VW ID R electric racer smashes Pikes Peak record
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Volkswagen has done it. The German automaker's ID R electric race car has not only broken the record for electric cars in the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, it's also broken the record for all classes by setting a blistering time of 7:57.148 during the 2018 running held on Sunday.
The previous record of 8:13.878 was set in 2013 by Sébastien Loeb in a modified Peugeot 208 rally car generating 875 horsepower. The ID R was entered in Pikes Peak's Electric Modified Class, whose previous record stood at 8:57.118.
Driving the ID R was Romain Dumas, a regular at Pikes Peak and now with four wins under his belt (2014, 2016, 2017 and 2018). He set the new record with just one attempt.
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“The ID R Pikes Peak is the most impressive car I have ever driven in competition,” Dumas, who has competed in the World Rally Championship and World Endurance Championship, most recently with Porsche in the LMP1 class, said in a statement.
The wild car features a 670-hp output from a pair of electric motors and all-wheel drive. It can rocket to 62 mph in 2.25 seconds, which is quicker than an F1 car, and can be sufficiently charged to take on the 12.4-mile race to the clouds within Pikes Peak's regulated 20-minute interval.
VW says the ID R's powertrain is related to the one destined for its upcoming ID family of electric cars, the first member of which will be a small hatchback due in 2020. An SUV and a spiritual successor to the Microbus are also planned. The automaker says it used Pikes Peak as chance to prove its electric car technology in the harshest of conditions.
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It's common knowledge that electric powertrains are well-suited to the low air density you get near the top of Pikes Peak, but the ID R was specifically tailored for the hill climb in other ways too. A combination of low weight (2,425 pounds with driver) and high downforce was also vital.
Incredibly, a mere 250 days passed between the announcement and the start of the Pikes Peak project last October and Sunday's successful run.
HI-RES GALLERY: Romain Dumas drives the Volkswagen ID R at 2018 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb