"Tesla won't come off looking good"

In practice, the Tesla has reportedly done a 7:23 lap time (as compared to the Taycan 7:42).

Granted, it's not a stock car and the ambient temps were lower but it's still a very impressive time.

[www.auto-motor-und-sport.de]

The actual record attempt will be tomorrow (Wed, Sep 18).

Maybe Porsche still has a way to go before catching up with Tesla.

I thought maybe the superchargers would make my car even faster, so we went for a charge, but no bueno!

you'll have to get a "turbo"

Quote
Boxsterra
you'll have to get a "turbo"

Lol!

Not an apple to apples comparison the the stock Taycan. I'm fairly confident that is Porsche decided to strip it down and prepare a dedicated track version, it would make it around the ring quite a bit faster. It would be interesting to see a stock Tesla's time, though.

Gary

2003 Boxster Base - Midnight Blue Metallic, Savanna Beige, Metropol Blue

Tesla performance mode only gets the car so far before it shuts down from overheating. Taycan ripped off about 10 straight 0-60 runs and was still going strong. Tesla can accomplish I believe three before it shut down that mode.

Unofficially the powertrain they were using is one that they are planning to offer customers.

Regardless, it is impressive for (even a race-prepped) Tesla Sedan to do even 1 lap of the ring in about the same time as a 2017 Porsche 911 GT3. That is a good time, even compared to ICE cars.

....you may not be able to 'feel' it. Not unlike 1,600 MPH, at 50,000 feet in an F-4, IIRC,

Airless Tires --- really???

"A mile of highway will take you one mile. A mile of runway will take you anywhere."

[insideevs.com]

not production cars. This is their first time at the Ring. And they were there for only a few days. They had little time to arrange dedicated track time. They tried two brands of tires. One car posted the time, one car broke down. They say they will be back with a production car. Not bad for a first effort. Good publicity. Now Porsche should bring one of their top end models and try to beat that time.

Someday drive one of these things. Especially considering when it was designed, they are amazing cars. Haven't really gone through a major refresh yet and the Plaid is somehow connected to that refresh.

notice the quotation marks in the subject line text. not my opinion but i think this guy does make a lot of good points.


[carbuzz.com]

--
MY 2000 S, Ocean Blue, Metropol Blue, Savanah Beige.
Bought June 2000 - Sold May 2010

I think that article is total nonsense.

please explain if you have time. i'm curious.
the way i see it is that porsche has a race heritage and they make, mostly, sports cars that are capable on a track. tesla doesn't. sure it's good to test a car to its limits to see where the weaknesses are but do you think kia or daihatsu should test their cars on the 'ring?

--
MY 2000 S, Ocean Blue, Metropol Blue, Savanah Beige.
Bought June 2000 - Sold May 2010

Any person or company can bring their car to the track. Tesla and Porsche have a healthy back-and-forth banter going and the discussion is good for the community. Both companies have praised the others' efforts.

The tone of the article is that Telsa doesn't make "that kind of car" so therefore they should not be trying to compete. Accomplishments at the 'ring are measured in minutes and seconds. They aren't measured in car styling, road feel, pedigree, or "deservedness". Tesla's prototype electric car soundly beat Porsche's best (almost production) car. Porsche can respond or not. They can try to compete or not. But to say that it makes Tesla look bad is just silly.

On the question of whether or not this is an indication that Tesla is spreading itself too thin, the amount of effort it took for a few people to race prep a Model S isn't even a blip on the radar in comparison to the Model Y, roadster, semi, or myriad other projects they are working on.

What are the good points you thought the article made?

pretty much all of it but here are two snippets that to my ears ring true:

"The thing is, Musk didn't have to commit to this. Tesla is building respected cars, still setting the standard for the upcoming automotive segment, and has a loyal following. That's a solid position to be working from. The problem is that Tesla won't come off looking good here by trying to start a measuring contest at the first hint of big competition."

"The German automaker has taken the high road by not even acknowledging the idea of a performance competition with Tesla. And that's an image problem for Tesla because now it looks like the yapping little dog desperately trying to gain the attention of older, wiser, and much bigger dog by trying to nip on its heels. The bigger dog doesn't need to acknowledge the small dog but knows it can put Yappy in its place if it needs to."

the analogy to a yapping little dog is the picture i get.

--
MY 2000 S, Ocean Blue, Metropol Blue, Savanah Beige.
Bought June 2000 - Sold May 2010

The Tesla 'ring time is quite impressive, even for a prototype. What about this has or will make them look bad? Porsche will have to work hard to beat the time with the Taycan.

Quote
You quoted
"The German automaker has taken the high road by not even acknowledging the idea of a performance competition with Tesla"

This is just plain false. In fact, quite the opposite is true. Porsche's response was

Quote
Porsche Taycan’s P.R. manager, Mayk Wienkötter
"We will definitely try to give an answer. If another apple is better than our apple, we will have to find an answer.”

And if that doesn't convince you, consider this (source):

Quote
Porsche Taycan’s P.R. manager, Mayk Wienkötter
After I asked if the Turbo S could be 20 seconds faster than the Turbo, Wienkötter responded said “Doubt it. Twenty seconds is a lot,” and went on to mention that, though there’s still some room for improvement, the Turbo and Turbo S are positioned really closely, and that “the gap you would gain [with a Turbo S over a Turbo] is not that significant.”

I don't get the "big dog/small dog" analogy. Tesla is a new automaker and they're already outselling Porsche. I think "old dog" and "young dog" would be more apropos. The Taycan is a nicer looking car, inside and out. It almost definitely is more fun to drive. But this article sounds more like a sore loser grasping at straws than a big dog putting a little dog in its place.

Here’s the link:

[www.wsj.com]

His conclusion: The first round goes to the champion (Tesla), but it is going to be a long fight.

that we will have two such performance sedans to choose from. Rarefied class for both. Remember to be humble, not everyone can afford even the least priced of those brands (new).