A New Production Car ‘Ring Lap Record Is In The Books

Here we go again: another controversial production vehicle Nurburgring lap time record. This time it’s a super EV, the Nio EP9.

Naturally, everyone is trying to poke holes in the automaker’s claim of a 6:45.9 lap time. If the story holds up, that’s damn fast. Even more interesting, the car logged a 7:05.12 lap time a while ago, so naturally people think that’s suspicious.

This record surpasses the Lamborghini Huracan Performante lap time of 6:52.01, which was also called out as fake or doctored by many.

Consider that the Nio EP9 packs some serious heat with a peak 1,342 horsepower, thanks to four onboard electric motors. Nio says you can pull 2.5 g through turns, while braking hard is similar to the forward acceleration of a space shuttle launch.

People are wondering if the Nio EP9 counts as a production vehicle. Only 6 are in existence, with 10 more planned. That’s pretty boutique, but they’re going into the hands of ultra-rich people. And they’re street-legal, so I think saying it’s not a production car is splitting hairs.

Of course, if you want my opinion, you shouldn’t read too much into ‘Ring lap times. There’s no official group that validates the times, so they’re to an extent on the honor system. Not only that, your daily drive and even weekend hot laps at the local track just won’t be anything like the Nurburgring Nordschleife. Trust me.