All the way back in late 2014, Koenigsegg issued a warning to the auto industry at large, and Porsche in particular, that they should kiss their Nurburgring records goodbye. At the time, the Swedish automaker intended to take their 999kW (1,340hp) One:1 hypercar to the famous track and shatter the 6:57 lap record set by the Porsche 918, but sadly the record attempt never happened. A horrific crash at the Nurburgring in March 2015 killed a spectator, leading track authorities to implement much-needed safety improvements and impose speed limits on certain segments of the track. For a year, the competition among top-tier automakers for the fastest Nurburgring lap was postponed.
With speed restrictions recently lifted the competition is back on, and Koenigsegg say they’re preparing to bring the One:1 to the Green Hell. But they won’t be chasing lap records at this stage. “We maintain our desire to show what our cars can do on the ultimate automotive proving ground,” Koenigsegg’s Steven Wade said. “We won’t be doing a lap record in the immediate term, but we will be there and because people will see us there and expect all sorts of things, we thought we’d get out ahead of the car-spotters and tell you what we’re up to. While we foresee this taking several months, those months comprise only one or two days at the track each month. We will not be testing on public days when the track is full of ‘public’ drivers. We will be testing on private days that we can gain access to.”
Despite saying they aren’t hunting for lap records, Koenigsegg’s factory driver Robert Serwanski won’t be behind the wheel when the One:1 hits the ‘Ring. Instead, the automaker is looking to secure a driver with a more intimate knowledge of the track. “We are aiming to secure a driver with maximum experience at this most demanding of tracks,” Wade said.
It sure sounds like a lot of effort to put in to a non-record-setting track test, doesn’t it? Wade also left a handy escape hatch for Koenigsegg, by saying “Will we gun for a record this year? Maybe. It depends on many, sometimes mundane, factors such as track access/availability, driver availability, the weather and other commitments that may pose a conflict in terms of timing.”
Stay tuned.