Driver of VW Golf clocked at 280km/h on the Hume Highway

At 9:30am on Monday, November 7, 2022, a man was charged after allegedly being caught travelling at 280km/h on the Hume Highway, about an hour south of Sydney.

The area of the Hume Highway near Mittagong where the driver was allegedly detected at 280km/h has a posted 110km/h speed limit.

Police claim a 22-year-old male was driving a blue Volkswagen Golf at the time he was travelling more than double the speed limit.

Police officers directed the vehicle to pull over and issued a court attendance notice for ‘drive speed/manner dangerous’ and he is due to appear in Moss Vale local court next month. The man’s driving privileges were withdrawn at the scene.

Travelling at more than 45km/h over the speed limit is considered a serious speeding offence by NSW Police and carries with it a maximum fine of $3300 and instant six-month licence suspension.

It will be up to the courts whether the alleged offender is charged with a Hoon offence on top, potentially in the areas of excessive speed or street racing.

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A photo uploaded to Twitter by NSW Police appeared to show the vehicle in question was a previous-generation Mk7 Golf R, the most powerful variant in the range.

Volkswagen does not claim an official top speed for the 235kW/400Nm, AWD, Mk8 Golf R, but German YouTuber Automann.TV legally hit a GPS verified 277km/h in one example on a section of Autobahn.