The unlikely hero of the Nurburgring 24 Hours

The underpowered Romanian machine was the cult hero of the race, capturing significant internet attention.

Invoking similar fan response as the Toyota Camry raced at the Bathurst 6 Hour in recent years, the car gained new cult hero status during its third attempt at the race, due in part to the increased audience thanks to Max Verstappen’s entry.

One of seven cars in the SP 3T class, the Logan boasted a 280hp turbocharged engine. It was fitted ahead of the 2024 event, when the current Logan replaced its predecessor that had been destroyed in a crash.

Battling against four TCR machines, an Audi TT, and a specialised VW Gold GTI Clubsport, the Logan finished sixth in its class and 107th outright from 159 starters.

The car quickly became the subject of internet humour, particularly when it missed an oil slick while GT3 machines speared off the road behind it.

It had several off-track excursions both during the race and in the lead up, including a spin in the middle of the Carousel corner, catching out several GT contenders.

With just over three hours remaining in the race, the Logan lost its left front wheel, forcing it to be towed back to the pit lane on the brake rotor.

The team set about repairing the car and it was able to finish on track, completing 92 laps of the Nurburgring.

With a quickest lap time of 10m22.613s at an average speed of 96km/h, the Logan was faster than several production-based entries that finished ahead of it, however was still over one minute slower than the fastest lap in its class.

The fastest lap of the race outright was an 8m08.758s, set by the second place #84 Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO 2.