@@anwarawad9462 being an automotive engineer based in southern Germany sure helped a lot. But I would say with a background in engineering you can access this kind of positions at many OEMs and suppliers anywhere in the world
I was a kid, living near the factory in 1976 for a year. Every once in a while I'd see a car that looked like it was from the distant future or outer space. When it went on sale, a year later, realized it was the 928.
The camo is only applied if there are bigger, completely redesigned parts on the car or it’s a whole redesign of the car, even Porsche uses that. The all black Porsche cars are either used when the car was already unveiled to the public (that’s probably why they allowed the journalists to interview them in the video) or some smaller modifications have been done to that car, e.g. new lights (parts of the lights would get taped for this example)
I once attending a track day in canada, Toronto back in 2000 or so. I walk around the pit and saw a mid engine car with no badge . First thought it was just some random kit car, I then saw the engine was V10. And the drive close the cover when they saw me trying to talk a picture. I believe it was the carrera gt test mill.
I'll be going next year for laps in a 991 GT3 RS or 992 GT3. Mosport has some interesting history. I've spent some time at the karting circuit there but no time on the main track. This year I'm going for the Radical SR3 and the Lotus Emira.
I had to look up where Torrey Pines it but yes, another friend in San Diego mentioned this too and he sent me a picture of them in that area from last weekend. I posted it on my Instagram.
I was born and raised in Granada, Spain, home to one of the highest elevation-change routs in Europe. You can go from almost 3000m to sea level in less than 2 hours, go through several climate types and a dense European city along the way. This all means a ton of car, truck and bus companies would test their vehicles there, and I got to see so many prototypes, it was awesome. I saw Porches, Roll-Royce's, BMWs, VW/audi products, the new MGs before they had re-launched the brand. But my most memorable one was the pre-production Bugatti Chiron
I have a video of 2 992 mule cars in 2018 travelling on the I-80 through Nebraska… filmed from my own 911! It was the most unique experience as the test drivers waved back and did pulls with me.
I'm an engineer for a Powersport brand that develops off-road and on-road vehicles. When there's no big aesthetic change between years, we usually paint the prototype vehicle to the last year colors scheme to blend in. There is always a funny feeling driving a vehicle on the road that as the next years hardware/software without others knowing.
I live in quite close to the Porsche development campus in Weissach, there are tons of taped cars and testing vehicles here. Its not exclusive with Porsche, Mercedes, BMW are also more or less common to see testing their newest cars on public roads.
Love your point about their "functional look" part of what's so appealing about them. Agree! Like well-worn jeans, not new ones folded neatly in the closet.
Living in the desert southwest near test facilities, I often have seen various "zebra wrapped" test vehicles on public roads. Always interesting to think about the data that they are gathering.
That Ford GT test photo comes from my hometown of Glenwood Springs, an epicenter of high altitude testing. I love playing “what on earth am I looking at” to the camo and unreleased vehicles. Almost every car released here (especially by American companies use Denver-Glenwood Springs and sometimes back over Independence Pass to make sure the cars can handle the highest conditions. It’s kind of funny when they clash with Highway Patrol officers as they did just before the photo was taken. You can read about this car and 2 others pulled over clocked at 101 in a 50mph zone in the Vail Daily news. Safe to say the engineers sometimes have a bit too much fun on the job haha.
Back when I was 14 my family drove from AZ to CA for a family trip on the way we saw the same thing 3 packs of 4 all testing out the new Panamera super cool
Seen some squads of random Porsches appearing in small coastal towns around Spain and Italy over the last few years. Badges say one thing but after looking around the car you kinda start questioning if what you're seeing is really last year's car or just something custom has been done. Props to manufacturers who do real-world testing without drawing too much attention.
My dad tested the 918 spider and Porsche cayenne and Panamera hybrid models because he helped develop the electric engines. I got pictures of when my dad brought them home for testing over the weekend.
Wow, that is really cool. Can you share any of the pics? I found some other footage I have of an early 918 prototype that I'll try to post as my next video.
bro im from stuttgart and i see new prototype cars being tested like this from Porsche and Mercedes-Benz literally everyday (they're called Erlenkönig over here) and i love to see them
i saw the 992 GT3 in Stuttgart 3 months before they even announced it. At first me and my buddies thought its just a tuned 991 but after the car got released, we were so hyped up because we knew we saw a car that hasnt even released at that moment yet.
When I was 18 years old I had a summer job as a car jockey at a Porsche Dealership in Englewood New Jersey. A good friend of mine was a mechanic there and got me the job before I left for college. Down the street was a BMW dealership and I saw the very first e30 M3. My two favorite cars were the 944 Turbo and the e30 M3. I said one day I'll have a 944 turbo or an M3. I knew nothing about product life cycle and little did I know the 944 would be gone. I did drive 911's - 928 also all summer long as an 18 year old. HOLY SMACK! I dont come from money so I was mesmerized. I stuck with the Plan and I've had 2 M3's so far they are phenomenal. Current is a 2022 G80 6MT. A 911 would be a fun car but my fun vehicle is my 2022 R 1250 GS 40th anniversary. A good friend of mine who dreamed of owning a 911 fulfilled that dream too. He had a 2020 992 S Manual. Kept for 2 years and sold it. Now he drives a C63s. I appreciate 911's but I dont have a use case for one given my current vehicles.
my father was working on the air conditioner for the first panamera, their department got 3 panameras for 2 weeks to test drive around europe to test the new air condtioning unit.
Man what a blast it must be to truly now the ins and outs of such an iconic series of car, to be the one group to figure out, experiment and do all that whilst mainly just driving such a piece of art ? It is such a dream to be one of them !
This is not innovative, but what car brands should be doing to be respected. A lot of say: "Porsche is so overrated", but is actually their honest hard work and engineering what has made them a top class brand.
I saw a small group of these cars, did not think much about it, but I got my camera out and took some pictures. They did have antenas on the windows and stickers with numbers. Just randomly clicked on this video and came to the conclusion that those were most likely test cars
There was a terrible accident a few years go on the Autobahn near Stuttgart when a Porsche engineer drove recklessly with a Turbo convertible test car and crashed into the center guardrail, suffering fatal injuries. That was followed by a series of less severe accidents in the 2020s, leading to some speculations on how well Porsche had their test-drivers under control.
Well accidents happen and driving fast on the autobahn is what these cars are often used for. So of course they have to test it on highspeeds on the autobahn. Thats what these cars are build for…
A few details for you. Firstly, a mule car is a last generation model butchered as neccessary to simulate the updated features on the proposed new car. These generally don't see that much on-road time depending on how well they're built since much of the real engineering test work can be done in the lab and on track. Many of the test cars you will see on the road a pre-production cars of some level and there are several levels aimed at testing the actual design, testing the manufacturing methods of the parts and then finally the full assembly processes for off-tool parts. The road tests you might see can be one of two styles - a "management drive" where the suits get to experience and critique the engineer's efforts in a real-world environment or, a quasi-commute between test facilities with actual engineers, although the "test facility" may be just a hotel base high up in the mountains or in some god-forsaken desert or frozen wasteland. I would say that road testing is more "evaluation" than "testing" for most engineers and you're on the road looking for the rough edges poking out rather than testing the actual specific function of components. One other extensive part of vehicle development on road is engine and transmisson controller calibration. Areas that are evaluated here include cold, hot and altitude starting and post-start operation, idle control, load inputs from aircon, PAS, gear engagement, shift quality etc. Another huge area is testing and validating the effectiveness of the active on-board diagnostic functions for emissions compliance. The active functions require a certain amount of vehicle operation to determine whether to pass or fail so there's a huge matrix of tests needed with limit pass and limit fail parts installed to make sure the systems are legal but don't give customers false fail warnings. This often requires a lot of on-road testing that likely continues on way past the vehicle's on-sale date.
@@AtypicalDriver Used to be in the auto industry but not since a long while. Holden VE Commodore was the last production vehicle I had anything to do with although I've worked on a couple of engine development projects for other industries since.
I live in New Mexico and had the amazing privilege of getting to see a new s650 mustang testing, if I remember correctly, less then a week after ford officially showed off the new car. Sadly it was going the opposite way on the highway and I only saw it last second but i distinctly remember the aggressive shape of the fresh 2024 mustang being protected under a camouflage wrap.
I live in a place where car manufacturers like to test their cars. Saw the Taycan early one morning and was so thrilled when I saw the production car looked the same 😊
My ultimate dream car since I was a kid, way back in the early 70s. The 928 was my personal baby for 12 great years. But nothing tops a 911, the stuff of legendary motoring excellence.
Besides not standing out in public, the black color also helps as a worst-case scenario for temperature. Due to absorbing more sunlight, black cars can easily get 10°C warmer than white cars, so it's important to test the cars with the "worst-possible" color.
As a five times 9/11 owner I'm going to make the following comment. For the first time you've got a video article that will hold up to basically anything that automobile magazine Road and track etc has ever done. Good job guys. You've taken it to the next level finally. Took a while but TH-cam is finally becoming self-actualized.
Makes sense that Porsche makes such a great car with this process. Because I swear some cars have things that make question if anyone ever bothered to drive the car before going for sale
Great video and a much deserved view count. I didn't even know you had a TH-cam channel until the almighty algorithm recommended it to me. Looking forward to more great content.
That is an amazing job. There are probably things in it that are much tougher and less desirable than we can see on the surface. But it looks so awesome. Going on roadtrips all over the world figuring out what works and what doesn't. It's like labwork but a hundred times more interesting
I was twice at the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart, first time just after the launch of the 991 and they had a 991 Test mule on display at the top. Second time in September 2022, GT3 RS was just launched and the had again a Prototype on display: RHD, black, a lot of stickers and plastic things to hide new shapes. I spent every time half an hour around those cars.
I live near the AMG production facility and I see so many test cars, it's incredible! They mostly have a camoflash look but you can kind of make out how they look. :D I also know two test drivers for AMG personally and they both share the opinion of having an amazing Job.
If I recall, he did the voiceover in all the Porsche ads of that area (maybe maybe even later). And they were directed by none other than Jeff Zwart who is quite a Porsche celebrity himself!
I was lucky enough to be in Cape Town’s waterfront in Dec 2003 using a shortcut to get to the shopping centre and out of nowhere, 9 McLaren SLR’s🤩 there was 10 but one hit a mk1 golf
In an old issue of Motor Trend, there’s an article about the testing they did on the 718 Cayman up in the Arctic Circle and one of the test drivers nearly put one into a sulfur lake, pretty awesome pictures. Anyway, they yanked it out of the drift it got buried in and just kept on driving, no big deal.
When selling Porsche in the USA from 1986-1989, we learned about a term called “Popometer“ - a seat of the pants feeling that test drivers use when evaluating their cars. It’s translated to a “seat of the pants meter”.
3:41 as someone who worked at koenigsegg, no matter how "high end" or "luxurious" the job may seem, at the end, it's always a job. And usually the more posh brands pay less because "everyone" want to work for them. The basically rely on minimal wages and your "passion".
Agreed, I used to work at Ducati. Same sort of thing. Once you get paid to do something you enjoy it becomes a job. I wonder if prostitutes feel that way too? 😭
Short hint to your 918 Erlkönig photos: This were the late models when the design was already communicated, the time before they had 911 models with all the hybrid technology inside! Porsche is really crazy in building 1 of prototypes and i dont know other OEMs which invest so much time and cost to build prototype cars for testing new technologies.
I live in the high desert on the backside of the Sierras just over the mountains from LA. We often get many test car caravans from many makes making their way to Death Valley and mountain road testing. Many are in that black and white livery cover overlays. I’ve seen them at a popular park and ride adjusting and finnicking with their telemetry boxes. It’s rare to see them without all the coverings tho we have seen quite a few caravans coming to and from the old Honda test site south of us. That one was sold off to some other company now iirc.
The interesting thing is you don't really notice some changes until it's changed. E.g. I once visited a laboratory developing black paint that is as black visible as any other black but reflects infrared so it doesn't heat up as much so the cars stay cool. Developing and engineering is so cool.
I saw a couple raptors with the secret wrap on em and some off road goodies heading down to baja when i was in california. They had michigan manufacturer plates, so I figure something cool was being done.
Yeah, I’ve seen them, for the last few months when I go bicycle riding near my home there’s a mountain and a track, they’re always there, groups of 4, various new models always being led by a older generation.
In Austria/Tyrol BMW & Audi often testig their cars on the mountain roads. Noticeable is the Black tape or the erlkönig foiling(i hope that word is right😅)
I wonder if other supercar brands go through similar rigorous testing? I’m still looking for a reliable supercar I can keep for awhile and Porsche seems to fit that bill, possibly an R8 as well
Not a lot of people know this but they actually started testing stuff for the 992 with the last few production months 991.2 carrera Ts. Some of the front suspension pieces like the lower control arms are the same as the 992 and they actually sold it to customers but its a very small amount of them that have it and they don’t share the same part number as the 992, they have a separate one because since it is the T they needed to shave some weight but it is the exact same control arm with the only difference being how the ride control sensor is mounted.
Got passed by a bunch of Cayennes during their testing in outback South Australia back in the noughties. The road was rough and they were flying! Not a road for my Boxster🙂
What he didnt told you, they in this Testing Columns usually one drives further up front to Check for police or dangerous spots so those behind can put the pedal to the medal and really test the cars
I don't know about porsche specifically, but usually a test mule is an early stage prototype, not a late stage prototype. In my experience it goes buck > mule > validation prototype (vp) > tooling trial (tt) > pre-production. Granted this is one of those things that changes with each new executive since they have to "innovate" and "fix the problems with a reorg". But generally mules are vehicles which are operational (unlike a buck) but not finalized. So a good example would be if you took a previous gen vehicle and put the next gen engine in it, it would be an "engine mule" or more likely a "powertrain mule" since it likely would have the next gen transmission as well. It's a mule because it's carrying the new technology (in this case the powertrain) without any of the other new technologies getting in the way, like maybe a new steering gearbox. Some mules might look more like the production intent vehicle than others. Sometimes your mule vehicle might be a competitor's vehicle if you're entering a new segment you haven't worked in before (think if ducati wanted to make sportscars they might use a ferrari chassis as a test mule for their engine program). This allows you to have less risk in the timeline for that specific program.
I’ve seen the Aston Martin DBS Superleggera and current Range Rover testing as prototypes, they seem to test quite a few cars down my way. Both black, with a small decal on the back bumper with ‘prototype vehicle’. Presumably for the police since those cars didn’t officially exist yet.
I've been one of those Engineers for 12 years and can confirm: best job in the world!
How does one get into this profession?
Wow, amazing! Thanks for chiming in. Can you share one of your favorite moments over those 12 years?
How does the path to becoming ond look?
@feb00 how do you even get a job like that ?
@@anwarawad9462 being an automotive engineer based in southern Germany sure helped a lot. But I would say with a background in engineering you can access this kind of positions at many OEMs and suppliers anywhere in the world
I was a kid, living near the factory in 1976 for a year. Every once in a while I'd see a car that looked like it was from the distant future or outer space. When it went on sale, a year later, realized it was the 928.
Oh wow that would have been quite a sight in 1976!!!
My wife’s cousin was a Porsche test driver in Europe, now retired … neat stuff
Wow, that's cool. How long did they do that for? What was the best car they tested if you know?!
how do you become a test driver?
@@nolandaileyget a degree in engineering and apply.
Other manufacturers putting crazy camos on their test cars. Meanwhile Porsche paint it black and leave it dirty 😂
The camo is only applied if there are bigger, completely redesigned parts on the car or it’s a whole redesign of the car, even Porsche uses that. The all black Porsche cars are either used when the car was already unveiled to the public (that’s probably why they allowed the journalists to interview them in the video) or some smaller modifications have been done to that car, e.g. new lights (parts of the lights would get taped for this example)
Other manufacturers make new cars, not just 'the same car but we changed the body panels and infotainment slightly'
@@shred1894 Yes they do. Or do you seriously believe that every car manufacturer makes a completely new car every year? 💀
They all look the same anyhow 😂😔 @@jms4989
No need for Porsche since they basically look the same
I once attending a track day in canada, Toronto back in 2000 or so. I walk around the pit and saw a mid engine car with no badge . First thought it was just some random kit car, I then saw the engine was V10. And the drive close the cover when they saw me trying to talk a picture. I believe it was the carrera gt test mill.
Test mule*
Dang!!!!
That's awesome, I really like these stories of chance encounters with early development / test cars!
Dayum
I'll be going next year for laps in a 991 GT3 RS or 992 GT3. Mosport has some interesting history. I've spent some time at the karting circuit there but no time on the main track.
This year I'm going for the Radical SR3 and the Lotus Emira.
This is crazy. I saw all of these black 992s together a few days ago driving through Torrey Pines. All debadged I knew something was up
I had to look up where Torrey Pines it but yes, another friend in San Diego mentioned this too and he sent me a picture of them in that area from last weekend. I posted it on my Instagram.
992.2 for sure 👀
I was born and raised in Granada, Spain, home to one of the highest elevation-change routs in Europe. You can go from almost 3000m to sea level in less than 2 hours, go through several climate types and a dense European city along the way.
This all means a ton of car, truck and bus companies would test their vehicles there, and I got to see so many prototypes, it was awesome.
I saw Porches, Roll-Royce's, BMWs, VW/audi products, the new MGs before they had re-launched the brand. But my most memorable one was the pre-production Bugatti Chiron
Yeah, I was in Granada a few days ago and saw two Audi prototypes in the Hills.
being a test driver for the new 911 is like a dream
Yes, it's neat
I have a video of 2 992 mule cars in 2018 travelling on the I-80 through Nebraska… filmed from my own 911! It was the most unique experience as the test drivers waved back and did pulls with me.
I read that as ‘2992 mule cars’ and thought wow that’s a lot
I use to have a 911, I now drive a macan turbo, but I need to go back to 911.
Mistakes were made
Family man car makes sense but damn that must have hurt to get rid of the 911 😢
Macan aka shopping car for moms 😂
i still have my 991.1 for weekend car and got a Maserati Lavante for family car lol
Sure brother
They have been testing in the North West of Ireland for over twenty years from their base in County Sligo.
Makes sense as to why I spotted three unreleased Porsche 992 cars in 2017 in Donegal!
Vince you would make a great test engineer. Porsche if you're watching - hire Vince! He's friendly and an awesome guy.
Ha thank you! Maybe a good future job!!
U would be good but porsche wouldnt hire u because u would reveal all their secrets
so you get to drive a multi hundred thousand dollar car hundreds of kilometres and get paid? sign me up how do i be one
Study engineering, finish.
Become a race car driver.
Apply to porsche and pray
@@mangosteak You definetly don't have to be a race car driver to become a test engineer. Us regular engineers can become one too lol
I'm an engineer for a Powersport brand that develops off-road and on-road vehicles. When there's no big aesthetic change between years, we usually paint the prototype vehicle to the last year colors scheme to blend in. There is always a funny feeling driving a vehicle on the road that as the next years hardware/software without others knowing.
I came expecting a secret for hidden test mules but just saw a guy talking about regular test mules
At least you didn't come expecting a donkey show....wait a donkey isn't a mule.🤣
I saw a group of these ravens with antennas early march in SF! Thx for explaining
Great video! I learned a lot from this, so thank you!
Thanks so much!! Crazy that you saw some 992.2 test cars today by random chance.
I live in quite close to the Porsche development campus in Weissach, there are tons of taped cars and testing vehicles here. Its not exclusive with Porsche, Mercedes, BMW are also more or less common to see testing their newest cars on public roads.
Now that you mentioned this at 6:07, it does make sense that they can have an automotive version of A/B testing!
Love your point about their "functional look" part of what's so appealing about them. Agree! Like well-worn jeans, not new ones folded neatly in the closet.
Living in the desert southwest near test facilities, I often have seen various "zebra wrapped" test vehicles on public roads. Always interesting to think about the data that they are gathering.
That Ford GT test photo comes from my hometown of Glenwood Springs, an epicenter of high altitude testing. I love playing “what on earth am I looking at” to the camo and unreleased vehicles. Almost every car released here (especially by American companies use Denver-Glenwood Springs and sometimes back over Independence Pass to make sure the cars can handle the highest conditions. It’s kind of funny when they clash with Highway Patrol officers as they did just before the photo was taken. You can read about this car and 2 others pulled over clocked at 101 in a 50mph zone in the Vail Daily news. Safe to say the engineers sometimes have a bit too much fun on the job haha.
That's awesome! Thanks for sharing
Back when I was 14 my family drove from AZ to CA for a family trip on the way we saw the same thing 3 packs of 4 all testing out the new Panamera super cool
Seen some squads of random Porsches appearing in small coastal towns around Spain and Italy over the last few years. Badges say one thing but after looking around the car you kinda start questioning if what you're seeing is really last year's car or just something custom has been done. Props to manufacturers who do real-world testing without drawing too much attention.
Porsche is just… brilliant!
Really enjoyed this. I saw the Carrera GT testing on a dirt track in Sitges, Spain before it was released.
Oh wow that would have been cool to see!
On a dirt track ? It must be insanely cool
My dad tested the 918 spider and Porsche cayenne and Panamera hybrid models because he helped develop the electric engines. I got pictures of when my dad brought them home for testing over the weekend.
Wow, that is really cool. Can you share any of the pics? I found some other footage I have of an early 918 prototype that I'll try to post as my next video.
bro im from stuttgart and i see new prototype cars being tested like this from Porsche and Mercedes-Benz literally everyday (they're called Erlenkönig over here) and i love to see them
Well done Vince! Voice work and editing both top notch
🙏 thanks andy!
i saw the 992 GT3 in Stuttgart 3 months before they even announced it. At first me and my buddies thought its just a tuned 991 but after the car got released, we were so hyped up because we knew we saw a car that hasnt even released at that moment yet.
I just saw like ten of these in Globe, Arizona USA three days ago. All had the Georgia plates and a black support van.
When I was 18 years old I had a summer job as a car jockey at a Porsche Dealership in Englewood New Jersey. A good friend of mine was a mechanic there and got me the job before I left for college. Down the street was a BMW dealership and I saw the very first e30 M3. My two favorite cars were the 944 Turbo and the e30 M3. I said one day I'll have a 944 turbo or an M3. I knew nothing about product life cycle and little did I know the 944 would be gone. I did drive 911's - 928 also all summer long as an 18 year old. HOLY SMACK! I dont come from money so I was mesmerized. I stuck with the Plan and I've had 2 M3's so far they are phenomenal. Current is a 2022 G80 6MT. A 911 would be a fun car but my fun vehicle is my 2022 R 1250 GS 40th anniversary. A good friend of mine who dreamed of owning a 911 fulfilled that dream too. He had a 2020 992 S Manual. Kept for 2 years and sold it. Now he drives a C63s. I appreciate 911's but I dont have a use case for one given my current vehicles.
This is the type of thing that sells me on a car, or gets my interest. Thanks for the video!
Glad you liked it!
my father was working on the air conditioner for the first panamera, their department got 3 panameras for 2 weeks to test drive around europe to test the new air condtioning unit.
Man what a blast it must be to truly now the ins and outs of such an iconic series of car, to be the one group to figure out, experiment and do all that whilst mainly just driving such a piece of art ? It is such a dream to be one of them !
This is not innovative, but what car brands should be doing to be respected. A lot of say: "Porsche is so overrated", but is actually their honest hard work and engineering what has made them a top class brand.
💯 agreed!
I saw a small group of these cars, did not think much about it, but I got my camera out and took some pictures.
They did have antenas on the windows and stickers with numbers.
Just randomly clicked on this video and came to the conclusion that those were most likely test cars
There was a terrible accident a few years go on the Autobahn near Stuttgart when a Porsche engineer drove recklessly with a Turbo convertible test car and crashed into the center guardrail, suffering fatal injuries.
That was followed by a series of less severe accidents in the 2020s, leading to some speculations on how well Porsche had their test-drivers under control.
Well accidents happen and driving fast on the autobahn is what these cars are often used for. So of course they have to test it on highspeeds on the autobahn. Thats what these cars are build for…
A few details for you. Firstly, a mule car is a last generation model butchered as neccessary to simulate the updated features on the proposed new car. These generally don't see that much on-road time depending on how well they're built since much of the real engineering test work can be done in the lab and on track. Many of the test cars you will see on the road a pre-production cars of some level and there are several levels aimed at testing the actual design, testing the manufacturing methods of the parts and then finally the full assembly processes for off-tool parts. The road tests you might see can be one of two styles - a "management drive" where the suits get to experience and critique the engineer's efforts in a real-world environment or, a quasi-commute between test facilities with actual engineers, although the "test facility" may be just a hotel base high up in the mountains or in some god-forsaken desert or frozen wasteland. I would say that road testing is more "evaluation" than "testing" for most engineers and you're on the road looking for the rough edges poking out rather than testing the actual specific function of components. One other extensive part of vehicle development on road is engine and transmisson controller calibration. Areas that are evaluated here include cold, hot and altitude starting and post-start operation, idle control, load inputs from aircon, PAS, gear engagement, shift quality etc. Another huge area is testing and validating the effectiveness of the active on-board diagnostic functions for emissions compliance. The active functions require a certain amount of vehicle operation to determine whether to pass or fail so there's a huge matrix of tests needed with limit pass and limit fail parts installed to make sure the systems are legal but don't give customers false fail warnings. This often requires a lot of on-road testing that likely continues on way past the vehicle's on-sale date.
This restores my faith in comments, thanks for adding these details! Super helpful. I'm guessing you do this for a living??
@@AtypicalDriver Used to be in the auto industry but not since a long while. Holden VE Commodore was the last production vehicle I had anything to do with although I've worked on a couple of engine development projects for other industries since.
I live in New Mexico and had the amazing privilege of getting to see a new s650 mustang testing, if I remember correctly, less then a week after ford officially showed off the new car. Sadly it was going the opposite way on the highway and I only saw it last second but i distinctly remember the aggressive shape of the fresh 2024 mustang being protected under a camouflage wrap.
3:35 two ford gt's just casually flashing by
I live in a place where car manufacturers like to test their cars. Saw the Taycan early one morning and was so thrilled when I saw the production car looked the same 😊
Thanks for sharing!
im aiming for this Job love the different prototypes
Do it! It sounds like an awesome job. I wish I spoke German.
This video is giving mysterious vibes and got me subscribed to your channel!😮💨. Watched it like a movie, keep it up!
My ultimate dream car since I was a kid, way back in the early 70s. The 928 was my personal baby for 12 great years. But nothing tops a 911, the stuff of legendary motoring excellence.
Besides not standing out in public, the black color also helps as a worst-case scenario for temperature. Due to absorbing more sunlight, black cars can easily get 10°C warmer than white cars, so it's important to test the cars with the "worst-possible" color.
As a five times 9/11 owner I'm going to make the following comment. For the first time you've got a video article that will hold up to basically anything that automobile magazine Road and track etc has ever done. Good job guys. You've taken it to the next level finally. Took a while but TH-cam is finally becoming self-actualized.
Wow that is a huge compliment, thanks!!!
Makes sense that Porsche makes such a great car with this process. Because I swear some cars have things that make question if anyone ever bothered to drive the car before going for sale
Great video and a much deserved view count. I didn't even know you had a TH-cam channel until the almighty algorithm recommended it to me. Looking forward to more great content.
Thanks and hi Paul!
That is an amazing job.
There are probably things in it that are much tougher and less desirable than we can see on the surface.
But it looks so awesome. Going on roadtrips all over the world figuring out what works and what doesn't. It's like labwork but a hundred times more interesting
I was twice at the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart, first time just after the launch of the 991 and they had a 991 Test mule on display at the top. Second time in September 2022, GT3 RS was just launched and the had again a Prototype on display: RHD, black, a lot of stickers and plastic things to hide new shapes. I spent every time half an hour around those cars.
As a porsche owner it is evident just how much real world testing and optimization is done, such smugly pleasurable machines
The best part is all the test drivers still dress with the same fashion as the 993 advert
LOL!
Everytime he said "911" i thought of planes rather than cars
I live near the AMG production facility and I see so many test cars, it's incredible! They mostly have a camoflash look but you can kind of make out how they look. :D I also know two test drivers for AMG personally and they both share the opinion of having an amazing Job.
That was Sir Patrick Stewart in his prime doing the voiceover in that old tv commercial. Prolly paid big bucks for that ad.
If I recall, he did the voiceover in all the Porsche ads of that area (maybe maybe even later). And they were directed by none other than Jeff Zwart who is quite a Porsche celebrity himself!
I saw several 918 test mules in Santa Monica, California.
Yeah its crazy how often you actually could see some of the new cars on road before even knowing that those cars will come out.
I'm happy for you guys who actually get to drive that stuff without having to worry about a blown engine every 50k miles
I was lucky enough to be in Cape Town’s waterfront in Dec 2003 using a shortcut to get to the shopping centre and out of nowhere, 9 McLaren SLR’s🤩 there was 10 but one hit a mk1 golf
In an old issue of Motor Trend, there’s an article about the testing they did on the 718 Cayman up in the Arctic Circle and one of the test drivers nearly put one into a sulfur lake, pretty awesome pictures. Anyway, they yanked it out of the drift it got buried in and just kept on driving, no big deal.
its because they look just like every other porsche
When selling Porsche in the USA from 1986-1989, we learned about a term called “Popometer“ - a seat of the pants feeling that test drivers use when evaluating their cars. It’s translated to a “seat of the pants meter”.
3:41 as someone who worked at koenigsegg, no matter how "high end" or "luxurious" the job may seem, at the end, it's always a job. And usually the more posh brands pay less because "everyone" want to work for them. The basically rely on minimal wages and your "passion".
Agreed, I used to work at Ducati. Same sort of thing. Once you get paid to do something you enjoy it becomes a job. I wonder if prostitutes feel that way too? 😭
Short hint to your 918 Erlkönig photos: This were the late models when the design was already communicated, the time before they had 911 models with all the hybrid technology inside!
Porsche is really crazy in building 1 of prototypes and i dont know other OEMs which invest so much time and cost to build prototype cars for testing new technologies.
Thanks for sharing this insight, I love when people chime in with these kind of details!
You be surprised what test cars one sees when they live on the road to Pikes Peak summit.
I live in the high desert on the backside of the Sierras just over the mountains from LA. We often get many test car caravans from many makes making their way to Death Valley and mountain road testing. Many are in that black and white livery cover overlays. I’ve seen them at a popular park and ride adjusting and finnicking with their telemetry boxes. It’s rare to see them without all the coverings tho we have seen quite a few caravans coming to and from the old Honda test site south of us. That one was sold off to some other company now iirc.
Worked like this with 2Wh EVs for 3 years and came to the US for a masters. Can't wait to get back to the field and tinker!
3:36 what's with the single frame of 2 Ford GT's?
Hah good catch. Just other examples of test cars getting spotted.
I saw 3-5 911s in a train testing on highway 1 in Bodega Bay, CA. They had the antennae in the back and were all black.
The interesting thing is you don't really notice some changes until it's changed. E.g. I once visited a laboratory developing black paint that is as black visible as any other black but reflects infrared so it doesn't heat up as much so the cars stay cool. Developing and engineering is so cool.
I saw a couple raptors with the secret wrap on em and some off road goodies heading down to baja when i was in california. They had michigan manufacturer plates, so I figure something cool was being done.
Used to get passed by the mules on the A5 after dark, all kitted out with sensors. Always between 200 - 300km/h and matt black
I've been wanting that job since the first time i saw the intro movie from Need For Speed 2000 Porsche
Truly one of the coolest jobs in the world and test mules are the coolest version of a car
You see the "Erlkönige" driving around in southern Germany near Stuttgart or Munich very much...
6:49 I love the perfect man-made potholes!
Yeah, I’ve seen them, for the last few months when I go bicycle riding near my home there’s a mountain and a track, they’re always there, groups of 4, various new models always being led by a older generation.
I live in South Africa,and remember The AMG GT, G63 and GLC being tested in my neighbourhood
Porsche should come to india for testing. They would get lots of data about how the car performs in rough conditions 😅
They don’t want their premium vehicles covered in literal poop
In Austria/Tyrol BMW & Audi often testig their cars on the mountain roads. Noticeable is the Black tape or the erlkönig foiling(i hope that word is right😅)
I wonder if other supercar brands go through similar rigorous testing? I’m still looking for a reliable supercar I can keep for awhile and Porsche seems to fit that bill, possibly an R8 as well
Underrated Channel
Thank you! 🙏
Maybe normal public didn’t notice but if I saw one I’d definitely notice 😂
If you know, you know!
Now i want a Porsche even more
👍
The other night I just saw a group of 5 black Porsche's just like those in Phoenix, Arizona
Whoa, crazy timing!
Not a lot of people know this but they actually started testing stuff for the 992 with the last few production months 991.2 carrera Ts. Some of the front suspension pieces like the lower control arms are the same as the 992 and they actually sold it to customers but its a very small amount of them that have it and they don’t share the same part number as the 992, they have a separate one because since it is the T they needed to shave some weight but it is the exact same control arm with the only difference being how the ride control sensor is mounted.
Got passed by a bunch of Cayennes during their testing in outback South Australia back in the noughties. The road was rough and they were flying! Not a road for my Boxster🙂
Truly a dream job.
Patrick Stewart narrating the 993 commercial is also awesome 🙂
He was amazing in those commercials!
What he didnt told you, they in this Testing Columns usually one drives further up front to Check for police or dangerous spots so those behind can put the pedal to the medal and really test the cars
I don't know about porsche specifically, but usually a test mule is an early stage prototype, not a late stage prototype. In my experience it goes buck > mule > validation prototype (vp) > tooling trial (tt) > pre-production. Granted this is one of those things that changes with each new executive since they have to "innovate" and "fix the problems with a reorg". But generally mules are vehicles which are operational (unlike a buck) but not finalized. So a good example would be if you took a previous gen vehicle and put the next gen engine in it, it would be an "engine mule" or more likely a "powertrain mule" since it likely would have the next gen transmission as well. It's a mule because it's carrying the new technology (in this case the powertrain) without any of the other new technologies getting in the way, like maybe a new steering gearbox. Some mules might look more like the production intent vehicle than others. Sometimes your mule vehicle might be a competitor's vehicle if you're entering a new segment you haven't worked in before (think if ducati wanted to make sportscars they might use a ferrari chassis as a test mule for their engine program). This allows you to have less risk in the timeline for that specific program.
I might have seen them on Tuesday on my way to Baden-Baden but probably not 😅
I'm pretty sure I saw one of these in NJ a couple months ago
a saw the testing of the mercedes amg project one in december of 2021 in public road testing with the special painting
Wow!!! 😲 Where was that?
I had the honour to drive a BMW I8 testcar. it was riddled with sensor pins xD
I’ve seen the Aston Martin DBS Superleggera and current Range Rover testing as prototypes, they seem to test quite a few cars down my way. Both black, with a small decal on the back bumper with ‘prototype vehicle’. Presumably for the police since those cars didn’t officially exist yet.
i’ve already been seeing 992.2 prototypes driving around for quite a while
That's awesome! Can I ask what area you're in that you saw them?
@@AtypicalDriverin Karlsruhe, Germany. Pretty close to Stuttgart and the Weissach test track
Porsche owns a large prooving ground at Nardo in Italy and a smaller one at their development center Weissach near Zuffenhausen and Stuttgart
After having driven both a 911 992 carrera and a turbo s, I can say that every sunday I have a blast, obviously going 55! 😂