Tesla recently offered some people the chance to test the Carbon Ceramic Brake kit, and one of them was French pilot Sebastian Vittel. The test session opened his appetite for more action, so he took his own Model S Plaid on the Nurburgring. There's a lot to soak in here, especially as the car is mostly stock, except for the brakes.
Many, especially in Europe, dismiss Tesla's insane acceleration, saying it's just an American drag car with few abilities besides going straight very fast. Most forget (or never knew) that the Model S Plaid was honed on the famous Nurburgring race track in Germany, also known as the "Green Hell." Tesla set a base at the track in 2019 and was dead serious about breaking a speed record. And it did, in 2021, beating the Porsche Taycan's record by almost 7 seconds.
The fact that Tesla Model S Plaid can be a racecar even in stock form has made it a preference for people who love racing. French pilot Sebastian Vittel (no connection with the F1 champion Sebastian Vettel) owns one and loves racing it. Vittel, who has recently tested the Tesla's Carbon Ceramic Brake kit, has discovered that better brakes are a must for a successful track session. That's why his car has a new set of brakes as its only modification, everything else being stock.
The pilot has shared the video of one of his laps on the German racetrack, even though the conditions were far from ideal at the time. The track was dirty from a race the day before and wet in some parts because of the rain, which is not unusual in the region. Add to that the low temperature of 8 degrees Celsius (46 degrees Fahrenheit). Not great, not terrible, but Vittel wasn't picky, considering this was the first public session of 2023.
Because of the track's conditions, the pilot went carefully, which made his laps not quite record-breaking fast. Still, the video attached below reveals the car's great potential. Vittel tells us the Model S Plaid feels safe and well-balanced, a super-important characteristic on the Nordschleife, the northern loop of the Nurburgring racetrack. The pilot also compared it with the Model 3 Performance, which he drove on the same racetrack.
The Model S Plaid did not overheat during the lap, which can happen with the Model 3 Performance. Still, the battery pack "became red" after the third lap, and the Model S switched into protection mode. The electric motors still deliver around 500 horsepower, enough to continue driving and overtaking most of the cars on the track.
Vittel also shares his car setup, with track mode selected and the battery at a 95 percent state of charge. The traction repartition was 50% front and 50% rear, while the brake regeneration was set at 60%. Of course, traction control was off during the session. The car raced with the original Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires on stock wheels but featured Carbotec XP10 brake pads and GiroDisc rotors with stock brake calipers. Vittel claims the combo is as good as Tesla's carbon ceramic brakes for much less money.
After his childhood dream of becoming a "tractor operator" didn't pan out, Cristian turned to journalism, first in print and later moving to online media. His top interests are electric vehicles and new energy solutions. Full profile
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