Tesla has officially changed the Model X and Model S 0-60 time for its Performance versions. The previous 0-60 time for the Model S was pegged at 2.4 seconds, even though some tests showed that the Model S is capable of a 2.28 second time. The new Tesla Model S 0-60 time is now 2.3 seconds. While the Model X 0-60 time is now 2.6 seconds, down from the 2.7 seconds it was previously at.
The newest update the Model S/X specs did not come with any announcement or official explanation by Tesla. The configurator for the Performance Model S now shows, “Quicker acceleration: 0-60 mph in 2.3s” in the list of what the Performance version adds on to the base.
While there is no official explanation to why the 0-60 time was changed from 2.4 seconds to 2.3 seconds, we can easily assume that it has to do with the recent Tesla software update that Tesla pushed out that improved upon the launch control of the Raven powertrain Model S/X along with a “Cheetah Stance” which you can see in the video below.
The findings of the video showed that there was a marginal increase to the performance of the Model S with the new update.
| Ludicrous + | Ludicrous + Cheetah | |
|---|---|---|
| Power (kW) | 580 | 614 |
| 0-60 MPH Time | 2.47 | 2.41 |
| 1/8 Mile | 6.77@102.23 MPH | 6.71@103.55 MPH |
| 1/4 Mile | 10.67@124.70 MPH | 10.54@127.5 MPH |
| 60-130 MPH | 9.23 | 8.68 |
As pointed out in the video, the test Model S was not using the lightest wheels possible and the launches were not done on a prepared surface, which would give the car the most optimum chance of reaching its peak performance.
This is now just another example of Tesla’s mantra of continuously updating their cars as time moves forward instead of saving improvements for the next year. The car you buy today may just be slightly better than the same car 3 weeks ago. There have been many examples over the lifespan of the Model S where Tesla was able to squeeze out some new performance. Two great examples are when Tesla was able to shave off about a full second off the 0-60 time of the Model S 75D and the other being the new Raven powertrain Tesla introduced which skyrocketed the range of both the Model S and X with the Model S now having 391 miles of range.
