Electric cars are fast. After nearly a decade of watching Tesla after Tesla go up against — and often beat — everything from hyper-expensive Ferraris to motorcycles to other Teslas, that’s a well-established fact. Still, it seems that some people will always have to learn their lessons “the hard way.”
Back in August, I shared the story about a Tesla Model 3 winning a Targa rally for the first time. The race was held at Targa South West in Australia and was divided into different categories. For the first time, Gemtek’s Tesla Model 3 won the Targa 130, which featured 16 stages.
The Tesla Model 3 is quickly becoming a favorite among motorsports enthusiasts. It’s no wonder why — the car’s stiff chassis, ease of modification, and excellent torque-vectoring powertrain lend themselves to spirited driving, and the EV’s mountainous gobs of torque at 0 RPM certainly don’t hurt either.
Tesla stole the show at a Targa Rally in Australia over the weekend.
Porsche Taycan has emerged as the Tesla Model S arch rival when it comes to performance on the race track, be it in a straight line or circuits like the Nürburgring and the Laguna Seca.
The other day I noticed my torque was at prime force due to the battery being fully charged — on my 2015 BMW i3. Imagine how this higher state of charge (SoC) increases the feeling of Ludicrous Mode as it jets a Tesla Model S P100D forward like a rocket.
I love the smile on this man’s face. He is simply delighted due to his Model 3’s consummate acceleration/performance.
Nick Phan smiled as he noticed a Toyota Camry challenge his Model 3 while moving stoplight to stoplight.
Due to instant torque, the ease of moving in front of another driver for a needed lane change is one of the strengths of an electric car. I’ve left many gas cars far behind simply to ensure I move over to the next lane safely ahead of a stream of traffic.
Tesla Model 3 Performance is gaining a fearsome reputation on the drag strip. Case in point: one Tesla Model 3 Performance owner has gone up against well-established internal combustion engine (ICE) rivals — like the Jeep Trackhawk, Dodge Viper, Dodge Charger Hellcat, Chevrolet Camaro SS, and others — and the results are clear.
Respected German publication Auto Motor und Sport is reporting that the Tesla Model S Plaid prototype has been hand-timed lapping the Nordschleife in 7 minutes and 13 seconds, according to the outlet’s local source. Adjusting for race-compound tires, this puts the Tesla around 19 seconds ahead of the Taycan Turbo’s 7:42 lap time reported by Porsche in August. It’s also faster than every gas-powered 4-door series production car ’round the ‘ring.
