Renault Sets New Nürburgring Lap Record for a Front-Wheel Drive Car with Megane RS Trophy

Renault has slashed its own longstanding lap record for a front-wheel drive production car at the Nordschleife, which the company held since June 23, 2008, with its new Megane RenaultSport (RS) Trophy special.

The 265-horsepower version of the Megane RS completed a full lap around the Nürburgring racetrack in 8 minutes and 7.97 seconds beating the time of the previous generation Mégane Renaultsport R26.R by 9 seconds. In comparison, the now obsolete 305HP Ford Focus RS posted a lap time of 8 minutes and 26 seconds in the summer of 2009.

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SCOOP: New Opel Astra GTC OPC Flogged Around the ‘Ring

What you see here is a prototype version of the all-new Opel Astra GTC OPC, or as Vauxhall buyers in Britain will come to know it, the upcoming Astra GTC VXR, and it was spotted doing test rounds at the Nurburgring race track.

Having already revealed the mainstream models of the new and rather sporty looking in a VW Scirocco kind of way GTC, the Astra’s engineers turned their focus on the fastest and most powerful version of the series, which will look a lot like the original concept seen at last year’s Paris Motor Show.

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VIDEO: Top Gear Russia Takes Hyundai Coupe 3.8 V6 to the Nurburgring

The team behind the Russian edition of BBC’s Top Gear magazine recently headed over to the Nurburgring racetrack to try out Hyundai’s rear-wheel drive Genesis Coupe. The model of choice was fitted with a 3.8-liter V6 engine delivering 306-horsepower, coupled to a six-speed automatic transmission.

If you don’t want to hear or see the antics of the presenters in the beginning of the clip, fast-forward the video a minute or two to go straight to the part where the magazine’s test driver Dmitry Sokolov laps the Nurburgring. And yes, that's a Porsche 911 -possibly from the GT series- that Sokolov is about to attack. Watch the video directly on Youtube by clicking this link as Sokolov's page does not allow embedding on external sites.

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VIDEO: 2012 Corvette ZR1 Laps the 'Ring 6-Sec Faster than Previous Model, Beats GT-R by 5-Sec!

And the war on who has the fastest car on Germany’s famed Nurburgring racetrack continues. General Motors wasted no time after the release of its refined for the 2012 model year Corvette ZR1 to take its flagship sports car to the Nurburgring racetrack and try it out.

The 638-horsepower ZR-1 fitted with the optional Michelin Pilot Sport Cup Zero Pressure tires recorded a lap time of 7:19.63, improving the previous Corvette-best recorded time in 2008 by more than six seconds (7:26.40) and beating the 2012MY Nissan GT-R’s most recent run -allegedly in less than ideal conditions though- by close to five-seconds (7:24.22).

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Renault Teases More Potent version of Megane RS

One of Europe’s finest hot hatches is about to get better as Renault is readying a new edition of the Megane RS that will be unveiled to the world on June 17, 2011. The French carmaker released a teaser video of the car from the test runs at the Nurburgring racetrack in Germany.

However, that’s about all Renault is willing to reveal for now so we’ll have to wait and see what kind of upgrades the car will feature and if a power boost and / or a weight reduction and chassis enhancements are part of the package.

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Aston Martin V12 Zagato: Italian Elegance Meets British Brute Force

Some companies really know how to celebrate. Take AstonMartin and Zagato, for example. The iconic British sports car maker and the legendary Italian coachbuilder will mark the 50th anniversary of their first collaboration with a brand new study.

To honor their first joint project, the 1961 DB4GT Zagato, the two companies developed the Aston Martin V12 Zagato, a race car study that will be unveiled on May 21 at the Villa D'Este Concorsod'Eleganza in Italy, where it will compete against the Ferrari Superamerica 45. But this elegant and dramatic coupe was not built for classy Concours d'Elegance events alone, as it will actually race at the Nurburgring 24 Hour event on June 25-26.

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SCOOP: Audi’s Über R8 GT Spyder Hits the ‘Ring

There’s a new Audi model coming to town. We’re talking about the 2012 R8 GT Spyder that will make its global premiere at the upcoming 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show and which we caught testing in and around the Nurburgring racetrack in Germany. Even though Audi recently teased us with a set of renderings, these are some of the first real life photos of the R8 GT Spyder, which is seen here in prototype guise.

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SCOOP: 2012 Bentley Continental GTC Convertible Facelift Spotted Testing at the Nurburgring

We knew that Bentley was working on a revised version of its Continental GTC drop-top model after the introduction of the facelifted Continental GT coupe, and these fresh-from-the-Nurburgring spy shots are here to prove it.

Following the example of its coupe sibling that was unveiled in facelifted form at last year’s Paris Motor Show, the 2012 Conti convertible receives a styling makeover. The changes include newly shaped body panels all around and a more prominent front end with Mulsanne-inspired quad headlamps featuring inner lamps powered by xenon on low beam and LED on high beam.

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Lexus CT200h Race Car to Debut at the Nurburgring

The Lexus CT200h compact hybrid will debut in racing car guise at an endurance race this weekend at the legendary Nurburgring Nordschleife circuit. Entered by Gazoo Racing, the same organization that races the Lexus LFA, the CT200h will compete in the Adenauer ADAC Rundstrecken-Trophy. Around 200 cars will line up at the start of the six hour-race. Read more »