Check Out This Tesla Model 3 Drag Race Muscle Cars on the Strip
At an event at Bandimere Speedway, gearheads came together to find out if their muscle cars could beat some of the fastest electric vehicles on the market.
the You’re here Model 3 is fast, we all know that. According to Tesla, the car can hit 60 mph in as little as 3.1 seconds. Reaping the benefits of the instant torque available from an electric drivetrain and the deep-throwing ability of Tesla’s all-wheel-drive system, an owner of this electric vehicle can show their smug face at any traffic light. The Model 3 first left Tesla’s factory gates in 2013 and the Model S in 2012. A decade on novelty beating sports cars still holds. Last month, an owner smoked a series of muscle cars on the drag strip.
At an event at Bandimere Speedway, gearheads came together to find out if their muscle cars could beat some of the fastest electric vehicles on the market.
Is a Tesla faster than a Hellcat?
Lining up, the blue Model 3 looks seriously out of place. Coming into the left lane comes a Camaro ZL1 in an incredibly attractive dark orange hue. With a big fender, the black wheels have the proportions of a muscle car, and the matching Camaro growl sounds like it belongs on the drag strip. However, every gearhead now knows this story. The Camaro reaches 60 mph in 3.5 seconds. In drag racing, all that matters is the initial acceleration and 440 meters is soon over. The owner of the Tesla seems to react more slowly than the driver of the Camaro, presumably a seasoned veteran of the gang. Despite this, the Tesla owner still comes home first with an 11.675 compared to the Chevy’s 13.070.
The Tesla’s next victim rolls to the line: a bright yellow Dodge Challenger Hellcat. Not a demon that comes with 840 horsepower, 707 pounds of torque and hits 60 mph in 2.3 seconds. Just the “normal” 717 horsepower model. With a 3.4-second sprint to 60 mph, the Hellcat still has to lose to the Tesla. However, the Hellcat pulls away from the line faster than the Tesla. The Dodge completes 11.024 quarter miles at 128.10 mph. According to Carindigo, that’s almost 8 tenths of a second faster than the official figure for a Hellcat. For gearboxes, it’s a mix between electric vehicles and cars with internal combustion engines.
Is a Tesla faster than a Dragster?
The first classic muscle car that lines up with a Tesla is a Dodge Dart. An icon of the drag scene, it packs some serious muscle under the hood. With a considerably shorter body than E-body cars such as the Challenger, the 1968 Dart carried less weight and therefore a faster quarter mile. Perhaps sprinting away from the light earlier, the Dart established a clear lead over this particular Tesla. But, at the end of their quarter, the Tesla came home with an 11.462 and the Dart with an 11.912. For those keeping track, it’s 2 to 1, in favor of the combustion engine.
A blue 1966 Chevy Nova bravely takes this run. With a big hood bulge, the Nova hints at its potential. Much like the Dart, the Nova is a favorite in the drag racing community due to its power to weight ratio. The Tesla receives a modest handicap, with the Nova flying into the distance, the Tesla quickly closes the gap by running another mid-11 to the Nova’s 13-second time.
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