Watch: This Gas-Powered Shelby GT500 Just Beat Tesla’s Fastest EV in a Drag Race
The Tesla Model S Plaid may be the quickest accelerating car on the market, but it’s not untouchable.
A video of some recent drag racing action proves that the marque’s most powerful EV, which can rocket from zero to 60 in 1.99 seconds, can actually be beaten. Of course, the car that bested Elon’s latest battery-powered car is no slouch; it’s a specially tuned Ford Mustang Shelby GT500.
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The footage, which was captured and uploaded by YouTuber Drag Racing and Car Stuff (via Road & Track), shows the two vehicles facing off twice at World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison, Illinois. The resulting races, both of which begin with rolling starts, each end the same way, with the Shelby GT500 crossing the finish line first.
Shelby American
Both races come down to hundredths of seconds, but each time the Mustang is victorious. In the first heat, the Shelby GT500 hit the quarter-mile marker in 7.91 seconds at a speed of 159.3 mph, compared to the Model S Plaid’s 7.97 seconds and 154.94 mph, according to TopSpeed. In the second heat, the muscle car covered the same ground in 7.66 seconds at a speed of 160.94 mph, while the EV did the same in 7.68 seconds and 155.19 mph.
Those two head-to-head races weren’t the only times the Shelby GT500 beat the Model S Plaid, though. The tail end of the video also shows both cars running standing quarter miles on their own. Again, the muscle car comes out on top, hitting the line in 9.14 seconds compared to the Plaid’s 9.24 seconds.
It should be noted that the Shelby GT500, unlike the Model S Plaid, is not a stock vehicle. This particular speed demon was tuned by Florida’s Palm Beach Dyno. The modifications allow its 5.2-liter supercharged V-8 to produce over 1,000 hp, compared to the standard 760 hp. Thanks to this, its races with the 1,020 hp Model S Plaid were a fair fight.
Regardless of the modifications, the video is proof that the Model S Plaid can be outrun, and by a traditional gas guzzler no less. We have a feeling there’s at least one person at Tesla who won’t be thrilled by that.
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