For many driving enthusiasts, a lap of the legendary Nurburgring Nordschleife circuit in Germany is something they must do at least once in their life. Opened in 1927, the engineers designed a 28.3-km Nurburgring circuit with various route variants, including the then 22.8-km Nordschleife. It is estimated to have cost 27 million euros converted to today’s monetary value.
Nicknamed ‘The Green Hell’ by 3-times F1 champion Jackie Stewart, the Nurburgring Nordschleife circuit is used for certain world championship events, especially endurance races. On days when there are no races, the circuit is open to the public who, after paying a fee, of can drive their own cars around during the ‘tourist sessions’. There are all sorts of cars – as well as vans and even buses!
For those who want an extreme experience but don’t have the necessary skills for high-speed driving, there are also ‘taxi rides’ available. Professional drivers will be at the wheel and there’s a range of supercars to choose from.
First zero-emissions performance SUV for taxi rides
But until now, there has never been a fully-electric taxi at Nurburgring and Jaguar’s RACE eTAXI service with the I-PACE performance SUV is the first. The public can now experience the sportscar performance of the all-wheel drive I-PACE around the 20.8-km, 73-corner track. The zero-emissions SUV has a claimed acceleration time from 0 – 100 km/h in 4.8 seconds with its 400 ps/696 Nm powertrain that is fed energy from a 90-kWh lithium-ion battery pack.
One lap as a co-driver in the I-PACE will cost €149 (about RM690) and you are provided with a helmet and drinks. The introduction of the first all-electric RACE eTAXI is another step in Jaguar’s electrification strategy as it enables more people to experience Jaguar’s I-PACE first-hand.
