Porsche Taycan awarded Guinness World Record title once again!

Porsche set the record for fastest speed by a vehicle indoors when racing driver Leh Keen succeeded in accelerating the Porsche Taycan up to 165.1 kph inside the Ernest N. Morial Convention Centre in New Orleans, Louisiana. 

The previous Guinness World Record stood at 138.4 kph for almost seven years. The rules enforced by Guinness World Records were that Keen had to start and finish the record attempt at a standstill, within the space of the building. Following that, there could be no run up or safety net, as well as no doors open for an escape route. 

Despite the challenges, Keen’s passion never faltered. In order to safely work past the challenges, he needed a car with the hardest acceleration and deceleration and one that he could trust with his life. 

He drove the all-electric Taycan Turbo S (Taycan Turbo S: CO2 emissions combined 0 g/km, Electricity consumption combined 28.5 kwh/100 km) that is equipped with all-wheel drive for maximum grip, powerful carbon ceramic brakes and an acceleration of 0-100 kph in only 2.8 seconds. 

The venue - Ernest N. Morial Convention Centre is just over one million square feet, making it one of the biggest exhibit halls in the United States. 

“I didn’t really appreciate the scale of the record attempt until my first exploratory run. The surface is so unpredictable, so slick, that you have to have complete trust in your car. It truly was like ice – and you’re accelerating flat out, facing a really hard wall at the end. Suddenly, even in a massive space like the one we had, it seems very small,” said Keen after his record attempt. “I could feel the Taycan’s systems figuring it out, working so hard to keep me heading straight – it was such an impressive feat. To accelerate so hard on such an erratic surface was incredible. Not for a moment did I doubt I could do it.”

Keen’s game plan was to gradually build his speed, with low speed exploratory runs. On top of that, the stock road tyres were also heated beforehand for safety precautions. In the end, the record attempt was fulfilled all in one run. 

“I did take a moment on the starting line – knowing I was going to have to go as fast as I could, and stop again, all before reaching the wall I was facing. It got my attention. I used the car’s launch control and the Taycan just hooked up – the sensation of speed indoors, even in such a big space, is enormous – that wall rushed up fast. I was gentle on the brakes in the end – the Taycan’s brakes were more than up to the job. Of course, I didn’t look down at my speed so it came as a surprise and a relief that I’d beaten the record, and by such a margin. It was a rush! I’m thankful to Porsche for trusting my abilities and for their preparations and encouragement – 165,1 km/h inside a building. What was I thinking?”, Keen added later on.