The Top Gear test track located at Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey, United Kingdom was used by the BBC automotive television programme Top Gear. The track was designed by Lotus Cars as a testing facility, with many of its Formula One cars tested there. It was used to test both cars and drivers seen on the programme, mainly in Power Laps and Star in a Reasonably Priced Car.
For the 23rd series of Top Gear the track was expanded with a rallycross section for the "Star in a Rallycross Car" segment, but it was abandoned at the end of series 23.
In December 2016 planning permission was granted for 1,800 homes to be built on the current site of the aerodrome. As part of the redevelopment, it was proposed that the track (and associated aerodrome infrastructure such as the runway drag strip) was to be demolished.
Layout The track was on a former Royal Canadian Air Force airbase constructed during the Second World War and later used by British Aerospace (and its predecessors) as a manufacturing and test facility. The track's main route, marked by painted lines and simple structures such as stacks of tyres, was designed by test drivers from Lotus. The layout of the track was designed to put the car through various conditions, ranging from provoking understeer to testing brake balance and tyres. The track is approximately long. It was considered to be an equaliser for cars since, according to Richard Hammond, both 0–60 miles per hour (0–96.6 km/h) times and top speed are totally meaningless. The track also incorporated a drag strip; although this was not used for timed segments, it did feature in some challenges and other features on the show.
The course started on the perimeter road outside the Top Gear studio. The first bend was a fast right-left kink named "Crooner Curves." "Willson Bend" was the first proper turn on the track and the first corner usually seen when The Stig is lapping a car.The Big Book of Top Gear 2009. "Chicago", a long right-hand around a tyre wall onto the main runway, was designed by Lotus as a steady state corner, designed to highlight understeer or oversteer of the chassis. Next was "Hammerhead", a left-then-right corner, which again highlighted understeer and oversteer. The track came to a right-hand curve, then the course turned right through the flat-out section called the "Follow Through" (it resembles turns 11 and 12 of the Albert Park Circuit). After the left hand "Bentley Bend" named after the person who first "discovered" Jeremy Clarkson and former Top Gear presenter, Jon Bentley, but commonly referred to simply as "the tyres", the course came to "Bacharach Bend", which, after the first series, was referred to as the "Penultimate Corner" or the "Second-to-last Corner" and is often regarded as one of the most challenging on the course. The final turn before the finish line was "Gambon" in honour of Sir Michael Gambon, who completed the turn on two wheels in episode 8 of Series 1. Prior to this, the corner was known as "Carpenters Corner".
Usage The track was used routinely for the Star in a Reasonably Priced Car and Power Laps segments on Top Gear. It also served myriad roles in other portions of the programme, especially in testing cars and in challenges. When testing cars, they were often driven around the airfield by the presenters. Afterwards, they were taken around the test track by The Stig to set a lap time. Occasionally, drag races and speed tests were held on the runway.
Cars acquired during challenges often posted lap times (driven by either one of the presenters or The Stig) around the track against either a target time or a time set by The Stig in another vehicle. During many challenges, the track was used in more unorthodox fashions — for instance, serving as a makeshift motorway lane during a challenge testing tailgating prowess with vans.
Power Laps Power Laps was a segment of the programme in which The Stig completed a lap around the track in a reviewed car to compare its performance to previous contenders.
To be eligible to appear on the Power Lap Times board, a vehicle must have been a road-legal production car and must have had sufficient ride height to clear a standard speed bump, although occasionally vehicles that do not appear to qualify for the list are still timed. Whenever a non-qualifying vehicle was raced, the time was compared to the official Power Laps but then removed from the board, for example—the Ferrari FXX owned by Michael Schumacher (1:10.7) was taken off the board after because it both failed to meet road legal standards and used slick tyres.
All laps were timed with the car's manufacturer-provided adjustable settings configured for maximum performance—all adjustable suspensions being set at their most efficient, all gear shift maps at their most aggressive, and driving aids such as traction control deactivated. Lap times did not offer complete comparisons between the cars, mainly because wet or otherwise poor weather conditions can negatively affect lap times.
The Power Board
Due to the size of the list, only the top 20 are shown. See List of Top Gear test track Power Lap Times for the full list.
The second most powerful production car ever featured on Top Gear, the 1001 PS (987 bhp; 736 kW) Bugatti Veyron, was taken around the track by The Stig in Series 12, Episode 4, after 3 years of waiting. However, it disappointed the team by only managing fifth place on the Power Board, an unexpectedly low position ultimately attributed to the car's kerb weight of , more than any of the four faster cars. In Series 15 Episode 5 however, the Stig took the 1,200 PS Super Sport version around the track in 1:16.8, thus setting a new lap record.
For the 1:17.6 lap, the Koenigsegg CCX was fitted with an optional rear spoiler to provide downforce after The Stig spun the unmodified version off the track. The Stig allegedly recommended this modification, correctly predicting that the car would then be the fastest ever round the track, although Koenigsegg stated that the improvement was due to other adjustments.
Lap times of non-qualifying vehicles A "non-qualifying" vehicle was one that did not meet the requirements to remain on the board; that is, one that was not a "road car", which according to Top Gear meant being: available to buy, fully road-legal (lights, indicators, registration, profile tyres, etc.), and street-worthy (i.e. able to negotiate a speed bump).
0:31.2 – BAE Sea Harrier (Piloted by Lieutenant Nick Arkle RN.The Man In The White Suit, Harper-Collins. Raced against the Saab 9–5 Aero. Took off then flew around track, ended in the air.) 0:55.9 – McMurtry Spéirling 0:59.0 – Renault R24 Formula One car (Wet) 1:03.8 – Lotus T125 1:05.3 – Ford SuperVan 4.2 1:07.2 – McLaren 720S GT3X 1:08.5 – Pagani Zonda R 1:08.6 – Aston Martin DBR9 1:10.6 – Caparo T1 1:10.7 – Ferrari FXX (Driven by Michael Schumacher on slick tyres) 1:14:0 – Lamborghini Sesto Elemento 1:15.2 – Aston Martin Vulcan (Damp) (Jokingly added by Chris Evans to a "Naughty Laps" board) – CAP 232 Aerobatic Plane (Piloted by British Aerobatic Champion, Tom Cassells. Raced against the Radical SR3 and was shown crossing the finish line in front, however the time was not shown.) 1:19.1 – Radical SR3 1:22.6 – Westfield XTR2 1:46.0 – James Bond's Aston Martin DB5
The Caparo, Radical, and Westfield are road-legal in the UK but are unable to clear a speed bump. According to Caparo, the car driven by Top Gear was a prototype that did not feature the adjustable ride height found on the production model. Because The Stig set his time in the non-adjustable prototype and the production version has not been driven around the track, the Caparo's time remains ineligible for the Power Lap board.
Non-Top Gear laps Occasionally attempts at the Power Lap record are made without the support of the BBC. The following laps of Dunsfold were recorded, filmed and promoted independently of the Top Gear television programme.
1:05.3 – Nissan ZEOD RC (Driven by Wolfgang Reip in hybrid mode) 1:09.9 – Ultima GTR720 (Officially an anonymous driver, on slick tyres. Ultima came back on 19 October 2009 and beat both their previous time and that of the £1.1-million Ferrari FXX track car) 1:12.6 – McLaren 720S – Series 25 1:12.8 – Ultima GTR720 (Anonymous driver, on road tyres, sponsored by Ultima Sports.) 1:13.6 – Nissan ZEOD RC (driven by Wolfgang Reip in electric vehicle mode) 1:14.2 – LaFerrari (driven by Jason Plato on 12 June 2015 as "The Stink" in the TFI Friday revival special on a slightly damp track) 1:15.8 – Ariel Atom 4R (Driven by Ex-Stig Ben Collins on DriveTribe) 1:17.4 – Caterham 7 CSR 260 (driven by Rob Jenkinson, sponsored by Dunlop Tyres – Injection)
Ultima say that their motive for running a non-televised lap was that they felt that the GTR was being specifically ignored by the producers of Top Gear.
Star in a Reasonably Priced Car
Star in a Reasonably Priced Car (series 1–22) "Star in a Reasonably Priced Car" was a recurring segment on Top Gear. During most programmes, a celebrity (usually, but not exclusively of British fame) is interviewed by Jeremy Clarkson. Discussion is normally amusing, and focuses on car-related matters, such as the celebrity's car history. Then Clarkson and the studio audience watch the guest's fastest lap on the Top Gear test track, after which Clarkson puts the celebrity's time on the time board.
Suzuki Liana (2002–2006)
For the first seven series the car driven for lap times was a Suzuki Liana. When first introduced, the car was worth £9995. The car used is stock except for a roll cage and racing seats added as safety measures. Each guest practises with The Stig before making several attempts to complete the test track in the fastest time. The guest does not learn their time until the interview. Practice laps, crashes and the drivers' facial expressions are also shown during the segment.
The two slowest laps on the Liana celebrity list are held by Terry Wogan and Richard Whiteley, both of whom were beaten by Billy Baxter, a blind Bosnian war veteran. He guided the Liana through the track under direction from Clarkson in the passenger seat in a time of 2 minutes 2 seconds, which was 1.4 seconds quicker than Terry Wogan, and 4 seconds faster than Richard Whiteley.
The fastest non-professional driver was Ellen MacArthur. Unlike most contenders she made no comments to the camera during her lap. She completed the lap in 1 minute 46.7 seconds, beating Jimmy Carr by 0.2 seconds. The current fastest professional driver in the Liana is Daniel Ricciardo with 1:42.2.
The Liana endured considerable abuse from the stars while undertaking their laps. In one incident, actor Michael Gambon clipped the final corner, taking the car onto two wheels. It was done in such a spectacular fashion that the corner was named "Gambon Corner". When Lionel Richie drove the Liana, one of the front wheels fell off, invoking Clarkson to coin the term "pulling a Lionel". Trevor Eve also lost a wheel. The former British transport minister Stephen Ladyman added further injury to the Liana by denting the boot when he lost control during practice and slid backwards into a tyre wall. David Soul destroyed the gearbox of two Lianas during his time on the show due to his rough driving style. Patrick Kielty broke the Liana's front suspension during series 4 when he drove on the grass. Christopher Eccleston was the only celebrity to use a Liana with an automatic transmission, because a hesitant Eccleston admitted he was "only qualified to drive an automatic." To accommodate his needs, Top Gear succeeded in borrowing an automatic Liana, of which only 40 existed in the UK. As a reference to his role in Doctor Who, the automatic Liana was shown materialising onto the racing track, with a TARDIS materialisation sound effect played over it.