Not feeling festive? You need to visit this GP circuit

You’ve heard of track days. But track nights? That’s a new one. Especially at a circuit like Silverstone: home of the British grand prix and some of the fastest corners in motorsport.

But not tonight. This evening we’re taking it a little more slowly – barely breaking 8 km/h in our Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid Sport Turismo.

There is, of course, a good reason for the temporary speed limit. Because as a festive treat the entire circuit has been transformed into a spectacular, drive-through light show. These are Christmas lights, Silverstone style.

The Lap of Lights – now in its second year – features 440 laser beams and 400,000 lights, all representing scenes from Santa’s globe-hopping journey around the world on Christmas Eve. Best of all, you can drive around in the comfort and safety of your own car, with friends and family.

Gliding onto the circuit in E-Power mode, we begin our electrified lap in darkness at the famous Brooklands corner, sweeping (slowly, our icy-white headlights showing the way) through Luffield, Woodcote and Copse where the illuminations begin.

From here onwards you’ll see huge, flashing pyramids for Egypt, big rigs and candy canes for the US, overhead lanterns for Asia, icebergs and polar bears for the Arctic and many other scenes. Plus sky-scanning lasers, smoke machines and all sorts of colourful projections on the track itself.

The Lap of Lights runs at Silverstone until 3 January. There’s also an open-air ice rink in the circuit’s pit complex, and – last but not least – Santa Claus, waving merrily from his lodge at the end of the lap.

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Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid Sport Turismo: Fuel consumption combined: 3.0 – 2.9 l/100 km; CO2 emissions combined: 69 - 65 g/km; electricity consumption combined: 24.9 - 24.4 kWh/100 km; range combined: 46 - 47 km, range city: 49 - 50 km (WLTP); fuel consumption combined: 2.8 l/100 km; CO2 emissions combined: 63 g/km, electricity consumption combined: 22.8 kWh/100 km (NEDC)