Nurburgring record holders you can buy in Australia

FOR THE most part, Nurburgring lap times are meaningless for car buyers, unless you enjoy rattling off headline numbers at the pub to impress your mates.

The ability to set a scorching lap around The Green Hell at the hands (and feet) of a gun driver isn’t going to mean your commute will get any shorter.

However, they are a fun way to measure car performance, and to a number of drivers, the proliferation of track days has turned that into an important metric.

Unfortunately not every Nurburgring lap record holder is available in Australia (Nio NextEV EP9 or McLaren P1 LM anyone?), but here are the ones that are.

Porsche GT2 RS - Lap time: 6:47.3
Price: $645,700

The most powerful 911 in Porsche’s history became the undisputed King of the ‘Ring when the reborn Widowmaker was shown to have completed a 6:47.3 lap.

That makes it the fastest rear-drive production car to lap the Nurburgring, and fastest overall if you discount the McLaren P1 LM and Nio EP9, which are produced in extremely limited numbers.

Powered by a 515kW, 750Nm twin-turbo rear-mounted 3.8-litre flat six, the GT2 RS is even quicker around the Nordschliefe than the Porsche 918 Spyder.

The 991.2 GT2 RS is coming to Australia with a starting price of $645,700, but that’s not factoring in ticked option boxes or the as-yet unpriced Weissach lightweight package.

If Porsche has already approved your purchase of the GT2 RS, you’re in luck. If not, it’s unlikely you’ll be able to buy one until they inevitably arrive on the second hand market with a considerable mark-up.

Regardless of the small numbers, or eye-watering on-road price (even the Chrono package will be optional on the GT2 RS), it’s eligible for this list, and will be quicker than anything else on our roads.

Lamborghini Huracan Performante - Lap time: 6:52.01
Price: $483,866

It may be based on the ‘baby’ Lamborghini, but the Huracan Performante is the quickest thing you can buy from the fellas in Sant'Agata Bolognese.

Its 6:53.01 lap time meant it was the fastest production car to lap the Nurburgring for a brief period of time. It’s important to note that the production record is different to the road-legal record.

Despite being bested by the GT2 RS outright, the Performante remains the fastest four-wheel-drive production car around the Nordschleife.

Want one? You probably won’t be able to walk into a Lamborghini dealer to get your hands on one, but if you are one of the lucky few who has their name on the list, it’ll cost you at least $483,866.

Deliveries have already started, so the track-trained Bull may well be taking to Australian streets near you right now.

Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio - Laptime: 7:32.00
Price: $143,900

Here at Wheels HQ, we love Alfa Romeo’s sports sedan and its on-road capabilities (it even conquered the Mercedes-AMG C63 and BMW M3 Competition in our comparison earlier this year).

But it turns out the twin-turbo V6 Italian is also a bit of a weapon on the track, claiming the four-door production car record at the Nurburgring.

The Porsche Panamera Turbo previously held the record with a 7:38 lap, beating a Giulia QV with a manual gearbox. But the Italians weren’t having a bar of that, and returned with the eight-speed automatic Giulia, and set a 7:32 flat to reclaim the title.

Holden SS-V Redline Ute - Laptime: 8:19.47
Price: $52,690

Back in 2013 Holden sent a VF SS-V Redline Ute and test driver Rob Trubiani to the Nurburgring to set a record for the fastest commercial or utility vehicle to lap the Green Hell.

The thing was, at the time of planning no such record had been set. With the aim being an 8:30s circuit, the Holden team cut 35 laps over a week, and eventually shaved 11 seconds off the target time.

The car was completely stock, bar some extra negative camber on the front wheels, but Holden claims that is still within the production tolerances.

Honda Civic Type R - Laptime: 7:43.80
Price: $50,990

The front-wheel-drive record at the Nurburgring is nearly as hotly contested as the outright record, with brands spending big money to outdo each other.

The current front-drive record holder is the new Honda Civic Type R, which is launching in Australia in the coming weeks.

Its 7:43.8 lap time cut just over 5 seconds off the time set by a Volkswagen Golf GTI Clubsport S, but the order could change again once the new Megane RS has a crack.