Electric Volkswagen ID R aiming for a Nurburgring lap RECORD

The electric Volkswagen ID R – built to smash the Pikes Peak hillclimb record – is heading to the Nurburgring to punt for a new EV lap record.

Last year, as VW continued to push its new-found love for car electrification in the wake of dieselgate, it revealed the ID R EV – a 671bhp four-wheel drive EV ‘racer’ – with plans to take it off to Pikes Peak to attempt to break the record for an EV on the hillclimb.

Not only did VW manage to break the EV record at Pikes Peak, the ID R was so quick in the hands of Romain Dumas it ended up smashing the all-time record for the hillclimb with a time of 7:57.148. Which rather proved VW’s point.

Now, having tucked the Pikes Peak record under its belt (and a Goodwood Hilclimb record too), VW is planning to take the ID R off to the Nurburgring this summer with the declared intent of smashing the existing lap record of 6:45.90 for an EV, set by Peter Dumbreck in a NIO EP9 in 2017.

Volkswagen say Romain Dumas will be again be behind the wheel in the record attempt. He said:

The thought of driving the ID. R on the Nordschleife is already enough to give me goosebumps. I know the track very well, but the ID. R will be a completely different challenge, with its extreme acceleration and huge cornering speeds. I can hardly wait for the first tests. Breaking the existing electric record will certainly not be a stroll in the park.

VW must be pretty confident the ID R can take the Nurburgring EV record, but don’t expect it to come away with the all-time lap record too; that sits at a remarkable 5:19.546 for the Porsche 919 Hybrid EVO.