Nurburg, Germany – Volkswagen’s Golf GTI Clubsport S has beaten its own lap record for a front-wheel drive car at the Nurburgring, with a new benchmark of 7min47.19s.
That’s not only two seconds quicker slower than the previous record, set in April, it’s 3.44s quicker than the Honda Civic Type R, arguably the GTI’s closest competitor, it’s a whopping 11 seconds quicker than a BMW M2.
The record run was made at an ambient temperature of just eight degrees, feeding the Clubsport S’ 228kW engine with cold, dense air for maximum output and keeping its Michelin Sport Cup 2 tyres relatively cool so they didn’t fry themselves halfway round the 20km Nordschleife.