A true four-door supercar with zero emissions, the 2021 Porsche Taycan Turbo S has become the fastest electric vehicle at The Bend Motorsport Park, in Tailem Bend, South Australia.
The 7.77-kilometer (4.82-mile) long course, which is the second longest permanent racing circuit in the world after the Nurburgring Nordschleife, was completed in 3:30.344.
Luke Youlden, Porsche Track Experience chief driving instructor and former winner of the Bathurst 1000, grabbed the wheel of the car in perfect weather conditions, driving it across the finish line eight seconds slower than the new 911 Turbo, which was put through its paces at the racetrack on the same day. The EV came a few seconds behind the old 911 GT2 RS, driven from start to finish by MotorMagazine in 2018 in a little over 3 minutes and 24 seconds.
“To be that close to the old GT2 RS lap record around here? Unbelievable. It’s extremely fast. We did repeated 2.5 seconds 0-100 kph runs in this car and that sort of feel off the corner was also where the Taycan makes up most of it’s lap time. It’s unbelievable”, said Youlden.
The racing driver’s lap displays a time of 3:30.320, while the official press release says that the Taycan Turbo S completed the circuit in 3:30.344. Both times were recorded by different third-party devices, and the 3:30.344 time was officially recognized by The Bend as the first EV lap record on the GT Circuit.
In terms of performance, the 2021 Taycan Turbo S needs a neck-snapping 2.6 seconds from 0 to 60 mph (0-96 kph) with the Launch Control function engaged. It has a total output of 750 horsepower on Overboost, and an EPA-estimated driving range of 201 miles (323 km) in the United States, where it can be had from $185,000. Its Cross Turismo sibling is one tenth of a second slower and starts at $187,600.
After a series of unfortunate events put an end to Cristian's dream of entering a custom built & tuned old-school Dacia into a rally competition, he moved on to drive press cars and write for a living. He's worked for several automotive online journals and now he's back at autoevolution after his first tour in the mid-2000s. Full profile
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