Tesla just smoked Porsche on its home turf at the Nürburgring race track, and not even the potent new Taycan could keep up. A specially tuned Plaid version of the new Model S just shattered the production EV lap record, blazing around the punishing 12.9-mile course in an incredible 7 minutes and 25 seconds flat. So much for Porsche’s claims of Taycan dominance – Tesla’s latest performance monster just proved there’s a new sheriff in town.
Ever since the all-electric Porsche Taycan hit the scene, it’s been a nonstop back-and-forth between the German brand and Tesla over performance bragging rights. When Porsche boasted a 7:42 Nürburgring time for the Taycan, Tesla CEO Elon Musk immediately fired back that a Model S was headed to the track to take them on.
A few days later, Tesla announced its new Model S “Plaid” prototype had lapped the ‘Ring in 7:35, handily beating Porsche’s time. But Porsche fired back that their initial number was actually for the less powerful Taycan Turbo, and the beefier Taycan Turbo S was still king of the hill. The trash talk intensified as fans of both brands traded barbs and bickered over who really wore the EV performance crown.
Well, Tesla just settled that argument once and for all. With its latest Nürburgring run, the 700+ horsepower Model S Plaid didn’t just squeak by Porsche’s time – it absolutely crushed it. We’re talking an improvement of over 8 seconds on what’s considered the most challenging production car course on the planet. Talk about a mic drop moment.
Where Porsche goes from here is anyone’s guess. No doubt we’ll be seeing an even more potent Taycan with 1000 horsepower or more to try and reclaim their ‘Ring title. But for now, Tesla and its beast of a Model S Plaid are standing firmly atop the podium. How’s that for a victory lap? The battle for all-electric performance supremacy just got a whole lot more interesting. Game on, Porsche!
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