Ford of Europe has recently finished constructing a new speed oval at the Lommel Proving Grounds in Belgium. The previous oval, known as Runway 5, had been in operation since 1965 and was retired after 57 years of use in testing and refining vehicles.
Initially, the oval had three lanes set at various angles, with an additional lane added in the 1990s that was covered in asphalt and featured a curved profile. However, with advancements in technology and testing, it was time for Runway 5 to receive an upgrade.
In 2022, construction on the new Runway 5 began in earnest. The process required 4,000 trucks to remove the old asphalt, bring in new support materials, and lay down 41,000 tons of new asphalt. This was just the start of the project.
The new oval features two straights and two banked turns, and to achieve the parabolic angles, engineers utilized a special machine that was one of only two in the world capable of laying three strips of asphalt simultaneously in the required shape.
The oval is 2.6 miles long in total. The challenge was further increased by the need for a perfectly smooth surface, with no joints, as it’s used for development work and durability testing, and cars frequently lap at speeds above 124 mph.
Ford states that the new surface of Runway 5 is three times flatter than before, and the width of the lanes has been modified to accommodate the development and testing of driver assistance features. Lane 5 of Runway 5 was specifically engineered so that a car can maintain a steady speed of 104 mph without any steering input.
To enhance safety, the upgrade also includes improved exterior safety rails and cable barriers. The entire project is a part of Ford’s $25 million investment into Lommel Proving Grounds, which will be used to test new electric vehicles and assist in the development of EV infrastructure. At the recent opening of the new oval, around 300 staff members from the Ford Lommel Proving Grounds were in attendance.
