If a tuned diesel VW T5 set a lap record for vans on the Nürburgring, it should be a walk in the park for a V8-powered pickup truck like the Holden VF SS V Redline Ute, right? This seems to be the reasoning behind Holden’s decision to ship one of its new VF SS V Redline Utes to the famous German circuit.
As expected, the Australians didn’t return home empty handed, with their Ute setting a world record for a commercial and utility vehicle – a category that didn’t exist before, it has to be said.
Driven by Holden Vehicle Dynamics Engineer Rob Trubiani, the Ute set a lap of 8 minutes 19.47 seconds, which is a very impressive achievement. “We came up with a plan to tackle the Nürburgring and break the world record for a commercial or utility vehicle but when we did our research it seemed one didn’t exist, so we decided to set a record instead!” Trubiani said.
Holden estimated the Ute would do around 8 minutes 30 seconds round the “Green Hell”, but the actual lap was 10 seconds faster. The lap time was set during a full run of the Nordschleife section of the Nürburgring, a total of 20.8km (12.9 miles).
The VF SS V Redline Ute is powered by a 6.0-liter V8 that delivers 349 horsepower at 5,600 rpm and 517 Nm (381 lb-ft) of torque at 4,400 rpm. The Ute is equipped with a sports tuned FE3 suspension, along with the widest wheels and tyres ever fitted to a mainstream Holden (245/40 R19 front & 275/35 R19 rear) and the first ‘split’ front and rear tyre arrangement.
You can watch the VF SS V Redline Ute’s lap record at the Nürburgring in the video below.
By Dan Mihalascu
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