Once upon a time 1,000+bhp was supercar territory only, these days it’s family saloons too
HERE’S A LAP RECORD WE BROKE EARLIER...
BACK IN JANUARY, PORSCHE set a blistering time of 7:07.55 around the Nürburgring in its new Taycan, eclipsing not just its own benchmark Ring record but that of its arch rival Tesla too.
For those who haven’t been following the ping pong battle of EV lap times betwixt Porsche and Tesla, there’s a really simple takeaway: the
new Taycan’s lap is only two seconds slower than a full blown 1,888bhp quad motor electric hypercar, and thus only two seconds off the quickest EV at the Ring.
The Rimac Nevera holds the current EV lap record with a time of 7:05.298, putting Lars Kern’s latest effort into context. More context arrives in the fact that it’s 26secs (“half an eternity in motorsport,” according to Taycan model line boss Kevin Giek) quicker than what the outgoing Taycan Turbo S Sport managed back in 2022, and 18 seconds faster than the Tesla Model S Plaid hit back with in 2023.
And Porsche has illustrated just how much quicker the new car is compared to the old one: the new Taycan crossed the finish line 0.8 miles ahead of the old car’s August 2022 attempt.
How soon before a) Tesla hits back, and b) Porsche finds another two seconds to beat the Nevera?
VP