24 Hours of Nürburgring

Introduced in 1970 by the ADAC as an official race, the event was created as a substitute for the Liège-Rome-Liège and Liège-Sofia-Liège rallies, which had been held on the Nürburgring from 1965 to 1971. It followed a tradition of longer endurance contests at the venue — including events of 12, 24, 36, 84 and 96 hours, such as the Marathon de la Route. The race draws comparison to the Spa 24 Hours, introduced in 1924, and follows the model of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The ADAC had held its first 1000 km Nürburgring sports car event in 1953.

The race is primarily aimed at amateurs, to fill a starting grid of around 200 cars. It is officially an international event with trilingual organisation (French, German, and English). Entry fees in 2010 were €7,508 per car, of which €3,000 was an advance payment for fuel. The field ranges from second-hand road cars to European Touring Car Championship vehicles and GT3 sports cars such as the Porsche 911 GT3.

Due to various changes to the Grand Prix Strecke, the overall lap length varied from an original 22.835 km (14.189 mi) to nearly 26 km (16.2 mi) in the maximum configuration used in 2002 and 2003 after the Mercedes Arena extension. Since 2005, the Mercedes Arena section has been bypassed with a Z-shape chicane, fixing the lap at 25.3 km (15.7 mi). As of 2024, the number of starting cars is limited to 150, driven by 600 or more drivers sharing in groups of two, three, or four. One driver may drive 150 minutes non-stop and may enter on two cars, but must observe a rest period of at least 2 hours between stints.

The race is known for a wide variety of entries. In 2023, 135 cars in 20 classes were entered. The class structure includes SP1–SP8 categories differentiated by engine displacement (with suffix T for turbocharged engines), SP9 for FIA GT3 cars, SP10 for SRO GT4 cars, VLN production car classes (V3–V6, VT1–VT3), Cup classes for BMW M240i, BMW M2 CS, Porsche 911 GT3 Cup and Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport, a TCR touring car class, and an AT class for alternative-fuel vehicles.

Unusual entries that have competed in the race include Fiat Cinquecentos in the 1990s, a Volkswagen Caravelle in 2000, James Glickenhaus' P4/5 Competizione in the 2010s, and a 1988 Opel Manta that raced from 1994 to 2023.

From 1999, more spectacular vehicles were admitted to arrest a decline in spectator numbers during the 1990s when predominantly FIA Group N cars competed. These included the Zakspeed Chrysler Viper GTS-R, turbocharged Porsches, modified Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters cars from Opel and Abt Sportsline-Audi, and the Schnitzer Motorsport-entered BMW M3 GTR V8 that had run in the 2001 American Le Mans Series.

The Nürburgring 24 Hours uses unusual safety procedures compared to other professional endurance races. Safety cars are not used except during red-flag and restart situations. Double yellow flags indicate a local speed limit of 120 km/h (75 mph); Code 60 flags limit speed to 60 km/h (37 mph) for incidents that would warrant a safety car on shorter tracks. Since 2015, competitors must hold a valid DMSB Permit Nordschleife and must have taken part in three races on the track within the preceding two calendar years.

Closing speeds between the fastest and slowest car classes are a persistent concern. In 2023, a serious accident occurred between a Porsche 911 GT3 R and a Dacia Logan SP3 — the slowest car in the field that year — after the Porsche struck the Logan at the high-speed Stefan-Bellof-S.

The unpredictable Eifel weather is also a hazard. Heavy rain and fog stopped racing for several hours in 2018, 2020, and 2021; the 2016 race was red-flagged due to an unusual hailstorm that caused a series of crashes.

In 2001, driver Christian Peruzzi was killed after a practice accident in an Alfa Romeo 147 — the only fatality in the event's history until 2026, when Juha Miettinen was killed in the first qualifier's race.

The 2006 event on Corpus Christi weekend of June 17–18 ran in warm, sunny, and dry conditions, in contrast to the wet and cold conditions of the previous two years. A new overall distance record of 3,832 km (2,381 mi) in 151 laps was set by the Porsche 996 GT3 of Manthey Racing, a team partially supported by Porsche with factory drivers and a 3.8-litre 500 PS sequential-gearbox engine. Second place went to Jürgen Alzen/Uwe Alzen/Klaus Ludwig/Christian Abt of Jürgen Alzen Motorsport, one lap down and also above the old record, using a privately built 3.8-litre 500 PS engine with a conventional gearbox. A notable fifth place overall was scored by a BMW 120d from Schubert Motors with roughly half the power of many rivals, driven by Claudia Hürtgen (2005 VLN champion), Marc Hennerici (2005 privateer WTCC champion), Johannes Stuck (son of Hans-Joachim Stuck), and team owner Torsten Schubert.

More than 260 teams applied for 220 race entries for the 2007 event on Corpus Christi weekend of June 7–10. An approaching thunderstorm delayed the start; lightning struck a fan camp and heavy rain made the track muddy. The race began at 16:51 after two laps behind a safety car. Veteran Klaus Ludwig led initially in the Aston Martin DBRS9 carrying the number 007, but the Manthey team took over when Ludwig hesitated too long to change to dry tyres. Fog interrupted the race for six hours overnight, reducing it to an 18-hour event. Manthey's Porsche 997 GT3-RSR won, with the Zakspeed Dodge Viper GTS-R second.

Over 270 cars entered in 2008, of which only 230 could be accepted. Manthey Racing won for a third successive year, making team mechanics cut off Olaf Manthey's famous moustache tips. Sabine Schmitz finished third on a Porsche 997. Three new Volkswagen Sciroccos finished 9th and 12th, with veteran Hans-Joachim Stuck driving both.

Rule changes aimed at reducing the speed gap between classes came into effect, including the adoption of new FIA GT3 and GT4 classes designated SP9 and SP10. Due to the changes and the economic climate, only 170 cars started. A Ford GT set pole position, followed by four factory-entered Audi R8 LMS and two Manthey Porsches. After the leading Audi retired with suspension problems, a second Audi was second; Manthey Racing won overall.

The race on Ascension Day weekend of May 13–16 saw Audi occupy the first four grid positions with factory-backed R8 LMS entries from Phoenix Racing and Abt Sportsline, with Marco Werner on pole at 8:24.753 at an average speed of 181 km/h (112 mph). BMW entered two ALMS BMW M3 GT2 cars via Schnitzer Motorsport. The #1 Manthey Porsche, driven by Marcel Tiemann, led early but was involved in a collision after seven hours. Eventually Pedro Lamy won for BMW, giving him a record-tying fifth win. The SP4 class was won by four Argentinian drivers in a BMW 325i E92 Coupe of Motorsport Team Sorg Rennsport — the first Argentinian team victory at the Nürburgring 24 Hours, and the first Argentinian team to compete at the Nürburgring since Juan Manuel Fangio.

Held on Corpus Christi weekend of June 23–26, the 2011 event came two weeks after the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The Farnbacher-Ferrari set pole using soft tyres at an average speed of over 181 km/h, the fastest since 1983. Manthey Racing entered two Porsche 997 GT3s — an SP9/GT3 "R" and an SP7/GT2 "RSR" — retiring the R to focus on the RSR, which won for a fourth time with a new distance record of 156 laps. Second place went to the factory BMW M3 GT. James Glickenhaus' P4/5 Competizione finished 39th, second in class E1-XP2. Sorg Rennsport took the SP4 class win again.

The 40th ADAC Zurich 24-Hour Race took place May 19–20, 2012. It introduced a "Top 40" qualifying shootout for the 40 fastest cars. The #3 Phoenix Racing Team won in an Audi R8 LMS.

The 2013 race saw Aston Martin's hydrogen-powered car complete the first ever zero-emissions lap of the circuit. The #9 Team Black Falcon won in a Mercedes-AMG GT3, marking the first ever win for Mercedes at the event.

The #4 Phoenix Racing Team won in an Audi R8 LMS, setting a new record total distance of 4,035 km (159 laps) driven by the top two cars.

The #28 Audi Sport Team WRT won in 2015 in an Audi R8 LMS. In 2016, the #4 AMG-Team Black Falcon won in a Mercedes-AMG GT3, with Mercedes taking a 1-2-3-4 finish. The #29 Audi Sport Team Land / Montaplast Land-Motorsport Team won in 2017 in an Audi R8 LMS. The #912 Manthey Racing Team won in 2018 in a Porsche 911 GT3 R. The #4 Phoenix Racing Team won in 2019 in an Audi R8 LMS Evo.

The race, traditionally held in May, was postponed to September 24–27 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Initially planned to be held behind closed doors, a limited number of spectators were ultimately admitted. Rowe Racing (BMW M6 GT3) won — the first BMW victory in 10 years — though the race was interrupted for most of the night due to inclement weather.

Manthey Racing won in 2021, having sat out the previous year due to COVID-19 concerns. A record low of 58 laps (less than ten hours of actual racing) was completed as the race was again interrupted for most of the night by inclement weather.

The 50th anniversary race took place on May 28–29, 2022. The winning car #15 from Scherer Sport Team Phoenix completed 159 laps.

The #30 Frikadelli Racing Team won in a Ferrari 296 GT3, completing a record 162 laps — the longest distance run in the event's history — and Ferrari's first-ever Nürburgring 24 Hours victory.

The 2024 race set a new record for the shortest distance, with just 50 laps and less than 10 hours of racing due to rain and overnight fog.

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