Gallery: Racing a Slow Car Is a Real Thrill. Seriously.
Nissan01Highlights from the first-ever Nissan Micra Cup race
The Nissan Micra Cup is a new racing series using the affordable four-door subcompact.
Nissan02Deux courses exceptionnelles pour les débuts de la Coupe Nissan
From the outside, a pack of racing Micras looks like a herd of kittens on the warpath. From the inside, experience tells me it’s probably a damn riot.
Nissan03Nissan Micra Cup Race Car
You drone down straights in a tight, buzzsaw pack, hoping that the tiny change you made in the last corner—inches of position!—or maybe someone else’s missed shift, will gain you a foot or two in the next mile.
Nissan04Highlights from the first-ever Nissan Micra Cup race
In a car like the Micra, if you’re lucky enough to run at a fast track, you max out around 100 mph. It takes forever to get there.
Nissan05Nissan Micra Cup
The engine produces only 110 horsepower.
Nissan06Nissan Micra Cup
And the Micra weighs a not-exactly-sprightly 2,200 pounds.
Nissan07Highlights from the first-ever Nissan Micra Cup race
But with race tires and stiffened suspension, everyone has gobs of grip in corners, so the gas pedal becomes a binary switch. (Off: You’re braking. On: You’re not.)
Nissan08Nissan Micra Cup
There’s bumping and drafting and struggles for position at mind-bending speeds, like 45 mph.
Nissan09Nissan Micra Cup
Because the series runs a support race for the Canadian Grand Prix, competitors get to dip a toe in the big leagues, running a top-shelf circuit in front of an international crowd.
Nissan10Highlights from the first-ever Nissan Micra Cup race
For regular purposes, the Micra starts for about $8,000.
Nissan11Nissan Micra Cup
A racing-ready version will cost $17,000.
Nissan12Nissan Micra Cup
The whole mess makes you a better driver, more focused on minutiae, because in a series where all the cars are the same, the minutiae are everything.
