Toyota EV laps the 'ring in record time

Yes, it's a battery-electric vehicle — one producing 800Nm of torque and good for a top speed of 260km/h
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Toyota has set out to break the lap record for electric vehicles at the Nordschleife — the northern loop of the Nurburgring — and has more than exceeded expectations.

The plan had been to set a time below the previous record of 9min, 1.338sec and, if possible, get below a time of 8min for the new record. Driver Jochen Krumbach, in the TMG EV P001, as the car is named, has achieved both aims with a time of 7min, 47.794sec. That sort of time around the 20.8km circuit is approaching times set by high-end cars with conventional internal-combustion engines — a fair result for a car driven by two electric motors, even if combined output is 800Nm.

The technical director for TMG (Toyota Motorsport GmbH), Pascal Vasselon, said that the project was an opportunity to assess electric vehicles undergoing the rigours of motor sport applications. Furthermore, the lessons learned will trickle down into production EVs in years to come.

"We have enhanced our electric powertrain development thanks to the information our engineers have gained and our future EV products will benefit from this project," he was quoted as saying in a press release.

From next year the company plans to on-sell the electric drivetrain technology, which was developed for the car in-house. The TMG EV P001 is built on a Radical chassis prepared by e-WOLF.

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