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From open track days to 24-hour races, so many occasions are positioned on the German Nurburgring track that car brands will have to share the asphalt with their rivals to test new models. The days of industry groups are generally closed to the public, however, a seven-minute video shows what Land Rover, BMW and several others are testing.
Posted on YouTube through StatesideSupercars, the video shows prototypes running down the track in the mid-summer heat. Land Rover engineers are busy putting the finishing touches on the V8 engine variant of the new Defender, which our spies have already seen in their home country of England, and are creating what looks like the high-performance SVR. Next generation Range Rover scheduled for 2020.
As we reported earlier in 2020, the hot-rodded Defender packs a 5.0-liter V8 between its fenders, though its horsepower and torque outputs remain under wraps. Unverified rumors claim it will arrive as a limited-edition model to avoid sending Land Rover’s fleet-wide CO2 emissions through the roof. And, the video confirms chassis engineers have made extensive modifications to the SUV’s suspension, partly to keep body roll in check.
As they walk through the pits, members of BMW’s control team get up early to explore an enigmatic variant of the raised-faced M5 and the next-generation M3. We’ve already noticed the M5 in metal, so why is it still camouflaged? One answer imaginable is that we are looking for the planned edition of CS, which deserves to obtain a V8 of 641 horsepower through software settings and a greater cooling system. The simplest (and most annoying) option is that BMW hasn’t finished reviewing the M5 and doesn’t need to waste time cutting the film in black and white. His writer has regularly seen prototypes of i8 with full camouflage equipment months after his debut.
As for the M3, there has already been a lot of talk about its gigantic grid, which is supposedly similar to the one used in the new Series 4. Autoblog made a pre-production prototype in June and was impressed. Receives an evolution of the 3.0-liter turbocharged six-cylinder in-line X3 M to 473 horsepower, the variety of the optional Competition set will increase this figure to 503. And, don’t worry: the six speeds take care of you back.
Land Rover and BMW are not the only corporations playing in the ‘Ring’. Peugeot is testing a warmer edition of the 508, which probably comprises a hybrid powertrain, and Porsche launches a Cayenne in corners. Mercedes-Benz has brought several models, adding a GLE and some C-Class-based verification mules.
A car that leaves us is a yellow Astra GTC Opel, a 276-horsepower hatch built between 2011 and 2015. It is basically original, we do not see any more sensors or measuring devices attached to the body, and we are quite sure that it is a car belonging to the factory because the GG prefix of its license plate number corresponds to the Groe-Gerau district in Germany, where Opel’s headquarters in Rasselsheim is located. Opel doesn’t have an edition with the existing Astra OPC badge, it doesn’t provide much for the slow-selling model, and even if it was, you wouldn’t use a car of just ten years to review it. Were your road inspectors looking not to forget how fun a budget box with a giant turbo engine can be under the hood? Your guess is as smart as ours.