A new speed record has been set by a Volkswagen Beetle LSR, which is now the fastest Beetle on planet earth. The team behind the seriously tuned Volkswagen Beetle spent a lot of time squeezing every last bit of power out of the 2.0-liter TSI engine.
The speed record was set in style, at the annual World of Speed event on the great salt lake in Bonneville, Utah. Going full throttle in a straight line, the Volkswagen Beetle clocked an insane 328 km/h (205 mph), landing it the extra three letters LSR (Land Speed Record) behind its name.
It topped out at 328 km/h and required a stretch of one mile in order for it to reach its maximum speed. To reach such an impressive top speed, plenty of work has been done to the car’s engine. However, the tricky part is that the reworked engine has to play by the ‘official’ rules of the annual Bonneville speed event.
To boost the Beetle’s output to 550 hp and a torque peak of 571 Nm, a new custom turbocharger was fitted, different pistons and camshafts were installed and connecting rods and cylinder head modifications were done. In order to tackle the challenging salt flats the Beetle was equipped with special wheels and tires, and the car’s body was lowered as much as possible for optimal air flow.
More technical changes include the installment of a limited-slip differential to improve traction and a safety package for the necessary protection. The latter comes with a rollover protection cage, a race seat with five-point harness and a fire extinguishing system. And in case you’re wondering about the weird looking add-ons at the rear of the Beetle, those are ‘brake parachutes’ that were used to slow down the Beetle after reaching its record top speed.
