Fear not, internal combustion fan. This isn’t a video showing electric cars humiliating gasoline engines. There are three drag races in this single clip, all featuring a Tesla Model 3. The racing action is imminent, and it includes some modern muscle right up against the future of automotive. In short, it’s just a great racing video for people who like racing. And since you’re reading Motor1.comwe suspect that means you.
First, the competitors. You already know about the Tesla Model 3, which in Performance trim is capable of running a quarter mile in the mid 11 second range. It faces the Dodge Charger Hellcat which is also capable of running 11 seconds in the middle of the stock trim. The Ford Mustang GT is a bit slower in the low 12-second range, and just to grin, there’s a big Ford Explorer ST in the mix. On a good day, it might hit the high 13s – certainly fast for a sizable SUV but it’s not remotely challenge for any of the vehicles mentioned here. That is, in stock trim anyway.
The location is Bradenton Motorsports Park in Florida, and the race appears to be part of a special event. The electronic timing boards all have 11.50 lit on the bottom, which means all race cars can’t go faster than 11.50 seconds. Different time categories are common in drag strips; by setting a base elapsed time (ET), racers can compete side by side in heads-up racing as opposed to bracket racing with staggered launches. Therefore, in order for Mustang and Explorer to compete, they must has some modifications.
We will start with the Charger, which in this situation need to be careful not to leave also fast. Unfortunately for the driver, the Hellcat V8 was eclipsed by Tesla’s all-wheel drive and battery life. The Model 3 got a great launch and took the lead to run 11.60, versus 11.67 for the Charger. The Explorer ST followed suit, and with a screaming V6 exhaust tone, we learned it was definitely not stock. That was also confirmed by an ET of 11.91 seconds, a fantastic time for an SUV. But, it’s not enough to beat Tesla’s 11.66 second time.
It left Detroit’s muscular pride in the hands of a black Ford Mustang. It’s also not stock, as evidenced by the prolific V8 soundtrack emitted during the burnout. Between the Charger and Explorer, the Mustang ran the fastest time at 11.63 seconds. But is that enough to beat Tesla? It’s indeed a very tight race, but we’ll leave that question for the video to answer because it’s definitely worth watching.
