It’s official, a new Guinness World Record for fastest slalom time has been set by 16-year old Chloe Chambers who managed to slice through 50 evenly placed cones in just 47.45 seconds. Chambers, with…
Talented 16-year old kart racer Chloe Chambers just set a Guinness World slalom Record while driving a new 2020 Porsche 718 Spyder.
It’s official, a new Guinness World Record for fastest slalom time has been set by 16-year old Chloe Chambers who managed to slice through 50 evenly placed cones in just 47.45 seconds.
Chambers, with five years of kart racing under her belt, joined up with Porsche to achieve the feat, and did so at the wheel of a 2020 Porsche 718 Spyder, smashing the previous record of 48.11 seconds set in 2018 by Jia Qiang, who was driving a Chevrolet Camaro.
“It looks easy, but it’s really not – to weave between 50 cones as fast as possible, trying to beat a record time and knowing I couldn’t touch a single one for the run to count – I definitely felt the pressure,” said Chambers. “Everything came together on my final run; the car worked beautifully and I found the grip I needed. Thank you to my family and to Porsche for supporting and believing in me.”
Chambers looking confident at the wheel of Porsche’s 414-hp 718 Spyder.
The 718 Spyder is powered by a special naturally-aspirated 414 horsepower 4.0-litre “boxer” six-cylinder engine that comes complete with a lofty 8,000-rpm capability (and 7,600-rpm redline), while it’s exclusively mated up to a six-speed manual transmission. Like the 718 Boxster roadster and 718 Cayman coupe, the 718 Spyder mounts its motor just ahead of the rear wheels for an optimal mid-engine layout, making it particularly adept at high-speed handling.
The 718 Spyder, which shares mechanicals with the 718 Cayman GT4, also incorporates a “track-bred” Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) system including adaptive dampers, helper springs at the rear axle, plus a 30-mm (1.18-inch) ride height reduction when compared to the standard 718 Boxster or 718 Cayman.
Chambers signed this Guinness World Records hat with a record-setting slalom time of 47.45 seconds.
“We couldn’t be more proud that Chloe set the record,” said Klaus Zellmer, President and CEO of Porsche Cars North America. “From the whole Porsche family, we send our heartfelt congratulations – we’re pleased to have been able to support Chloe with her ambitious record attempt and share her relief that it was successful.”
It was just last fall that we reported on the sensational Porsche 911 GT2 RS MR setting a street-legal lap record at the famed Nürburgring Norschleife, which only remained beaten by Porsche’s own 919…
The 2019 Porsche 911 GT2 RS stormed to a Road America production car lap record of 2:15.17 minutes. (Photo: Porsche)
It was just last fall that we reported on the sensational Porsche 911 GT2 RS MR setting a street-legal lap record at the famed Nürburgring Norschleife, which only remained beaten by Porsche’s own 919 Hybrid EVO modified World Endurance Championship (WEC) race car, and now the world’s most successful sports car manufacturer has set a new production vehicle record on the highly challenging Road America circuit in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin.
The 6.5-km (4.04-mile), 14-turn road course combines plenty of high-speed straights, radically sharp corners and a fair number of elevation changes, and is therefore the perfect play area for any Porsche 911, although it’s even more ideal for the track-dominating 2019 911 GT2 RS.
Plenty of long straights combined with no shortage of tight curves make Road America an ideal playground for the GT2 RS. (Photo: Porsche)
In an attempt to remove the Road America lap record mantle from a GT2 RS privateer that laid down a scorching 2:17.04 banker last year, the 700 horsepower GT2 RS stole the limelight with a new record-setting time of 2:15.17 minutes, slicing almost two seconds (1.87 sec) off the previous lap record.
Making the day even more interesting, Porsche also showed what its 911 GT3 RS could do on the same track with the same driver, 24 Hours of Daytona and Le Mans class winner David Donohue. Despite being almost 200 horsepower less potent than the GT2 RS, yet given an even more alluring soundtrack thanks to a higher revving engine that nears 9,000 rpm at full song, the 911 GT3 RS pulled off a Road America lap time of 2:18.57 minutes, and needed just three laps to do so, which was one lap shy of what the GT2 RS required.
The 911 GT3 RS, shown here on the Road Atlanta track, did very well to stay close to the GT2 RS despite being down nearly 200 hp. (Photo: Porsche)
While tracking nearly four seconds off the pace would certainly look like a massive gap if the two cars were racing each other simultaneously, the GT3 RS’ ability to stay as close as it did on a track with such long straights and numerous 90-degree turns says a lot about its cornering prowess.
Both the GT2 and GT3 RS were shod with road-legal, Porsche-approved Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 R N0 tires, which are optional upgrades for RS owners, while this event’s lap time was recorded and validated by Racelogic, as was the vehicle telemetry.
The 911 GT2 RS takes flight during its record-breaking Road Atlanta run. (Photo: Porsche)
Also notable, this 911 GT2 RS set another production car racetrack record at the even more circuitous Road Atlanta circuit in Braselton, Georgia last month with Randy Pobst at the wheel, this time delivering a lap time of only 1:24.88 minutes, which outpaced the previous record-setting Corvette ZR1 by almost 2 seconds, as well as the previously noted Porsche 911 GT3 RS by 1.36 seconds.
It seems like Porsche is smashing global track records at an unprecedented pace lately, no doubt because of this car’s eventual retirement when the all-new 2020 911 arrives later this year. Then again, being that a new GT2 RS based on the redesigned 911 is probably not going to arrive anytime soon, we’ll likely see more broken track records by the current model in the coming months.
While we’re waiting for these to make news, make sure to check out our comprehensive photo gallery of the 911 GT2 RS and 911 GT3 RS on the Road America and Road Atlantic tracks above, plus in-car videos of these record-breaking events below:
Porsche 911 GT2 RS sets production car lap record at Road America – David Donohue onboard camera (2:25):
911 GT3 RS completes Road America lap in just 2:18,57 minutes (2:28):
Porsche 911 GT2 RS Record Lap at Road Atlanta – Highlight Film with Randy Pobst Onboard Camera (2:18):
Porsche 911 GT2 RS sets production car lap record at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta (1:39):
Onboard video of the 911 GT3 RS at the Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta (1:36):
This isn’t the first time a street-legal Porsche broke a lap record on the famed Nürburgring-Norschleife, and we’re pretty sure it won’t be the last either. Back in April of this year we reported…
This Porsche 911 GT2 RS MR, specially tuned by Manthey-Racing, just became the fastest street-legal car to lap the Nürburgring-Norschleife at just 6:40:33. (Photo: Porsche)
This isn’t the first time a street-legal Porsche broke a lap record on the famed Nürburgring-Norschleife, and we’re pretty sure it won’t be the last either.
Back in April of this year we reported on the amazing new Porsche 911 GT3 RS breaking the seven-minute mark with a time of 6:56.40, but on Thursday, October 25 it was the even more formidable GT2 RS MR lapping the 20.6-km (12.8-mi) circuit in a mere 6:40.33 minutes, knocking 6.95 seconds off the September 2017 lap time of the non-MR tuned GT2 RS.
Lars Kern, the 31-year-old development engineer and race driver who first piloted the 911 GT2 RS to its now broken record, was once again at the wheel, which makes this most recent result a more accurate representation of the two cars’ performance thanks to taking some driver discrepancy out of the equation.
The 911 GT2 RS produces an incredible 700 hp, making it the most powerful and fastest production 911 of all time. (Photo: Porsche)
“The drive was great fun,” said Kern, who is very familiar with the ‘Ring’ due to plenty of test drivers, record runs and VLN races. “The balance of the car is also very good with the new package. I did not have to take any great risks to be fast. But I only had one attempt because it was already getting dark. It worked out first time though.”
Both 911 GT2 RS models produce the same incredible 700 horsepower, making this model the most powerful and fastest production 911 of all time, but the MR was set up by Manthey-Racing specifically for tackling the Nürburgring-Norschleife, and the 160-plus strong motorsports team knows a lot about shaving seconds from the popular German racetrack near the Belgian border.
“We are very proud,” said Manthey-Racing CEO Nicolas Raeder. “It was a great challenge to make the already tremendously fast Porsche 911 GT2 RS even faster.”
Of course, conditions were dry, allowing Kern to make the most of his record lap run. Esso supplied the fuel, while the only major modification made to the car was the addition of a racing-spec driver’s seat that can be ordered from Manthey-Racing if choosing to upgrade to their GT2 RS MR club sport and track day special. According to Porsche the seat was only fitted to alleviate safety concerns, and didn’t subtract any weight from the stock GT2 RS.
The 911 GT2 RS MR was set up by Manthey-Racing specifically for tackling the Nürburgring-Norschleife. (Photo: Porsche)
“We kept our eye on the weather all day and thought hard about whether such a drive was possible. We would not have taken any risks if it was raining or if the track was slightly damp,” says Dr. Frank-Steffen Walliser, Head of Motorsport and GT Cars.
Of note, the otherwise stock 911 GT2 RS featured Manthey-Racing’s new performance kit that includes minor chassis and aerodynamics modifications. Thanks to being set up specifically for the Nürburgring-Norschleife circuit’s characteristics, this MR-specified model became the fastest road-legal vehicle to ever lap ‘The Green Hell’ track.
“In this test drive, we simply wanted to assess the potential of the vehicle once more,” added Walliser. “The result is quite impressive. It really is a fabulous time. This shows again very clearly the exciting possibilities of this sports car.”
The record-setting car was driven by 31-year-old Lars Kern, who also set the previous 911 GT2 RS record last year. (Photo: Porsche/Gruppe C Photography)
The stock GT2 RS, which debuted in June 2017 at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in West Sussex, England, uses a twin-turbo 3.8-litre version of Porsche’s legendary horizontally opposed six-cylinder engine to make 700 horsepower at a lofty 7,000 rpm (that’s an astonishing 184.2 horsepower per litre) and 553 lb-ft from 2,500 to 4,500 rpm.
Thanks in part to weighing just 1,470 kilograms (3,241 pounds) the rear-wheel drive GT2 RS is capable of sprinting from standstill to 100km/h in a shocking 2.8 seconds, can achieve in-gear acceleration from 80 to 120 km/h in just 1.5 seconds, and attain a top speed of 340 km/h (211.2 mph). Amazingly, this road-going production GT2 RS is capable of a very reasonable 15.4 L/100km in the city, 11.3 on the highway and 13.5 combined, important for a car that also gets used for endurance racing.
The new Porsche 911 GT2 RS is now available from $334,000 (see all 2018 Porsche 911 pricing including the 911 GT2 RS at CarCostCanada, plus access money saving rebate info and dealer invoice pricing that could save you thousands).
Before you go, make sure to check out our photo gallery as well as some incredible video footage of the entire record-setting lap from within the 911 GT2 RS MR cockpit:
New record: 911 GT2 RS MR laps the Nürburgring Norschleife in 6:40.3 minutes. (7:14):
Infiniti had more reasons to celebrate than just Canada Day on July 1, 2018, because extremely strong June sales resulted in the best month it has ever recorded. The Japanese luxury brand increased…
Infiniti’s largest QX80 SUV grew its sales by 13.7 percent in June. (Photo: Infiniti)
Infiniti had more reasons to celebrate than just Canada Day on July 1, 2018, because extremely strong June sales resulted in the best month it has ever recorded.
The Japanese luxury brand increased nationwide deliveries to 1,398 units last month, which represents a 16.3-percent year-over-year increase as well as an all-time monthly sales record.
As you might expect, sport utility vehicles were key to its success, with the brand’s largest QX80 growing its sales by 13.7 percent in June.
Infiniti’s most popular QX60 mid-size luxury crossover achieved 567 sales in June, resulting in a new monthly record. (Photo: Infiniti)
Additionally, Infiniti’s most popular QX60 mid-size luxury crossover achieved 567 sales, this resulting in a new monthly record as well as 14.5 percent growth when compared to June 2017.
June was also a big month for the QX50 compact luxury crossover, which arrived as a completely redesigned 2019 model halfway through the month and therefore benefited from 335 Canadian deliveries for its best June ever, not to mention 119 percent year-over-year growth.
The all-new QX50 sold 335 units in its first half month for its best June ever, while also achieving 119 percent YoY growth. (Photo: Infiniti)
Even the discontinued QX70 crossover found traction in June, its sales rising by 19.1 percent, while the ever-popular Q50 sport-luxury sedan also received a bump in popularity, finding 2.3 percent more buyers than it did a year ago.
The Q50 helped keep Infiniti’s car sales from sliding farther backward than the -2.5 percent slip they experienced in June, whereas SUV sales grew by a substantive 23.3 percent.
That said Infiniti cars are the big winners so far this year, with 2018 year-to-date deliveries at the close of Q2 resulting in +9.2 percent compared to -8.5 for SUVs.
Porsche is certainly celebrating its 70th year in style. Earlier this month it debuted the wonderful 356 ‘No. 1’ Roadster concept, which combined some of the best new technologies the automaker currently…
This Porsche 919 Hybrid Evo Tribute derestricted LMP1 WEC race car achieved the best all-time Nürburgring track record, chopping a minute and a half off the previous fastest lap time. (Photo: Porsche)
Porsche is certainly celebrating its 70th year in style. Earlier this month it debuted the wonderful 356 ‘No. 1’ Roadster concept, which combined some of the best new technologies the automaker currently offers with retrospective design inspiration from the original 356 sports car that put the Stuttgart-based brand on the road, track and map in 1948, but 2018 has also been a year to honour its motorsport success.
After securing its third consecutive World Endurance Championship (WEC) title with its LMP1 class dominating 919 Hybrid in November of last year, Porsche created a special 1,200-horsepower 919 Hybrid Evo Tribute car for showing the world the breathtaking capability of its sports car prototype.
The 1,200-hp Porsche 919 Hybrid Evo lapped the 20.8-km Nürburgring-Nordschleife race course in just 5:19.55 minutes. (Photo: Porsche)
On April 9, Porsche factory driver Neel Jani broke the Spa Francorchamps lap record, which was previously held by four-time Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton at the wheel of his Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport F1 W08. Despite being up against one of the most decorated racing drivers of all time in one of the most successful F1 cars ever created, Jani and his specially tuned derestricted 919 Evo managed a blistering 1:41.770 minutes around the revered Belgian road course, besting Hamilton’s record by 0.783 seconds.
Two-times Le Mans winner and reigning WEC champion Timo Bernhard piloted the 919 Hybrid on its record-winning lap. (Photo: Porsche)
Most recently Porsche had its sights on Germany’s “Green Hell”, otherwise known as the Nürburgring-Nordschleife, with two-times Le Mans winner and reigning WEC champion Timo Bernhard at the wheel. Their June 29th result was a best-ever track time of 5:19.55 minutes over the 20.8-kilometre-long course, smashing the previous non-production car lap time of 6:11.13 minutes by just over a minute and a half (91.58 seconds). This marks the first time anyone has broken the six-minute barrier, while doing so by such a wide margin would have been unfathomable in decades past.
Trouncing the previous 35-year old record in such commanding style gave the Porsche 919 Hybrid Evo Tribute team plenty of reasons for celebration. (Photo: Porsche)
On that note, the previous record had held for 35 years. It was originally achieved on May 28, 1983 by Stefan Bellof in a Porsche 956 C, which while a legendary sports prototype car in its own right, having led the challenging Circuit de la Sarthe track at Le Mans from start to finish in its first 1982 outing with Jacky Ickx and Derek Bell at the wheel, a race that further saw a trio of factory Porsches finished 1-2-3, it could have never matched the performance of this modern-day 2015, 2016 and 2017 Le Mans 24-hour race winner.
Porsche had hardly come down from the high of achieving a fourth-place Nürburgring finish amongst production cars with a lap of 6:56.4 minutes in its new 911 GT3 RS. (Photo: Porsche)
While this is certainly impressive, possibly even more convincing of Porsche’s dominant performance is the strength of its bone stock production cars when they hit the track. In September of last year, Porsche regained the number one position for production cars on the Nürburgring-Nordschleife, with Lars Kern pushing its 911 GT2 RS to a best-overall lap time of 6:47.25, while only in April of this year it managed a shocking 6:56.4 in the new naturally aspirated 911 GT3 RS, resulting in a fourth place finish. This pushed the Porsche 918 Spyder into fifth, although its time of 6:57 minutes still maintains its record as the fastest hybrid electric production car to ever circle the ring.
Earlier this month the Porsche GT Team (92), piloting a 911 RSR, won its GTE Pro class at the 2018 24 hours of Le Mans with Michael Christensen, Kevin Estre and Laurens Vanthoor at the wheel. (Photo: Porsche)
Even though the 919 Hybrid is now retired from World Endurance Championship racing, of the 17 cars entered into this year’s 24 hours of Le Mans GTE Pro category four were Porsche 911 RSR coupes, while six more Porsche 911 RSRs raced in the GTE Am class. Even more impressive, after a punishing 24 hours of grueling competition was completed the first two GTE Pro category podium tiers were occupied by 911 RSR drivers from the Porsche GT team, while Patrick Dempsey’s (yes, Doctor Dreamy from Grey’s Anatomy) Dempsey – Proton Racing #77 911 RSR took the top spot in the GTE Am class.
Another Porsche 911 RSR, managed by Dempsey Proton Racing (77) and driven by Julien Andlauer, Matt Campbell and Christian Ried won its GTE Am class at Le Mans on June 12. (Photo: Porsche)
We’ve included an awesome action-packed video of the Porsche 911 RSR at this year’s Le Mans down below, as well as one showing the incredible 919 Hybrid earning its third consecutive WEC championship in Shanghai, but if you’ve only got time for one make sure to check out the amazing in-car footage of the 919 Hybrid Evo Tribute car achieving its record-setting Nürburgring-Nordschleife lap below, with one of many highlights showing the engine nudging up against its redline down the Döttinger Höhe straight at 368 km/h, or watch a shorter narrated compilation showing drive-by and in-car footage of the same event:
The 919 Tribute Tour: On-board record lap, Nordschleife (5:48):
The 919 Tribute Tour. New king of the ring. (2:10):
Triple – Porsche at the FIA WEC 6h of Shanghai (2:11):
Porsche at Le Mans 2018. (3:16):
For many automotive enthusiasts a lap around the famed Nürburgring Nordschleife racetrack is a top-10 bucket list item, but for Porsche works race driver Kévin Estre it was just another day at the office. …
The new 520-hp Porsche 911 GT3 RS just knocked 24 seconds off its predecessor’s Nürburgring Nordschleife lap time for an amazing 6:56.40 officially timed lap. (Photo: Porsche)
For many automotive enthusiasts a lap around the famed Nürburgring Nordschleife racetrack is a top-10 bucket list item, but for Porsche works race driver Kévin Estre it was just another day at the office.
No doubt an intense day, or at least an intense six minutes, fifty-six and four one-hundredth seconds, or rather 6:56.40.
That number means the new 2019 911 GT3 RS joins an elite group of production cars capable of lapping the Nürburgring Nordschleife in less than seven minutes, while at least as importantly to Porsche and its legions of dedicated Porschephiles, this achievement signifies an impressive 24-second improvement over the previous 911 GT3 RS.
Porsche works driver Kévin Estre (right) achieved the record time, resulting from two personal attempts and two by Lars Kern, who holds the overall lap record. (Photo: Porsche)
Porsche also holds title to the current lap record, its 911 GT2 RS managing the 20.6-km (12.8-mi) racecourse in just 6:47.25 with Lars Kern at the wheel, while earlier in the same month of September 2017, Marc Lieb pushed the mid-engine plug-in hybrid 918 Spyder to a 6:57.00 result, making it the fastest hybrid-electric vehicle to ever navigate the circuit.
That’s three Porsches in the top six, an amazing accomplishment that’s even more shocking when factoring in two of the others aren’t even production cars (both produced by British racing car constructor Radical). When measured against production cars alone, Porsche occupies three of the top four spots with Lamborghini holding the other position, its second-place Huracán LP 640-4 Performante having managed a 6:52.01 lap time in 2016.
The Nürburgring Nordschleife is a treacherous racetrack, but the 911’s compliant suspension and overall performance has always suited it well. (Photo: Porsche)
And how does the much-vaunted Nissan GT-R rate? A Nismo-trimmed version put up a respectable time of 7:08.68 back in 2013, but the model hasn’t been officially timed since then. Still, this makes it seventh fastest amongst production cars and 11th overall, although according to numerous reports quoting Nissan employees that took part in the event, the GT-R Nismo being used was specially tuned just for the Nürburgring Nordschleife track, featuring larger spoilers for more downforce, softer dampers to deal with the rough road surfaces, upgraded brake pads, non-stock bucket seats that decreased its weight by 50 kilos (110 lbs), and a revised ECU map. In other words, it wasn’t stock.
The Nürburgring Nordschleife spans 20.6-km, making it one of the longest racetracks currently in existence, and its pavement surface is far from smooth. (Photo: Porsche)
In case you were wondering, amongst true production cars a Dodge Viper ACR holds sixth place with a time of 7:01.30, while rounding out the top-10 is a Mercedes-AMG GT R in eighth with a 7:10.92 lap time, a Gumpert Apollo Sport in ninth at 7:11.57, and another Dodge Viper ACR in 10th at 7:12.13. Interestingly, the current 11th and 12th place positions are held by two Porsches, including a 911 GT3 at 7:12.70, and a 918 Spyder with a lap time of 7:13.00.
The list continues with a who’s who list of sports car and supercar nameplates, from the Chevrolet Corvette C7 Z06 to the Lexus LFA (with its Nürburgring Package), Donkervoort D8 RS, Ferrari 488 GTB, Maserati MC12, Pagani Zonda F Clubsport, and plenty of additional Porsches. To even get on this list is a job well done, but to defeat them all with multiple models is sensational.
The 911 GT3 RS’ 4.0L flat-six makes 520-hp and 346 lb-ft of torque and drives the rear wheels through a 7-speed dual-clutch PDK transmission. (Photo: Porsche)
Available from $213,400, the 2019 Porsche 911 GT3 RS receives a naturally aspirated 4.0-litre horizontally opposed six-cylinder engine behind its rear wheels, producing 520 horsepower and 346 lb-ft of torque, which comes mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch automated PDK transmission driving the rear wheels. Capable of a top track speed of 312 km/h (193 mph) and a standing start to 100km/h time of just 3.2 seconds, the big boxer engine will spin right up to 9,000 rpm.
“No other Porsche model gets as close to racing as the new GT3 RS,” said Frank Steffen Walliser, Vice President Motorsport and GT Cars. “Many innovative ideas from top-level motorsport were transferred; for example, from the 911 GT3 R. This is what our philosophy for GT models is about: Highest technology must be fascinating but tangible. In this regard there is no harder test for our ideas than the Nordschleife.”
The GT3 RS is capable of a top track speed of 312 km/h and 0-100km/h time of only 3.2 seconds, while the big boxer can rev right up to 9,000 rpm. (Photo: Porsche)
Estre, who also competed for Porsche in the FIA World Endurance Championship, was joined by Porsche development driver Kern, with both drivers completing two laps for a total of four.
“All four lap times of both drivers were below seven minutes and only tenths of a second apart,” added Andreas Preuninger, Porsche Director GT Model Line. “This proves not only the outstanding power of the GT3 RS, but also its extraordinary drivability at the limit. A perfectly composed overall system allows for highly dynamic performance even with a relatively modest engine power. For a driver, each of the car’s thousands of parts have to feel like one – that’s an unbeatable strength of the GT3 RS. And what especially delights me is how much fun Lars and Kévin had when driving that car.”
Estre, a 29-year old who hails from France, started his record lap at 11:40 am in what Porsche says were ideal conditions of 14 degrees Celsius ambient and 18 degrees Celsius track temperature.
Even though the 911 GT3 RS is one of the fastest cars in the world, it’s also an easy and enjoyable car to drive daily. (Photo: Porsche)
“This lap was a sensational experience for me,” said Estre. “Through the fast corners and on the brakes in particular, the GT3 RS is unbelievably close to our racing car GT3 R. This is also thanks to the new generation of tires for road going sports cars. I like the engine of the GT3 RS a lot. Up to 9,000 revs per minute from a six-cylinder engine just feels fantastic. The sound is a dream and the torque is massive.”
The tires Estre speaks of are Michelin Pilot Sports measuring 265/35ZR20 in front and 325/30ZR21 at the rear, and are available at every Porsche Centre, as is the new 911 GT3 RS and the Nürburgring Nordschleife lap record-holding GT2 RS.
For a closer take on all the action, check out this in-car video of the 911 GT3 RS achieving its amazing 6:56.40 lap time:
Additionally, here’s another video showing some of 911 GT3 RS’ features:
