Subaru BRZ World’s Tightest 360º Spin

Setting a world record is no easy task. In fact, it can be downright impossible. But don’t let that stop you.

The Subaru BRZ just set a world record. For Subaru, that’s great, but it’s not the first time. It won’t be the last.

The vehicle set the Guinness World Record for the world’s tightest 360º spin. The car, being driven by stunt driver Alastair Moffat, was driving the car on a closed course at about 48 k/h in a narrow lane of cars, clearing the spin with just 2.25 meters of clearance. When the feat was accomplished, he continued on to the end of the course.

This broke the previous world record of 2.5 meters of clearance, which, by the way, was also set in a Subaru BRZ in 2014 at the Autosport International’s Live Action Arena.

The requirements to qualify for the record-breaking stunt are stiff. The vehicle must not have been modified in any way. It must be using the same equipment that it came with when it rolled off the assembly line.

What you can do is make adjustments to the current, standard controls of the car. For this feat, the traction control switch was powered OFF and the anti-lock braking system was disengaged.
The previous record was also set by Alastair Moffat, who holds other records under his belt. He is credited with the “Tightest Reverse Parallel Park,” a record he set while behind the wheel of a Mini Cooper in November 2015. In that maneuver, he left a mere 35 centimeters of space between his Cooper and the two vehicles he squeezed in between.

He is also the recipient of the “Tightest Parallel Park,” another 2015 record, while behind the wheel of a Fiat 500.

For Subaru, this came together beautifully. Put the right driver behind the wheel of the right car and you’ve got a match made in heaven. Subaru can put this world record under its belt with all the other ones the Japanese carmaker has. A recent example of another world record happened just last year when Subaru Russia organized the largest parade of vehicles – 549, to be exact – at the Moscow Raceway, at the SubaFest held Aug. 15, 2015.

Subaru set a world record in 2011 at the Isle of Man, one of the most perilous race tracks in existence. The Subaru was driven by British Rally Champion driver Mark Higgins, setting a new lap record for a 4-wheeled vehicle – something that many manufacturers have tried since to beat, but so far, have been unsuccessful.