German carmaker Audi claims the RS E-Tron GT has set the lap record for a production electric car at the Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst – but the hot lap is not officially counted for technical reasons.

In a demonstration run prior to the 12 Hours of Bathurst, Audi racer Christopher Mies drove the RS E-Tron GT around the 6.213km track in 2 minutes and 28.15 seconds – with no modifications to the electric car apart from tire pressure changes.

While Audi claims the RS E-Tron GT is the first electric car to “set an official record time” at Mount Panorama, motorsport associations around the world only recognize lap records when the times are set in race sessions – not demonstration drives .

For context, the Lap record for production cars at Mount Panorama – held by a Porsche 911 GT2 RS – was achieved during a supersprint session at the Challenge Bathurst event in 2020, with Jeff Morton completing a lap in 2:14.24s.

In a media statement, Mr Mies said the RS E-Tron GT’s acceleration was “quicker than my GT3 car’s”, although the electric car’s 250km/h speed limiter and lack of downforce meant the time was 25 seconds behind 2 of the German was: 03.73 Qualifying lap for the 12 Hours of Bathurst in an Audi R8 GT3.

The RS E-Tron GT’s unofficial electric car lap record was also almost 30 seconds slower than the direct Bathurst record of 1:59.29 – also set by Mr Mies aboard an unrestricted Audi R8 Ultra GT3 in 2018.

Audi’s entry-level E-Tron GT starts at $180,200 plus road cost, with a pair of electric motors providing 350kW and 630Nm in normal driving, while “boost mode” delivers a power increase of 40kW.

The flagship Audi RS E-Tron GT offers an additional power boost, developing up to 440 kW / 830 Nm – or 475 kW in boost mode – at a price of $248,200 plus road costs.