That’s not to detract from Audi Sport driver Frank Stippler’s achievement. As the following countdown reveals, another compact car has gone even quicker. Audi promptly claimed ‘a new record in the compact segment’, but we’re not so sure. As the Nurburgring front-wheel-drive lap record has become something to be prized and competed over by manufacturers, so we’ve seen a series of progressively faster performance hatches created specially for the purpose of taming the ‘Green Hell’.The new 400hp Audi RS 3 has lapped the Nurburgring in a scorching 7min 40.75sec.
The cars on this list post faster ‘ring lap times than quite a few thoroughbred sports cars and super-saloons that cost far more and offer far more power. The debate will rage on over whether the fastest hatchbacks can really compete with a sports coupe for driver involvement but for sheer road and track pace, many of them are certainly formidable. Critics will say that hot hatches can’t compete on the track – but these Nurburgring lap times prove that they absolutely can, and that being based on a front-wheel-drive family hatchback doesn’t mean you can’t mix it with the big boys. Part of the appeal of a hot hatch is that they are generally more practical, cheaper to run and (sometimes) more discreet than their sports car counterparts. > Renault Sport reclaims front-wheel-drive Nürburgring record with new Renault Mégane RS Trophy-R And we’re kicking off with the one of evo’s favourite breeds of car – the hot hatchback. The famous racetrack is fiendishly difficult to master, and provisions are rarely made to standardise things like driver skill, prevailing weather or even how close a car is to standard production form.īut, comparing Nurburgring lap times is still good fun and quite interesting, so we’re doing it.
Judging cars by their Nurburgring lap time is a famously flawed process.
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