Remember when the Gumpert Apollo smashed the Nürburgring production car lap record back in 2009? The Audi-powered supercar set a scarcely believable 7:11.57 at the Green Hell, a time we thought might place it top of the roster for quite some time. It didn’t – and these days a supercar time that doesn’t dip beneath the seven-minute mark is barely worth mentioning at all – but back in the noughties the Apollo was the real deal. It even got the Racing Pete seal of approval: “In essence the Gumpert Apollo is just a race car with a boot”, he said after a handful of laps behind the wheel.
Of course, it didn’t take a ‘ring record to get us interested in the Apollo, because the German mid-engined monster came from a brand – Gumpert Sportswagenmanufaktur to give it its full name – headed by Roland Gumpert, the man who commanded Audi Sport during its dominant eighties rally years. Something as visibly extreme as an Apollo, using a pumped up Audi V8, which also produces downforce that exceeds a 1,200kg kerbweight – how could we not get excited that?
The Ingolstadt-made 4.2-litre V8 was supplemented by two blowers, driving the rear wheels via a six-speed sequential gearbox. The structure is a tubular chromoly-steel frame, with fiberglass or carbon fibre body panels draped over in a shape that could only have been made in a wind tunnel. You get super wide side sills, an enormous front splitter and a ludicrous rear wing over a six-slat diffuser – as RP said, it’s a race car with a boot, so the Apollo was unashamedly extreme, particularly in S form, where 750hp and 664lb ft of torque are present just over your shoulder.
Flat out, an Apollo S will hit 62mph in three seconds – and remember, this is in the pre-high-tech launch control days – 124mph 5.9 secs after that and hammer on to a 224mph top speed. The delivery of performance from the motor is predictably savage, the changes of the semi-auto sequential violent (particularly because the lever only engages the shifts with a hard push or pull and kick of the clutch pedal) and the stopping power of the six-pot brakes are – well, have a guess. Get the car up to speeds not permitted on a public road and the aerodynamics will join in with the fun, providing enormous downforce and ensuring the front axle force feeds information through the rack thanks to the immense vertical load.
Because this is a car created by engineers from the world of motorsport, however, the huge pace is accompanied by brilliant predictability, so the Apollo works with rather than against its driver. Combine those traits with a suitable German and, in August 2009, you got yourself a tremendous (in its day) Nürburgring lap time. Fit a set of the latest sticky tyres and it's unlikely the car would shame itself in 2020 - certainly the run would be recorded with a fair amount more pixels; the original onboard appears to have been captured on a dash-mounted potato, but it’s still uber impressive.
One thing that’s clear from the footage, at least, is the colour of the car. It’s black, which helps back the claim from today’s Spotted seller that they presently have the record-breaking car in their stock. It’s registered as a 2010 machine so there's every chance it may have been put into full-time road use shortly after making headlines. If it is indeed the ‘Ring meister itself, what a car to liberate from Hong Kong, both technically and historically.
SPECIFICATION - GUMPERT APOLLO S
Engine: 4,163cc, twin-turbocharged, V8
Transmission: 6-speed semi-automatic sequential, rear-wheel drive
Power (hp): 750@6,000rpm
Torque (lb ft): 664@4,000rpm
MPG: N/A
CO2: N/A
Recorded mileage: 498
First registered: 2010
Price new: c. £215,000 (for non-S)
Yours for: £288,000
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