Tesla takes aim at upstarts with 390-mile range, 200 mph Model S Plaid
This is the Tesla Model S Plaid, the company's fastest sedan ever. [credit: Tesla ]
On Thursday, Tesla CEO Elon Musk took to a stage in Fremont, California, to debut the production Model S Plaid. The Model S redefined our expectations of an electric car when it was first introduced. But it has remained little changed since 2016 as Tesla has focused on the cheaper but much higher volume Models 3 and Y. Five years is a long time in the car world, and others in the industry-notably Lucid and Mercedes-Benz-have the potential to change what was once the default answer to the question "what's the best, fanciest electric car I can buy?"
The Model S Plaid is Tesla's response to all the upstarts, and the first 25 vehicles will meet their new owners on Friday. "Then [Tesla] basically should be at several hundred cars per week soon and a thousand cars per week next quarter," Musk told attendees.
Unfortunately, we're light on technical specs-Tesla got rid of those kinds of resources when it decided to do away with a press office. Its three-motor powertrain provides a peak power of 1,020 hp (760 kW). That's sufficient for a sub-2 second time in the 0-60 mph (0-98 km/h) dash (with a rollout) and a 9.23-second 1/4-mile time, which really is quick. Top speed will be 200 mph (321 km/h), but if you plan to drive that fast, you'll have to wait until the fall, when the right tires and wheels are available.
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