After Xiaomi broke the record for the fastest production EV at the Nürburgring, Volkswagen has its own reason to celebrate a recent performance at the Green Hell. However, this is more of a personal best than an outright record. The unreleased Golf GTI Edition 50 has been crowned the fastest VW-badged car to lap the challenging German track.

The upcoming front-wheel-drive hot hatch completed the course in 7 minutes and 46.13 seconds, making it over a second quicker than the Golf R 20 Years Edition. It was also more than three seconds faster than the previous-generation Golf GTI Clubsport S. But the newcomer is actually even faster than both of those Golfs, as the GTI Edition 50 completed the longer 20.8-kilometer (12.9-mile) layout. Allow us to explain.

The earlier lap times were recorded on the 20.6-kilometer (12.8-mile) configuration, which omits a 200-meter (656-foot) section. That shorter layout excludes the straight segment of the old start/finish near the T13 stands. On this version of the track, the special edition lapped the Nürburgring in just 7 minutes and 41.27 seconds.