M
ercedes Benz, a marquee which has been known to build
cars for the kind of people who have an exquisite taste, who buy trousers from Louis Vuitton and shoes from Salvatore Ferrogamo. These kind of people choose only the best for themselves.
I was introduced to the Mercedes Benz brand in the late 2012 during my induction at ‘Young Stars Program’, an initiative by the brand to nurture racing talents from across the country and bring them up to the level of international racing athletes. An year full of hard work, vigorous selection process, simulator tests, physical training and acumen testing I came out with flying colours an secured a position in the Top 12 out of 3233 entries from across India.
And it was very obvious we weren’t going to race in the German car maker’s road going luxury saloons. There had to be something different, something exotic, something more powerful, a car that would make us racers go Bonkers.
Welcome everyone to the world of AMG!!!
Mercedes’ performance sprucing arm. The engines are either V8s or V12s and each engine is hand built by one engineer. His name plate then is engraved on the engine cover to commemorate the fact
that a lot of patience and hard work has gone into making of this master piece under the hood.
Never in my life had driven anything beyond a 300 some bhp Volvo S60. Even the Polo R Cup race car I used to drive had 180bhp which wasn’t staggering compared to what laid in front of my eyes. Buddh International Circuit, the elite home-ground of Indian motorsports was a welcome site on day one, more to it was the sight of spanking new fleet of AMG cars parked at our disposal.
The E63 AMG was the car drawn for my practice runs at the circuit. Bolted with a 5.5 litre twin turbo induced V8 power plant the car churns
out a massive 557bhp and a Solar System blasting 720Nm of torque. These figures put a sweat to my head. I sat in for a proper feel of the environment. I had driven the new E class diesel road car quite extensively so this car felt equally at home besides the fact it was layered with performance gadgetry and high end upholstery. Alcantara and Leather seats, Alcantara wrapped Steering, Leather on the dashboard, Carbon Fibre panels and inserts here and there. A massive panoramic sunroof, etched AMG livery on the Gearknob and the brilliant Bang and Olufsen stereo with bazillion speakers. The E63 tries hard to bring the sense of performance orientation in a luxury family saloon but it still is an absolutely beautiful place to spend time in. Everything you touch and feel exudes high end quality and exclusivity. Mercedes Benz really know how to make interiors, there’s no doubt about it.
Plug in the key give it a start and all the 8 cylinders fire up with a deep growl one would associate with the American muscle cars. That grrrrrrrr.... of the engine really makes a petrohead weak in the knees.
Trying to sulk the enormous power available on tap takes time hence I decided to gradually learn the way of taming this beast. First up I go for a smooth cruise on the Yamuna Expressway with temporary plates on. One does not feel the amount of power it has when you feather the throttle and are in the comfort mode. The car is easy to prod and easy to access its ability to be smooth and poised on demand. There were small stretches where I was kicking down the throttle and the car would instantly cross the 100kmph speed limit and I had to bring her down again. At such an occasion the B&O sound system with uncountable loudspeakers came handy. Pen drive slotted in, Beautiful Things by ‘Bobby Darin’ was giving me kicks of
being one lucky bastard. The night was about fall and I had to park the car back in the Garage at the pits of BIC.
The entire night I couldn’t sleep of the excitement of driving the monster at the track. I youtubed videos of Formula 1 drivers, pro racers and AMG trainers going around this challenging circuit. Dawn had struck, my alarm went on and jumped off the bed like a NASA space shuttle launching for Mars mission. Everything I did that morning went in Fast Forward mode. 15 minutes and I’m freshened up, brushed and bathed. I pick my white OMP racing shoes and helmet. Lock up my hotel room and rush towards my A class. Throw everything in and off I flew leaving a storm of dust behind me.
By the time I reached BIC no one else had arrived, except Vicky Chandhok sir, puffing away his Davidoff cigarette.
“You look very happy Indeed Ishaan, drank much last night?”
“ Naaaaaah, I was just....
Grrrrrrrrrrrrr..... (As my E63 is moved of the Garage)
....you got my name stickered on the rear window? How bloody fancy is that! ” (I had my jaws dropped)
As I see Marc, the AMG engineer, move out of the car I rush towards him to help him with the final check up of the car. Getting deeper at this moment I find the E63 boasts an all round setup of Carbon Ceramic Brakes, Air suspensions with electronic roll actuators and all such kinds of 21st century traction gimmicks. Fancy!
I put my helmet on, wear my racing shoes and jump, literally jump into the car. I could smell burning rubber already in the air mixed with all kinds of combusted racing fuel and birds chirping away. “ Keep the car on S on the entry lap and the following 2 laps, don’t switch the ESP or Traction off, let the tires warm up a little, be gentle on the corners initially, don’t attack, attain 92 degrees oil
temperature and then go for a fast laps, after 8th lap we’ll show the red flag, bring the car back to the pits, we will record your timing” don’t take the car on the parabola, use the auxiliary straight and don’t hit the AMG button at all.....line up at the pit end and wait for the green flag” instructed marc in his funny German accent.
It was drizzling and I was sweating, by the thought that controlling so much torque on the corners won’t be easy. The green flag was set off and I charged gradually to the track, just making myself used to the power and traction limits. Crossing the Entry lap it started raining, and the ABS would threshold too much on the first corner at 190kmph, I braked hard and the car slipped out of the tarmac, similar situation happened on the second corner before the back straight and on the chicane. The rain would just get more intense
and the traction more brutal to control. 3 laps gone, marc commands me to switch off ESP while I enter for a fast lap.
“ You must be joking mate, I’ll either hit the fence or land up in the grand stand upside down with the airbags deployed. “
Abiding the instructions I was earmarked to. So I did and hell broke loose. As much as I tried controlling the corner oversteer the more it would do that. I was going sideways every corner I tried attacking so much infact that I don’t even remember the number of cones I hit that were kept at every apex. It was absolute lunacy. Most of you by the face of it would be thinking that such an occasion of going sideways in a V8 powered car would be so exciting. Eat my words, it’s more difficult than drinking a hot tea from a steel tumbler with your feet and you hanging upside down. The fear of crashing a 1.7 Crore car eats all the fructose available inside the glands of your brain. After the final lap I slow down and enter the pit. Slowly remove the seatbelt and with the much slower pace jump out of the car.
“ two minutes, twenty eight seconds forty four, you need practice son “ chants my mentor Vicky Chandhok.
“ I need a massage and some juice to my brains “ I convey with a dead tone.
As I drag myself to the team building for a breakfast where all the other participants waited. “ We were asked to come late, weather wasn’t good so they postponed the practice “ said my co – racer buddy.
“Shit, shit shit shit, I’m bloody fucked today”
To be continued...