TRACK ATTACK APP

We try out Mercedes’ new AMG Track Pace technology in branad’s hot ICE and EV models

- Alastair Crooks

I’M at Mercedes-Benz World in Weybridge, Surrey. It’s essentially a Mercedes theme park, museum and testing facility all rolled into one, and if you’re a fan of the three-pointed star, then a visit is highly recommended.

It’s located within the famous Brooklands circuit home of the first purpose-built race track in the world. But our visit is focused on something much more modern.

Those of us who’ve played racing games will know the obsession with shaving off milliseconds from our lap times. Thanks to Mercedes’ new AMG Track Pace technology, that obsession can be brought to real life through a host of incar telemetry. Of course, a simple stopwatch will record lap times to a thousandth of a second, but the software we’ve been invited to try out will do a lot more than that.

The weather during our test is windy and cold, but, crucially, dry. We have cars from the performance-orientated AMG division to showcase the Track Pace app, ranging from a hot hatch to a super-saloon and even an EV. Up first is Mercedes-AMG’s A 45 S on the handling circuit.

The app will become available on all AMG models with the latest MBUX infotainment, and it offers data including lap times, throttle, steering and braking inputs plus overall driving performance. Before starting the system, you get a big disclaimer stating to not use the app on public roads; as its name suggests, Track Pace is purely for use on circuits.

Sixty of the world’s most famous tracks are stored in the app, although the short handling circuit at Mercedes-Benz World isn’t one of them. But that’s not a problem, because you can map out your own courses, meaning that even an autosolo motorsport route made up of cones can be loaded onto the app. You can even pinpoint the start and end positions, so there’s a choice of sprint or circuit routes.