Another day, another video of the Tesla Model S making a combustion engine look a bit feeble. This time, it’s the 2015 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat’s 6.2-litre V8 that gets shown up.
The two cars are seen settling the score in the petrolhead arena of choice, a quarter-mile drag race. Elon Musk’s all-electric, all-wheel drive monster taking on a rear-wheel drive beast that also happens to be the world’s fastest four-door saloon ─ what more could you want?
It may seem like a strange mix-up but the two cars are more evenly matched than you think. The Model S, for instance, has 691hp and 910 Nm of torque in its sportiest ‘P85D’ form, while the mighty Hellcat has serious claws in the form of 707hp and 881Nm.
Both can also brake from 60mph to 0 in 104ft and both are capable of 0 to 62mph in less than four seconds, putting them in supercar territory.
The Motor Trend video points out that if the run was one car length longer the outcome would have been different, but a quarter-mile is a quarter-mile and the instant torque generated by electric motors performs wonders early on.
It is only after the quarter mile would the tables turn, as the Model S tops out at 155mph – far short of the 204mph a Hellcat can allegedly do.
Before combustion engine fanatics start calling eco-warriors names, we should all celebrate the fact electric motors can actually deliver serious performance without touching a drop of fuel. Combine the two and you end up with cars like the McLaren P1, Ferrari LaFerrari and Porsche 918, which are petrolhead dream machines.
The Model S dual motor may have secured victory this time, but really it’s the rivalry between electric and combustion engines that will result in us, the consumer, ending up the real winners.
Anyway grab some popcorn and watch total silence and V8 insanity do battle. Then consider watching a Model vs a Corvette Stingray.
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