Tesla may only just now be dipping its toes in the deep cold waters of advertising after a decade of claiming it didn’t need it, but the company has always pursued stunts that showed off its incredible technical advancements, whether it be “self-driving” systems or dancing cars with a light show. Years ago, Tesla got into it with traditional automakers by testing its Tesla Model S Plaid equipped with the company’s track package on the famed German Nürburgring track. Now, it claims to have just a set an all-electric production car record. Again.
Since Tesla doesn’t have a traditional public relations department or anyone to really contact directly outside of sales and service, unless you want to try CEO Elon Musk on Twitter, the record-setting announcement was made in a series of images on Tesla’s Twitter and Instagram accounts. On Friday, June 2, a team of Tesla engineers and presumably a decent driver (who wasn’t named in the social media posts, but Tesla has previously used Swedish driver Andreas Simonsen) tracked the Tesla Model S Plaid with the Track Package equipped around the Nürburgring Nordshleife in a record-setting 7:25.231, beating the previous record time set by the Porsche Taycan.
The production electric car record was previously held by the Porsche Taycan Turbo S EV, and then in 2021 Tesla showed up to beat that record with a 7:35.579 time. Then, in August of 2022, the upgraded Taycan returned to the famed near-13 mile German racetrack to re-set the record with a 7:33:350 time. That Taycan was equipped with Porsche’s Dynamic Chassis Control and a German-market specialized performance package. The ‘Ring also requires the vehicle to have a roll cage. Today, Tesla’s new record time is more than 8 seconds quicker than Porsche’s best time, which is a significant achievement on such a complex course. There’s video:
Tesla set its previous record time with the controversial steering yoke, but the driver had a traditional round steering wheel for this run. Tesla’s track package starts at $15,000 for some components as an upgrade to the Model S Plaid sedan, but is currently unavailable and sold out according to InsideEVs. It’s unclear if it was sold out before this weekend’s record-setting announcement by the U.S. automaker, or a result of it. The track package rides on Goodyear Eagle 3R rubber with an upgraded carbon ceramic braking system, and forged aluminum “Zero-G” wheels.
The Plaid is distinguished by its tri-motor powertrain with all-wheel drive good for a top speed of 200 mph. In MotorTrend testing of the Plaid (without the performance kit), we measured 1,020 horsepower and 1,050 lb-ft of torque and a 0 to 60 mph time of 2.1 seconds. It seems Tesla has pushed the car’s abilities way further than that with its latest record. Now we wait to see how Porsche and other automakers respond with their own record attempts.
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