Currently reading: Subaru sets new Isle of Man TT lap record - updated

Rally driver Mark Higgins eclipses his own track standard around the full TT Mountain circuit in a Subaru WRX STI

Ex-British Rally Champion Mark Higgins has set an even faster lap time around the Isle of Man TT circuit today (Friday), eclipsing the time he set earlier in the week.

Prior to today's Senior TT Higgins – driving a modified Subaru WRX STI – lapped the 37.7-mile course in 19min 15.88sec, which equates to an average speed of 117.51mph.

That is a new lap record for a car around the road course, and betters the time he set on Wednesday. The Manxman first set a lap record on the island back in 2011, when he achieved an average speed of 115.36mph. He exceeded 160mph in places around the Mountain circuit.

"I am still learning where I can go flat in this car," said Higgins.

Higgins' new record is faster than the TT’s existing ‘ultra lightweight’ 125cc motorcycle lap record and the existing 600cc sidecar lap record set in 2007. The TT’s outright lap record, set by Bruce Anstey in the Superbike race on Sunday, stands at 17min 06.70sec and 132.298mph.

Higgins’ Subaru is running in close to production specification. The engine has been modified to remove the car’s speed limiter and to provide better high-speed cooling.

The standard suspension has been upgraded with competition-spec springs and dampers, and lightweight alloy wheels and road-legal Dunlop Direzza tyres are used. A full roll cage has also been fitted, along with full bucket seats.

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Matt Saunders

Matt Saunders Autocar
Title: Road test editor

As Autocar’s chief car tester and reviewer, it’s Matt’s job to ensure the quality, objectivity, relevance and rigour of the entirety of Autocar’s reviews output, as well contributing a great many detailed road tests, group tests and drive reviews himself.

Matt has been an Autocar staffer since the autumn of 2003, and has been lucky enough to work alongside some of the magazine’s best-known writers and contributors over that time. He served as staff writer, features editor, assistant editor and digital editor, before joining the road test desk in 2011.

Since then he’s driven, measured, lap-timed, figured, and reported on cars as varied as the Bugatti Veyron, Rolls-Royce PhantomTesla RoadsterAriel Hipercar, Tata Nano, McLaren SennaRenault Twizy and Toyota Mirai. Among his wider personal highlights of the job have been covering Sebastien Loeb’s record-breaking run at Pikes Peak in 2013; doing 190mph on derestricted German autobahn in a Brabus Rocket; and driving McLaren’s legendary ‘XP5’ F1 prototype. His own car is a trusty Mazda CX-5.

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Symanski 5 June 2014

Roll cage I understand.

But changing the cooling, suspension, wheels and removing the speed limiter means it's not production specification! The time it's done it in is meaningless as I could now take any other car, modify it, and beat the time.
Peter Cavellini 5 June 2014

Well to be honest......!

As someone else remarked, it's a one car competition,would mean more if say 10 cars were allowed to compete.
Him 5 June 2014

Scary quick. "Higgins’

Scary quick.

"Higgins’ Subaru is running in close to production specification"

... with an engine modified to remove the car’s speed limiter and to provide better high-speed cooling, and upgraded competition-spec springs and dampers, and lightweight alloy wheels and road-legal Dunlop Direzza tyres and a full roll cage and full bucket seats.."

So, not really close to production spec, after all, but still a mighty performance from Mr Higgins. Went through a Kielder special stage with him once, in a Nissan rally car. Mad. Totally mad.