Five-time Carrera Cup Australia champion Craig Baird has reached an astonishing 350km/h in the Porsche 918 Hybrid on unrestricted roads in the Northern Territory.
The remarkable feat in the Australian Outback was achieved on the one stretch of road north of Alice Springs – driving the first 25 kilometres out of the city centre on electric power alone before unleashing all 652 kW of power from its electric motors and racing V8 engine to reach a top speed of 350 km/h.
The transition from cruising silently at city speeds of 60 km/h to roaring race car for the road reaching V-Max took just 40 seconds, completing an achievement no other production car has ever managed on Australian roads.
The controlled test took place with a professional driver at the wheel on the only public road in Australia where such a feat is possible – the Northern Territory’s section of straight, open speed highway. The use of radios and spotters ensured the road was completely devoid of traffic at the time.
Baird took the car for a series of runs on the Stuart Highway north of Alice Springs for a video titled ‘Flat out in the Australian Outback’.