my exotic driving experience/review

[wrxtreme06]

so, here at disney there used to be the richard petty driving experience where you can drive a nascar car around a track. fun, but i could care less about nascar

this month they opened up new options which appealed to me much more! - the exotic driving experience.

from $199-$399 you can pick from one of the following four exotics: ferrari 458 italia, lamborghini gallardo LP570-4 superleggera, lamborghini gallardo LP560-4, porsche 997 s, and audi R8. you can 6 laps around the track with a trained instructor in the passenger seat.

when you first arrive you sign in and get your pass/USB bracelet. [the USB bracelet tracks your data such as lap times, speed, etc].


you also take a 30ish minute intro course. you basically watch a video about driving techniques and the instructor also talks to you about each model of car/how much they're worth/ etc.

after this you go outside to get your picture taken:


better pic of my charriot:


once you're done with this you wait for your turn to come and get fitted with a helmet. you're then whisked away to your exotic and meet your co-pilot.


here is the track. sorry it's hard to see. what is outlined in yellow is the route we took.

overall i had a lot of fun. i've done an autocross before and this was pretty similar.

there were a few things i didnt like.

1) all cars were automatic with paddle shifters. i would have much preferred driving an actual manual. to be honest i've only driven an automatic a handful of times in my life and i'm not too great with the paddleshifters. it wasnt a deal breaker but it was kind of a letdown.

2) the instructor was telling me at what RPM to shift at. i wanted to get the car up in the higher RPMs but i didnt have the chance to.

3) something like this would have probably been more fun in my own car. driving a 100,000$ car is kind of nerve wrecking especially if you are not familiar with the car and dont know the ins and outs of it.

[irvin787878]

Sounds fun. I think that will be something to check out if we ever make it back to disney.

[mycologist]

I was sold, but really - they make you shift early??

Congrats though, sounds like an overall great time!

[TheJ]

Cool stuff!

[rage-wrx]

Sounds like you had a good time

[michaelwfox]

That does sound pretty cool! Why the 997 over the 458 though?

[msharp]

This sounds ridiculously fun!! I'm already sold!! ...except for the "early shift" strategy here...
Also, just to confirm, this is in (or near) the Orlando Disney World?

[BigDaddyRex]

Sounds very cool. Several years ago I did the NASCAR ride at Pocono Raceway. The track is a triangle, and after a similar sounding intro course we were given a ride around with the pro driving (my guy was Jimmy Johnson ... famous name, different guy), then we were allowed to fly solo. A pro was in the lead car and then he was followed by two cars with us paying customers. If we kept up he sped up, if we didn't he slowed. Though not a NASCAR fan, it was a blast. Hit over 160 on the long side and it was amazing taking the banked corners at triple digits - the trick was trusting the car to grip, which they did amazingly well. I would love to do it again, but more than that I want to try my hand at a road course some time.

[wrxtreme06]

That does sound pretty cool! Why the 997 over the 458 though?

Well it was a Christmas present from my parents and I wanted to choose the most affordable one. I would've been happy with any of them lol

This sounds ridiculously fun!! I'm already sold!! ...except for the "early shift" strategy here...
Also, just to confirm, this is in (or near) the Orlando Disney World?

It's on Disney property but its not at actual disney world. You actually have to go through the Disney parking plaza and then go to the raceway

[michaelwfox]

Well it was a Christmas present from my parents and I wanted to choose the most affordable one. I would've been happy with any of them lol

Makes sense! I guess I skipped over the price part in the first post

[teflon_jones]

I would have taken the 458 and not listened to when the instructor told me to shift and just gone balls to the wall. You have a large margin of error on a track. Then again I have track experience and that teaches you a lot about cars.

[GarrettKoonsman]

Agreed on the 458, but i completely understand your reasoning, any time its a gift its best to be modest with your choice. the 458 is just so damn sexy

[RayfieldsWRX]

Hmmm...it would be a choice to make, given that I <3 the Porsche's..but the odds that I might be able to some day get behind the wheel of a 997 are a deal higher than a 458, so I'd have to think that one out.