User:DBD/Archived/Power Laps

Power Laps is a segment of the BBC Two motoring programme Top Gear, in which the Stig completes a lap around the Top Gear test track to compare the performance of various cars. The car tested has usually been reviewed by one of the presenters in the current episode, but sometimes is a carry-over from a previous one.

The qualification for the board is that the vehicle being tested must be a road-legal production car, and must have sufficient ride-height to clear a standard speed-hump, although occasionally vehicles that cannot appear in the list are still timed. Whenever a non-qualifying vehicle is raced, the time is compared to the official Power Laps and then removed from the board.

All the laps were timed with the car's manufacturer-provided adjustable settings configured for maximum performance. That is to say, all adjustable suspensions were set at their most efficient, all gear shift maps were at their most aggressive, and driving aids such as traction control were deactivated. These lap times do not offer entirely reliable comparisons between the cars, most obviously because the track is often wet (see Lap times loss below).

The Power Board
Notes: The most powerful production car ever featured on Top Gear, the 1001 bhp (746 kW) Bugatti Veyron, has not yet been taken around the track by the Stig. According to Hammond and Clarkson, this is because Bugatti has not given Top Gear permission to run the car through a power lap (yet).

The Koenigsegg CCX at the top of the board was fitted with an optional rear spoiler to provide downforce, after the Stig spun the original version off the track. The Stig allegedly recommended this modification, correctly predicting that the car would then be the fastest ever round Top Gear's track, although Koenigsegg themselves state that the improvement was due to adjustments other than the spoiler.

Lap time loss
Laps done on cold tires or in the wet lose time. The presenters say the following conditions affect laps by so many seconds :
 * 1) Mildly moist: about 2 seconds.
 * 2) Cold tires: about 3-4 seconds.
 * 3) Wet: about 4 seconds.
 * 4) Very wet or wet and oily: about 6 seconds.
 * 5) Very, very, very wet (snow and ice): about 7-8 seconds.  So far this condition has only applied to the Jaguar XKR, which ran a lap while there was snow, ice and water on the track.

Lap times of non-qualifying vehicles
A "non-qualifying" vehicle is one that does not meet the presenters' requirements to remain on the board, that is, one that is not a "road car". This means being fully road-legal (lights, indicators, registration), as well as being street-worthy (able to negotiate a speed bump).

The Stig did not personally operate the Harrier, normally a prerequisite for an officially timed lap.
 * 0:31.2 – BAE Sea Harrier
 * 0:59.0 – Renault R24 Formula One car (Heikki Kovalainen acting as the Stig)
 * 1:08.6 – Aston Martin DBR9
 * 1:10.6 – Caparo T1
 * 1:19.1 – Radical SR3
 * 1:22.6 – Westfield XTR2