Subaru has announced a new record attempt on the 37-mile Isle of Man TT course.
The legendary association between Subaru and Prodrive has created a new purpose built car. This time, it is called the Subaru WRX STI TT, and it has been tailored for the famous course, which is considered as difficult for the engine and suspension as Germany’s Nurburgring and France’s Spa-Francorchamps.
Considering the length of the track and its narrow width in some sections, and the fact that it leaves no room for error, rally driver Mark Higgins will have a tough challenge ahead of him this year.
The driver will attempt to beat the old record, set by him in a near-stock Subaru in 2014. At the time, the rally driver achieved an average lap speed of 117.51 MPH (189 km/h), and a time of 19 minutes and 15 seconds for the 37-mile (59.5 km) course.
Higgins is not at his first Isle of Man TT course record, having set another one in 2011 on board a Subaru WRX STI with an average speed of 115.36 MPH (185 km/h).
Because Higgins is driving a car, and the Isle of Man is known for its Tourist Trophy, we will make a quick comparison between his average speed for the record run and the best recorded average speeds of IOM TT competitors.
In 2015, the fastest newcomer and winner of the Vernon Cooper Trophy, Derek McGee, rode his 1,000 cc Honda at an average speed of 121.928 MPH (196.224 km/h), and achieved a time of 18:33.999. Meanwhile, the fastest lap ever recorded belongs to IOM TT legend John McGuinness (26 overall wins).
Last year, McGuinness won the Jimmy Simpson Trophy riding a Honda CBR1000RR at an average speed of 132.701 MPH (213.562 km/h), and completed the 37-mile course in 17:03.567.
Given the massive difference in power-to-weight ratio between Higgins’ car and the motorbikes used in the IOM TT, we respect his impressive results. Like other Subaru and Prodrive fans, we cannot wait to see the onboard video of this new attempt, scheduled for this later year.
Sebastian's love for cars began at a young age. Little did he know that a career would emerge from this passion (and that it would not, sadly, involve being a professional racecar driver). In over fourteen years, he got behind the wheel of several hundred vehicles and in the offices of the most important car publications in his homeland. Full profile
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