Tesla Model S Plaid: Price, Top speed and Specs

Tesla's Model S Plaid is the fastest car MotorTrend has ever tested

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Tesla's Model S Plaid is the most impressive car on the road today. It's not just that it looks great, but it has some serious power underneath the hood... or frunk. Recently, MotorTrend tried the Tesla Model S and declared it the fastest car they have ever tested. That's saying something.

MotorTrend first appeared on magazine stands in 1949. With more than 70 years of experience driving thousands of cars, the Model S Plaid beat them all.

0-60 MPH in 2.3 Seconds

The Tesla Model S Plaid is a high-speed car, and the stats back it up. According to MotorTrend, the Model S accelerates from 0-60 MPH in an astonishing 2.3 seconds.

"When experiencing the acceleration of a Plaid, it's abundantly clear that virtually the only force you feel is the Tesla's seatback hurling you forward to a degree that genuinely makes the horizon the floor. Except that floor is rushing up at you far faster than any free fall ever could."

Earlier in the article, the author explains that a free fall speed equates to accelerating from 0-60 in 3 seconds.

The Tesla website says the Plaid can go faster than MotorTrend reported, with a 1.99 second 0-60 time. Its three mighty electric motors, two in the back, power the all-wheel drive system producing a ridiculous 1,020 horsepower and 1,050 ft-lb of torque. The top speed is pegged at 200 MPH; for comparison, the maximum speed in NASCAR last season was recorded at 190.7 MPH.

Tesla Model S Plaid Specs

Model S Plaid Does the Quarter Mile in 9.3 Seconds

The power curve on Tesla's Model S Plaid speaks for itself

Tesla

Tesla's Model S also laid down a blistering quarter-mile to earn the title of the fastest car MotorTrend has ever tested. The blue Plaid devoured the quarter mile time in 9.3 seconds. It should've been a red Model S because this car was burning the record books and lighting the track on fire.

It's not just the motors; the cutting-edge software and aerodynamic design also contribute to its superior acceleration.

60-0 MPH Braking in 104 Feet

In addition to its blistering quarter-mile time, the Model S is able to achieve 60-0 mph braking in just 104 feet, while providing a maximum lateral acceleration of 1.02 Gs. This makes it one of the quickest cars ever produced and gives it the performance capabilities that rival some of the world's top supercars.

In other tests, the Plaid had a record stopping time as low at 98 feet. The impressive stopping power of the Model S can be attributed to its combination of powerful brakes and low center of gravity. The regenerative braking system also helps reduce wear on the brakes and allows for maximum braking performance. In addition, the Model S also features an advanced stability control system that helps to keep the car stable and in control during hard braking maneuvers.

Top 10 Fastest Electric Cars

The Tesla Model S Plaid, which added track mode in 2021, has pushed the performance boundaries and set a new standard for high-performance electric vehicles. Its quarter-mile time of 9.3 seconds is remarkable, and its ability to reach 0-60 mph in just 2.3 seconds is extraordinary. Elon Musk wrapped it up best, responding to a tweet about MotorTrends results. He tweeted: Plaid is sickkk.

Tesla Is Working With City of Austin to Launch Self Driving Vehicle Fleet

Not a Tesla App

Tesla has been working hard behind the scenes to get its Robotaxi network off the ground. We previously reported that they were in talks with the City of Palo Alto in California. This, combined with potential federal changes from the incoming U.S. Administration means that Tesla is really pushing to make its Robotaxi network a reality in 2025.

Bloomberg now reports that Tesla is in discussions with another city to explore the launch of an autonomous vehicle fleet. This development follows the major announcements made during Tesla’s We, Robot autonomy event in October.

Tesla has been testing the network in San Francisco's Bay Area with its employees and safety drivers, which means that internally, some of the necessary infrastructure is already in place to begin further deployments.

Austin, Texas

Bloomberg reports that Tesla is now in the early stages of the proposal with the city of Austin - the same city that already hosts Giga Texas. Tesla has apparently been in touch with the city’s Autonomous Vehicle Task Force since early spring to work on hashing out the proposal.

Austin already has Waymo and Zoox testing their robotaxi services in the city, so Tesla’s Cybercabs or other Tesla vehicles will be an interesting addition to the offerings already available.

The Proposal

The proposal will likely look at safety regulations, initial offerings by Tesla, liability status, and pilot testing the Robotaxi network throughout Austin before it is publicly rolled out. Another topic of discussion was ensuring that the city’s first responders - Firefighters, Paramedics, and Police - would be trained to interact with the vehicles. Tesla held an event in Austin with first responders on December 5th to do the initial set of training and help establish guidelines for the rollout.

We’re excited to see which of the two cities we know about - Austin or Palo Alto - will take the crown for the first public Robotaxi network.

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Tesla Adds New Long-Awaited Voice Commands

Automobile Propre

While we’ve seen several changes to Tesla’s voice commands, including a new voice and the potential for a Smart Voice Assistant to come soon, we haven’t seen much in the way of new voice commands.

For the first time in a long time, Tesla has added new voice commands as part of the 2024 Holiday Update. These new commands control vehicle features that weren’t accessible before. With all of the changes we’re seeing, including faster responses and better voice recognition, we’d be surprised if Tesla doesn’t show off a completely new system in the first half of 2025.

For now, let’s take a look at the new voice commands. Shout out to @LifeMiddie and our readers for catching these.

HOV Lanes

Command: Turn [On/Off] HOV

High Occupancy Vehicle lanes are generally faster than other lanes. However, the requirements for their use differ from state to state, with many states requiring a minimum number of occupants. The setting is buried under Controls > Navigation > Use HOV Lanes, which makes it annoying to get to for something you may want to turn on and off often. Thankfully, we can now use a voice command.

Toll Routes

Command: Turn [On/Off] Avoid Tolls

Similar to HOV lanes, this command will toggle the “Avoid Tolls” navigation feature on or off as requested.

We’re actually hoping this feature gets renamed - a double negative “Turn Off Avoid Tolls” to be able to use toll routes in navigation is a bit confusing. Perhaps “Avoid Tolls/Don’t Avoid Tolls” would be a better voice command.

Headlights

Command: Turn [On/Off] Headlights

This is a simple command that people have been asking for ages. We’re glad to see it finally arrive, and it's pretty helpful, especially when you’re parked or want to turn on your headlights in the rain.

Keep in mind that using Turn on headlights will actually switch your headlights to On instead of Auto, so you may need to move them back to Auto later.

Fog Lights

Command: Turn [On/Off] Fog Lights

This command requires your vehicle to be equipped with fog lights. This command does nothing for newer vehicles that include integrated fog lights, like the Cybertruck and Model 3 Highland.

For vehicles equipped with fog lights, it will turn on or off your fog lights as requested. It's a nice addition, as fog lights aren’t always necessary. This will also turn off your rear fog lights for the Model S and Model X.

A couple of other existing voice commands that are often useful are ‘navigate to X’ or ‘navigate home.’ You can also use voice commands to turn on voice guidance on or off by saying, turn off voice guidance. We have a list of the Top 10 Most Useful Voice Commands that may also be useful.

If you find any additional new voice commands, let us know here on our forums or on social media. You can also check out our list of all known Tesla voice commands.

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