Contest the production car lap times as you will, but Porsche remains the racing champion of the Nürburgring. The factory-backed 997 GT3-RSR of Manthey Racing secured first place overall at this weekend's ADAC 24h Rennen Nürburgring.
"It really was a 24 hour sprint race, because there were many cars at the same level," Porsche driver Timo Bernhard said, "Initially, every one of us had to push until the final lap."Of the 170 cars that started the race, the closest competition came from the four R8 LMS of Audi. The turn-key racer -- yours for €262,000 ($366,485) -- impressed throughout the weekend. Car 97 secured a class-win in SP 9 GT3 and second overall, finishing five minutes behind the winning Porsche. R8 number 99 fought the winning Porsche for near 17 hours before succumbing to mechanical issues. After the Audi team replaced the right rear suspension and driveshaft, the R8 returned to the track to secure fifth overall. "None of us really expected us to immediately clinch a podium result here," Audi driver Lucas Luhr said, "Putting a new car on the podium in its first run at a 24-hour race is an achievement you've simply got to take your hat off to."Volkswagen also had a share of the success with its army of Sciroccos. The two CNG-powered coupes took the alternate powertrain (AT) win, which is not too surprising considering they were the only cars in the class. More impressive is the 17th place overall finish by the CNG Scirocco number 115, which bested numerous Porsches and BMWs. Even stronger was the 118 Scirocco, a standard racer with a 2.0L turbo inline-four, it finished 15th overall and first in the SP 3T class. Aston Martin took a win in SP 10 GT4 with a V8 Vantage N24 racer, and first in SP 8 with a V12 Vantage that was "modified only slightly for competition," the company said. If you remember, SP 8 was Lexus' much-ballyhooed playground for its two LF-A racers. The number 14 LF-A took fourth in-class, behind a Lexus IS F, Audi RS4, and the winning Aston. The result for the second entry, number 15, reads nicht gewertet, or, as we know it, DNF. Source: ADAC 24h Rennen Nürburgring, Aston Martin, Audi, Volkswagen
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