing) have given us a few common mistakes that can be easily avoided after years of experience instructing racers on their first few laps.
- Wippermann
The change of direction, camber and elevation are all out to unsettle the car, so it’s very important to be smooth in this section. Start your braking uphill, and wait till the end of the curbing before turning in.
Too much speed, or lifting off means you will run wide and land up outside the track. You want to brake again in a straight line, don’t carry the braking into the corner
- Kallenhard
In the dry, it’s an easy corner. On the wet, it’s one of the most dangerous of the whole track. People drive the ‘dry line’ here, but in the rain, the thick layer of rubber is extremely slippery.
You want to keep to the outside, which is where the grip will be. Also, be patient before getting back on to the throttle.
- Schwedenkreuz
A very fast, 5th gear, left-hand corner, about 5km from the start of your lap. Be smooth with your inputs, and make sure to get your braking done before entering the corner. The last thing we want is to misjudge our entry speed, and braking as you turn in.
There’s a nasty bump near the apex, which will violently shift the weight of the car, causing uncontrollable oversteer.
- Fuchsröhre
A long, bumpy, fast, downhill section, leading to a heavy compression zone, which then climbs up to a tricky left-hand turn. Braking or lifting at the wrong moment will unsettle the car, making it very difficult to keep the car pointing in the right direction. You must brake in a straight line, before taking the left-hander.
- Brünnchen
“YouTube Corner” as we call it around the office, is located roughly 16km in and is a series of two right-hand corners. It’s a popular spectator area, so drivers’ egos tend to get the better of them.
Both corners require particular finesse. It’s important to brake in a straight line, then drive through the corners on a trailing throttle. Only go on the power only when you can see the exit.
