Volkswagen I.D. R sets electric Goodwood hillclimb record

Volkswagen has added another record to the I.D. R's trophy cabinet, setting a new high watermark for electric cars up the Goodwood Festival of Speed hillclimb.

The low-slung electric Volkswagen took just 43.05 seconds to complete the run, comfortably besting the 47.34 mark set by Jonny Cocker in the Lola-Drayson B12 69/EV. It wasn't enough, however, to topple Nick Heidfeld's overall record of 41.6 seconds set behind the wheel of a McLaren MP4/13 in 1999.

With 500kW of power from a pair of electric motors, a properly high-downforce aerodynamics kit and no need to preserve battery power on the 1.77km hillclimb, the I.D. R certainly has the tools to demolish a short course.

While we're talking super-speedy electric runs up the Goodwood hill, the Chinese Nio EP9 has become the fastest road-legal car ever to complete the course, coming close to the I.D. R's marker in the process.

Although it's technically street legal, the all-electric EP9 had a few things working in its favour. For one, it was running on slicks to set the record-breaking time, and just 16 examples will actually be built. A regular production car it isn't, then.

Still, a 44.61-second run is nothing to be sniffed at, especially considering that's just 1.56 seconds slower than the race-ready I.D. R managed.

With 1000kW and 1480Nm on tap, the EP9 will hit 100km/h in a claimed 2.7 seconds and pull through to a 313km/h top speed. It's the electric lap record holder around the Nurburgring Nordschleife, having lapped the Green Hell in 6:45.9 seconds.

MORE: Goodwood Festival of Speed coverage
MORE: Nio EP9 coverage
MORE: Volkswagen I.D. R coverage
MORE: Everything Volkswagen