Mercedes World Experience

[Superted]

Hi Guys

Sorry if there is another thread about this but i cannot find it.

Has anyone been to the Mercedes World and done an AMG experience?

I have just booked it for 1 hour and just wondered if somebody could give me a bit of a run down what it is like?!

Thanks in advance

Ted

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

Great fun, you'll love it.

You get to pick what you want to drive, based upon availability. Let them know in advance if you have an interest in a particular model.

You then get to thrash it round the track and other facilities.

 

[scumbag]

don't click here



That said, they take you for a gentle drive to get going, then show you the car acceleration and braking capability and its grip levels. (This is fun when its icy)

Then you get to see what the cars safety systems do, and what happens when they are not on.

Then A blat round the track which is pretty good. To be honest, 1 hour was okay. My legs were just starting to get tired at the end of the track bit.

I would do it again however.

I noticed the 2 others driving when I was on track were not used to the power of the cars so they tended to get in my way a bit. I guess they were also a bit windy of the fact that outside the track surfaces was ice.

I might do it again. I guess I might plan a car service at MB World to coincide with it. It keeps you in check with what a car can do, and what it can't.

Have a good sit down and look round MB World for an hour or too afterwards. Last thing you wanna do is go straight out in a car on the roads.

 

[Gucci]

I had a fantastic time, although i was only driven round a few laps at the "Powered by Mercedes" motorsport day. I very nearly honked afterwards

 

[Superted]

don't click here



That said, they take you for a gentle drive to get going, then show you the car acceleration and braking capability and its grip levels. (This is fun when its icy)

Then you get to see what the cars safety systems do, and what happens when they are not on.

Then A blat round the track which is pretty good. To be honest, 1 hour was okay. My legs were just starting to get tired at the end of the track bit.

I would do it again however.

I noticed the 2 others driving when I was on track were not used to the power of the cars so they tended to get in my way a bit. I guess they were also a bit windy of the fact that outside the track surfaces was ice.

I might do it again. I guess I might plan a car service at MB World to coincide with it. It keeps you in check with what a car can do, and what it can't.

Have a good sit down and look round MB World for an hour or too afterwards. Last thing you wanna do is go straight out in a car on the roads.

Thanks so much....fantastic insight - really excited now

Pleased you think 1 hour was just about right

I just cannot wait to drive it for a good amount of time

How long did you get on the track?

Total drive time YOU had?

Thanks again

Ted

 

[Superted]

Great fun, you'll love it.

You get to pick what you want to drive, based upon availability. Let them know in advance if you have an interest in a particular model.

You then get to thrash it round the track and other facilities.

Hi Bobby

I requested the C63 Saloon. The lady says she has made a note that is what i want to drive so hopefully i should be able to get that. As long as nothing happens between now and then

 

[scumbag]

it's almost certain you will get the c63 saloon or the estate for the 1hr go.


In the whole hour, you get about 15mins in total on the track. you find they break the segments up into 10min goes for the various areas, which actually is about right for an experince. It is not a driving instruction session. its an experience.

The wet circle was out of use due to excessive ice on the day I was there, or at least it was at 10am when the first ones were allowed out. The ice made the straight wet dry section very realistic.

On the ice, you got up to 30mph then stood hard on the brake pedal. The seat belts tightened up, the brake lights flashed, the brake pedal pulsed, but to be honest, you slowed down due to not putting any power to the wheels.

it is quite good to see how rubbish cars brake when on ice.

It is also good to see how effective the ESP devices are. To make them work properly, you need to push the throttle into the carpet hard. you will be surprised how the car sorts it out for you. Not sure you would do that on the road but given enough times doing it you probably would.

I got 2 goes on the track, mainly due to the wet circle being out of use, and the fact my first go on the track had the slow coaches blocking the way. The 2nd time was what I put on the link. about 8mins in total. I just cut the rubbishy bit from it.

If you were used to driving in a performance manner, had lots of track experience and used to driving high performance cars, maybe 1 hour is not enough.

If you are not used to a high performance car, you won't really get the max out of the C63 in the hour. If you can get it up on it's toes round the circuit you can find it's limits and then probably you need to take it to a longer circuit to find your own limits with it.

The only thing I didn't like was the fact that the brakes did not work as effectively as I would have liked. This is due to it being 1.8tonnes of car. The old SLK had the same brakes, and hauled up a damn sight quicker.

That is an observation not a criticism.

get it filmed and let us know how you got on.

I am sure you will enjoy it. Do try to take something away from it. No point paying money out then moaning it wasn't what you expected.

The othet thing I needed some more time to get used to was the drive by wire throttle. I was a bit too heavy with it and needed to be a bit more controlling, specially with sorting out the drifiting. I seemed to be full on, or letting it die. Another 20mins I would have got a full drift down the straight they have.

On a different note, as I arrived at 08:32 am that day, I got to go on the security and track inspection in the ML 320. Got a good 45mins being taken round everything they have. At about 10mph!


Oh, you get in the driving seat at the start, and besides messing about with seat position and the points when you have to stop while they explain whats next, you are in it for the whole hour.

 

[st13phil]

Has anyone been to the Mercedes World and done an AMG experience?

I did a 1-hour AMG Experience yesterday

Not much to add to scumbag's excellent description of it other than to say that it's worth spending the £25 extra to get a video of your session

Here I am getting the C63 sideways on the wet circle:

I did the first session - at 10:00am - and doing it that early means you don't have to wait for too many others to clear the track or otherwise get out of your way. By the end of the session it was nowhere near as easy to get on the wet circle (for example) without queuing, and I suspect it gets worse as the facility "hits capacity" as it were.

The guy that I did the session with - Piers - was excellent, and once he was happy that I could handle the car he actually did do a bit of tuition but as scumbag says, it's really a taster session rather than anything else.

Oh, one more thing. Having spent an hour in a C63 AMG, all I can say to those who own one (or are about to own one) is, "You lucky b*stards"

 

[scumbag]

that's the very car I drove too.

 

[Howard]

See how none of the 63 track cars have numberplates on them ?

Anyone reckon they go into the 'Mercedes Approved' sales scheme ?

' Yes sir , only 2500 miles from new ' ( all of them sideways and flat out bouncing off the limiter )

If they had plates on , you would spot them for sale and avoid them !

 

[renault12ts]

They wouldn't do that. Would they?

 

[Aoraki]

They might not register them until ready to be sold on....

 

[Howard]

Looks like there is a tax disc on Phils one .

 

[Superted]

Honestly guys....especially Phil and Scumbag your descriptions are quite fantastic!!

I really appreciate everything you have said as it gives me a heads up on what to expect. Just makes me even more excited!!

Sounds fantastic

Phil i did request the video and photos as i think its a really special experience and something to have as a memory.

Your photo is fantastic!!

I am going on the 10am session (how many people were on yours?) - think that was a good decision by what you said.

cheers

Ted

 

[scumbag]

I am going on the 10am session (how many people were on yours?) - think that was a good decision by what you said.

3 when i was on. 2 more came on about 50mins in. They could have been early arrivals or late.


Howard, that car had 7,000miles on it when I got in it. And it had a few holes in the dash and glove box for the camera and associated kit so I think they won't be sold on. I guess they will see their lives out there. No number plate would suggest they are not registered anyway. Or kept hidden to hide the age of the car.

it had done around 7mpg for its entire life too.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

Personally, I do think they find they're way on to forecourts.

 

[Howard]

No number plate would suggest they are not registered anyway.

The one in Phils photo has a tax disc in the lower nearside of the windscreen

 

[Superted]

3 when i was on. 2 more came on about 50mins in. They could have been early arrivals or late.


Howard, that car had 7,000miles on it when I got in it. And it had a few holes in the dash and glove box for the camera and associated kit so I think they won't be sold on. I guess they will see their lives out there. No number plate would suggest they are not registered anyway. Or kept hidden to hide the age of the car.

it had done around 7mpg for its entire life too.

Nice so not too many....

Yeah when i get mine i do hope to get slightly more that 7mpg....maybe 9

 

[fuzzer]

They wouldn't do that. Would they?

Of course they sell them , where do you think the ex management cars come from? lol Any holes in the dash would be fixed and you would never know, the impression you would get is the car has been " driven by a mercedes employee for a few months before hand"

Having been to numerous mercedes and lexus driving days and battered/ watched card being battered round tracks , esp demos , through rivers etc hahaha.. no thanks

Id rather stump up the extra few grand and get a factory fresh as they are never that cheap.

 

[st13phil]

I am going on the 10am session (how many people were on yours?) - think that was a good decision by what you said.

I was number 3 away from the car park and because they all follow the same sequence (emergency stop on dry tarmac, then on the wet strip and so forth) it meant that I only had two others in front of me. By the end of the session I reckon there were probably a dozen or so cars spread around the different activities which meant that queues were starting to form. You've made the right decision going for the early booking, just make sure you're there by about 09:30 so that you're one of the first to get a car assigned when the booth opens at around 09:40.

The one in Phils photo has a tax disc in the lower nearside of the windscreen

There certainly is, and it expires at the end of April:

I have no doubt that these cars will be retailed, but what the description of previous ownership will be I couldn't say. I do know that 10 years ago when I last did a Jonathan Palmer Motorsport Experience day at Bruntingthorpe, the Golf VR6's that had the rear seats removed, that were fitted with a full roll cage and had been driven with the engine on the rev-limiter for their entire life like they'd just been stolen, were definitely retailed through the VW Dealer network as low mileage, one-owner cars