Subaru has done it again, setting a new four-wheel lap record around the 37.75-mile TT Mountain Course at the Isle of Man. Mark Higgins in a 2015 WRX STI rocketed through the country roads at an average speed of 116.40 miles per hour to circle the track in 19 minutes, 26 seconds, thereby beating his previous record of 19 minutes 56.7 seconds from 2011 in an STI.
According to Subaru, speeds during the lap ranged from as little as 30 mph to over 160 mph. The STI was mostly stock with the only major mechanical change being different springs and dampers to handle the course's famous bumps at such sustained high speeds. For safety, it also had a rollcage, racing harness, and fire suppression system.
"It was quite a lap we did today and I am really happy to have another record in the bank. The chassis of the new car is so much better it really allowed me to pick up time in each sector in the more technical parts of the course," said Higgins about the run in the Subaru.
Things didn't go smoothly ahead of the lap. Subaru spokesperson Dominick Infante told Autoblog that the team only had limited time to practice on June 1, and all events there were closed on June 3 due to a fatality on the track. Higgins finally got a good chance on June 4, and it came in the nick of time. A few hours later the course was closed due to wet weather.
The latest time isn't quite fast enough to take the outright lap record around the famous course. In 2013, John McGuinness on a Honda CBR1000RR rounded the track in 17 minutes, 11.6 seconds for an average speed of 131.7 mph. Still, Higgins effort is massively impressive. Infante said to expect a video of the run in a few days.
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