On-paper racing is a piece of cake. Anybody with an internet connection can compare the specs of, say, a LaFerrari to those of its Porsche arch-enemy, the 918 Spyder. But what about such a race in real life?
Photo: screenshot from Youtube
Well, we are here to give you just that, a drag race between Maranello and Zuffenhausen’s finest. The feat took place at a recent event in the UK, which is dubbed Vmax.
In theory, the 950 HP (963 PS) LaFerrari comes with a power-to-weight ratio of 1.5 KG per PS, while the 918 Spyder sits a bit far, at 2 KG per PS.
When driven in ideal conditions, the 918 Spyder’s all-wheel drive gives it the edge up to around 85 MPH (140 KM/H). Go past that point and the LaFerrari takes over. Given the fact that the same LaF hit 214 MPH (345 KM/H) during the same event, it's not hard to do the math. Or is it?
In the real world, one or both drivers can miss the perfect launch by simply not using the Launch Control feature, or the grip may simply be far from one’s expectations.
The two hypercars battle it out on a runway that offers 2 miles of asphalt, but we have to keep in mind they must also spare a certain amount of space for the braking phase.
Sure, we love seeing direct competitors putting on a nice dogfight. Nonetheless, things become even more interesting when you think about how rarely we get to see the LaFerrari engaging in such battles.
As some of you have noticed, all timed comparisons tests out there skip the LaFerrari, simply because Maranello doesn’t allow its customers to hand their 950 HP (963 PS) hybrids over to the press for comparos that feature telemetry data. Press cars? Maybe, but those can be tricked-out.
On the other hand, Porsche and McLaren have no problem with their 918 Spyder and P1 using the chronometer as a referee. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first ever drag race between a LaFerrari and a Porsche 918 Spyder. It's just that the results aren't entirely valid, since the LaFerrari driver didn't use the full potential of the car. So we're kind of back to square one.
In theory, the 950 HP (963 PS) LaFerrari comes with a power-to-weight ratio of 1.5 KG per PS, while the 918 Spyder sits a bit far, at 2 KG per PS.
When driven in ideal conditions, the 918 Spyder’s all-wheel drive gives it the edge up to around 85 MPH (140 KM/H). Go past that point and the LaFerrari takes over. Given the fact that the same LaF hit 214 MPH (345 KM/H) during the same event, it's not hard to do the math. Or is it?
Nonetheless, we’re not talking about ideal conditions here
In the real world, one or both drivers can miss the perfect launch by simply not using the Launch Control feature, or the grip may simply be far from one’s expectations.
The two hypercars battle it out on a runway that offers 2 miles of asphalt, but we have to keep in mind they must also spare a certain amount of space for the braking phase.
The most interesting side here is not the race itself
Sure, we love seeing direct competitors putting on a nice dogfight. Nonetheless, things become even more interesting when you think about how rarely we get to see the LaFerrari engaging in such battles.
As some of you have noticed, all timed comparisons tests out there skip the LaFerrari, simply because Maranello doesn’t allow its customers to hand their 950 HP (963 PS) hybrids over to the press for comparos that feature telemetry data. Press cars? Maybe, but those can be tricked-out.
On the other hand, Porsche and McLaren have no problem with their 918 Spyder and P1 using the chronometer as a referee. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first ever drag race between a LaFerrari and a Porsche 918 Spyder. It's just that the results aren't entirely valid, since the LaFerrari driver didn't use the full potential of the car. So we're kind of back to square one.
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