One German Automaker to Become Lord of the 'Ring, But Who?
Nissan. Cadillac. Chevrolet. All brag about being the Lord of the ‘Ring, upsetting the German automakers to no end. Yet, one of them may still have the last laugh through the act of saving the Nürburgring from certain doom.
Back in 2012, the famed testing ground-cum-circuit entered into bankruptcy proceedings after the previous owners blew $500 million on a roller coaster to nowhere and a dead mall, then failed to turn any sort of profit to keep the track itself from going belly-up. Since then, the German government has entertained offers from various bidders with at least $161 million — the asking price for complete ownership of the historic landmark — to spare.
The latest word on the street is that either Volkswagen, Daimler or BMW may be the one to claim the ‘Ring as their precious jewel; Volkswagen’s Porsche already owns the Nardo testing facility in Italy. Another contender is ADAC, who has a long history with the track going back to 1927, when the track first opened.
Whomever does end up owning the circuit, they will have to promise to keep the track open to the public and (if purchased by one of the aforementioned automakers) competing automakers, and to maintain the infrastructure throughout the 13 miles that make up the Nürburgring.
More by TTAC Staff
Comments
Join the conversation
I can already see the hilarity: Whichever of the German Big Three buys the track, it's only available to the others on rainy or other bad weather days.
If I were Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Alsaud, I'd buy the Nurburgring just for myself. I'd then keep Sabine Schmitz as my German concubine and personal driver. The fact that women are not allowed to drive in my own country would be an irony I'd fail to grasp.
I hope Burger King buys the 'ring.
Naming rights alone! The new Cadilac SUX6000 has a class dominating time around the "BMW Ultimate Driving Machine" Nurbrgerkingonionring.