Range Rover Sport SV clocks high-speed runs at NATRAX

The NATRAX HIGH-SPEED TRACK (HST) has to be seen to be believed – an 11.3km-long bowl, four lanes wide with two straights that stretch to the horizon, and two banked corners so vast that you can’t even see the exit from the entry. The high-speed track is designed for one thing alone – speed. It is designed to allow a car to go as fast as the driver dares push it. And that’s the one place we hadn’t pushed the SV so far. None of the racetracks we already visited have a straight long enough that allowed us to push the Range Rover Sport SV Edition Two that far, but that changed as soon as this super SUV rolled in through the NATRAX gates.

This time, there was no pro race driver to set the lap time. There was… me. I’ve gotten awfully familiar with the SV. That familiarity would serve me well during the record run. I was also familiar with the HST. With a few 24 hour endurance records here under my belt, I knew how to tackle a banked corner. But the SV is far more extreme. With a top-speed approaching 300kmph, this was easily 100kmph faster than anything I’ve fully pushed around here. Even I was in uncharted territory.

Kitted up, I strapped into the SUV. The VBOX was set up and logging the car’s every move. I got the thumbs up from Harshit Merchant, the FMSCI observer. It was go time. I pushed the SV mode button, and everything in the car was now glowing red. It was as if I had woken up the devil. The engine was a little more angry, the suspension a little more poised, the electronics a little more alert. Rolling out of the pitlane, the nerves were real. Driving fast in a straight line is no biggie but the banked corners are intimidating. And if anything goes wrong at those speeds, you’ve got to have the reflexes of Max Verstappen to save it.

The first lap was just a warm up. A sighting lap. NATRAX occasionally has a stray animal wander on to track so it’s best to do the first lap at a sensible speed before pushing flat out. 150kmph it was. Ridiculous for the road, but it isn’t very fast for a track such as this. The SV circled the track lazily, while I kept an eye out for any hazards. None? Cool. The second lap is where I got up to speed. I started accelerating down the first straight and through the first banking. The V8 roared through the gears and pushed past 250kmph easily. Down the back straight I got it up to 280kmph and it held there. I entered the second banking at 280kmph. My foot was flat on the floor as we exited the banking and onto the main straight.

Crossing the start-finish straight at 280kmph, there was no letting off now. I had to hold the accelerator flat for the full 11.3km lap. I entered the first banking, focusing my vision as far ahead as possible. At 280kmph, we were covering 78 metres per second. We were flying. I felt myself tense up and remembered to relax my shoulders and grip on the ’wheel. The SV remained glued to the road. The 6D Dynamics suspension was doing a phenomenal job of keeping the car stable. Apart from mashing the throttle pedal to the floor, I was giving very few inputs. On the back straight, the crosswinds couldn’t upset the SV. We entered the second banking. The speedo still read 280kmph. The SV was being pushed to the extreme. The engine was maxed out. Insane amounts of torque were being pushed through the gearbox. The chassis was under immense load. The aero forces at close to 300kmph are insane. And yet, it remained unflustered. Exiting the second banking, the finish line was in sight. Just a few more seconds of keeping it pinned… and that was a lap!

Pulling back into the pits after a cool down lap, I glanced at the VBOX. 2:25.94. Harshit nodded in confirmation. A new official lap record of NATRAX!