Ehra-Lessien
Ehra-Lessien is a municipality in the Gifhorn district of Lower Saxony, Germany, formed by the villages of Ehra and Lessien and covering an area of 56.2 square kilometers with a population of around 1,600.[1][2] The locality gained international prominence due to the Ehra-Lessien proving ground, a vast private test facility owned by the Volkswagen Group situated approximately 20 kilometers north of Wolfsburg.[3][4] Construction of the proving ground began in 1967 and it officially opened in 1968, encompassing over 60 kilometers of specialized tracks including a high-speed oval with a 7.8-kilometer configuration enabling extreme velocity trials.[5] This site serves all Volkswagen Group marques for rigorous durability, performance, and safety evaluations, with its elongated straights facilitating production vehicle top-speed validations exceeding 400 kilometers per hour.[6] Notably, it has hosted multiple world records for fastest production cars, such as those achieved by Bugatti Veyron and Chiron models, underscoring its role in automotive engineering milestones despite challenges like lower elevation compared to high-altitude alternatives.[7][5] The facility's secluded location near the former East German border historically enhanced its discretion for proprietary testing.[8]Geography
Location and Administrative Division
Ehra-Lessien is a municipality located in the district (Landkreis) of Gifhorn in the state of Lower Saxony, Germany.[2][9] The municipality's geographical coordinates are approximately 52°34′ N, 10°47′ E.[2] Its postal code is 38468.[2] Administratively, Ehra-Lessien belongs to the Samtgemeinde Brome, a collective municipality that coordinates certain shared services among its member communities within the Gifhorn district.[10][11] The municipality itself comprises the villages of Ehra and Lessien.[12][13] In the German administrative hierarchy, it functions as a Gemeinde, the lowest tier of local government, subordinate to the Samtgemeinde, district, state, and federal levels.[9]