The upcoming Range Rover Sport SVR has become the fastest production SUV to lap the Nürburgring, according to Land Rover, recording a time of 8m14s around the famous circuit.
The SVR will become Land Rover's flagship performance model when it goes on sale next year. The car is powered by a 5.0-litre supercharged V8 engine, the same unit as found in Jaguar's R-S models, tuned to develop 542bhp.
That's some 39bhp more than the existing top-spec supercharged V8 model, meaning performance figures for the SVR are likely to improve on the Range Rover Sport's 0-62mph sprint time of 5.3 seconds. Sources have previously suggested the firm has targeted a sprint time of around 4.5 seconds.
Land Rover says the lap was completed using a production-spec car, with engineering chief Mike Cross saying: "The Nürburgring is a benchmark for vehicle development and testing, and cars become stronger, more durable and faster over its 13 miles and 70-plus corners. We wanted to see whether an SUV could behave like a performance car in this challenging environment."
Other SUV entries which have reportedly tried to claim the Nürburgring title include Porsche, whose Macan Turbo allegedly set a time of 8m15s earlier this year.
Created by Jaguar Land Rover's new Special Vehicle Operations division, the Range Rover Sport SVR is expected to feature tuned suspension, software changes and a more powerful braking system than the current Range Rover Sport.
Despite its on-road credentials, Land Rover has also said the model will come with a twin-speed transfer case for both high and low gear ratios, as well as a wading depth of 850mm.
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@pauld101
Would WAGs/Lottery winners
and its only 60 seconds