Electric motorcycles are notorious for their impressive torque and the ability to access that torque instantaneously. It’s why an e-motorcycle with less total power than a combustion engine motorcycle can still cross the finish line first in a head-to-head drag race. It’s also why an Energica rider recently got into a bit of hot water after being “too fast” on a race track.
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A Tesla Model S Plaid lined up for a drag race with a Harley-Davidson LiveWire electric motorcycle earlier this week in the first known case of this EV matchup.
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There are plenty of videos out there showing how fast Teslas are at 0-60 and in the quarter mile. In dry conditions, the Model S can beat almost anything off the line – including the Lamborghini Huracan, Challenger Hellcat and just about everything else. The Model X can even beat an Alfa Romeo 4C while towing an Alfa Romeo 4C. But all of those are in the dry – what about in suboptimal conditions?
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Electric drag racing is still a niche pursuit, but a few enterprising racers are setting some very impressive times in custom electric drag racers. In the last couple weeks, new records have been set by both Black Current, an electric VW Beetle based in the UK, and Shock and Awe, an electric Pontiac Firebird built by students at Bothell High School in Washington state. We’ve all seen – and been impressed by – Tesla drag race videos, but these electric door slammers take it to another level entirely.
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The main difference between the top two performance versions of the Tesla Model S is simply 5 kWh of energy capacity. Tesla used to offer the Model S P85D, a performance (P) Model S with a 85 kWh battery pack (85) and dual motors (D). The vehicle’s top performance mode was called ‘Insane’.
The automaker later introduced a new version, the Model S P90D, which is the same car, but with a 90 kWh battery pack. When introducing the new pack, Tesla also introduced a new performance mode, ‘Ludicrous’, which is obviously better than ‘Insane’.
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I’m still not tired of watching a large electric SUV eclipsing small luxury sports cars in drag races (though only on short distances) and this latest video from Drag Times makes no exception.
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There have been a lot of Tesla Model S/X drag races, some more ridiculous than others. But today’s might take the cake.
Australian Airline Qantas put their 737-800up against Tesla’s Model S along the three kilometre runway at Avalon Airport southwest of Melbourne, Australia. Nevermind that the Tesla Model S can’t even do 181 mph which is the take off speed of this aircraft.
Plane versus car… pilot versus driver. We raced our Boeing 737 against a Tesla Model S to celebrate innovation and sustainability with Tesla Motors.
Who won? My 1st reaction was “certainly not the environment” – they probably used the same amount of petrol that all of Tesla Model S/X in Australia saved together in a year on this stunt. But Qantas says they’ve offset that somehow and have some exciting tie-ups with Tesla Motors. Head south for details…and the drag video…
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We’ve seen some pretty ridiculous Tesla drag races over the years, more recently a Model S vs a snowmobile, but this one easily takes the first prize. At first glance, it might look like a fair fight, a Alfa Romeo 4C versus a Alfa Romeo 4C, but the second one is actually being towed by a Model X P90D.
If we want to be more accurate and look beyond the gimmick, the race is really between a Alfa Romeo 4C and a Tesla Model X P90D towing ~2,500 lbs, which is still an interesting experiment.
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As Tesla is ramping up production of the Model X, more early reservation holders are taking delivery of their all-electric SUV and a few of them are already taking it to the tracks.
Drag racing a SUV seems like an absurd idea at first, but a Model X P90D with the “Ludicrous Speed Upgrade” can accelerates from 0 to 60 mph in just 3.2 seconds, making it very competitive with a wide range of sport cars.
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Tesla released today a new update to some Performance Model S owners. The update includes some incremental improvements and an all new feature called ‘Launch Mode’. The new feature assists the driver to accelerate from a standing start, much like a launch control for a race car.
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DragTimes took delivery of its Tesla Model S P90D with Ludicrous mode just a few days ago and it already posted its first race. They raced the 5,000 lbs electric sedan against a 3,500 lbs Ford GT supercar.
Watch the full video below the fold:
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