.7 second difference between the Model S & the Audi could easily be inconsistency of the operator's application of his driving skills imo.
Tesla Model S P85D vs Audi RS7 vs Alpina XD3 track battle - YouTube Right on brother! Having spent dozens of hours in the car in the past month, my wife and I are blown away by the way our Tesla Model S takes off from a stop light, for overtaking, any occasion really...so much more enjoyable than the big Mercedes AMG gas SUV we traded in for it!
Without wanting to put a downer on this the same guy lapped a Honda Civic on the same track 7.2 seconds faster. There's definitely a tongue in cheek aspect to this, it's thinly veiled, but the inclusion of a Diesel SUV and an Autobahn cruiser (which even Sutcliffe says he's expecting to be rubbish on track) with the Tesla is more about the unsuitability of all of them to a race track. Fantastic road cars, great at the drag strip, but weight is the killer on track no matter how low down it is in the vehicle. It would be interesting to see the Roadster's time on the same circuit (I think it would suit the car ) As for 0.7 seconds difference being down to "operator error" I'm not sure: Sutcliffe is a decent hot shoe.. Maybe 0.1 margin of error, but 0.7 would be a fair chunk for someone with his experience. ** EDIT: For the sake of fairness I just realised and should point out the P85D was from a standing start whilst the Civic a flying lap. This probably accounts for a big chunk of the time, though unlikely all of it.
Did he turn off regenerative braking? If he didn't then that could easily explain the difference in time. With it on you'll force the car into limp mode faster and it would take a whole different set of learned driving to maximize using regen braking on when you are used to a typical ICE car.
He was still driving it like an ICE though; trying to get a hot start by holding down the brake and accelerator? Um, that won't work in an S...software smarts, and all that. He was also confusing the 'engine' with the batteries, but many do. I think if you're a traditional track guy, the S takes a different technique and a lot of getting used to before you can get the best from it.
I'd bet you'd gain the .7 with the proper driving technique of a Model S trying to get the best out of a track. A regular ICE trackster has the wrong set of driving instincts. After a dozen practice laps with the car set to the best track possibility and I'd say he would be reasonably close to the best time. One or two times and he could be off up to 1 to 2 seconds.
The AutoExpress guys clearly need to brush up on their techniques for racing an electric car (ie: don't two-foot it!). Still, I'm surprised it was as close as it was. The P85D is many things but not a track car.
I agree, I was quite shock about the technic he used. TBH i think he could have pushed the TESLA alot more. I wonder if it was done on purpose. The driver, Suthcliffe was at one time a test driver at Autocar.uk. I was surprise to see him on a different site!
