SVR 700 mile round-trip thru Devil's Hwy
 

No better way to really get to know your car then spending valuable seat time with her. :)

I've been on several road trips (about 200 milers) since acquiring my SVR 6 months ago. All have been great fun but this past weekend I truly fell in love with her and have a new found respect for what this SVR is all about.
For those not familiar, there is a famous (or infamous depending how your trip went!) road in Eastern Arizona called Devils Hwy (formerly route 666, now 191, also known as the Coronado Trail). It covers about 130 miles of pure twisties, ranging from 10 mph thru 45 mph and little straight-away's for easy triple digit blasts, rolling up and down three mtn ranges. Round trip of 260 miles for the Devil and the other 400+ round-trip miles to get there are also very fun (Phoenix to Payson to Alpine).

I have to admit, I was a little skeptical on the ability of the SVR, with such tight twisties for that long a period of time, I figured the weight would hamper some of the fun as I wrestled her around corner to corner. I couldn't have been more wrong...she performed beautifully! In fact, the SVR felt like it was in its sweet-spot, lunging from corner to corner in mostly 1st, 2nd to 3rd gear shifts, body weight barely noticeable with the AWD clawing thru each corner effortlessly. Turn-in was exceptional and grip was always there. In fact, some of the high-speed triple digit sweepers on the way to Devil's Hwy were a little more nerve racking. I don't feel the suspension at high speeds thru quickly changing sweepers is as confidence inspiring as other vehicles I've driven. The backend feels like it wants to unload during body weight transfer even though it stays glued. With that said, thru the tight stuff the SVR was easily in its element vs the new BMW M4 Compack, Shelby GT350, a 911, NSX and others...and it owned the straight-aways! The sound of the SVR's exhaust (and the GT 350 for that matter) bouncing off the canyon walls had all the other drivers falling in love as well!

The SVR really lives up to its "GT" status with more track focused abilities than I initially thought. The cabin, thru the entire 700 miler, is truly a great, high-class, comfortable place to spend time. And I know there is debate on the Meridian 770 but it sounds fantastic to me...although the exhaust was playing the best tunes.

Some pic's to go along with the post. Can't wait for the next driving adventure.

I have ridden that road several times years ago. but on a touring motorcycle. It is an amazing place to put any vehicle through its paces. I wouldn't mind making the trip again in a proper Jag.

Incredible riding that on a bike I bet! One of the guys with us rode the entire trip on his Yamaha R1. He was toast the following few days. :)

Sweet. I moved to PHX last Sept and drove the dragon in Feb, not having realized it will still be cold up there. While is was fun, it was not anywhere near the limits of my driving capability. Definitely a must do again now.

Would love a club/group drive. Do any of the owners get together regularly?

A

Well, with the Summer upon us (112 today!) not many car gatherings taking place. However, as soon as the weather breaks, the first Saturday of every month from 8am - 10am is Cars & Coffee in Scottsdale at the "Scottsdale 101". SW corner of 101 & Scottsdale Rd. Fabulous collection of autos. Exotics to muscle cars, everything will show up, park in the "British Car" section.

Also, on the third Saturday of every month is Cars at Casa's right off Ray Rd & the I-10. SE corner, in the Casa Paloma Shopping area. Not as big as Scottsdale but its been growing.

Both locations are good for finding folks that go on drives. I'll be in a black SVR...contact me any time, I have a decent group that runs thru the canyons. :)

Yeah...if they can sort out that rear suspension that would be fantastic. I had a couple of Cadillac CTS-V's with the Magnetic suspension...simply phenomenal, and they weighed about 400lbs more!!

Tail of the Dragon....good stuff there!

Looks like incredible landscape, and I'll never go there [ live in Western Europe]. But to give some reference, we have comparable terrain in Europe, for example the south of Portugal ;

https://www.google.nl/maps/@37.35060...7i13312!8i6656

.. all the way to the south of Spain, where there even is a comparable open pit mine to add to the drama.. ;

https://www.google.nl/maps/@37.70174...7i13312!8i6656

And so we learn a bit geography on the go.. :icon_angel:

Dan_NL that looks like a great driving location, and yes, similar to AZ right down to the mine! :) I've been lucky to have driven many miles in Europe myself, mainly Italy, France and a little in Spain.
One of the best was when I left Saint Tropez heading to Barcelona.
You take the D558 route back to the main HWY A8...epic road! There was even a Porsche club run going on as I passed over 60 Porsche's, mainly 911's, heading towards St Tropez.
Can't wait to get back over there.

@VR46.
I think for you the D558 holds other memories then just plain driving.. :icon_goofygrin: , I guess you had some nice company around at the time..
Just this stretch in the Pyrinees is already better, although you have to be early in the morning as with traffic its a bore..

https://www.google.nl/maps/@42.37363...7i13312!8i6656

Next summer I want to drive from the Tjech Republic westbound through the Alps, down to Menton and Monaco, west to Spain, through the Pyrenees to Irun..
Then continue in the Picos de Europa. From their its not defined yet. We could go straight to the south of Portugal or continue winding along the Portugese/Spanish border southbound..

We didn't plan the details but a rough guess is 70 mountain passes and over 3 weeks driving.. All to celebrate my son then graduated from highschool.. :icon_captain:

I plan to make road movies and upload them every night if possible. I will start a dedicated youtube channel four you all to follow if you want.. Maybe find inspiration for a trip
covering the same stretch or sections of it..

Sweet. I've been to the Scottsdale C&C a few times. Will look for you next time I'm there and would love to go on a group run through the canyons.

A

So how much?
How much just for engine upgrades only?
Can be done from the R, instead of SVR?