Porsche Taycan sets new Nürburgring record for EVs

Porsche has knocked Tesla off its throne as the electric production-car king of the Nürburgring Nordschleife.

A Porsche Taycan Turbo S driven by Porsche development driver Lars Kern lapped the famous 20.8km German circuit in seven minutes and 33 seconds, beating the previously-held lap record time of 7:35 set in 2021 by the Tesla Model Plaid S.

For its flying lap around the “Green Hell” the Taycan Turbo S was equipped with a new performance kit and Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control (PDCC) and — aside from the required roll cage and racing seats — was a standard production vehicle.

The performance kit includes 21-inch RS-Spyder-design wheels with road-approved, Pirelli P Zero Corsa sports tyres that are now available for the Taycan. Their tyre compound is similar to that of racing tyres. Another element of the performance kit is a software update to the Porsche 4D Chassis Control so that it works in harmony with the sports tyres. The system analyses and synchronises all the chassis systems of the Taycan in real time.

“In the past, only thoroughbred super sports cars got into the 7:33 range,” says Kern. “With the new performance kit I was able to push even harder, and the car was even more precise and agile to boot.”

The performance kit is offered through Porsche Tequipment and is currently only available in Germany for the 2023 model year Taycan Turbo S sports sedan.

The Taycan Turbo S boasts a supercar-like 460kW of power. It has 560kW available with launch control active, making it capable of accelerating from 0-100km/h in 2.9 seconds.