Hassle Free Nurburgring - is it possible?
Discussion
So I am looking into dooing the Nurburgring
Ideally I want to avoid having "the fear" that it will cost fortunes if and when I crash so I wondered if you can avoid this concern in any way with any sort of reasonable insurance or if you do it through a car hire company with tuition too?
Any advice, pointers, good websites to visit would be much appreciated.
Ideally I want to avoid having "the fear" that it will cost fortunes if and when I crash so I wondered if you can avoid this concern in any way with any sort of reasonable insurance or if you do it through a car hire company with tuition too?
Any advice, pointers, good websites to visit would be much appreciated.
A couple of things:
It is a little bit intimidating at first and lots of people will hoon past you in considerably slower machinery. - That's perfectly fine. Just like the comment above, take your time and build your pace up slowly. In my opinion, having gone for a few years now, overwhelmingly, the people that go there and bin it are the ones trying to show off or be billy big bo**ocks. If you go there and are careful, observant and considerate the chances of you crashing are much less likely.
It's definitely worth getting some tuition when you are there.Good tuition is worth its weight in gold around the Ring. Renting a car from the various Ring rental companies is not a bad idea but nothing beats taking your own car around.
What car are you planning on taking by the way? Z4M? This is actually a great car to do the Ring in but you will need to upgrade your brake pads and fluid if you haven't done so already.
It also helped me to watch lots of tutorial videos on Youtube before I went as it does prepare you a bit and prevents you from being caught out. Beware though, once you get confident on the Ring you will be hooked!
It is a little bit intimidating at first and lots of people will hoon past you in considerably slower machinery. - That's perfectly fine. Just like the comment above, take your time and build your pace up slowly. In my opinion, having gone for a few years now, overwhelmingly, the people that go there and bin it are the ones trying to show off or be billy big bo**ocks. If you go there and are careful, observant and considerate the chances of you crashing are much less likely.
It's definitely worth getting some tuition when you are there.Good tuition is worth its weight in gold around the Ring. Renting a car from the various Ring rental companies is not a bad idea but nothing beats taking your own car around.
What car are you planning on taking by the way? Z4M? This is actually a great car to do the Ring in but you will need to upgrade your brake pads and fluid if you haven't done so already.
It also helped me to watch lots of tutorial videos on Youtube before I went as it does prepare you a bit and prevents you from being caught out. Beware though, once you get confident on the Ring you will be hooked!
If you've never been, then a morning in a Stage 2 Swift will be useful...and you can take extra insurance to cover most of the excess...and the biggy is that you're covered if you hit someone/something else.
Your UK road insurance is likely to exclude 1st party claims at the Ring specifically, and also likely to have a clause about attempting to recover 3rd party costs from you if they so wish.
I've done a good few laps now, but every lap is different due to the weather, crap on the track, or just different cars & drivers on there each lap.
I use MORIS for 2-4 day insurance which is arranged to cover me for a full Sat/Sun and either/both Friday/Monday evening. Last premium for my Z4MC was £239 for £15k of 1st person cover for 3 days (with a £1500 excess).
Your UK road insurance is likely to exclude 1st party claims at the Ring specifically, and also likely to have a clause about attempting to recover 3rd party costs from you if they so wish.
I've done a good few laps now, but every lap is different due to the weather, crap on the track, or just different cars & drivers on there each lap.
I use MORIS for 2-4 day insurance which is arranged to cover me for a full Sat/Sun and either/both Friday/Monday evening. Last premium for my Z4MC was £239 for £15k of 1st person cover for 3 days (with a £1500 excess).
Keep right, keep right, keep right. Everyone will be much faster than you at first. Avoid a rear end smash from a local by keeping right.
Everything else about it is amazing!
After a couple of laps try following a slightly quicker car to find the lines. I found it a very enjoyable and flowing track.
Enjoy!!
Everything else about it is amazing!
After a couple of laps try following a slightly quicker car to find the lines. I found it a very enjoyable and flowing track.
Enjoy!!
If you can go mid week , Monday to Friday , this year as soon as it's possible to travel , it's probably your best chance to experience the ring as safely as it's possible.
The rental swifts , as mmm5 said , are the best choice for beginners but , we're in a unique time at the moment, if your serious go as soon as it's possible to , I doubt it'll ever be as quiet again ?
I've been going for the past 16 or so years and Ive avoided weekends for years as its normally to busy .
The rental swifts , as mmm5 said , are the best choice for beginners but , we're in a unique time at the moment, if your serious go as soon as it's possible to , I doubt it'll ever be as quiet again ?
I've been going for the past 16 or so years and Ive avoided weekends for years as its normally to busy .
Depends if you want to do a tourist day or a track day. If the former, then it will only be hassle / worry free if you rent as you can't buy 3rd party insurance in a UK Reg car, which leaves you the option of a Swift, which would be my advice as fully insured (well, minus excess and armco damage).
If you want to take your own car then a track day removes the 3rd party risk and you can also insure your car.
I don't think you'll be able to travel there befor the FCO travel advice changes by the way.
If you want to take your own car then a track day removes the 3rd party risk and you can also insure your car.
I don't think you'll be able to travel there befor the FCO travel advice changes by the way.
nickfrog said:
I don't think you'll be able to travel there befor the FCO travel advice changes by the way.
Germany are slowly allowing foreigners back to the country, but I've heard stories from locals who said they've turned around anything with a GB or NL plate...but that might be nothing to do with COVID 
mmm-five said:
nickfrog said:
I don't think you'll be able to travel there befor the FCO travel advice changes by the way.
Germany are slowly allowing foreigners back to the country, but I've heard stories from locals who said they've turned around anything with a GB or NL plate...but that might be nothing to do with COVID 
The problem with the FCO advice is that it invalidates travel insurance if you go against it. Which can be a big hassle...
Always watch your mirrors if you’re doing a TF session. Lots of people go there, push their cars way past their own driving ability without caring/considering about anyone else which is more dangerous than anything else.
As others have said, take it easy, build up the pace and enjoy!
As others have said, take it easy, build up the pace and enjoy!
DomesticM said:
Always watch your mirrors if you’re doing a TF session. Lots of people go there, push their cars way past their own driving ability without caring/considering about anyone else which is more dangerous than anything else.
I am not sure how checking your mirrors is going to help against that kind of drivers as you have to stay right on TF anyway, German highway rules apply. If you do, then you'll be fine. If you don't, you won't whether someone is careless or not. If you want to do it in your own car then get all the insurance you can and do a dedicated trackday. They are much quieter and the other drivers tend to behave a bit better.
You don’t have the pressure of making every lap count so can just go round and round improving all day.
Don’t worry about upgrading brakes the Ring is actually very light on them compared to most tracks. Unless you are driving something very fast. Most of the bends are either only a lift or dab on the brakes, the harder braking zones have nice long straights up to and out of them that cool things off nicely.
If you want to just do a couple of laps to tick it off your bucket list then get a rental. By far the cheapest / safest way to do it.
Whichever option you choose I’d recommend You do your first lap or 2 as a passenger with someone competent to give you an idea of the place before you go for it. Driving sims and videos give you an ok idea of where the track goes but they also mask the extremes pretty well. It is a lot tighter than you think and the elevation changes and bumps are a lot greater in real life.
Also useful to have a passenger with you for a first few laps on mirror duty to let you concentrate on what is out the front window
You don’t have the pressure of making every lap count so can just go round and round improving all day.
Don’t worry about upgrading brakes the Ring is actually very light on them compared to most tracks. Unless you are driving something very fast. Most of the bends are either only a lift or dab on the brakes, the harder braking zones have nice long straights up to and out of them that cool things off nicely.
If you want to just do a couple of laps to tick it off your bucket list then get a rental. By far the cheapest / safest way to do it.
Whichever option you choose I’d recommend You do your first lap or 2 as a passenger with someone competent to give you an idea of the place before you go for it. Driving sims and videos give you an ok idea of where the track goes but they also mask the extremes pretty well. It is a lot tighter than you think and the elevation changes and bumps are a lot greater in real life.
Also useful to have a passenger with you for a first few laps on mirror duty to let you concentrate on what is out the front window
RB Will said:
Don’t worry about upgrading brakes the Ring is actually very light on them compared to most tracks. Unless you are driving something very fast. Most of the bends are either only a lift or dab on the brakes, the harder braking zones have nice long straights up to and out of them that cool things off nicely.
With maybe 700 laps under my belt now, I agree, however, when I first went and didn't know where the track went, I was on and off the brakes unnecessarily and most noobs will be too.Kev_Mk3 said:
Track day and hire a car. Get a tutor and enjoy it will be amazing and you will learn so much more.
So you wouldn't recommend a first-timer experiencing the tourist sessions?As someone who popped their Ring cherry only last year (after plenty of experience on track), I didn't find the tourist sessions particularly daunting. I had a great time, I didn't crash or impede anyone, my car was fully insured, and after a dozen or so laps I was getting much quicker.
I think telling people that the only way to learn lots at the Ring is to spend £3k on a private trackday and car rental is somewhat disingenuous and has the effect of making something that's supposed to be accessible sound elitist.
Edited by C70R on Friday 22 May 07:22
RB Will said:
If you want to do it in your own car then get all the insurance you can and do a dedicated trackday. They are much quieter and the other drivers tend to behave a bit better.
You don’t have the pressure of making every lap count so can just go round and round improving all day.
Don’t worry about upgrading brakes the Ring is actually very light on them compared to most tracks. Unless you are driving something very fast. Most of the bends are either only a lift or dab on the brakes, the harder braking zones have nice long straights up to and out of them that cool things off nicely.
If you want to just do a couple of laps to tick it off your bucket list then get a rental. By far the cheapest / safest way to do it.
Whichever option you choose I’d recommend You do your first lap or 2 as a passenger with someone competent to give you an idea of the place before you go for it. Driving sims and videos give you an ok idea of where the track goes but they also mask the extremes pretty well. It is a lot tighter than you think and the elevation changes and bumps are a lot greater in real life.
Also useful to have a passenger with you for a first few laps on mirror duty to let you concentrate on what is out the front window
I remember a tv program where they got these guys who were the best there was at one of the driving simulator games. These guys were world class. They won a selection process at a certain track in I think a GT2RS. You don’t have the pressure of making every lap count so can just go round and round improving all day.
Don’t worry about upgrading brakes the Ring is actually very light on them compared to most tracks. Unless you are driving something very fast. Most of the bends are either only a lift or dab on the brakes, the harder braking zones have nice long straights up to and out of them that cool things off nicely.
If you want to just do a couple of laps to tick it off your bucket list then get a rental. By far the cheapest / safest way to do it.
Whichever option you choose I’d recommend You do your first lap or 2 as a passenger with someone competent to give you an idea of the place before you go for it. Driving sims and videos give you an ok idea of where the track goes but they also mask the extremes pretty well. It is a lot tighter than you think and the elevation changes and bumps are a lot greater in real life.
Also useful to have a passenger with you for a first few laps on mirror duty to let you concentrate on what is out the front window
They took them to the real track and gave them the real car to drive, and then got some pro Racing drivers the simulators to play.
The pro drivers did better on the simulator than the gamers in the real cars not surprisingly.
With the Ring though there’s so many bends the simulator probably still helps otherwise it would take a few days to learn the track
Personally I wouldn’t take an expensive car out there. If I still had a £10k Boxster then fine but not my R8 there’s so many videos of total disasters.
jakesmith said:
Personally I wouldn’t take an expensive car out there. If I still had a £10k Boxster then fine but not my R8 there’s so many videos of total disasters.
It's not my own car I'm worried about...it's the potential fall-out from causing 30 other cars to be written off BTW, I lost my virginity on a TF, as the track day I'd booked the day before was cancelled.
Not done a Ring Track Day since, but that's because I normally go for a long weekend or a week...on the spur of the moment when I find out I've got a bit of time off from a piece of work. No more than 3 or 4 times a year though - whilst trying to stay away from the busiest weekends of course.
Mostly, I'll only do a few early morning, late afternoon/evening laps each full day (and evenings during the week) or when it looks particularly quiet.
You can get about 5 laps in before it even starts to get busy, and then you can spend the day driving some of the wonderful roads around the region. You still end up with easily over 50 laps per trip, but probably self-limited to no more than 20 a day, and you and the car have not been overly stretched.
Some mornings I'll get to the track an be the first car on, with a frosty track in front of me...only showing the lines the track marshals have driven...and by 9am I've done 5 steadily faster laps, then come in for a s
t coffee. Then I'll just pop 2-3 laps in when it looks quiet.If there's a closure, then I'll just go elsewhere for an hour or two and let the desperate ones queue up for 45 minutes just to get back on!
I've recently (last 3 years or so) started staying close to the track, and last minute deals have seen us in the Dorint for £50/night - where we can watch the GP track from breakfast, or hear when the Nordschleife has opened on a particularly icy/frosty/foggy morning.
C70R said:
Yet thousands of people every year take cars that are equally and more expensive around without issue, and with insurance?
UK 1st party or 3rd party?Mine specifically doesn't cover the Ring for 1st party, so I get 'track day' insurance for TF days.
Mine also has a clause that says they'll pay for any 3rd party claims...because the law says they have to...but reserve the option to recover those costs from me.
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