Porsche 918 hybrid sports car does 350km/h on Australian highway in Northern Territory: video

VIDEO: PORSCHE turn their $900,000 hybrid sports car loose on a stretch of unrestricted highway. Watch it go from 60 to 350 in just 40 seconds.

PORSCHE have taken their $900,000 918 Spyder hybrid sports car up to the Northern Territory and turned it loose on a dead-straight stretch of unrestricted highway to see what it could do.

The car was driven north from Alice Springs with professional race car driver Craig Baird at the wheel, the race-winning Kiwi obeying the road rules by trundling along silently at a sedate 60km/h.

Then Baird switched the beast into ‘Race Hybrid’ mode and stood hard on the throttle.

40 seconds later, with the engine’s eight cylinders pumping and twin electric motors whirring in unison to produce 652kW of power, the Porsche’s digital speedometer ticked over to 350km/h.

Watch the video in the player above!

Took this baby to 350 klm today. Then on a dirt road. Some great film and stills coming. Must say 350 felt fast. pic.twitter.com/IfTgWIyHQI

— Craig Baird MNZM (@cbairdo) April 6, 2015

Chopper pilot got close to. Took the pic my self. Artwork. pic.twitter.com/sqejuAPiZ8

— Craig Baird MNZM (@cbairdo) April 6, 2015

Needless to say, don’t try this yourself. The stretch of highway was lined with spotters armed with radios to ensure the road was completely empty before the controlled test took place, while Baird is a highly-experienced veteran racer with many V8 Supercars and Porsche Carrera Cup race wins to his name.

The 918 Spyder is about to wrap up its tour of Porsche Australia showrooms to help promote ‘Porsche E-Mobility’, a showcase of the German marque’s hybrid technology.

Originally published as Porsche 918 hybrid sports car does 350km/h on Australian highway in Northern Territory: video