A pre-production version of an upcoming flagship Porsche Taycan has set a blistering lap around the famous Nurburgring Nordschleife in Germany.

With Porsche development driver Lars Kern behind the wheel, the new version of the Taycan went around the famous ‘Green Hell’ in 7:07:55 minutes, a huge 26 seconds quicker than he managed on his last record drive behind the wheel of a current-generation Taycan Turbo S Sport back in August 2022.

In fact, the difference between the current Taycan and this new, upcoming version was so great that the distance between the two by the finish line was more than 1.3 kilometres (around 0.8 miles), which is no mean feat over the 20.8km course. 

It also meant that this new Taycan model posted a time that was 28 seconds faster than the Tesla Model S Plaid and just shy of the Rimac Nevera’s record-breaking time of 7:05:298. 

Kevin Giek, head of the Taycan model line at Porsche, said: “Twenty-six seconds is half an eternity in motorsport. Lars’ lap time of 7:07.55 minutes on the Nordschleife is sensational, putting the Taycan in the same league as electric hypercars.

“And the impressive thing about it is that over several laps, Lars clocked almost exactly the same time.”

This new version of Taycan is expected to come in above the existing Turbo S model and, as a result, will feature even more power and a range of tweaks designed to make it go as quickly as possible - and beat the Tesla. Official images released by Porsche of the car during its high-speed lap showcase the car’s huge rear wing and deeper front intake areas, while redesigned headlights give the Taycan a sharper front-end design. 

No performance or output figures have been released as yet, but it’s rumoured that this range-topping Taycan will produce close to 1,000bhp, or around the same as Tesla’s Model S Plaid. 

Porsche development driver Lars Kern set the record lap