The Nürburgring Nordschleife is easily one of the most famous motorsport tracks in the world. Situated in Nurburg, Germany, this track is a historical one, revered by gearheads and automotive critics alike. Over the course of its 12.94 miles, the 'Green Hell' is the end-all-be-all of tracks when it comes to manufacturers testing their new cars and prototypes. The most renowned proving ground in the automotive world, setting a record at the Nürburgring, or even coming close to one, is more than enough when it comes to a new car's marketing.
The biggest names in the world, especially all major European manufacturers, take to the Nürburgring to test out their cars, where they reach speeds close to 200 mph more often than not. This is thanks to the Nürburgring's massive size, which is so huge that the German public even uses it as a public road. When the time comes for an automaker to unleash their new beast on the Nürburgring, though, the road is closed until the laps are finished.
With cars getting faster and more technologically advanced every year and with each iteration, there is no denying that manufacturers also compete among themselves to set the fastest time at the Nürburgring with their production cars. Thus, without further ado, here are the ten fastest production cars around the Nürburgring, for the next time you need to have some information ready to flex on your gearhead friends.
10 Dodge Viper ACR - (7:01:3)
A flag-bearer of V10 greatness, the Dodge Viper has always been one of the greatest American muscle cars ever. In its fifth, and sadly, last generation, the Viper ACR went around the Nürburgring Nordschleife in just over 7 minutes.
With a record-setting lap time of 7:01:3s around the great track, the Viper ACR, in 2017, broke its own previous best lap time of 7:03:45s, and also became the fastest street-legal Dodge Viper around the German circuit.
9 Ferrari 488 Pista - (7:00:03)
It might come as a surprise to many that this list isn’t crowded by Ferraris. In fact, when it comes to the top ten fastest production cars in the world, there is only one Ferrari, which is the 488 Pista. Thanks to its 3.9-liter twin-turbo V8 engine, the Pista’s 710 horses and 770 lb-ft of torque propelled it across the entire length of the Nürburgring in just 7:00:03s.
Cutting under, or even reaching the 7-minute mark on the Nürburgring is enough to earn any car some great credibility, the Ferrari 488 Pista, driven by race driver Christian Gebhardt, did just that.
8 Lamborghini Aventador SV - (6:59:73)
Lamborghinis are known for being some of the most powerful production cars out there, fitted with glorious V12 engines. However, the brand has never been known for a nimble and precise racetrack-focused car. This changed in 2015, when the Italians decided to crush the 7-minute bar with their new Lamborghini Aventador SuperVeloce.
Armed with Pirelli tires, the Aventador SV managed to cover the Nürburgring in 6:59:73s, just a hair shy of the 7-minute mark. Having achieved what it set out to do, the Aventador then became the fastest Lamborghini at the Nürburgring at the time, a crowd that the Huracán Performante would take from it just a year later.
7 Porsche 918 Spyder - (6:57:0)
The 918 Spyder might be the first Porsche on this list, but it is far from the last. There is clearly no denying that Porsche has a bit of a dominant presence on the Nürburgring Nordschleife. Almost a decade ago, the 2013 Porsche 918 Spyder, armed with the Weissach Package and with former Porsche racing driver Marc Lieb, managed to set a blistering Nürburgring lap time.
Thanks to its 4.6-liter V8 which ran in sync with two electric motors, the 918 Spyder finished with a lap time of 6:57:0s, which set a new record at the time for street-legal supercars. After all, its 875 horsepower and 944 lb-ft of torque had to show some great results, didn’t they? To this day, the 918 Spyder remains one of the best sports cars out there.
6 Porsche 911 GT3 RS (Manthey Racing) - (6:54:34)
This is where things begin to get interesting, since the Porsche 911 GT3 features heavily if one were to go only by the fastest lap times set around the Nürburgring. In 2018, the Porsche 911 GT3 RS, in its 991.2 generation, set a time of 6:56:4s around the Nürburgring, and in September 2020, the subsequent Porsche 911 GT3 (992-gen) managed to shave off an entire second off the old time, at 6:55:34s.
Last year, however, was the best time for the 911 GT3 RS. Loaded with a performance kit from Manthey Racing, the 911 GT3 RS managed to snag its best-ever time, crossing the line at 6:54.34s.
5 Lamborghini Huracán Performante - (6:52:01)
Up until October 2016, the aforementioned Lamborghini Aventador SV had been the fastest Raging Bull across the Nürburgring. However, when it came time for the Huracán Performante, the performance-focused variant of the Huracan to test itself on the Green Hell, the car’s 5.2-liter V10 and 631 horsepower helped it snag the crown from its older cousin.
With the Italian marque’s test driver Marco Mapelli at the wheel, the Lamborghini Huracán Performante set a new lap record for the fastest production car at the time, and also the fastest Lamborghini on the track, with a time of 6:52:01s.
4 Porsche 911 GT2 RS - (6:47:25)
The 911 truly is one of the greatest sports cars of all time, and many would argue it holds the crown among them all. However, what is clear as day is just how fast Porsche’s cars are around the German racetrack.
In 2017, armed with the Weissach Package that Porsche so adores for its test vehicles, the 911 GT2 RS, in its 991.2 generation, covered the length of the Nürburgring in a whopping 6:47:25s, which consequently made it the fastest road-going car at the time. With its 3.8-liter turbocharged power unit and 700 horsepower, the 911 GT2 RS reached the 60 mph mark from nought in just 2.5 seconds.
3 Lamborghini Aventador SVJ - (6:44:97)
After Lamborghini’s Huracán Performante lost the fastest production car lap record at the Nordschleife to the Porsche 911 GT2 RS in 2017, the 2018 Aventador SVJ sought to set things right again for the brand. This was a new, track-focused Aventador, and it set itself upon the Nürburgring’s corners with one goal, which was to regain the crown of being the fastest around all the 154 corners of the legendary track.
To the Italian’s great joy, the Lamborghini Aventador SVJ managed to set a new record around the track, defeating the 911 GT2 RS, and also becoming the new fastest Lambo on the track with a phenomenal time of 6:44:97s. This was almost three seconds faster than the old record, and the Aventador SVJ became the new fastest road-going supercar.
2 Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series - (6:43:616)
German titan Mercedes-Benz might be known for their luxury sedans and SUVs, but their racing division, AMG, does not kid around when it comes to sheer performance-focused cars. Among the AMG lineup, it is the Black Series which is the most extreme AMG GT model ever, housing a twin-turbo 4.0-liter V8 engine that churned out a whopping 720 horsepower and 800 lb-ft of torque.
Set two years ago in October 2020, the Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series simply set fire to the Nürburgring, lapping the Nordschleife in just 6:42:616s. This time was over a whole second faster than the Lamborghini Aventador SVJ, which had till then held the record for being the fastest around the Green Hell.
1 Porsche 911 GT2 RS Manthey-Racing - (6:43:300)
And here it is, the fastest car around one of the greatest tracks in the world, the Porsche 911 GT2 RS yet again. This was a record the German marque and their brand set for themselves last year, armed with a Manthey-Racing performance kit. A new milestone in automotive history, the 911 GT2 RS set the fastest time around the Nürburgring Nordschleife last year.
With plenty of race-focused modifications to help propel it faster through the track, the GT2 RS even had magnesium wheels and a thread chassis, all of which came together for the car to set a new record of 6:43:300s, becoming the fastest car around the Nürburgring. Even Mercedes-AMG bowed to the GT2 RS, acknowledging being dethroned by the Porsche.