Volkswagen Group owns a
test track facility in Ehra-Lessien, some north of its
Wolfsburg factory. The facility was built during the
Cold War. The location was chosen because, at the time, it was in a
no-fly zone only west of the border between
East Germany and
West Germany, and thus secret prototypes could be tested out of sight of potential rivals. The track is currently used by all Volkswagen Group subsidiaries and
marques, such as
Audi,
Lamborghini,
Bentley,
SEAT,
Škoda, and
Porsche. The facility features of private tarmac, which includes a large variety of road surfaces and curves, used as test tracks to evaluate new and prototype vehicles. Most notably, it includes a high speed
circuit with a
straight approximately long. Although the straight portion of the track is perfectly flat and level for the entire length, when standing at one end of the straight one cannot see the far end due to the curvature of the Earth. Banked corners at both ends of the circuit allow for a high entry and exit speed to and from the straight, and to increase average speed during the lap. The straight is especially useful for determining vehicle top speed, and is one of the few places on Earth that the
Bugatti Veyron or the
McLaren F1 can reach their top speeds. Notably, the top speeds of the Veyron and the McLaren F1 were recorded along this straight. In Episode 2 of Season 9, aired on 4 February 2007 on
BBC Two's
Top Gear, presenter
James May reached in a Bugatti Veyron thus breaking the world land speed record for a road legal vehicle. The event was recorded with multiple video cameras. Reportedly, Bugatti had spent the prior twelve months preparing for this new high speed record run. ==Gallery==