So today was actually not typical at all. My buddy Bill (who quite a few of the OGs here know) and I went to Buffalo to participate in the Supercar Autocross Challenge, run by MotorsportLabs in the lot at Rich Stadium. The cars were an 03 Ferrari 360 Modena, 07 Ferrari F430, and a pair of 07 Lamborghini Gallardos. All cars were full-spec, no detuned engines, and each ran the F1-style paddleshifted transmissions. We ran 7 laps after driver orientation, four in the Gallardo and 3 in the Modena. The F430 was available to Ferrari drivers who wanted to buy up from the Modena.

When we arrived, the cars were warmed and prepped and ready to go. Beautiful sight to see upon arrival.





The legalese in the driver agreements was intimidating to say the least, but as one instructor put it, "We want you to have fun and a lot of that is to weed out the psychopaths." Fair enough, game on.

Glamour shots with a beautiful pearlescent yellow Gallardo:





We had the choice of which car to start with and opted for a gray Gallardo running a wicked set of aftermarket headers. It sounded absolutely brutal, with all kinds of explosive pops on the shifts and a ripping snarl below 4500RPM that turned into an animalistic howl near 8000. Part of the decision was that both of us have always been more into Lamborghini if asked to choose, but part of it was a practical choice - even at 120hp more than the Modena, it was the "safer" of the two cars to run on an unknown track layout, given that it is an AWD car, and especially since our instructor, Drew, was a pro rally driver and a mental basket case who would push us constantly to run it harder and harder and carry ever-increasing speed through the course.

Saddle time arrived. The first car we ran:



Me, about to put the spurs to the bull:



Bill, all ready to rip **** up:



To put it mildly, the Gallardo is a monster. I've owned, driven, built, been in, and been around a lot of fast cars over the last nearly-20 years, but this thing requires a recalibration of your brain. Yes, 520hp is a lot of power but in this day of Koenigseggs, Venom GTs, Veyrons, and the like, not to mention how many tuner cars make or surpass that number, it's nowhere near earth-shattering.

Then you pull the trigger and see what 520hp can truly do in a chassis that has been proven (by UR, Heffner, and others) to be capable of four times as much. You can make a slow car fast, but the way it pours on the power in a car that has been wholly designed from the outset to perform at this level, where every facet of the car's design philosophy marries strength and velocity in a complementary way, is jaw-dropping. I have never driven anything that can carry so much speed through a corner, and then tear up to triple-digits faster than most cars can hit 50mph from a stop. The grip is simply unreal. We were able to go through the S-turns flat out, through a 100-degree left turn with a quick stab of the brakes to settle the car and a smash of the gas to fire it to the next turn like a rifle bullet, through a double-apex curve entered wide at 60-65, onto a 50 yard straightaway that had us brushing 100mph before scrubbing down to 20 for re-entry in the "pit" in another 50 yards. It's a carnival ride. We were able to get the car to wag its tail a bit with full power and a flick of the wheel, but to really get it loose would require ***** the size of melons and some master-caliber stupidity. The shocker was the grip. Yes it's really, REALLY motherf*cking fast in a straight line, but you don't even have to lift when the course bends. It's a ballistic missile with a sound only Italy can create. It takes a firm shove of the pedal to tap into the thrust, which helps make it very controllable, and it barely even rolls when you throw (and I mean THROW) it into a bend. It's like the chassis is welded to the pavement. With the grip available and the ease of controlling and catching it, your blue-haired grandmother could run a respectable lap time. Simply a stunning car, and to think it's only the "baby" Lambo...I couldn't imagine the speed the recent V12 cars can create.





Next up was the Ferrari Modena. Again, a little intimidating because the Lamborghini had proven that this course could be run really fast, and although it has "only" 400hp, anyone would know a Modena is not slow by anyone's standard, it's rear drive with more lively, ultra-quick reflexes, a curb weight 600lbs less than the gray missile we just stepped out of, and it's rear drive. All well and good and a great recipe for hooning, except that if we mess up and damage it, we're on the hook for the repairs. Sobering, to say the least.

Bill after running some tire-howling passes in the Modena:



Me after 3 fast Ferrari laps:



It's a much more high-strung car - that deeper baritone Lambo roar is supplanted by a frantic banshee scream unique to a flat-plane crank high-rev engine. Comparatively, the Modena was lighter on its feet, had a lot more dive and roll, had a hair-trigger throttle, and steering feel that was incredible. Despite the rear-drive and the body motion, it held on like crazy too, although as I hinted earlier, neither of us pushed it as hard as the Gallardo. Still a wild fun ride, and it would be capable of some wicked oversteer, but we weren't gonna try that since we would probably have to sell our houses to fix it if things went wrong. An example - a guy yesterday was ignoring the instructors' directions and driving like a dick. He didn't get the car slowed down in time and hit a pole around 10mph. The instructor told us today "he's gonna hate his life later this week when he gets a repair bill that could pay for a Jeep." There are damage waivers you can, and should, buy but when you're intentionally being an ******* and then damage the car, those waivers are out the window and you pay.

Overall both cars are amazing. The Lambo felt more solid and carved from granite, whereas the Ferrari was noticeably a flyweight by comparison - it felt lighter in all respects, although that V8 is no joke, and for a small displacement, top-end engine, it hits harder and earlier than I was expecting (demonstrating how responsive it is and how fast it builds RPM). The Modena is a fiery rock star, and the Lamborghini is a ruthless speed machine. At the end of the day though, both of us remain Lamborghini guys and our money would go to the Gallardo. We both preferred Lambo already, and this event reinforces that, not because the Ferrari was in any way bad (it definitely wasn't), but just because the Lamborghini was that awe-inspiring. It's purely personal taste - anyone lucky enough to afford any of these cars would be thrilled in whichever one they took home.

If you get the chance, definitely take the opportunity to do one of these events. The personnel were all big-time car guys, very cool to be around, and the cars are pure rolling, screaming sex. The old axiom says you should never meet your heroes as they'll most likely let you down in the flesh. But in this case, the experience was beyond whatever expectations I could have had. Cars like these perform at the level of race cars from not too long ago, and do it repeatably, in air-conditioned comfort. It was incredible. This is gonna stay with both of us for a very long time.

Side note - coming back to reality afterward sucks. I love my 540i MSport, and it's a quick, capable car that can hold its own in most situations. On the drive home, I didn't give a damn about it lol. I'm ruined now and happily so.

 

Umm, Sir... what does this have to do with B5's? I would have to ask you to keep your ramblings to the OT section, not here...

...you lucky bastard!

 

Lol Brad, I meant to post it in OT and just now realized it went here instead

It was awesome - I would love to do it again.

 

Yeah, the "you break it, you bought it" policy would make me really nervous, though

 

So jealous....and well written my friend. Pictures are phenomenal....

Someday I'll drive a supercar.

.........bastard

 

Brad, it turned out to be a lot less tense in that regard than we expected. We did the walkaround on the Gallardo, noted the scuffs, etc, but that was it. Even after two people spun the Modena through the cones, they didn't reinspect the car for new damage. They just pulled a couple cones out and kept going. We bought waivers, so had we taken out the cones and scuffed the body, we would've been covered. It was only the jackass on Saturday that voided his own waivers by ignoring the instructors who will have to cough up a huge chunk of cash.

Chris, thank you - if you get the chance to do one of these, take it. Spend the money. It'll be worth it!

 

 

Chris, if you'll wear that getup to one of these events, I'll pay for your laps.

 

Epic.

 

Adam, it was. Unfortunately they were smart enough to not let us use the Gallardo's launch control...