⚡Lightning Lap 2022 ⚡ | The Ultimate Performance Car Test | Car and Driver

Welcome to the ultimate performance car test. Since 2006, Car and Driver has brought the year's hottest cars to one of the most challenging racetracks in the United States, Virginia International Raceway. With a mix of ultra high speed straights and tight hairpin corners, the 4.1 miles and 24 turns that make the grand course are the closest you'll get to the Nürburgring without a passport. Each lap tests a car's ability to brake, accelerate, handle, and deal with the abuse that comes from limit driving. While lap times serve as an excellent benchmark, we're also interested in the overall picture of a vehicle's performance and character. This year was no different. Our 21 entrants ranged from inexpensive sport compacts such as the Toyota Subaru Twins to high end and track focused machines like the Mercedes AMG GT Black Series. There were also four SUVs because you, the car buying public, keep buying them. Our testing protocol calls for each vehicle to be configured in its highest performing or track ready setup. Every option on these cars comes from the factory or dealership, and we don't allow special performance enhancing modifications or tires, as we believe that if the manufacturer doesn't have the courage to sell the car to you so equipped, we shouldn't reward them. Some cars have durability enhancing brake fluid, which we see as more of a safety modification, just like the Arai helmets and hybrid Hans devices we wear. Plus, it allows us to run consecutive hot laps in cars otherwise incapable of doing so. The results and feedback come from Car and Driver's five editors slash drivers, who combined have logged thousands of laps around here. We present the results loosely in groups from slowest to fastest, calling out natural comparisons along the way. While this video is a summary of each vehicle's performance, you can read more and see each hot lap at caranddriver.com. The Toyota GR86 and Subaru BRZ are mechanically identical with essentially the same price, power, and weight. While some minor differences exist, the 86, for example, has firmer suspension tuning and a larger rear anti-roll bar, the biggest thing we noticed was brake performance. The GR86 was a one lap wonder. Its brakes were so feeble that they couldn't complete more than a single lap of VIR without the pedal going to the floor. The BRZ did better as the Subaru engineers on site swapped in DOT4 high temperature brake fluid that allowed it to run two consecutive laps without issue. Both cars wind up at the slow end of the pack, but don't take that as a failing. The GR86 and BRZ are super fun with quick-witted responses and a ton of communication, also an enjoyable, if sometimes pulse-raising willingness to oversteer. We had a tough time explaining the half second difference between the two cars in the data. The two were almost identical everywhere around their best laps, save for sector three, where the GR86 gained a 4 tenth of a second lead. Could have been car-to-car variation, could have been the driver finding a little more courage in Oak Tree or some combination of the two. But want a real highlight? Both cars were nearly two seconds faster than the last gen BRZ TS we tested in 2018. The Golf GTI and Golf R both represent the eighth generation of the nameplate and come with exceptionally sorted chassis or whatever. We'd never driven a GTI that was as poised and planted and with minimal understeer. The electronically controlled limited slip differential eliminated time wasting wheel spin, and we're grateful the stability control can once again be fully disabled in this new eighth generation car. Similarly, the all-wheel drive Golf R moved with the same assuredness and finely honed balance. Getting a clean lap in the R was a struggle, though, due to the touch-sensitive controls on the steering wheel. Our driver would leave the pits in the most aggressive chassis setting, and halfway through the lap, he'd find the car in a different drive mode with the steering wheel heater on or the windshield wipers activated because he accidentally grazed switches while driving. While both cars went significantly quicker than their predecessors, the big gap in lap times between the two can be partially explained by the 74 horsepower difference and user error. We saw a 3 minute 10 second lap in the GTI, but there was no SD card in the data logger. The official time is the quickest we have data for. The limited edition is a farewell to the 10th generation Civic Type R, and boy, is it a hell of a goodbye. With a 3 minute 7 tenths of a second lap time, it took the front drive lightning lap record from the MINI Cooper John Works GP we tested last year. That 3 second improvement over the record and over the Type R we ran in 2018 is the result of both Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 track tires and outright chassis superiority. Consider that no car has turned a quicker lap time without the benefit of a better power to weight ratio and a higher peak speed down the front straight. Another highlight, not only did the Type R have more grip in turn 1 than both the Cadillac Blackwings and the BMW M3 and M5 CS, its lap time is tied, tied with the Ford GT we ran here in the first lightning lap in 2006. That makes the Type R limited edition a very special car, and we are eager to see what Honda has in store for the next generation. A big difference between sporty cars and cars that are prepared for track driving use is durability. The Acura TLX Type S, BMW M240i xDrive, and Lexus IS500 are all fun to drive sporty cars, but each fell victim to soft brake pedals and or tire issues. The TLX Type S nevertheless impressed with a similar performance to the rear drive Cadillac CT4V we tested last year. It even matched the CT5V in one sector, but its turbo V6 simply doesn't have the power for the TLX to keep pace on the straights. Before we talk about the M240i, first a caveat about BMW lap times this year. None of the BMWs that showed up came with extra tires, so all were shortchanged on lap time to preserve what little rubber we had. We only sent the M240i around the track for four hot laps over two days. The quickest lap came on the third go, and on by then somewhat chewed up tires. Despite this handicap, the more powerful engine in the M240i helped it get five seconds quicker than the last gen version and take a narrow lead from the M340i of last year. Turn-in oversteer that came about from the worn tires aside, the all-wheel drive too had a friendly rear drive feel that didn't require you to get on the power early to cancel the understeer like the TLX Type S. Despite offering plenty to enjoy on the road from its comfortable ride and excellent sounding five liter V8, VIR exposed many shortcomings when you take an IS500 to the track. It arrived with a dealer installed auxiliary transmission cooler and quote, prototype front pads that will be sold as an accessory, end quote. The pad survived three days of lapping without incident, even if the pedal feel didn't inspire confidence. But we did overheat the 10-speed automatic, causing it to burp fluid out of its vent and refuse to upshift. The Bridgestone Potenza tires lack traction while exiting corners, requiring patience from its driver. Side note, the IS500 does fantastic power slides. That all may sound overly negative, but the final lap time was just two seconds off the RC F Track Edition. Not much would be needed to get it closer. And now for something completely different. If there's an indicator about the popularity of SUVs, consider that there were four high performance and track-oriented SUVs at Lightning Lap this year. First, again, we didn't have spare tires for any BMW. And this meant less track time to sort them out. Neither the X4M nor the X5M broke under a three-minute lap time. The X4 liked getting its tires off the ground. In an early outing, it went over the curbing and roller coaster at speed and launched the driver's side tires into what felt like low orbit. It also lifts its inside rear tire under full load, like a front-drive car. That trait, plus the high center of gravity and hyperactive steering, spooked us enough to average a mere 108 miles an hour through the uphill S's. That's the slowest of this year's contenders. Still, the X4 put down a better lap time than its closest competitor, the Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio. The larger and more powerful X5 worked a bit better, seemingly pivoting around an axi in the middle of the car. Depending on where your feet send the load while braking or accelerating, the X5 played and rotated in a controllable and easy manner that made it seem alive and willing. The brakes proved up to the task, too. The faster lap time comes from a mixture of that confidence and the 617-horsepower turbo V8. A note on an advantage that SUVs have over cars here, suspension travel. In the X5, you could crush the curbing without any fear, and that allows you to work every inch and angle of the track to your advantage. The Audi RS Q8 and Porsche Cayenne Turbo GT are strange because underneath, they're largely the same vehicle. They also share the same mechanical bits with the Lamborghini Urus, which took the SUV record with a 255.8 second lap here in 2019. The RS Q8 isn't quite as powerful as the Urus, and nor does it have the sticky Pirelli Corsa tires. Still, its 16 and 1 1 inch carbon ceramic rotors and 10-piston calipers are the right hardware for the task, although the brake pedal sinks deep enough to make you wonder if you might be heading all the way to the tire wall. As for everything else, well, think of an Audi RS 7 converted to standing desk height. You can nail the curbs, the steering is truthful, and the understeer is predictable and easy to manage. But as much as we tried, we couldn't get the RS Q8 under the three-minute mark. The Cayenne is a whole different story. Lowered and stiffened, the Turbo GT puts the power to the ground so effectively that you rocket away from corners with urgency for an SUV. It's neutral, too, with plenty of throttle-motivated rear-end rotation available. Loaded up with heat-cycled Pirelli PZero Corsa PZC4 tires, it climbed the S's at an average speed of 124.3 miles an hour, and that's faster than the BMW M5 CS. The braking system was seemingly unfazed by the heat. Over three days of lapping, they never required any extra care. No bleeding, no new pads. The Cayenne is also slightly less powerful than the Urus, but it had a higher top speed, thanks to the faster corner exit off the tricky right turn that feeds onto the front straight. And overall, the Porsche set a quicker lap time than the Lamborghini Urus. We wonder how that'll go down back in the boardroom. Fucking go! This year provided two BMW Cadillac match-ups. As the CT4V and larger CT5V Blackwings faced off high-performance variants of the M3 and M5. With less power and half the number of driven wheels than the M3 Competition X-Drive, the CT4V Blackwing had its work cut out for it. The smaller Blackwing is a track star with rich feedback, with more communication from the steering than the M3. The data shows the two cars nearly tied through most of the track, but the Cadillac lost time in the long high-speed corners, where it was easy to overwhelm the rear tires. It was easy to catch, but ultimately slower than the BMW. Call it a wash on braking, and we're back to the importance of horsepower. The M3's advantage came primarily from its ability to stay with the Cadillac in the lower-speed technical parts of the track, while its all-wheel drive system let the power get back to wide-open throttle earlier, so it could fully exploit its 31-horsepower advantage on the straights. The M3 arrived at the uphill S's 6.4 mile an hour faster than the CT4, netting a half-second advantage in that sector. The same goes for the last few corners that lead onto the front straight. The BMW picks up nearly a second because it can put down the power earlier and harder. Judged solely on time, the BMW is the clear winner. It's the opposite story with the larger CT5V Blackwing and M5 CS, but for more technical reasons. Versus the regular M5, the CS sheds 125 pounds and gains firmer suspension and Pirelli PZero Corsa track tires. This package netted a four-second improvement over the last M5 competition we lapped here, but tell us if you've heard this one before. The M5 only had one set of tires. That meant fewer laps to chase the four-door lap record. In the time we had, the CS proved to be willing to stay right on the limit in a repeatable way without much practice. On to the CT5V Blackwing then. Though quicker, our big struggle was a lifeless brake pedal, or at least one that didn't provide the feedback we'd like when approaching turn one at 154 miles an hour. Cadillac's on-hand engineers assured us that the brakes would do their job, and they should know, having set a two-minute 49.5 second here themselves. Ultimately, we mashed that time, beat it by a tenth to be more specific, but it could have been a touch better. We fumbled a bit, scrubbing too much speed going into hog pen. If you set the start-finish line before that mistake, the lap time improves by 2 tenths of a second, which means it beats the Mercedes AMG GT63S from a few years back. But that's the thing about finish lines. They don't move. Oh, fuck, I am done with you. Holy shit, you didn't make that easy, Caddy. Setting a faster lap time than that GT63S is a duty that fell upon the Porsche Panamera Turbo S. Relative to the bends, the Panamera's engine may be down 10 horsepower, and its weight is up 86 pounds, but its Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires, rear steering system, and suspension tuning enable a quicker lap time. In fact, this combination netted 1.14 Gs in turn one. That's the third highest here. And an 80 mile an hour exit speed from that corner, which is the fastest of any car here. Like every Porsche we've lapped at VIR, it's almost funny how easy it is to drive. Over every part of our 4.1 mile stress test, the Porsche pulls ahead of the bends. By the end of the lap, it's 1 and 1 half seconds ahead. More impressively, the Panamera's final lap time is mere tenths off some mid-engined exotics, like the McLaren 570S from 2016. That's not bad for a big, comfortable front engine four-door car. While we're on the topic of big, comfortable, and expensive rocket ships, let's turn to the Bentley Continental GT Speed. This is far from coincidental. The Conti and the Panamera share similar platforms. But when you're sawn at the Bentley's wheel, wringing out the mass of W12, and surrounded by the rich leather and brushed aluminum cabin, the experience couldn't be more different. Did you know there's a slight dip near the finish line at VIR? It goes by unnoticed in most cars. But even with the Bentley's dampers in their firmest setting, the Conti undulates here while approaching 150 miles an hour. Fortunately, the 17.3-inch carbon ceramic rotors and 10-piston calipers, yes, 17.3-inch rotors, they were unfazed by the experience. We can't say the same for the Pirelli PZero tires. They succumb to the weight of the car, and speed and available grip decreases over the course of a lap, requiring the driver to tiptoe this 5,000-pound, 650-horsepower coupe through slower corners. Despite this challenge, the Continental's lap time is a win. Nothing this heavy or luxurious has gone faster. And now we reach what we suspect many of you have come to see, the real track cars. Strangely, the Mustang Mach 1 was a bit of an oddball this year. The only other coupes with manual transmissions here were the Subaru and Toyota twins. There were more SUVs. The times, they are a changing. Fortunately, the Mustang is only getting better and better, and that's why we're happy it showed up. The Mach 1 is a summary of the best of the sixth generation Mustang. Suspension and transmission parts from the GT350R, a V8 from the Bullitt, aero from the GT500, and so on, it might be the perfect combo. Leading up to the climbing S's, the Mach 1 is down 3.4 mile an hour to the GT350R, but the aerodynamic and chassis bits from the Shelby keep the Mach 1 pressed into the tarmac, allowing liberal use of the gas pedal. By the end of the S's, the Mach 1 is only a tenth of a second behind its more powerful predecessor. The resulting two-minute, 51.4-second lap is not only 4 tenths of a second quicker than the GT350R, but that time is good enough to make the Mach 1 the new king of LL2 or the $35,000 to $65,000 class. No other car has gone quicker here for less money. The GT3's 4-liter flat-six gets all the attention, and it's easy to see, or rather hear, why. But the chassis deserves equal praise. So, too, does the dealer-installed and Porsche spec Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2R tires. The GT3 sticks to turn 1 at 1.22 G's and exits the climbing S's at 118 miles an hour. This year, only the AMG GT Black Series did better. Every primary control in the GT3 is free of slop and provides the right feedback. All parts seem cinched tightly together and tuned to only provide good vibes. Said good vibes let you get to speed quickly. This GT3 is the 16th 911 we have lapped at Lightning Lap, yet only one 911 has been quicker, the 700-horsepower GT2 RS from 2018. The last-gen GT3 RS and current Turbo S are about a second and two seconds slower, respectively, even though they both have better power-to-weight ratios. That the GT3 can go faster around VIR with less power is not only about more grip, but an all-around superior chassis. The Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series is a track weapon, and it has every trick to shrink lap times. An adjustable front splitter has two threaded supports that keep it from being ripped off at speed. At the rear end flies a tall biplane setup with a large wing perched above a second smaller airfoil. In the center of the upper wing is an airbrake that deploys to help slow and stabilize, valuable when you have to brake from 166 miles an hour to make turn one. In turn one, the stiff suspension and Pilot Sport Cup 2R tires Michelin developed for AMG. They work together to generate 1.25 Gs, and that's a new Lightning Lap record. The 4-liter V8 features a flat-plane crank that enables a 7,200 RPM redline and disorientingly quick acceleration. While the dual-clutch transaxle is so smartly programmed, that vanity is the only conceivable reason to use the shift paddles. One minor complaint, the difference between the sound in the cabin and the sound outside makes you wonder if Mercedes installed the sound insulation backwards. But that's a minor detail relative to the resulting lap time. For context, over the 24-corner gauntlet, the Black Series nips at the heels of the record set by the nearly million-dollar McLaren Senna. If you eliminate the Senna's gains on the straights, it and the Black Series are essentially tied. And with that, we conclude Lightning Lap 15. Thanks for watching. Check for more detail at caranddriver.com, and let us know in the comments what you'd like to see next year. We can't wait to do it all again.