Overall Score
10 / 10
Welcome to the 4th edition of the CW Track Day. It's been a difficult 1.5 years with the global pandemic hitting us hard but this year in 2021 we have finally managed to hit the track again. Now our theme for this year is everyday heroes. The heroes are of course our cars as you would expect and we say everyday heroes as all of these cars are used every day in difficult city conditions for commutes as well as everyday family cars. But that apart, these cars also have a sporty side to them which bring joy to the ones who really like to drive. So we thought why not celebrate them by bringing them out on to the Racetrack. So who are these everyday heroes? Let's take a look...
Maruti Suzuki Brezza Petrol Manual
So we start with the Maruti Suzuki Brezza. Now in its latest avatar its petrol only with a 1.5-litre naturally aspirated engine. The Brezza came out on top during our 2018 trackday thanks to its playful character and we're hoping it will be the same with the petrol engine.
Hyundai i20 Turbo DCT
Up next is the Hyundai i20 turbo DCT. The new i20 is as spacious and feature rich as it gets but this car also has all the credentials of being a modern hot hatch with its turbo petrol engine and twin clutch gearbox. Let’s see how it does.
Volkswagen PoloGT TSI AT
Giving competition to the i20 Turbo is the OG modern hot hatch, the Volkswagen Polo GT TSI. The DSG gearbox might have been replaced with a torque converter but the car makes more power than before. This should be interesting.
Tata Nexon Petrol Manual
Up next is another turbo petrol but doing duty in a compact SUV, the Tata Nexon petrol manual. It makes more power than before and it has a manual gearbox to harness it. Let’s see what this big boy can do.
Honda City Diesel Manual
The only sedan of the group and a diesel one at that is the new Honda City. It might not be the i-VTEC but the i-DTEC makes a healthy 200Nm of torque and we have a manual gearbox to harness all that power. Now that we have that we have described the ‘Daal’ of this group, let's take a look at the ‘Tadka’. Adding flavor to this lineup is a really spicy car.
BMW 3 Series M340i xDrive
This is the BMW 340i. It’s a sedan that you can commute in, take it for a weekend getaway and then get it to the racetrack too. With 382 horses from its 3-litre straight six engine and the power put down by all 4 wheels, it’s the closest you can get to racing on Sunday and selling on Monday. Now that we're done with our ‘Daal’, let’s get to the main course or rather...the ‘meat’ of the matter.
Volkswagen Polo race car
This is the Volkswagen Polo Race car and this baby is so hardcore that you can only drive it through Volkswagen’s arrive and drive program. Now this isn’t some half-baked go-fast Polo. This is the real deal. 210bhp from its 1.8-litre turbo-petrol engine mated to 6-speed sequential gearbox, the race polo boasts neck spraining acceleration and stomach turning g-forces. As you can see we have a splendid mix of cars, some of which are inconspicuous when seen in everyday conditions, to some which really grab attention and some that you cannot see anywhere else but on the racetrack. How did these cars fare on the track? Watch out for the hot laps story which will have all the action.
Pictures by Kapil Angane and Kaustubh Gandhi