Driver Timo Bernhard actually broke the record twice in the same day.
There’s a reason people call it “The Green Hell.” The Nürburgring Nordschliefe comprises a 12.93-mile course with 154 corners, and is one of the most demanding race tracks in the world. It’s tricky to get around the loop quickly, let alone at a record-breaking pace. Yet, behind the wheel of a heavily modified Porsche 919 Hybrid Evo Le Mans racer, that’s exactly what Timo Bernhard managed. He managed a mind-blowing lap time of 5:19.545 minutes, smashing the previous record of 6:11.13 set in 1983. Bernhard managed an average speed of 145.3 mph on the record-breaking run.
Bernhard, a five-time Nürburgring 24-hours endurance champion and two-time Le Mans 24-hours champion, broke the previous record-holder, Stephen Bellof, by 51.58 seconds. Bellof set the record in qualifying for the 1,000 kilometer World Endurance Championship qualifying in a 600 horsepower 956 C. His average speed was over 120 mph.
5:19.55 minutes! Unbelievable! The #Porsche #919Hybrid Evo takes a record in the “Green Hell” @nuerburgring. More details soon in the Porsche Newsroom: https://t.co/Q9142DXn9V #919tribute pic.twitter.com/eWymXSgVl1
— Porsche Newsroom (@PorscheNewsroom) June 29, 2018
Over 1,000 horsepower, less than 2,000 pounds
The Porsche 919 Hybrid took the Le Mans 24-hour race and won the FIA World Endurance Championship in 2015, 2016 and 2017. To call this Evo version, which is based on that 919 racer, fast is a monumental understatement. The gas-electric powertrain develops 1,160 horsepower. The 919 Hybrid Evo has a turbocharged, 2.0-liter V4 engine that revs to 9,000 rpm and a KERS hybrid system (Kinetic Energy Recovery System). The engine produces 720 horsepower, Couple that with its weight – tipping the scales at just 849 kilograms, or 1,872 pounds, and you have a car capable of 230 mph on the Nürburgring. The car is primarily rear-wheel drive, only sending power to the front wheels when boosted. Power is routed through a seven-speed sequential racing transmission.
Porsche 919 Hybrid Evo will run at Goodwood
On the heels of Timo Bernhard’s record-smashing run, the Porsche 919 Hybrid Evo will run at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. That event takes please from July 12-15. As part of the “919 Tribute Tour”, it will also appear at the Porsche Rennsport Reunion in September. That event takes place at Laguna Seca from September 26-29.
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