Electric GT’s Tesla Model S race car crashed during testing

Electric GT is getting ready for the inaugural race of its all-electric and all-Tesla championship later this year. Last week, they made their headquarters at the Circuit Pau-Arnos in France and started testing their stripped down Tesla Model S on the track.

Unfortunately, their effort was cut short when they crashed the vehicle.

The racing series says that it is developing a stripped-down racetrack-ready Tesla Model S P100D that can accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 2.0 seconds, but the only track-ready vehicle they have now is the original Model S P85 that they modified before Tesla released the P100D.

They are testing the P85, which they call ‘the EGT V1.4 Tesla Model S P85’, and developing the P100D at their new HQ. Electric GT Championship CEO, Mark Gemmell, said last week:

“For Electric GT, the Circuit Pau-Arnos is the best possible location to bring along our future partners, teams, drivers and VIP guests. The headquarters is immersed in the beautiful French countryside, which reminds us that with the right technology we can not only take care of our planet, but have fun too.”

A day after the announcement, they posted a picture of the aftermath of their first tests to their Twitter account:

It looks like they will have to accelerate the development of their stripped-down P100Ds.

They still have some challenges to overcome before they can start the championship, especially having to do with cooling issues related to pushing a Tesla to its limits for extended periods of time. For the P100D prototypes, they say that they reduced the weight by 1,100 lbs with biocomposite panels and, of course, by stripping down the interior.

It should reduce the stress on the powertrain, which is expected to remain stock, and enable them to push the vehicles throughout an entire race weekend, which will be rough on those cars.

Electric GT says that a race weekend will consist of a 20-minute practice session, a 60-minute qualifying heat, a day race (60km) and a dusk race (60km). They are staying close to home for the first race on November 25 at the Paul Ricard circuit in France.