Bosch European Motors

Every once in a while we experience something that is true bucket list stuff. We joined Porsche in Lapland for a day on snow and ice and this earned a spot on the GTspirit Bucket List! Let me tell and show you what went down. Every year major car manufacturers and private companies build camps in the European Arctic for winter testing and driving experiences. Porsche is no exception and for a few years now they travel to the Finnish town of Levi where they host the Porsche Winter Driving Experience. Levi is a popular Finnish winter destination and ski resort. The slopes not comparable to the Alps but enough for a few days of fun. From Kittila Airport it takes only 15 minutes to reach Levi and another 20 minutes to reach the Porsche Driving Experience camp. The last time we were in Levi was 8 years ago and the town has grown quite a bit. We stayed at the new Panorama hotel directly on the slopes of the ski resort with stunning views of the surrounding forests, mountains and lakes.

But enough about Levi, we are here to drift Porsches on ice! The Porsche Driving Experience is spread out over a huge area in the Finnish forests. Unlike many other ice driving events in the Arctic, Porsches tracks are not build on a frozen lake or river but on a sort of swamp land sprayed with water. This makes that the frozen race tracks over slight height differences and camber, something you won鈥檛 have on a lake. Upon arrival we realize how huge the area is, over 20 different ice tracks, drift circles and slalom courses are dotted around the area. Separated in a North and South area Porsche can accommodate up to 100 people per day. We arrive at a garage where 50 Porsche 911 Turbo S and Cayman GTS models are waiting for us. Porsche offers four different multiple-day driving events in Levi. Starting with Camp4 which is all about precision; learning how the car behaves on snow and ice and how to stay in control while having fun.

The next level is Camp4S which is more about performance. Assuming you know the basics about driving on snow and ice Camp4S shows how to handle the car on its limit. Both Camp4 and Camp4S participants drive with the Porsche 911 Carrera S with spikes. The next level is Porsche Ice-Force. Here participants learn to control a Porsche 911 Turbo by braking and accelerating. A combination of theory and driving on various handling tracks gives deeper insights in advanced vehicle control. Than finally there is Porsche Ice-ForceS where experienced drivers can raise their limits with the Porsche 911 Turbo, GT3 and other vehicles. In a mix of all-wheel drive and rear-wheel drive vehicles the driver is challenged to find the perfect line across the various handling tracks. All programs include three days of instruction and driving. Today we take part in a special program based on Porsche Ice-Force(S). I receive the keys for a 560hp 911 Turbo S with 4mm spikes and snow tires.

This all-wheel drive monster comes with Porsches PDK gearbox and Sport Chrono Package. We are guided to another part of the camp which will serve as base for our day there. After a small program and safety briefing the group is split in smaller groups and our instructor Yukka takes us to the first course. Due to the weight balance of the AWD rear-engine Porsche 911 Turbo a different technique is required to drift it and the first exercise couldn鈥檛 be a better start to learn this: slalom on ice. Accelerating off the line we are required to steer in for the first corner, tap the brakes briefly to shift the weight to the outside and accelerate to drift. Approaching the next corner, counter steer quickly and tap the brakes again to swing the back around to the other side. It soon feels like an automotive dance as we swing from side to side around the cones. The cones were quite close to each other so our first exercise was fairly low speed but the second course would all change that. We are taken to a large circle to practice our drift consistency.

The drift circle is a great place to see the all-wheel drive system in action. In comparison to a rear-wheel drive car it is a bit harder to drift but once you have it going you can reduce your steering inputs to the minimum and almost keep the wheels straight. Balancing the drift is entirely done by the throttle, more throttle makes the circle wider, less throttle makes the circle smaller. Being gentle on the throttle and steering is rewarded with a smooth never-ending drift. But enough with the exercise, time for the real action! We head back to the base and swap our 911 Turbo S for a rear-wheel drive Cayman GTS. To give the Cayman a bit more grip it has 5mm spikes instead of 4. We head out to a little track on the far end of the camp. Every track has a little paddock where you can stop and change drivers and every track also has a Cayenne on stand-by to pull any cars out of the snow besides the track. The Porsche Cayman GTS is fundamentally different on snow and ice than the all-wheel drive 911 Turbo.