The Tesla Model S P100D is a very quick car, but it is still, at its core, a family sedan that could seat up to seven people. Thus, while the vehicle is capable of some insane acceleration, the car is still filled with creature comforts from the bottom up, making it one incredibly heavy vehicle. As revealed in a recently uploaded clip, however, the Tesla Model S P100D, when stripped to its bare essentials, becomes an even bigger monster on the drag strip.
Every racing enthusiast knows that weight matters a lot in drag races. Every single pound that is added or removed from the vehicle would affect its performance on various fronts, such as its acceleration. This was taken to heart by the Tesla Racing Channel, which opted to strip and gut the entire interior and trunk of their Model S P100D.
The Tesla Racing Channel was not kidding when it described its Model S P100D as a gutted car. Looking at the vehicle’s interior, everything unnecessary for racing was removed, from the passenger seats to the door linings to the vehicle’s speakers. One of the car’s batteries were also replaced in favor of a small “four-pounder.”
The result of the YouTube channel’s efforts was a P100D that was 500 pounds lighter than the car’s stock version, weighing in at roughly 4,460 pounds.
Back in March, the Tesla Racing Channel set a record by running the quarter mile in 10.44 seconds at 124 mph, beating the record of a stock P100D , which ran the race in 10.64 seconds at 124.65 mph, according to a Road and Track report. With more weight removed this time around, the TRC’s P100D went even faster, running the quarter mile in just 10.41 seconds at 125 mph.
While the results of the gutted Tesla Model S P100D beat the record that it set earlier this year, many Tesla fans stated that the reduction in the EV’s quarter mile time seemed far too marginal, as shown in the comments section of a Jalopnik article. After all, the improvement in the vehicle’s quarter-mile time was only 0.03 seconds, which seems too little considering the significant weight reduction on the EV.
“That’s nowhere close to what I thought it would run,” one commenter said.
Interestingly, some EV enthusiasts noted that the P100D’s tires were squealing at around the 1/8 mile. Thus, some Tesla fans believe that the Tesla Racing Channel, by removing so much weight, ended up compromising the Model S P100D’s traction.
“He seemed to be squealing tires at the 1/8 mile. I’m wondering if less weight is translating to less traction,” wrote a commenter.
While some EV fans were underwhelmed by the results of the gutted Tesla Model S P100D’s new quarter mile record , the fact remains that the vehicle did improve its own time. Whether the EV ended up compromising its traction or not, the Tesla Racing Channel’s latest attempt at setting another quarter mile record was still a success.
[Featured Image by Tesla ]
