A CAR IS BORN
Next year's all-new i30 ushers in a new era of European design and development for Hyundai. Little wonder, given that motorists across Europe have long been fans of the Korean manufacturer's rival to the Ford Focus
Three years ago, Hyundai invested almost €7m in a dedicated, state-ofthe-art European test centre at the Nürburgring. Ten years earlier, in 2003, the Korean manufacturer established a design and development facility – Hyundai Motor Europe Technical Centre – in Rüsselsheim, Germany, just 30 minutes outside Frankfurt, one of the world's leading fnancial and transport hubs.
As compelling as sheer convenience and a base within the most stable economy in Europe may be, neither are the reason why Hyundai chose Germany once again for this new test centre. Te reason – quite simply – was to be just across the road from the Nürburgring Nordschleife, the infamous 'Green Hell', as Jackie Stewart once famously labelled it.
It is a place of legendary, almost mythical status among petrolheads but, for Hyundai, it represents the industry standard test track on which cars such as the new i30 can be honed to European tastes. Once the most feared race track on the Grand Prix calendar, it's the circuit at which three-time F1 World Champion, Niki Lauda, almost lost his life. Although the Austrian's horrifying accident was forty years ago, the German Grand Prix has never been held at the Nordschleife since. "Anybody who says he loves the Nürburgring... hasn't driven there fast enough," the famously brave Lauda once said...
And yet the track is still very much in use. It still plays host to international races, most notably the Nürburgring 24 Hours, an indescribable GT endurance race-cum-non-stop party for 150,000 fans who camp out in the forest surrounding the circuit. Aside from racing, it is also the home of the ultimate track day. For as little as €29 a lap you can drive your own car – whatever it might be – as fast as you like, around that same, frighteningly narrow 20.8km ribbon of tarmac. And plenty do.
But the Nordschleife has also become the preferred test and development facility for many of the world's leading luxury and high performance motor manufacturers. From the day it opened in 1927, the Nürburgring was intended to be a showcase for automotive engineering and it still is today. McLaren, Koenigsegg and MercedesBenz are among the myriad of makers who routinely refne their latest models around the Nordschleife; Jaguar, Aston Martin and BMW all have permanent bases just metres from the track.
And so – since 2013 – does Hyundai. Unlike these other manufacturers, Hyundai is not an exclusive, low volume producer of performance vehicles, so what makes a company more famous for producing family hatchbacks and SUVs, choose the 'ring to be a dedicated test and development base in Europe?
"Because the majority of what we do here is focussed on durability," explains Stephan Hoferer, Group Manager for Durability, Fatigue and Corrosion with Hyundai Motor Europe Technical Centre. "Accelerated durability testing, to be more accurate. In simple terms, you learn more, quicker on a race track than you do on the road. Permissible speeds are faster, cornering forces are higher, braking demands are greater, and so on...".
And around the Nürburgring, all of that is true, and then some. Each lap of the Nordschleife is over 20km long and there is more than 300m of elevation variation over those 20km.
ON AVERAGE, THEY WILL COMPLETE AROUND 110 LAPS A WEEK; TYPICALLY, A SINGLE TEST RUNS TO A TOTAL OF 480
Tere are some 73 turns, on camber and of. Blind crests. And, towards the end of the lap, a straight of just over two kilometres in length. In short, the Nordschleife has everything.
"So, you really do learn fast," continues Hoferer. As a permanent member of the Nürburgring industry pool – an oligopoly of around 30 major motor and tyre manufacturers – Hyundai spends week-after-week every year, running intensive test programmes. On average, they complete around 110 laps a week; typically, a single test runs to a total of 480. "Tat amounts to almost 10,000 kilometres," confrms Stephan, "but in 'the real world' – in the hands of a customer – all those hard laps would equate to at least 150,000km."
Vincent Radermecker is one of a handful of professional drivers tasked with undertaking this work for Hyundai. A former Formula Ford champion and experienced touring car racer, Radermecker understands clearly what Hyundai requires from these tests. "I may be wearing a race suit and helmet but this is not racing. Tis is about consistency. First and foremost, we simply cannot aford to crash, literally or fguratively. We are pushing road-going prototypes to the limit and there is often only two or three examples of these cars in the world. Tey are very expensive." And with as many as 30 diferent parameters to measure during any single test, there is no room for the driver to be a 31st variable. "It is essential that every lap we do is within 90-95% of the same time," adds Radermecker, "otherwise the results could be skewed. And every lap around the Nordschleife demands total concentration. It is an exhausting process, and this, together with the sheer length of each lap, is why we can only really drive 100 to 120 laps in a four day week."
Only... Tat's around 30 laps a day, with each one lasting a minimum of around 10 minutes. Tis adds up to fve hours running time per day, lapping at around 95% maximum speed – every lap – around the world's most infamous circuit.
Just like Hyundai's decision to build a Technical Centre at the Nürburgring, that is a level of commitment that can't be ignored.