Ford Breaks Nürburgring Record... in a Transit Van?
The Ford Transit is obviously not designed to race around a track at high speeds. The popular delivery van, which we had the opportunity to test in its electric version a few years ago, is generally more comfortable at lower speeds, where its carrying capacity and wide doors make life easier for delivery drivers.
That said, car enthusiasts who watched the British version of Top Gear (with Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May) will remember the episode where Clarkson drove a diesel-powered Jaguar Type S with the goal of breaking the 10-minute barrier on the Nürburgring's North Loop.
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He succeeded, thanks in part to the advice of Sabine Schmitz, a driver who has since passed away, who had completed thousands of laps on this formidable track. When Jeremy Clarkson returned to the pits, proud of having completed his lap in 9'59, she replied, “I could do the same time in a van!” This led to another video in which, despite her best efforts, the famous German driver came close to 10 minutes without managing to beat Clarkson's time.
This year, Ford Performance showed up at the Nürburgring with a Transit, but this time it was a much more powerful model – and this one doesn’t run on fossil fuels.
The American manufacturer brought the Supervan 4.2, an electric monster with nearly 2,000 horsepower that has already broken records at legendary venues such as Bathurst and Pikes Peak.
With French driver Romain Dumas at the wheel, the Ford team had the ideal person to set an eye-popping time. By completing the circuit in 6'48"393, this Transit achieved a better time than the Chevrolet Corvette ZR1X! As you might expect, the Supervan 4.2 obviously has nothing in common with a road-legal van, but the feat is still impressive.
To see this very fast lap on camera, click on the video below:
