Porsche Taycan sets a blistering time of 7:42 around the legendary Nürburgring Nordschleife
The upcoming Porsche Taycan has set a rather quiet but blistering 7:42 lap around the 20.6 km Nürburgring Nordschleife driven by test driver Lars Kern. The record run is the third part of the Porsche Taycan’s Triple Endurance Run. First, the brand’s first electric sports car demonstrated its consistent performance reproducibility, which the strenuous test involves 26 successive acceleration from 0-200 km/h. After that, it completed 3,425 km within 24 hours in Porsche’s Nardò Technical Center without any technical issues.
During the early stages of the Porsche Taycan’s development, engineers started driving in a simulator in order to test and evaluate its performance on a virtual race track. By testing the virtual car, one of the main goals was determining electric energy with thermal management, which forms an important contribution to achieving the lap time.
24-hour endurance run, and a series of accelerations
The Porsche Taycan prototype was subjected to an endurance test around the Nardò high-speed track. The electric-vehicle covered a distance of 3,425 kilometres. In temperatures of 42 degrees celsius, the Taycan averaged between 195 and 215 km/h. And track temperature of up to 54 degrees Celsius, the test was completed without interruptions, as the prototype merely had to pause for quick charging stops and driver changes.
Prior to the endurance run at the end of July, a pre-series vehicle accelerated from 0 – 200 km/h no less than 26 successive times on a private runway in Germany. The time it takes to get itself up to that speed slightly over 3 seconds. The difference between the fastest and slowest acceleration runs was 0.8 seconds. Top speed is said to be at 250 km/h. However, the Taycan stopped progressing beyond 259 km/h at the latter part of the run.
Some of the Taycan’s main features
Porsche has provided some glimpse into its first-ever BEV (Battery Electric Vehicle) four-door sports car before its official launch next month. The Taycan features two electric motors at the front and rear axles, which effectively makes it an all-wheel drive car. Porsche says that the traction control systems in the Taycan operate much quicker than conventional systems. This is likely for coping with the instantaneous torque outputs from the electric motors.
The Taycan features Porsche 4D-Chassis Control which analyses and synchronises all chassis systems in real-time. The chassis systems include adaptive air suspension with three-chamber design, electronic damper control PASM (Porsche Active Suspension Management), as well as the Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control Sport (PDCC Sport) electromechanical roll stabilisation system, and Porsche Torque Vectoring Plus (PTV Plus). The record-breaking car also featured rear-axle steering and 21-inch tyres.
Also a first, the Porsche Taycan boasts an electrical system voltage of 800 volts, rather than the normal 400 volts in many electric cars to date. Porsche says that the benefits of having such high voltage are that it provides consistent vehicle performance. In addition, the Taycan is capable of 250 kW fast charging.
Lastly, the Taycan offers drivers “special settings” to make full use of its all-electric drivetrain. Porsche says that in “Sport Plus” mode, the car’s battery cooling and heating strategies are adjusted to provide performance. While air flaps are opened and closed, and the retractable rear spoiler extended early to reduce lift. The chassis set-up becomes optimised for maximum race track performance, and the suspension permanently set in the lowest position.
