Rahul Sharma (Editor)

List of Top Gear test track Power Lap Times

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This is the full list of "official" power lap times on the Top Gear test track.

Contents

Qualifying vehicles

A qualifying vehicle is defined as a road-legal production car on road-legal tyres that has sufficient ride height to clear a standard sleeping policeman, although occasionally vehicles that cannot appear on the list are still timed. Whenever a non-qualifying vehicle is raced, the time is compared to the official power laps but then removed from the board. For example, the Ferrari FXX owned by Michael Schumacher (1:10.7) was taken off the board after because it both failed to meet road legal standards and used slick tyres.

Tested, but subsequently removed from board

  1. 0:31.2 – BAE Sea Harrier (Piloted by Lieutenant Nick Arkle RN. Raced against the Saab 9-5 Aero. Took off then flew around track, ended in the air)
  2. 0:59.0 – Renault R24 Formula One car (Wet)
  3. 1:03.8 – Lotus T125 Formula One car
  4. 1:08.5 – Pagani Zonda R
  5. 1:08.6 – Aston Martin DBR9
  6. 1:10.6 – Caparo T1
  7. 1:10.7 – Ferrari FXX (Driven by Michael Schumacher on slick tyres)
  8. 1:13.2 – McLaren MP4-12C GT3 (driven by Stig) on slick tyres
  9. 1:14.0 – Lamborghini Sesto Elemento
  10. 1:15.2 – Aston Martin Vulcan (Damp)
  11. 0:30.7 – CAP 232 Aerobatic Plane (Piloted by British Aerobatic Champion, Tom Cassells. Raced against the Radical SR3 and was shown crossing the finish line in front, however the time was not shown.)
  12. 1:19.0 – Radical SR3
  13. 1:22.6 – Westfield XTR2

Driven to establish times in challenges

  1. 1:35.9 – 2010 BMW 325i (E93) (Driven as modern-day equivalent to set target time for the late '80s BMW 325i (E30)s in the '4-seat convertibles for under £2,000' challenge.) (wet, top open)
  2. 1:42.0 – Rover 416 GTI (Hammond's car in the '£100 car' challenge.)
  3. 1:43.0 – Porsche 944 (May's car in the '£1500 Porsche' Challenge.)
  4. – Porsche 924 (Hammond's car in '£1500 Porsche' Challenge, time not stated, but they did say it was slower than May's 944.)
  5. 1:45.0 – Porsche 928 (Clarkson's car in '£1500 Porsche' Challenge.)
  6. 1:46.0 – Audi 80 1.8E (May's car in '£100 car' challenge.)
  7. 1:48.0 – Volvo 760 GLE V6 (Clarkson's car in '£100 car' challenge.)
  8. 1:48.0 – Vauxhall Astra Diesel Police car (Driven as modern-day equivalent to set target time in 'Budget Police Car' challenge.)
  9. 1:48.0 – 1988 BMW 325i (E30) convertible (Clarkson's car in '4-seat convertibles for under £2,000' challenge, automatic and paving slab in boot. Driven by Clarkson.)
  10. 1:55.3 – 1987 BMW 325i (E30) convertible (Hammond's car in '4-seat convertibles for under £2,000' challenge, lowered suspension. Driven by Hammond.)
  11. 1:55.4 – 1989 BMW 325i (E30) convertible (May's car in '4-seat convertibles for under £2,000' challenge, standard specification. Driven by May.)
  12. 2:03.0 – Lexus LS400 (May's police car in 'Budget Police Car' Challenge, driven by May.)
  13. 2:08.0 – Fiat Coupé 2.0 20v Turbo (Clarkson's police car in 'Budget Police Car' Challenge, driven by Clarkson.)
  14. 2:15.82 – Volkswagen Tiguan whilst Towing a Caravan (Caravanner's Challenge)
  15. 2:17.0 – Chevy G20 V8 Van (Hammond's ambulance in 'Ambulance Challenge', driven by the Stig).
  16. 2:24.0 – Porsche 944 Turbo (Clarkson's ambulance in 'Ambulance Challenge' driven by the Stig).
  17. 2:57.0 – JCB Fastrac 8250 (Clarkson's tractor in the 'Tractor' Challenge.)
  18. 3:14.0 – Suzuki Vitara 1.6 JLX (Hammond's police car in 'Budget Police Car' Challenge, driven by Hammond. Hammond left the track to drive through piled cardboard boxes, and increase his "style points".)
  19. 3:28.4 – Fendt 930 Vario (May's tractor in the 'Tractor' Challenge.)
  20. 4:49.0 – Case STX Steiger (Hammond's tractor in the 'Tractor' Challenge.)
  21. 12:28.0 – Ford Scorpio Cardinal (May's ambulance in 'Ambulance Challenge' driven by the Stig, includes time for raising and mending powered tailgate).
  22. DNF – Mazda CX-5 whilst towing a caravan (Caravanner's Challenge, Caravan Fell onto its side on the second to last corner, lifting rear wheels of car in the air)

Unofficial laps

Independently reported lap times, not in connection with Top Gear series:

  1. 1:05.3 – Nissan ZEOD RC hybrid mode (internal combustion engine and electric motors).
  2. 1:12.8 – Ultima GTR. After Top Gear allegedly refused to drive it because "they thought it couldn't clear a speed bump", Ultima Sports, Ltd., the company that makes the Ultima GTR, took to the track and set the time, verfied by Plans Motorsport.
  3. 1:13.6 – Nissan ZEOD RC pure-electric vehicle mode.
  4. 1:14.2 – Ferrari LaFerrari. Set on 12 June 2015 in damp conditions by Jason Plato as part of television programme TFI Friday's twentieth-anniversary show

Time adjustments

Sometimes an additional term is written next to the time (such as Hot). This indicates that The Stig and the Top Gear team consider that the prevalent weather conditions have affected the lap time or car's performance. The time on the board is not changed: e.g. 1:50 MM (Mildly Moist) is deemed to be equivalent to 1:48 on a normal dry track. The following list describes how many seconds it costs a car or gives a car an advantage. These adjustments are also not applicable to Formula 1 drivers.

References

List of Top Gear test track Power Lap Times Wikipedia
(Text) CC BY-SA