2,500-HP Donk Drag Races Tesla Model S Plaid, Don't Tell Elon About It

We've featured donks on autoevolution before, and you might already know how to recognize one. It's a nickname for a 1971-1976 Chevrolet Caprice or Impala that usually sits on big wheels. And the Caprice we're looking at in this video comes with 26" wheels and some insane horsepower figures.

It's running a Z06-sourced LS engine, with a massive turbocharger and nitrous. That adds up to about 2,500-horsepower of rear-wheel-drive madness! Some might say that it doesn't make sense to build such a machine for drag racing, but then again that's the beauty of the automotive culture.

Donks might sound as silly to you as the Japanese Dekotora trucks, but at the end of the day, they're an expression of a group's passion for building cool cars. Just as some people will flock to Teslas, in search of that instant, but silent, adrenaline rush. And we've all seen how fast a Tesla Model S Plaid is.

The 3-motor setup is good for over 1,000-hp, which is enough to propel the 4,833 lbs (2,192 kg) sedan across the quarter-mile finish line in less than 10 seconds. As you would expect from a challenge such as this one, figuring out which one of the two is going to win is difficult, to say the least.

For the first run, it's all over in an instant, as the driver of the Tesla gets ahead of himself and launches prematurely. Otherwise, it would have been a clear victory for the EV, as the Donk struggles with traction down the line and almost bails out of the race. Still, we get a confirmation of how fast the Model S Plaid is, as it crosses the finish line in 9.407 seconds, with a trap speed of 149 mph (239 kph).

With the first run in the bag, both cars line up again. The Donk gets left behind for the first part of the race, but as soon as they get up to speed, we're in for a photo finish. The Chevy wins the race with a time of 9.294 and a trap speed of 157.5 mph (253.47 kph), while the Model S Plaid comes in a close second, just 0.053 seconds later!