2022 Tesla Model 3 Long Range on 2040-cars

Auto blog

2014 Corvette Stingray meets Tesla Model S in drag strip showdown

They come from two different worlds and have little in common. The Tesla Model S P85 is the sportiest version of this paradigm-punching sedan from California, while the 2014 Corvette Stingray Z51 is a performance-enhanced version of Michigan's recently-updated sports car stalwart. The West Coast car seats five adults and eats electrons like Popeye eats spinach, the Easterner has two passenger places and, surprisingly, sips gasoline like one might bourbon. An attribute they do happen to share is extreme quickness. This similarity is all the excuse Drag Times needed to set the vehicles beside each other at the Palm Beach International Raceway for a bit of mano-a-mano quarter-mile combat. Fortunately enough, cameras were rolling for each of two bouts down the blacktop and the results recorded for our edification and enlightenment. The winner? We won't spoil it for you, but let's just say it's really, really close. How close? Scroll below and watch the video for yourself. Just be warned, the results may surprise you. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Consumer Reports says Tesla Model S reliability is just 'average'

Tesla Motors chief Elon Musk strikes us as someone who retches at the word "average," especially when it's applied to one of his companies. But that's the reliability grade his company's Model S all-electric sedan has received from Consumer Reports. From what others have reported, that might not be a bad thing. CR reached its conclusion by factoring in both its own experiences and the responses from more than 1,300 Model S owners. Slow response from retractable door handles and creaky windshields were two widely reported issues, but it should be noted that Tesla scored good marks for being willing to foot the bill for all repairs. In the grand scheme of things, CR says Tesla is comparable, reliability-wise, to the Acura RLX. While luxury models from Audi and Lexus have scored better, Cadillac and Mercedes-Benz models have recorded scores "far worse," the magazine said. After almost 16,000 miles in its Model S, CR needed to have the car's infotainment screen hard reset and had one unscheduled service. Meanwhile, Edmunds reported that its 17 months with a $105,000 2013 Model S required seven unscheduled service visits, and it needed nine information screen resets. The drive unit needed to be replaced three times. We think CR would not have found that "average."

The 'AMG of Tesla' unveils SEMA-bound Model S

Take a Tesla Model S, rip out the interior and throw on a new face and you might come up with the electric blue EV you see above. The modified Model S pictured is the new car that Unplugged Performance will bring to SEMA this week as it continues towards its self-declared goal of becoming the "AMG of Tesla." The first thing we noticed was how the updated fascia has a real Tom Selleck vibe, even if it's not quite the can't-look-away mustache of the Fisker Karma. Unplugged Performance says the new carbon fiber oval plastic nosecone is just one of a number of changes. It's easy to spot the new sports headlights and the 21-inch UP-01 wheels from the outside, but the inside is where most of the work was done. Unplugged Performance says it "dispensed with nearly all of the original Tesla innards" and "completely reimagined [the interior] for higher performance and more luxurious grade materials." That means a lot of the company's prototype upgrades are being shown here for the first time, things like sport seats in Italian Alcantara material and "luxury floor mats," that have "plush Rolls Royce carpet and Ferrari leather detailing." Performance has been changed as well, with prototype suspension components and new, prototype sports brake pads that UP says will "improve the car's driving dynamics." We won't be able to test them out when we get to SEMA, but we do look forward to getting a closer look at what's going on here. Unplugged Performance Brings New Developments to SEMA with Extensively Redesigned Tesla The Model S Gets a Face Lift and Slew of New Upgrades Las Vegas, NV – 11/04/2014 – Today, Unplugged Performance, a pioneer in Tesla Model S tuning, debuts their highly anticipated and freshly redesigned Model S at the SEMA trade show. The car features a completely new front end image, a complete overhaul of the interior, revised lighting, revised suspension, revised braking, upgraded wheels and enhanced aerodynamics. The first thing viewers will notice is that the oval plastic nosecone is changed to a wider and more aggressive design in carbon fiber. The bumper itself is an exercise in form following function with a priority on retaining cooling, ground clearance and aerodynamic efficiency. Despite the sharp modern looks, the bumper quietly integrates a ram air ducting system that feeds four factory integrated motorized cooling louvers which assist the car's cooling systems.