When is comes to cars, speed is everything. Whether it is achieved through horsepower, weight reduction, aerodynamics, handling, or all of the above, automotive manufacturers continue to push the envelope of technology to make cars faster. The Nürburgring is known as the benchmark standard for automotive performance testing, and since speed is more than simple 0-60 times, we decided to take a look at the ten best Nürburgring track times for production vehicles as of 2021.
10) Dodge Viper ACR – 7:01.03
While the ACR Viper was just a tad short of breaking the 7-minute mark, it is the fastest production vehicle with a manual transmission to go around the ‘Ring. This snake boasts an 8.4L V10 that puts out 645bhp and 600lb-ft of torque. The ACR (American Club Racing) was first introduced on the 1999 Dodge Viper and denotes a street-legal, more track ready version of the American sports car. Unfortunately, Dodge and performance brand SRT could never quite make the Viper work, and it was discontinued in 2017.
9) Ferrari 488 Pista – 7:00.03
Coming in at number nine and surprisingly the only prancing pony on this list is the Ferrari 488 Pista. Weighing 90kg less than the standard 488, the Pista is equipped with a 3.9-liter twin-turbo V8 putting out 710bhp and 568lb-ft of torque. Ferrari is no stranger to the track either and utilizes racing aerodynamics and Ferrari’s Dynamic Enhancer system to make this horse an absolute monster. 0-62mph is done in just 2.85 seconds and the top speed is at least 211mph. While impressive, those numbers still only get Ferrari to number nine on this list.
8) Lamborghini Aventador SV – 6:59.73
Lamborghini makes excellent and ridiculous supercars, so when they decided to add ‘Super Veloce’ to the Aventador nomenclature, a top ten Nürburgring time was almost guaranteed. A 6.5-liter short-stroke V12 produces 740bhp. Lamborghini’s electronically controlled 4-wheel drive is supported by their patented Dynamic Steering system and push-rod suspension which helps keep all 740 horses on the ground. This is the first car on our list to break the seven-minute mark, and it’s easy to see how.
7) Porsche 918 Spyder (Weissach) – 6:57.00
Last we checked, the Porsche 918 was the only of the big three hybrid supercars to circle the Nürburgring. McLaren and Ferrari have yet to post official lap times for the P1 and LaFerrari, direct competitors to the 918. The 918 has a combined 875bhp and 977lb-ft of torque being produced by the hybrid powertrain. This Porsche, outfitted with the Weissach package which lightens both the car and your wallet, made the run in just under seven minutes.
6) Porsche 911 GT3 RS (991.2) – 6:56.4
The Weissach package apparently turns any vehicle into a lightweight, lightning-fast rocket ship that exists for the sole purpose of breaking Nürburgring lap records. The RS version of the GT3 weighs just 1,400kg (3,086 pounds) and utilizes the same 4.0-liter flat-six found in the standard 911 GT3 which develops 513bhp and 346lb-ft of torque. This particular version of the GT3 RS beat the 918 Spyder by a fraction of a second.
5) Lamborghini Huracan Performante – 6:52.01
As we will see later in this list, it seems as though Porsche and Lamborghini are simply competing against one another for the fastest production car lap times. The Huracan Performante was designed as a track-focused Lambo, meaning it was probably rubbish on the street, but the 5.2-liter V10 propelled the raging bull to an astonishing sub-seven-minute lap.
4) Porsche 911 GT2 RS – 6:47.30
In 2017, the Germans struck back hard and knocked the Performante off of its perch with the GT2 RS. Porsche originally was looking for a 7:05 minute lap but ended up destroying that goal and beat the Huracan by nearly five whole seconds. Haters can complain that the Porsche ran on Michelin Pilot Cup 2 tires, which were designed specifically for this model, but they are standard, and they are street legal. The GT2 RS is the most expensive and performance-focused 911 in Porshce’s lineup, so the fact that it makes it so far up this list should not come as a surprise.
3) Lamborghini Aventador SVJ – 6:44.97
Less than a year after the GT2 RS took Lamborghini’s spot at the top of the Nordschleife heap, the Italians were back on top with a lap that came in at two second faster than the GT2. The Aventador SVJ was based off the Aventador SV, which also did the Nurburgring in under seven minutes. Utilizing a 760bhp version of Lamborghini’s 6.5-liter V12 engine, the former tractor maker put the ball back in Stuttgart’s court.
2) Mercedes AMG-GT Black Series – 6:43.616
While all of the bits on the AMG-GT are road legal and can be fitted to the street-going vehicle, engineers were on site to tweak the aero and chassis settings to optimize the AMG GT for the ‘Ring. A 720bhp 4.0-liter V8 is just one part of this track-focused hellhound of a sports car. The Black Series moniker is saved only for the most ridiculous of AMG’s vehicles, and that seems to have been proven with this lap time.
1) Porsche 911 GT2 RS Manthey-Racing – 6:43.00
While any car that has “racing” after it might seem like an asterisk in a list of production vehicle lap times, the car that put down this blistering lap was both road legal and used road legal settings. Porsche had sent another version around with Lars Kern who did it in 6:40 flat, but the tuning on that car was for track only. It is no coincidence that the GT2 RS shows up in the number four and the number one spot. Turns out all it needed to be the best was a little tune-up.
Obviously, the conclusion is that Germany and Italy know exactly what they are doing when it comes to sending production cars around a track at Mach 3. Speed will always be fun and hopefully car manufacturers continue to push the limits of physics and engineering to achieve even more impressive numbers in the future.
