The Tesla Model S Plaid is not just one of the hottest EV’s out there, but one of the hottest cars fulls stop. It recently took on a Model 3 on the drag strip and you really get to see how much faster the flagship Tesla sedan is over the Model 3.
Overview
A recent video that Drag Racing And Car Stuff Channel put out saw the Model S Plaid take on a Toyota AE86 and an Audi TT RS. But what really caught my attention is the Plaid going up against its little brother in the form of the Model 3 in that same video.
The Numbers
So it's a Tesla vs Tesla all-electric face-off. EV’s hitting the drag strip will soon become a frequent occurrence across the country. Anyway, coming to the specs, the Plaid produces 1020 horsepower and 1050 pound-feet of torque from its tri-motor setup. It tips the scales at 4828 pounds.
Going by the red brake calipers, I am assuming that the blue car seen here is the more powerful Model 3 Performance, which produces 490 horsepower and just under 500 pound-feet of torque. So it looks like the Model 3 has less than half the power of the Plaid and is still quite hefty at 4065 pounds. Having said that, the Tesla Model 3 Performance is no slouch either with a 0-60 mph time of 3.1 seconds. Both sedans have all-wheel drive. So let's see how things pan out in the real world.
The Race
Both Tesla’s line up at the Christmas tree. The lights go out and silence. Both EV’s take off in the most undramatic fashion with nothing but a gentle hush for noise. Coming to the launch, it looked as though the driver in the Plaid gave the Model 3 the hit. Despite that, the Plaid tore past the Model 3 well before the mid-way point and went on to take the win.
The Model S managed a ¼ mile time of 9.45 seconds at 148.46 mph, while the Model 3 did the standing quarter in 11.64 seconds at 115.33 mph.
To Sum It Up
Well, there you have it. Here’s how these two Tesla’s stack up for outright performance. If you were curious to see how those numbers translate in the real world, now you know.
You can watch the race in the video below