Skoda Bags Two Guinness World Records

On January 19, 2023, at 11:05 am, behind the wheel of a Skoda was motoring journalist Richard Meaden. Where? On the frozen Stortjärnen lake near Östersund, Sweden. The location was home to a circular track measuring 188.496m in circumference. What followed after that resulted in Skoda bagging two Guinness World Records. Meaden drifted continuously on the circular track for 15 minutes and 58 seconds to break the previous record for the Longest Continuous Vehicle Drift on Ice.

During this stint, the Skoda completed 39 laps of the track and covered 7.351km. The previous record of 6.231km was set in China in 2022. And since Skoda beat the record in the Enyaq iV RS SUV, it automatically took home the second record – Longest Continuous Vehicle Drift on Ice (electric car). While the Enyaq iV RS was in the process of setting a new record, it achieved a top speed of 48.69kmph. And at its slowest, the speedometer read 31.64kmph.

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Although the specimen used was a production version, it had to be fitted with studded tyres for better grip on ice. At both ends, the Enyaq iV RS had 20-inch alloy wheels. But where the front tyres (245/35 profile with 600 5mm studs) were sourced from Michelin, the rear ones came from Nokian Hakkapelitta (255/45 profile with 300 2mm studs). As for the lake depth, that was 40cm.

The records were set on day four of the five-day undertaking. Over the period, 18 hours of drifting practice was put through in sub-zero temperatures. The Enyaq iV RS’ sports suspension, which is 15mm lower at the front and 10mm lower at the rear when compared to the standard Enyaq, also helped in the cause. Furthermore, the Drive Mode Select and the optional Dynamic Chassis Control, which works with the adaptive damping system, aided to find better traction on the run.

Congratulations, Skoda and Richard Meaden! Here, check out the video: