VIDEO – Romain Dumas breaks the lap record at Bathurst with the Ford SuperVan 4.2

The record established by Jules Gounon aboard his Mercedes-AMG GT3 “Extrême”, last weekend, only lasted a week. This Sunday, another Frenchman broke the new lap record for a closed vehicle on the Mount Panorama circuit in Bathurst. Romain Dumas set the new benchmark with a fantastic time of 1'56″3247 (compared to 1'56″6054 for Jules Gounon and the Mercedes-AMG GT3), with the impressive Ford SuperVan 4.2. Ford also sets lap records for an electric vehicle and for a commercial vehicle on the Australian track.

The Mountain, conquered! ✅
SuperVan 4.2 sets a new lap record at Mount Panorama with an electrifying lap from @RomainDumas! @Fox_Motorsport @supercars pic.twitter.com/JWxz0ap8cs

— Ford Performance (@FordPerformance) February 25, 2024

With Romain Dumas at the controls, the 4.2 kg and 1800 hp (!) electric SuperVan 1400 completed a fantastic lap with a top speed measured at more than 300 km/h on the Mountain Straight and Conrod Straight. “The effort and expertise that went into achieving the record for an enclosed vehicle around Mount Panorama cannot be underestimated, said Mark Rushbrook, general manager of Ford Performance Motorsports. Romain Dumas worked alongside our team to innovate, learn, adapt, and the result is a time that exceeded our own expectations. There's a reason why we chose to take the SuperVan 4.2 to Mount Panorama after Pikes Peak. »

This is actually the second time that Romain Dumas has set a record with the SuperVan 4.2, after breaking the record in the Pikes Peak international hill climb last year in the Open category. “Although they are both impressive mountains, Mount Panorama and Pikes Peak could not be more different in their characteristics, declared Romain Dumas. This is the first time I've driven the SuperVan 4.2 over 300 km/h, and we left nothing on the table trying to make the fastest lap possible. No one has ever driven a vehicle like the SuperVan 4.2 around Mount Panorama, and certainly not this fast! »

The Ford SuperVan 4.2 will now fly to the Adelaide Motorsport Festival, then do some demo laps at the Australian Grand Prix in Formula 1 (March 22-24).

Gallery – Ford SuperVan 4.2 in Bathurst

(Photos: Ford Performance)

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