4-551: Southern Hemisphere Proving Grounds ( SHPG ) is an international automotive proving facility based in New Zealand 's Cardrona area. It is the only one of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere, with its second operation undergoing development in southern Patagonia, Argentina . It covers 400ha of private land and usually operates during southern winter months. Global car manufacturers seek to test new models during
8-544: A designated area is usually called a "polygon". In the United States, there are several military facilities that have been explicitly designated as proving grounds. Automotive proving grounds or automotive test tracks serve the automotive industry for road vehicle testing. In the automotive development process, vehicle manufacturers typically test the behaviour of vehicles in various environments and traffic situations. Conventional vehicle testing usually focuses on
12-400: Is an installation or reservation in which technology such as weapons, military tactics and automobile prototypes are experimented with or tested. Proving grounds can be operated by government bodies or civilian industries. They are distinct from military training areas which are run by the military and intended for the routine training and exercising of troops across the terrain. In Russia,
16-778: The Northern Hemisphere summer. SHPG was established in the early 1990s, after Japanese motor companies Toyota and Sumitomo began inquiring for a suitable site for testing new engines and tyres in the southern snow. The facility operates under strict discretion for other clients and employs efforts to keep out of the public eye. SHPG also borders the Snow Farm , a cross-country ski resort. In 2013, SHPG bought neighbouring snowsports terrain park Snow Park NZ , which had for several years been financially struggling, and developed it into its after market ice driving event centre. Proving ground#Automotive A proving ground
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