Volkswagen I.D. R Pikes Peak Shatters Record

The Volkswagen I.D. R Pikes Peak has been dominating headlines from the 2018 edition of the world famous hill climb race, and for good reason too! The all-electric supercar has been designed specifically to compete at the event and had already proved its mettle by topping the qualifying sheets with an 11-second lead over its closest rival

Now, the I.D. R Pikes Peak, piloted by veteran driver Romain Dumas has broken the overall hill climb record with a time of 7 minutes, 57.148 seconds. This was just over 16 seconds faster than the previous record held by former WRC champion Sebastien Loeb in a custom built Peugeot 208 in 2013.

This also marks a hat-trick for Dumas, who has been setting the quickest overall time since 2016, though the previous two times were set on a conventional ICE-powered Norma M20 RD. Dumas now has four overall wins under his belt at the event with wins in 2014, 2016, 2017 and 2018.

The Volkswagen I.D. R Pikes Peak is not just the quickest electric car to have broken the record, but is also the quickest car ever to have covered the 19.99-kilometer long, hillclimb track which rises 1,440 metres from the start to finish. Powered by two electric motors developing a peak power of 680PS, the almost 1,100kg racecar also used a streamlined chassis and very aggressive aerodynamic surfaces (including that huge rear wing) to keep it glued to the road as the air became thinner towards the finish line.

The car is not only a showcase of how an electric car can be as competitive or even more than conventional cars, but also of how sustainable it can be. The Volkswagen I.D. R Pikes Peak is recharged by a generator powered by glycerol, a byproduct in the production of biodiesel.