Words: Harry Smith
You’ve never heard of the Tesla Model S P85D? It’s the sedan that made 0-60mph in less than 3.2 seconds. Now, Elon Musk, the Tony Stark-esque owner of Tesla, has announced the ‘Ludicrous Speed’ upgrade. The P85D now hits 60mph in just 2.8 seconds.
Musk, whose aim was to build a car which would match the performance of the iconic McLaren F1, has described the Tesla as one’s own personal roller-coaster. Thanks to instant torque, the Tesla can achieve 1.1g during acceleration. To give that a sense of context, it feels faster than falling.
Yes, it looks sensible, but the Tesla Ludicrous is anything but. It more than lives up to its moniker. In fact, it’s faintly preposterous. It’s 20% faster than the standard model and, although limited to 155mph, the flagship Tesla does not spare the horses, developing a total of 762bhp from its front and rear e-motors. Be in no doubt, Tesla has come a long way since its fast-but-flawed debut in 2008 and now this 21st century, Silicon Valley interloper is asking some pretty serious questions of the traditional car industry. Is this the beginning of the end of internal combustion motoring as we know it?
The Tesla is currently the fastest accelerating four-door sedan on the road. In fact, this electric bi-motor slingshot also ranks amongst the fastest cars in the world. But just how fast is it? Which cars can it out accelerate in the benchmark sprint, the race to 60mph?
AUDI R8 V10 PLUS
0-62MPH: 3.2
TOP SPEED, MPH: 205
ENGINE: V10
POWER, BHP: 602
CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06
0-62MPH: 3.5
TOP SPEED, MPH: 202
ENGINE: V8
POWER, BHP: 650
FERRARI F12 BERLINETTA
0-62MPH: 3.1
TOP SPEED, MPH: 227
ENGINE: V12
POWER, BHP: 730
JAGUAR F-TYPE PROJECT 7
0-62MPH: 3.9
TOP SPEED, MPH: 186
ENGINE: V8
POWER, BHP: 567
KOENIGSEGG AGERA
0-62MPH: 3
TOP SPEED, MPH: 270
ENGINE: V8
POWER, BHP: 960
LAMBORGHINI HURACÁN LP 610-4
0-62MPH: 3.2
TOP SPEED, MPH: 202
ENGINE: V10
POWER, BHP: 602
MCLAREN 650S
0-62MPH: 3.0
TOP SPEED, MPH: 204
ENGINE: V8
POWER, BHP: 641
MERCEDES-AMG GT S
0-62MPH: 3.8
TOP SPEED, MPH: 193
ENGINE: V8
POWER, BHP: 510
PAGANI HUAYRA
0-62MPH: 3.2
TOP SPEED, MPH: 231
ENGINE: V12
POWER, BHP: 730
PORSCHE 911 GT3 RS
0-62MPH: 3.3
TOP SPEED, MPH: 193
ENGINE: 4.0 FLAT SIX
POWER, BHP: 475
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