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Mercedes-AMG One is now number one at the Nordschleife

Its lap time of 6:35.183 is the fastest of any production car

Now, this is how the Mercedes-AMG One should be driven. PHOTO FROM MERCEDES-AMG

Keen to showcase the technical superiority of the Silver Arrows, Mercedes-AMG has finally one-upped its neighbor Porsche with the single fastest lap on the Nurburgring Nordschleife (Northern Loop) with a sizzling 6:35.183 lap time around the 20.832km track in the Eiffel Region onboard the stunning F1-engined Mercedes-AMG One hybrid hypercar, which features F1-derived technology in a road-legal package.

The tire blankets must be familiar sight to Formula 1 fans. PHOTO FROM MERCEDES-AMG

Mercedes-AMG brand ambassador and DTM/GT3 factory works driver Maro Engel set the blistering and record-breaking lap on October 28, at 5:14pm, on a cool autumn afternoon. A few seconds later and all would have been for naught as the track would officially be closed at 5:15pm, and would not allow any car to start the lap.

Herr Engel says that some parts of the track were still damp, but thanks to track familiarity and the Mercedes-AMG One’s impressive suite of F1-derived technologynot to mention Engel’s skillsthe car conquered the legendary circuit and came on top ahead of its rivals.

The Drag Reduction System is helpful for the long straights. PHOTO FROM MERCEDES-AMG

German automotive publication Sport Auto, which has long been the unofficial but accepted independent tester, uses a slightly different layout to measure the start-to-finish lap. According to data from the Mercedes-AMG engineers, the One ran an even more astonishing 6:30 lap using Sport Auto’s unique configuration.

Race Plus Driving Mode was chosen by Engel, which meant full power available at all times from the hybrid 1.6-liter V6 turbocharged engine and the three electric motors for a total of 1,063hp, tight chassis tuning, 37mm lower front suspension, and 30mm lower rear suspension, with DRS activated in all possible areas.

This allowed the One to reach a top speed of 338km/h on the long Döttinger Höhe Straight. The upper wing element on the rear wing and the front wheel louvres would retract to provide a slipperier shape with DRS active. And the 4Matic Plus all-wheel-drive system and front axle torque vectoring gave the added traction and stability on the Ring’s slippery, damp, and less-than-ideal tight corners and in sections like Karussell, Schwedenkreuz, Adenauer Forst, and Schwalbenschwanz.

It takes a lot of skill to keep a car like this under control at the Nurburgring. PHOTO FROM MERCEDES-AMG

Engel’s record-breaking One hypercar was shod with factory Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2R MO tires specially developed by the French brand, and ran the maximum allowed camber setting within factory specs.

TÜV Rheinland inspected the two examples of the Mercedes-AMG One hypercar taken to the track to ensure that they were indeed road-legal, and fell into the serial production car category (if one can consider a very limited run of 275 units serial production’.

All units have been spoken for despite the eye-watering $2.75 million (P159 million) price tag, excluding local delivery fees and applicable taxes.

Which car do you think could smash this record? PHOTOS FROM MERCEDES-AMG

The nearest rival is Porsche’s 991 GT2 RS, which had lapped the Ring in 6:43.30 seconds, a good eight seconds slower than the time of the Silver Arrows. It will be interesting and intense as to how the Zuffenhausen-based squad reacts.

Meanwhile, the party at Mercedes-Benz and AMG must still be going on, louder than ever, even days after the record-setting run.



Botchi Santos

Botchi is your friendly, walking car encyclopedia. He loves helping people choose the right vehicle for themselves as much as he enjoys picking the right one for himself. Expect him to write about car culture, test drives and car-shopping advice. His regular column is called ‘Car Life’.



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