A new video shared by YouTuber Sebastian Vittel, (no, not the F1 driver), an amateur track driver who notes he has completed over 5,000 laps at Nurburgring, shows him chasing down a Honda NSX on the track at Circuit de Bresse in France.
According to Vittel, he’s driving a Tesla Model 3 Performance loaned to him from Tesla France, for the purposes of providing feedback and other data from a track test.
The Model 3 Performance had Track Mode V2 enabled, with a power ratio set to 70% at the rear and 30% at the front, with electronic stability control disabled. The Tesla was running Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires at 50% wear in 235/35/20, wrapped around 20-inch OEM wheels. He had AC off and the battery in the Model 3 was charged to 100%.
Vittel says “On this day, we started the session at 100% on the battery and after 30 minutes of driving we were at 20%, then goes to the Tesla Supercharger next to the track for reloading at 100% in 40 minutes.”
The track conditions were at 36 degrees Celsius or 96.9 Fahrenheit, while the track temperature was a hot 55 C/131 F. The best lap time Vittel had was 1.41.60 with some traffic on the track, using new tires and battery at 100%. He believes getting 1:39 on a lap is possible.
As for the Honda (Acura) NSX he chases in the video, it weighed in at 1,100 kg (2,425 lbs), was on racing slicks, had an Öhlins suspension setup and 400 horsepower, driven by a “good” driver that was able to achieve a 1:37 lap time.
Vittel normally drives a Porsche 911 GTS RS MR, but after taking this Tesla Model 3 on the track, he noted in his “personal opinion” that “All car manufacturers/engineers/CEO, you should really, really, really move your ass soooo quickly for staying in the game into the next [future].”
In another video posted this morning, Vittel shares the record lap time in the same Tesla Model 3 Performance of 1:41.60, which he says is approaching a Porsche 997 GT3 CS time on the same track.
It’s always interesting to see how an amateur track driver responds to driving a Tesla for the first time. It appears Vittel was more than impressed with the abilities of the Model 3 Performance.
