Was the high-temperature gobi of Karamay exciting enough? Was the all-road-condition, high-performance contest in Dafeng, Jiangsu satisfying enough? Here comes another chance: on December 7–8, the Kunlun Lubricant Cup · 2017 China Car Performance Competition (CCPC) will hold its closing battle at the world-class Inner Mongolia Yakeshi Ice and Snow Proving Ground.
The CCPC is a national Class-A event jointly launched by the China Automotive Technology and Research Center and the China Automobile and Motorcycle Sports Federation; this year is its third edition and a year of substantial upgrading. As the closing round, Yakeshi’s extremely cold challenge environment doubles the excitement of the competition — three highlights not to be missed:
Highlight 1: Extremely cold ice and snow — can the cars take it?
Yakeshi City is located in the central part of Hulunbuir City, Inner Mongolia, known worldwide as the “hometown of ice and snow,” and it has the world’s most professional winter proving ground. This round will fully test the “cold resistance” performance of all competing vehicles in high-cold weather and can be called a true “ice and snow decisive battle.” Once winter comes, temperatures here drop to minus 40 degrees Celsius; water thrown out freezes into ice, eyelashes frost over, and phones freeze and shut down — all part of daily life for locals. Low temperatures, however, bring difficult engine starting and lower transmission efficiency, and ice-and-snow roads increase energy loss… New energy vehicles in particular suffer from deteriorated battery discharge power and energy at extremely low temperatures, greatly affecting their driving range. All of this is enough to “wring out” the limits of a vehicle’s performance. So how will these race cars — exactly the same as those we use every day — perform? Will cars be “frozen stiff” in the extreme cold? Let us wait and see.
Highlight 2: Watch the race and gain knowledge at the same time!
Unlike conventional auto races that heavily modify vehicles and pursue a single metric, the China Car Performance Competition, hailed as the “Olympics of Chinese automobiles,” maximizes alignment with car owners’ usage scenarios in its event design.
To provide more referential data for people’s daily driving, this round sets up projects including emergency braking (ice surface), fixed-circle test (ice surface), venue time trial (snow surface) and serpentine slalom (snow surface); at temperatures near minus 30 degrees Celsius they will comprehensively test vehicle power, handling, braking and tire performance.
For example, the venue time trial of the Group K “Kunlun Lubricant King of Racing Challenge” is a dual test of the vehicle’s overall performance and the racer’s driving skills. The braking project will be held on ice, measuring a vehicle’s braking distance from 40 km/h to 0 and precisely showing how a car performs in emergency braking on winter ice-and-snow roads. The serpentine slalom held on compacted snow is a comprehensive test of vehicle handling and tire grip. Besides watching the vehicles and drivers perform, spectators can also learn first-class ice-and-snow driving skills — watching the race and “gaining knowledge” at the same time.
Highlight 3: “Nine-ball queen” Pan Xiaoting takes the stage to cheer
As a newly added event of the 2017 CCPC, the Kunlun Lubricant King of Racing Challenge has been hugely popular, and its image ambassador Pan Xiaoting has also attracted much attention. At this round, Pan Xiaoting will again come on site to cheer on the 15 “candidate kings” and witness this “speed and passion” ice-and-snow feast. It is reported that in July and September this year, Pan Xiaoting transformed into a “female war god,” waving the flag to start the Group K competition and cheering on the drivers at the Karamay and Dafeng rounds. At Karamay, arranged by the staff, Pan Xiaoting even personally rode along on the off-road track used specially for the competition and said it was very thrilling; the whole experience was not only a challenge to herself but also helped her release pressure. So what wonderful performances will our “nine-ball queen” deliver in the Yakeshi competition? Let us look forward to it!
It is understood that the Yakeshi round is fully covered both online and offline, with various live streams taking turns: Sina and LeSports will broadcast some competition events live in full. In addition, through the hosts’ cameras and with “Yizhibo” as the window, viewers can enjoy the exciting progress of the Kunlun Lubricant Cup · 2017 CCPC. For the specific schedule, everyone can keep up to date through Kunlun Lubricant’s official WeChat account.
At a circuit of minus 40 degrees, vehicles are about to sprint at full speed and drift with tail swings… Who will be conquered by the silver-clad extreme-cold snow plain? Don’t be anxious — on December 8 the answer will be revealed!
