Tesla Model S Plaid reclaims fastest lap for a production EV at Nürburgring
Tesla Model S Plaid. A model equipped with the Track Package set a new lap record on Friday at Nürburgring in Germany.
Tesla
The Tesla Model S reclaimed the lap record for a production electric vehicle at Nürburgring.
The EV completed a 12.94-mile lap in 7 minutes and 25.231 seconds on Friday.
That beat the previous record set last year by the Porsche Taycan Turbo S by more than 8 seconds.
The Tesla Model S beat Porsche to reclaim the lap record for a production electric vehicle at the famed Nürburgring track in Germany.
On Friday, a Model S Plaid equipped with the Track Package completed a 12.94-mile lap in 7 minutes and 25.231 seconds. That beat the previous record set last year by the Porsche Taycan Turbo S by 8 more than seconds.
“Congrats Tesla Plaid racing team!” CEO Elon Musk tweeted on Saturday.
The Track Package for the Model S Plaid offers new tires and brakes as well as a top speed that has exceeded 200 miles per hour. On Friday, the Model S that set the new lap record hit speeds as high as 179.5 miles per hour.
Video of the record lap also showed that the Model S featured a round steering wheel, while a prior version from its 2021 run featured a yoke for steering.
Tesla and Porsche have been going back and forth in recent years as king of the Nürburgring track among production EVs.
In 2019, Porsche served up its Taycan electric vehicle to set a new lap record at the famous proving grounds.
Then in 2021, the Model S Plaid beat Porsche with a time of 7 minutes and 35.579 seconds, shaving off 7 seconds from the Taycan’s mark.
And last year, Porsche took back the crown after its Taycan Turbo S, which was fitted with its own “performance” package, beat Tesla’s time by 2 seconds.
Musk previously has set an ambitious goal for Tesla at Nürburgring. In 2021, he said on Joe Rogan’s podcast that the Model S eventually could get under the 7-minute mark.
“We’re trying to get to, on the Nurburgring, get to the low-7-minute mark. And then, with further improvements, I think we could bust 7 minutes on the Nurburgring, which would be a pretty wicked act on its own,” he said.
