Tesla’s 2021 Model S Plaid has been named the fastest electric car to go from 0-60 mph by automotive publication MotorTrend in its recent roundup of the top 10 fastest-accelerating electric vehicles (EVs) it has ever tested.
“The 2021 Tesla Model S Plaid is the fastest EV, and the fastest car for that matter, we’ve ever tested in 0-60 acceleration, despite the drama surrounding getting data that matched the standard conditions of our other instrumented tests,” the publication noted.
How does a Tesla Model S Plaid accelerate so fast? It’s fitted with three extraordinarily efficient and powerful electric motors, all-wheel drive thanks to those motors with two at the rear to further bolster the power shove, and an advanced traction control system that interacts seamlessly with said electric motors. Add it all up, and you get a monstrous 1,020 horsepower and 1,050 ft-lb of torque.
While the Model S Plaid accelerated from 0-60 mph in 2.3 seconds in Motortrend‘s testing, the performance EV can do even better and is actually rated for a 1.99-second 0-60 time. It gives hypercars a run for their money at a fraction of the cost.
MotorTrend has a 1/4 mile time of 9.3 seconds at a trap speed of 152.2 mph on record for the Model S Plaid. However, we’ve seen Tesla’s flagship EV manage sub-9-second 1/4 mile times at drag strips and set record after record at raceways across the globe.
Check out Motortrend‘s full list of the top 10 fastest 0-60 mph EVs below:
