Porsche 919 Nürburgring: Lap Time Shredded

The Porsche 919 Hybrid Evo has shredded the Nürburgring lap time set three decades ago by Stefan Bellof.

I mean, seriously. This thing is so fast it barely registered with me, I thought it was fake news. But it sunk in that the lap record for the Ring is now firmly in the low five minute range.

Porsche 919 Tribute

Porsche’s 919 Hybrid Evo is currently on something of a victory lap of the planet, knocking off records as it goes. Following Porsche’s withdrawal from the World Endurance Championship’s LMP1 class, the company is milking the 919’s fame without all the pesky expense of actually racing the damn thing.

The 919 took Porsche to three Le Mans 24 Hours wins in a row, three WEC Championships and three WEC Driver’s championships. It was fast, it was successful, it was dominant.

And, on its farewell tour, it’s made the biggest splash of all.

5:19.546 around the Nurburgring

This time will stand for quite a few years. That’s partly because, in true Porsche Ring-attacking fashion, the car isn’t “standard.” Before you kick off, I don’t mind that one little bit. It would still have knocked off the previous time, just not by as much.

Now that it doesn’t have to comply with pesky racing rules, Porsche has made a few choice mods. First up, it’s running 39kg under its racing weight at 849kg. Amusingly, some of the mods feel like the delete options from the 911 GT2 RS package that set the road car record. Out went the air-conditioning (no, really!), windscreen wiper and pneumatic jacks.

The engine is the same 2.0-litre V4, but without the fuel restrictor power jumped to 537 kW (730 PS). The electric system’s recovery rose to 8.49 megajoules meaning an additional 328 kW (446 PS). So it’s got around 1200PS, which is a lot more than the race.

And just to make sure, the front and rear wings are massive, along with a DRS-style system to reduce drag in a straight line – the 919 touched 370km/h at the Ring, which would never have happened with the standard aero.

So anyway. That’s enough from me. Watch Timo Bernhard take the Porsche 919 Hybrid Evo to the best Nurburgring lap time ever.

Peter Anderson

Peter Anderson is the Editor and founder of the theredline.com.au. He’s been writing about cars for years and finds it difficult to talk about anything else.