Tesla Model S Plaid Vs. Porsche Taycan Turbo S Drag Race Is Not Even Close

Earlier this month we brought you (now since deleted) video of the two current EV kings, the Tesla Model S Plaid and the sleek Porsche Taycan with drag strip results. They didn't go head to head, but it looked like the Plaid would have taken the Taycan to task with a faster 0-60 mph time, a faster 1000-ft time and a faster quarter mile.

But we didn't consider it a true test because they weren't lined up side by side on a sanctioned drag strip. Now we have that information from DragTimes. This is as big and as important as the holy trinity race in the first episode of The Grand Tour between the McLaren P1, Porsche 918 and LaFerrari. The Taycan and Plaid are the current competing speed kings of the EV world.

The hosts take the two EV muscle cars to Palm Beach International Raceway for timed exhibition runs. Let's look at the tale of the tape. The Tesla Model S Plaid has three electric motors producing 1,020 horsepower, which allows this sizable luxury sedan to sprint to 60 mph in just 1.99 seconds. It tops out at a claimed 200 mph. The Porsche Taycan Turbo S offers just 750 hp and 774 lb-ft of torque, which is good for a sprint time of 2.9 seconds. It tops out 161 mph.

But there are other factors to consider. The power-to-weight ratio, for one. Also the tires, the drivers and the ambient temperature. Maybe the height above sea level? We're now reaching, trying to explain what is about to happen to the Porsche. Spoiler alert, it does not go well.

The boys from DragTimes note that they recently raced the non-Plaid Tesla against the Taycan where the Porsche won by a car length. For this competition, the Tesla has a 90% state of charge before the race; the Taycan is full, not that it should matter.

In the first race, the Tesla Model S Plaid doesn't use its drag strip mode, but still slaughters the EV from Stuttgart. Both cars hook up hard off the line, but the Plaid's power just outruns the Porsche quickly and with authority. From the slip, we can see the Taycan driver lost a little in reaction time, but was still ahead at 60 feet. By 330 feet they were neck and neck, and by the end, the Plaid logged a time of 9.673 at 150 mph, not as fast as Jay Leno's record run, and the Porsche clocked a 10.422 at 130 mph. We won't spoil the other two races, but lets the just say the results get more definitive from there.