Deep Underground To The Top Of A Mountain, The Taycan Cross Turismo’s Guinness World Record

4,842.967 metres, the new benchmark set by a Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo that got into the Guinness World Record books for the greatest altitude change ever achieved by an electric car.

Driven from deep underground to the top of a mountain, the feat was accomplished by J.F Musial and his team, who usually are behind the camera creating automotive films and TV shows.

Automotive film producer and director J.F Musial expressed, “It started as a ‘what if?’, a passion project, mixing our love for cars and travel and taking it to extremes. We wanted to drive from the lowest point in America to one of the highest, Pikes Peak, where we’ve spent countless hours filming the famous hill climb. The project relied on a lot of goodwill and a car that’s pretty much unique in its mix of abilities.”

Remarkably, in just over a day, the team navigated from the lowest point accessible in America by car, to one of the highest.

At which it is a vertical distance of nearly 5 km, travelling more than 2,250 km between the two, pausing only for both humans and the car to momentarily recharge. 

To paint a picture, the lowest point in America is Badwater Basin in Death Valley, at 86 m below sea level. 

Therefore, to go any deeper is to go underground, and so, the team did exactly that, thanks to the generous support of the enthusiast staff and operators at Eagle Mine in Michigan. 

This high-grade nickel and copper mine is the only mine in America where a car can be driven to sufficient depths, down a ramp usually used by specialist mining vehicles.

Due to the Taycan Cross Turismo being a pure BEV vehicle and off-road capable with raised ride height and all-wheel drive, it met the criteria needed to drive through the portal and into the tunnel.

Making it one of very few cars in the world with the right mix of capabilities to be able to attempt the trip without any modification and using completely standard road tyres. 

Subsequently, after rigorous safety training, the team were granted access to the very lowest part of the excavation, a depth of 540.8 m below sea level.

With their precise depth measured and verified by specialist surveyors, the team emerged from the mine just after dawn and began their relentless journey to gain altitude. 

Their final destination is the 4,302 m summit of Pikes Peak in Colorado, home to the world-famous Pikes Peak International Hillclimb, which will run for the 100th time this year.

Eagle Mine’s managing director, Darby Stacey, remarked, “It was fitting to have the Porsche Taycan drive to the bottom of our nickel and copper mine, as both elements are essential to electric vehicles. After numerous risk assessments, safety discussions, and detailed planning, our mine team was up to the challenge. We are proud to have worked with Porsche to safely execute and complete a new world record.”

Interestingly, the journey was among the most demanding the Taycan Cross Turismo and the team had ever experienced. 

It took them across the distance of six states and only to ascend at 4,842.967 metres without ever leaving the ground. 

The oxygen available to them at the start of the journey fell by 40 percent by the time they reached the top of the mountain. 

Along the way, they encountered sun, rain, snow and ice, fatigue and the ever-present threat that the mountain road and the path to their record could close due to the weather conditions.

“You can plan for months, develop a highly detailed schedule, but at the end of the day, it always comes down to execution and weather. I couldn’t have been prouder of our team’s efforts. The weather, that was a different story. I’ve always been told that the mountain decides if it’ll allow you to get to the summit. Despite an incoming snowstorm, we got lucky and found a small 45-minute window to get to the top, the mountain let us get this record,” added Musial.

In total, three groups of drivers working in tandem took on the driving duties, where they conducted the whole attempt by the book.

Meaning, it was done with separate, sealed GPS devices monitoring their route and altitude, along with an analogue altimeter and witness logs to satisfy the strict Guinness World Records’ rules.

Intensely reaching towards the end, the snow started to move in and the window to complete the adventure narrowed, meaning a swift drive to the summit and the finish line. 

However, fittingly it was Dai Yoshihara, a class winner at the 2020 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, that was behind the wheel for the final, record-breaking stage of the drive. 

Overall, said a team of men and women, who are now record-breakers, covered a total of nearly 5 km straight up and 2,274 km along the ground in 33 hours and 48 minutes.

Musial concluded, “It was among the hardest things I’ve ever done, but I guess that’s why it’s a record! Thank you to the teams at Eagle Mine and Pikes Peak, and at Guinness World Records, for supporting what started out as a daydream and ended up being something none of us will ever forget.”