Lightning Lap 18

A lap time might be the best distillation of a vehicle's performance. No other single number more effectively sums up a car's acceleration, braking, and handling abilities. VIR's grueling 4.1-mile Grand Course is the best place we've found to acquire that number.

- David Beard, Rich Ceppos, Austin Irwin, and Dave VanderWerp

FOR ONE WEEK EACH YEAR, we descend on a piece of hilly automotive heaven in southern Virginia to see how quickly a selection of cars can lap a racetrack-the test we call Lightning Lap. The Grand Course at Virginia International Raceway (VIR) is the closest facsimile of the Nürburgring Nordschleife we can find without flying over an ocean. The 4.1-mile course may not be as long as that German one, but it is every bit as demanding.

This is our 18th installment, and the rules are slightly more structured than Can-Am's runwhatcha-brung rulebook. Slightly. Regular spots in the Lightning Lap run groups are reserved for unmodified production cars-vehicles you could conceivably purchase at your local dealer. Classes are formed by vehicle price. We've lapped family sedans and minivans, but no PR department has called us back when we've asked for a pickup truck, until this year. A group of editors drive the cars for time to allow us to give you the firsthand story of the lap. We could hire pros, but pros aren't prose pros. Editor-in-chief Tony Quiroga calls this "employee retention week" for a reason. Strap in for the most intense driving of the year.

3:15.6

Mazda MX-5 Miata Club LL1

Tires: Bridgestone Potenza S001

205/45R-17 84W