Performance Junk: Watch Subaru Break the Four-Door Lap Record at the ‘Ring

Wednesday, August 9, 2017

Watch Subaru Break the Four-Door Lap Record at the ‘Ring

Early next year, Subaru will sell a special version of the WRX STI called the WRX STI Type RA (Record Attempt). Subaru sought to break a Nürburgring record to promote the upcoming limited-production performance special, and that’s just what it did with a world-beating time of 6 minutes, 57.5 seconds. A video released by Subaru celebrates the accomplishment by showing footage of the race car and interviews with a few of the team members behind the attempt.

In the video, race car driver Richie Stanaway drives the car through the Nürburgring Nordschleife’s 73 corners toward the goal of a sub-seven-minute lap. The drone footage shows off the car’s abilities on track and highlights one of the ring’s most famous corners. The carousel is a bumpy, banked hairpin that put the Subaru’s suspension to the test. The video finishes with Dominick Infante, Subaru’s product communications manager, commenting on the significance of the lap.

The record-setting car’s lengthy name, Subaru WRX STI Type RA NBR Special, corresponds to its extensive list of modifications. Prodrive, a respected engineering firm, tweaked the stock STI to make over 600 hp courtesy of a revised turbocharger pushing 25 psi of boost. The track car benefited from other performance goodies, including a WRC gearbox, Formula 1-style Drag Reduction System, and 9-inch-wide Dunlop tires.

Subaru’s sub-seven-minute time is no small feat. Even though the NBR Special isn’t a production car, it managed to post the same time as the million-dollar Porsche 918 hypercar. The Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio still holds the production car record for a four-door car. The WRX STI has always been a compelling choice for anyone shopping in that segment. Subaru hopes that capturing this record ahead of the Type RA’s release will prove the age-old saying, “Win on Sunday, sell on Monday.”

Source: Subaru via YouTube