To show off performance of its Regal GS – known to Europeans as the Insignia OPC/VXR – Buick dispatch two of its engineer to go and take part in the Nevada Open Road Challenge. They did, and finished 0.4 seconds of their 40-minute target time, achieving second place in the 135 mph class. What’s interesting about this challenge is the Regal’s 162 mph top speed.

The Regal Gs powered by a 270-hp 2.0 liter engine managed to reach its top speed of 162 mph (260 km/h) during an stage of the rally. That is pretty good for a mid-size family saloon. And taking into account that all German performance cars are limited to 155 mph, this Buick is faster than all of them!

The Regal GS features sport chassis and suspension, as well as Brembo brakes. The Regal GS piloted by Rietow and Townsend was a stock 2012 model, with modifications limited to safety equipment such as a roll hoop and five-point harness seat belts, as well as data collection computers.

About the Open Road Challenge:

The Nevada Open Road Challenge takes place on a remote, two-lane, 90-mile-long segment of Nevada State Highway 318. Rather than a test of who finishes a course the fastest, the goal is average speed consistency. Podium finishers often are separated by hundredths of a second.