gavsadler
///Member
Hi all,
This is something I’ve been wanting to do for many years now, just never got round to it, or there was always something on the go. This year, my wife decided to spoil me with a spot to attend this at the end of July. I thought I would share some feedback on the course itself, as well as the machinery used. I’ll keep it fairly high-level, so as not to spoil the experience for those who wish to participate in something like this in the future.
The day started off bright and early, I arrived at BMW X Drive Park in Midrand just after 7am. The main parking area was filled with the cars to be used on the day. For the skidpan exercises, we would be using the G20 320d, and then the afternoon sessions at Kyalami would be in the G8x M3s and M4s.
Some other participants were already there, and we did some mild mingling. Breakfast was served around 7:30am, and was a good buffet mix of warm, cold and savory.
Shortly after 8am, we all gathered on one side of the room to start with the theory. After some brief introductions, we started delving into certain aspects of correct driving technique, these included seating position, hands on the steering wheel, racing lines for various corners, safety and so forth. This would be the foundation of the ‘practical’ exercises throughout the rest of the day.
We then teamed up into groups of 3-4, and hopped in the 320d fleet parked ready to head down to the skidpan. Over here, the instructors communicated to us via radios, and we had to carry out various exercises on the skidpan. These included how to correctly hold and turn the steering wheel (not K53-style), experiencing ABS and emergency lane changes. After 3-4 runs each, we would rotate drivers and continue, until everyone had a chance at the particular exercise, before moving on to the next one.
In terms of the 320d itself, it’s a nice car. Probably all you ever need as a daily driver. Comfortable, goes about its business without a fuss, and there is sufficient power and torque. We only did low speeds in these cars, so can’t comment about flexibility at highway speeds, but I assume it would be ok. It is a big car though, so I would also imagine parking in tight spaces could be challenging. There is enough space inside, and my 1.91m frame was comfortable sitting in the back. Up front though, there is plenty of tech, the big screen is almost overwhelming to someone like me who drives cars with no screens / relatively small screens.
Around midday, we headed back up to the main centre where we were treated to a nice buffet lunch. I honestly couldn’t complain about the food, really enjoyed it, and shared a few stories with fellow participants.
At 1pm, we all convened in the parking lot, and the instructors had randomly assigned us into groups. 2-3 of us would pair up with an instructor in one of the M cars, and head to Kyalami. I was with the lead instructor of the day, and we were in a black G80 M3 Competition, 2024 model with only 2000kms on the odometer.
First impressions of the car: It’s big, a proper brute of the G-series lineup. Really aggressive design and I don’t think it can be called sexy or beautiful like the prior E-series models. It had the ‘normal’ sports seats (not the carbon buckets), and things were a bit more cramped in the back, my legs were straddling each side of the seat, but nonetheless, it’s a very nice place to be. There is a proper sense of occasion, walking up to the car, getting in, and getting going. It definitely feels more premium and purposeful than the humdrum 320d we were in previously.
We trundled off to Kyalami, and the car was perfectly happy pottering through the traffic at slow speeds, the 8-speed auto box is silky smooth as expected, and overall the car was quiet. The sounds effects playing through the speakers was noticeable, and I was curious to see how this would be later on when we were pushing it.
We arrived at Kyalami, and had a small briefing on the rest of the afternoon. There would be 4 sessions. The first session was with the instructor driving, to show racing lines, track markers, braking points and so on, and also to get a bit of a feel of the car and what it can do. Thereafter, the next 3 sessions were with each of us driving 3-4 laps, driving within our capabilities, and taking guidance from the instructor. With each session, the instructor would give less feedback, and in theory the driver competence on the track would improve.
During the course of the afternoon, we also had demonstrations of high-speed braking, and also got to experience launch control which became a mini drag race as well.
The whole purpose of the track sessions is to get you to drive smoothly. Smooth acceleration, steering and braking inputs contribute to good lap times. Being overly aggressive on driver inputs clearly shows up, with sloppy laps and racing lines. The guys with me in the car had never done a track day before, one guy drove a Polo, and the other’s claim to speed was that he drives Go Carts socially. This showed in their sessions, as they were very on-off with the throttle, steering inputs and braking. To quote the instructor: “I see you’re a meneer on the straights trying to reach 200km/h, but you haven’t gotten a single corner right in the past 2 laps”. This played out with 2 other vehicles, who had some hair-raising moments on the day which our car had front row seats to see. From my experience in the car as a driver and passenger, they are very forgiving and accommodating of erratic driver behaviour.
For me personally, holding the steering wheel at 9-3 position was my biggest struggle. I’m so used to holding at 10-2 position, so I constantly found my hands creeping upwards, and had to focus to keep them in the correct position. The G8x steering wheel is also quite big and thick (like the rest of the car), so that is also possibly why it felt weird (it is much larger than the E90 steering wheel). I was also wary of the significant power available, as well as being responsible for 3 other people in the car, so I made a decision not to be a complete lunatic and focus on driving smoothly. I definitely felt more comfortable in my last 2 sessions. The car is also supremely capable. Worth noting: we were driving in normal mode, no M-Dynamic etc. I was by no means pushing the car to the limits (which are VERY HIGH). There is sooo much mechanical grip from the X-Drive system, and the huge Michelin tyres. I can’t honestly recall any TC lights flashing / software interference when I was driving. Looking at some video footage, on one of my last sessions, I did a 2:20 lap time. As a comparison, when the instructors do hot laps, the car will do a 2:04 lap time. I got to 198km/h at the end of the main straight, the instructor got to 225km/h when he took us for a hot lap.
The day ended back at BMW X Drive Park, where we had a debrief and certificates were handed out.
Final thoughts: the course is expensive, but it gives you the opportunity to learn new skills, brush up on existing skills and experience the vehicles in a safe and controlled environment. I first did a course like this in 2004 (with a Mini Cooper S @Kyalami) and the last time I was on the track was in 2015 in a M135i. I really enjoyed the day, and it did recalibrate my senses as expected. I honestly wish everyone who drives a performance car of any sort would do a course like this.
The G8x M3 and M4 are stupendous. Really glad to have had the opportunity to experience these in full flight. During some quiet time, I got browsing online, and the harsh reality of new car prices and GFVs came to light. I’ll leave that to you to go and research, but my parting thought is that for the cost of buying a new M3 over 4 years, you could:
Thanks for reading…
This is something I’ve been wanting to do for many years now, just never got round to it, or there was always something on the go. This year, my wife decided to spoil me with a spot to attend this at the end of July. I thought I would share some feedback on the course itself, as well as the machinery used. I’ll keep it fairly high-level, so as not to spoil the experience for those who wish to participate in something like this in the future.
The day started off bright and early, I arrived at BMW X Drive Park in Midrand just after 7am. The main parking area was filled with the cars to be used on the day. For the skidpan exercises, we would be using the G20 320d, and then the afternoon sessions at Kyalami would be in the G8x M3s and M4s.
Some other participants were already there, and we did some mild mingling. Breakfast was served around 7:30am, and was a good buffet mix of warm, cold and savory.
Shortly after 8am, we all gathered on one side of the room to start with the theory. After some brief introductions, we started delving into certain aspects of correct driving technique, these included seating position, hands on the steering wheel, racing lines for various corners, safety and so forth. This would be the foundation of the ‘practical’ exercises throughout the rest of the day.
We then teamed up into groups of 3-4, and hopped in the 320d fleet parked ready to head down to the skidpan. Over here, the instructors communicated to us via radios, and we had to carry out various exercises on the skidpan. These included how to correctly hold and turn the steering wheel (not K53-style), experiencing ABS and emergency lane changes. After 3-4 runs each, we would rotate drivers and continue, until everyone had a chance at the particular exercise, before moving on to the next one.
In terms of the 320d itself, it’s a nice car. Probably all you ever need as a daily driver. Comfortable, goes about its business without a fuss, and there is sufficient power and torque. We only did low speeds in these cars, so can’t comment about flexibility at highway speeds, but I assume it would be ok. It is a big car though, so I would also imagine parking in tight spaces could be challenging. There is enough space inside, and my 1.91m frame was comfortable sitting in the back. Up front though, there is plenty of tech, the big screen is almost overwhelming to someone like me who drives cars with no screens / relatively small screens.
Around midday, we headed back up to the main centre where we were treated to a nice buffet lunch. I honestly couldn’t complain about the food, really enjoyed it, and shared a few stories with fellow participants.
At 1pm, we all convened in the parking lot, and the instructors had randomly assigned us into groups. 2-3 of us would pair up with an instructor in one of the M cars, and head to Kyalami. I was with the lead instructor of the day, and we were in a black G80 M3 Competition, 2024 model with only 2000kms on the odometer.
First impressions of the car: It’s big, a proper brute of the G-series lineup. Really aggressive design and I don’t think it can be called sexy or beautiful like the prior E-series models. It had the ‘normal’ sports seats (not the carbon buckets), and things were a bit more cramped in the back, my legs were straddling each side of the seat, but nonetheless, it’s a very nice place to be. There is a proper sense of occasion, walking up to the car, getting in, and getting going. It definitely feels more premium and purposeful than the humdrum 320d we were in previously.
We trundled off to Kyalami, and the car was perfectly happy pottering through the traffic at slow speeds, the 8-speed auto box is silky smooth as expected, and overall the car was quiet. The sounds effects playing through the speakers was noticeable, and I was curious to see how this would be later on when we were pushing it.
We arrived at Kyalami, and had a small briefing on the rest of the afternoon. There would be 4 sessions. The first session was with the instructor driving, to show racing lines, track markers, braking points and so on, and also to get a bit of a feel of the car and what it can do. Thereafter, the next 3 sessions were with each of us driving 3-4 laps, driving within our capabilities, and taking guidance from the instructor. With each session, the instructor would give less feedback, and in theory the driver competence on the track would improve.
During the course of the afternoon, we also had demonstrations of high-speed braking, and also got to experience launch control which became a mini drag race as well.
The whole purpose of the track sessions is to get you to drive smoothly. Smooth acceleration, steering and braking inputs contribute to good lap times. Being overly aggressive on driver inputs clearly shows up, with sloppy laps and racing lines. The guys with me in the car had never done a track day before, one guy drove a Polo, and the other’s claim to speed was that he drives Go Carts socially. This showed in their sessions, as they were very on-off with the throttle, steering inputs and braking. To quote the instructor: “I see you’re a meneer on the straights trying to reach 200km/h, but you haven’t gotten a single corner right in the past 2 laps”. This played out with 2 other vehicles, who had some hair-raising moments on the day which our car had front row seats to see. From my experience in the car as a driver and passenger, they are very forgiving and accommodating of erratic driver behaviour.
For me personally, holding the steering wheel at 9-3 position was my biggest struggle. I’m so used to holding at 10-2 position, so I constantly found my hands creeping upwards, and had to focus to keep them in the correct position. The G8x steering wheel is also quite big and thick (like the rest of the car), so that is also possibly why it felt weird (it is much larger than the E90 steering wheel). I was also wary of the significant power available, as well as being responsible for 3 other people in the car, so I made a decision not to be a complete lunatic and focus on driving smoothly. I definitely felt more comfortable in my last 2 sessions. The car is also supremely capable. Worth noting: we were driving in normal mode, no M-Dynamic etc. I was by no means pushing the car to the limits (which are VERY HIGH). There is sooo much mechanical grip from the X-Drive system, and the huge Michelin tyres. I can’t honestly recall any TC lights flashing / software interference when I was driving. Looking at some video footage, on one of my last sessions, I did a 2:20 lap time. As a comparison, when the instructors do hot laps, the car will do a 2:04 lap time. I got to 198km/h at the end of the main straight, the instructor got to 225km/h when he took us for a hot lap.
The day ended back at BMW X Drive Park, where we had a debrief and certificates were handed out.
Final thoughts: the course is expensive, but it gives you the opportunity to learn new skills, brush up on existing skills and experience the vehicles in a safe and controlled environment. I first did a course like this in 2004 (with a Mini Cooper S @Kyalami) and the last time I was on the track was in 2015 in a M135i. I really enjoyed the day, and it did recalibrate my senses as expected. I honestly wish everyone who drives a performance car of any sort would do a course like this.
The G8x M3 and M4 are stupendous. Really glad to have had the opportunity to experience these in full flight. During some quiet time, I got browsing online, and the harsh reality of new car prices and GFVs came to light. I’ll leave that to you to go and research, but my parting thought is that for the cost of buying a new M3 over 4 years, you could:
- Go on a massive overseas holiday with the whole family using the deposit money,
- Attend this exact course 3x per month, every month for 4 years
- Not worry about a R1mil residual at the end of 4 years.
Thanks for reading…
