I don’t want to take anything away from the amazing performance of that spaceship, but something just doesn’t sound “Porsche” to me. I guess times, they really are a changin’
Brave new world! But watch the red and white squares in the kerb go by! You don't see them often go this fast... How many 4 door sedans have this kind of lap time? 7:42 for something that is as heavy as a tank!
What is the fastest 718 lap? I looked it up, 7:47 for a 718 Cayman S... Fastest 4 cyl car ever...
The 718 GT4 clocked 7:28 if you need to know, that's where the NA-6 is at its best! 12 sec faster than the previous GT4!
Not sure why, but I’m surprised the GT4 was so much faster than the Taycan on the track. I’m not a tracker, as you know, so. . . what do I know. ?
Porsche, please oh please, let me have a PDK GTS 4.0 before emission laws of the land force an EV into my cherished 718 chassis. . . I know the 718 EV will probably do 0-60 in 3.x seconds, but I am just not ready to live without the ICE soundtrack.
There's something about a screaming, roaring engine that completes the whole experience. I wonder if it's strange for the driver to do these laps without getting feedback from the engine. Or maybe it's just strange period. The guy has to have done hundreds of laps there, but a silent one has to be very different. Well there is the road noise and what ever it is the electronics are doing, but it has to be an odd experience. That's definitely not for me.
Second that description of a “spaceship” - especially when u close your eyes watching the video - ghosting through a floatation of air with some “wind” noise on the side.
Seems unreal and un-sportscar like to me. Certainly hope that not all Porsche models will go down this route ... negates the Porsche engine pedigree with solid ICE that I have come to love.
I agree with @GTS18BGTS. I imagine that the driver loses very important audible cues without the ICE, but probably gains some, too—you'd be able to hear the tires much better, as well as all the rest of the car. Maybe it ends up being a wash in the end, but it sure isn't as fun.
Call me crazy, and trust me I'm no tree hugger.... but I like it, and am looking forward to seeing EV implemented in performance cars. My preference would be Hybrids that allow us to keep some of the Soul that the ICE gives and the raw torque the electric motors provide. But if it ends up full EV, I'm still in!
I'm actually impress with the LACK of wind noise, really shows the build quality of that thing. Take a ride in a model 3 for a polar opposite example of quiet interior.
Heavily modifying a car for a Nurburgring record beating time is a time honored cheating tradition. Nissan GTR Nismo comes to mind!... But even the current record holder, the Porsche 919 EVO, is a heavily modified version of the 919 prototype if one can say that. It's all about bragging rights.
EDIT: Re-reading the article, there is a tasty tidbit that may have gone unnoticed. Nurburgring officials want to make the longer 20800 m course the official record measuring course. Most records have been set in the 20600 m long course for 'safety reasons' (I believe the last 200 m part is where the cars entering the track merge with the rest of the traffic).
Here is a narrative about track from Wikepedia
Track lengths and timing
There are varying lap lengths. Therefore, not all of the lap times are comparable. Full lap
A full lap of the Nordschleife, bypassing the modern GP track, is 20.832 km (12.944 mi) long. Most laps are completed 200 metres (656 ft) shorter for safety reasons. Full uninterrupted flying laps can only be done in closed sessions and race events like Castrol-Haugg-Cup. Bridge to gantry
During tourist driving sessions, the full main straight cannot be driven at speed due to the exit/entrance. These laps are usually timed "bridge to gantry", which is only 19.1 km (11.9 mi). The lap goes from the "bridge" to the "gantry" (currently carrying Audi sponsorship.)[18]
I'm old and have a hearing problem so maybe this is less of an issue to me.
I'm keen on the driving component of a car and the sound doesn't really matter to me. When I'm racing, with ear-plugs and helmet, I can't really hear the car anyway.
Here's a link to my buddy, Charlie Greenhaus' electric racing series. Yes...they are quiet. And fast, especially on hillclimbs. They still aren't great at endurance racing (at one SCCA enduro-event, they let Charlie swap his car mid-race for an identical car that was fully charged.....this was sort of a "demo" and his finishing place didn't count). The cars are based on the old SCCA SportsRenault spec-class. Charlie also rents gas-powered (Renault) versions of these cars which I've rented several times. He keeps bugging me to try an electric rental and I probably will one of these days. Entropy EVSR electric race car
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