Gary Zhou 
There is no doubt the Porsche Taycan Turbo is an impressive electric car on the track. Refined on the Nurburgring’s brutal twists, the Taycan embodies Porsche’s racing legacy within an all-electric kit. That is why it was very shocking to see such a vehicle bow down to a much more inexpensive and understated opponent: the efficiency of the Tesla Model 3.
Dongchedi, China’s leading motoring site, recently conducted a 24-hour Porsche Taycan Turbo test, benchmarking the vehicle against the Tesla Model S Performance and Model 3 Performance with Track Package. The news agency carried out three key Taycan tests, which included a drag race and endurance test against the Model S as well as a time attack track run against the Model 3.
The Taycan Turbo is one of China’s most expensive electric vehicles. Commanding a local market price of RMB 1,498,000 (around USD 214,238), the Taycan Turbo is more than three-fold more expensive than the Model 3 Performance, priced at RMB 419,800 (around USD 60,038). It should be noted that the Model 3 Production is still pretty expensive in China, as it is not yet being manufactured locally at Gigafactory Shanghai.
As the motoring site has noted, the Porsche Taycan Turbo really performed well during its test. Professional drivers who tested the car during the 24-hour period praised the electric sedan for its driving characteristics, which shows the best Porsche has to offer. That being said, in the drag race, the Taycan bowed to the Model S Performance as it ended the quarter mile run in 10.99 seconds just behind the Model S Performance, which was 10.56 seconds behind the line.
The Taycan Turbo also performed well on their battery endurance test, running 452 km in one charge and impressively close to its 462 km NEDC mark. The flagship sedan of Tesla, on the other hand, was able to run 505 km, 145 km below its 650 km NEDC.
The Dongchedi team took the car to its closed circuit for a hot-lap time attack test for the track test of the Porsche Taycan Turbo. But the Taycan Turbo has had an additional rival this time around: the Tesla Model 3 Performance with Track Kit. In the test, the Taycan Turbo showed its racing pedigree, decimating the 1:19:26 track time of the Model S Performance, with its impressive 1:15:97 run.
However, the German made electric car’s win was short lived, as the much more affordable Model 3 was able to complete its hot lap in 1:15:78. Granted, the difference between the Porsche Taycan Turbo’s time attack results and the Model 3 Output was extremely small. Given this, it’s hard not to get impressed with Tesla’s most affordable vehicle.
There are very few cars out there in the price range of the Model 3 Performance that could give the Taycan Turbo some competition and there are even fewer that can actually humiliate the proud German built EV in an environment it is designed to dominate. With these results, it would not be surprising if the Model 3 Performance were to become the vehicle of choice for mainstream racing enthusiasts, given that it offers performance that can compete on the track with a Porsche at a fraction of the price.
Reported by Teslarati.
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