Tesla Model S Plaid | Spotted
Tesla has confirmed it will end Model S production - so guess how much its 'ring record holder now costs...
What on earth is going on with Tesla at the moment? News emerged a few weeks ago that it had been usurped as the world’s largest electric car brand by China’s BYD, as a result of declining sales throughout 2025. Just yesterday, the company announced that it’ll be axing two cars that have been the bedrock of its success, the Model S and X, slashing its product line-up in half by summer.
To be fair to Tesla, the Model 3 and Y, which will remain on its fleet, make up the vast majority of the company’s sales worldwide, while the highly controversial Cybertruck is only available in North America and isn’t particularly popular anyway. The Model S and X were getting on a bit, too, launching in 2012 and 2015 respectively. Of course, Tesla made a number of revisions during that time, with performance versions of the Model S regularly punching well above their weight. First came the P100D Ludicrous, which could dispatch a 0-60mph dash in McLaren P1-matching 2.5 seconds providing the right conditions were met. Then, in 2021, the record-breaking Plaid, much like the car you see here, showed that EVs weren’t just good for spanking supercars over a quarter mile.
See, the near-instant torque that comes with a battery-electric setup means that even the most basic EVs are pretty nippy off the line. But their immense weight and high energy usage under duress meant that your tyres, brakes and battery would deplete long before completing a lap at a decent lick, especially one as long and as punishing as the Nurburgring. Which is why the Model S Plaid’s 7 minutes and 35.5-second run around the 12.9-mile circuit caught us all by surprise, not just because it had managed to survive the lap, but that it’d gone faster than the likes of the R35 Nissan GT-R, Lexus LFA and Ferrari 458.
Tesla plays its cards close to its chest when it comes to trim, which means the Plaid doesn’t look drastically different to the regular Model S at a glance. The most eye-catching change is a peak output of 1,020hp and 1,050lb ft of torque, lowering the saloon’s already searing 0-60mph pace to just 2.1 seconds. That result is thanks to a trio of electric motors with carbon fibre-encased rotors, which allow them to spin up to 25 per cent faster than the standard car. Changes were also made to the rear suspension, the torque vectoring system and the tyres, with Michelin providing a set of Pilot 4Ss specially developed for the Plaid.
Once you left the race track, reviewers suggested that the Plaid felt like any other Model S, for better or worse. On the plus side, that meant genuine practicality and comfort, though some say the steering is devoid of feel. No great surprise for an EV, and the chance of anyone taking their Model S Plaid on a circuit will be close to zero, not least because you’ll need to find a track day for electric cars as they require extra safety measures. Still, it’s a massively fast family saloon, and one that won’t cost a fortune in premium unleaded fill-ups.
Then there’s the asking price. These were £113,480 when new, but this 2023 model with a mere 8,000 miles on the clock is all yours for just £67,500. With that, you’re getting all that power, a claimed range of 373 miles and ‘Enhanced Autopilot’ if you’re into semi-autonomous driving. That being said, you only get half a steering wheel, this car coming with the widely ridiculed ‘yoke’, which is on the wrong side - though you can apparently retrofit a regular wheel if you so wish. And if you do, the only thing you’ll need to overlook is that salute. Convinced?
SPECIFICATION | TESLA MODEL S PLAID
Engine: Three permanent magnet motors, 95kWh useable battery
Transmission: single-speed automatic, all-wheel drive
Power (hp): 1,020 (with Plaid and Drag Strip modes enabled)
Torque (lb ft): 1,050 (with Plaid and Drag Strip modes enabled)
MPG: 3.32-3.92m/kw
CO2: 0g/km
Year registered: 2023
Recorded mileage: 8,000
Price new: £113,480
Yours for: £67,500
I hope Tesla can pull themselves out of their current dip, powertrain-wise the rest of the car industry still have a lot of catching up to do to match Tesla in various areas.
Literally one of the fastest point and squirt cars in the country though and from purely that POV it doesn't seem that expensive.
I'll have my Model S in £5k spec with the small drive unit I think.
2022 / 2023 BMW M5 Competitions are under £50k now, and they were around £110k new, plus options.
I wouldn't want a LHD daily in the UK though.
Anyhow, it wouldn't surprise me at all if Tesla don't stop building passenger cars altogether in a few years. I think Musk is pivoting the company elsewhere, to self-driving cars, trucks, robots and battery storage.
Chinese have the mass EV market sown up, frankly.
Left hand drive would be a pain and the performance, though appealing, is complete overkill. The P100D was the fastest we got here and it got an improved battery so maybe the one to go for, not as fast as a Plaid but still way more than anyone really needs.
I looked at them with a twenty grand budget but wasn’t quite ready for an EV. Been in a couple and was pretty impressed.
Attention span isn’t really the issue.... it’s just that not everything needs to be turned into a world‑affairs TED Talk. Sometimes a conversation about cars can just… be about cars.
The ride in the rear over speed-tables is a bit firm, though.
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