Porsche 918 Against McLaren P1: Lap Records Fall
The rules of the supercar world have once again been rewritten. The arrival of the hybrid Porsche 918, McLaren P1 and Ferrari LaFerrari have had an impact on the very nature of how owners perceive speed and performance that will likely not be matched or eclipsed for a decade or more.
But which one is best? This is a question Motor Trend wanted to answer, and so it began arranging for a three-car shootout at the legendary Mazda Laguna Seca racetrack. One fine owner of a P1 had offered up his pride and joy for the test, and Porsche sent their own car for the comparison. Sadly, as the company is wont to do, Ferrari forbade the usage of their car in the comparison test.
Before a single ounce of gasoline is burned, the three fall to just two. To give these cars a fair shake, Motor Trend has called in its resident hot-show Randy Pobst to push these cars to their absolute limit. Two pages of beautifully written test later, and the production car lap record at Laguna Seca has fallen twice. When the smoke clears and the data is processed, the Porsche is the car that comes out on top. Despite having less power and more weight, clever engineering and the sheer physical grip provided by larger tires and AWD won out. With a time of 1:29.89, the lap record has been destroyed by more than a second. Still, the McLaren is not far behind, and its best lap time of 1:30.71 is also enough to beat last year’s record that was set by Pobst in a pre-production 918.
If you love pure supercar pornography, this is worth your time. I am a bit upset that Ferrari didn’t participate, but the company has become increasingly difficult to work with in regards to comparison tests. It seems the Prancing Horse may not be as fast as it used to be if you ask me.
Read all about it here at Motor Trend.
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