Nürburgring: Rules for record runs 🎥
NOW EVERYTHING IS OFFICIAL With a new concept, the Nürburgring has ensured that lap times are driven under uniform conditions and notarial supervision, as well as being officially confirmed. A Renault Mégane R.S. Trophy-R set a record for front-wheel drive production cars in 2019. 5:19:55 minutes - the fastest time ever recorded on the Nordschleife. With this lap, Timo Bernhard wrote [...]
A Renault Mégane R.S. Trophy-R set a record for front-wheel drive production cars in 2019.
5:19:55 minutes - the fastest time ever recorded on the Nordschleife. Timo Bernhard and Porsche made history with this lap in the summer of 2018. At the same time, it was the first lap to be officially confirmed by the Nürburgring outside of a race event.
It was also the beginning of a new era. Since then, the record rounds have been held under uniform conditions.
Self-direction of the automobile manufacturers
In the decades before, the car manufacturers had organized the trips themselves within the framework of a wide variety of rentals, also stopped the time themselves and communicated it afterwards.
Michael Dürbaum, Head of Sales and Business Development at the Nürburgring: "We could neither confirm nor deny times driven."
Lap times under discussion
Documented only by self-made video recordings, the authenticity could not really be verified. As a result, lap times led to discussions among car manufacturers, in specialist circles and among car enthusiasts on one occasion or another.
In addition, the complete lap of the Nordschleife had never been driven before, but only 20.6 kilometers marked by imaginary start and finish lines for organizational reasons.
Implementation with a notary
Uniform guidelines now apply, which the Nürburgring has established for the so-called "record runs". Every car manufacturer who wants to drive and subsequently communicate an officially recognized time must comply with them.
An exclusive lease of the track is a basic prerequisite for this project. To ensure that everything runs correctly, the Nürburgring appoints an independent notary for the execution. This not only confirms the lap time at the end, but also checks the vehicle and the calibrated measuring equipment for timekeeping beforehand.
Vehicles in twelve categories
For better comparability, the vehicles are divided into twelve categories. The classifications of the Federal Motor Transport Authority serve as the basis for this. In addition, the communication of the time in conjunction with the Nürburgring logo is licensed for the automobile manufacturer and officially listed on the Nürburgring homepage.
As an additional added value, the Nürburgring also offers to show the onboard laps on its own social media channels. Since the concept was introduced, manufacturers such as Mercedes-AMG, Audi, Porsche, VW and Lynk & Co have made use of the offer.
