Here we have two high-performance electric vehicles built by independent California-based manufacturers, the Tesla Model 3 Performance and the Zero Motorcycles SR/F. But that’s pretty much where the similarities end, because one is an all-wheel drive performance sedan with 450 horsepower and tons of torques, and the other has 110 hp/140 lb-ft routed through just one wheel. Aerodynamically the sedan has a much better shape than an un-faired streetfighter motorcycle. So which is faster in the quarter?
Allow this incredibly Italian man to tell you the answer to that question, replete with intense music and dramatic voiceover.
As you can see from the video here, the Zero is the victor by the tiniest of margins. I think you could run this test forty times and not come out with a clear victor between these two.
What is clear, however, is that the Tesla has a huge advantage from the start line, getting from zero to sixty about half a second quicker than the bike (3.5 s vs 9.94 s). This is clearly the traction advantage of four driven wheels, as the bike’s computers are limiting slip and wheelie action, keeping off-the-line speeds down.
What is also clear is that from about the half-track point the Zero starts making up ground on the Tesla in a hurry. The bike’s weight and overall frontal area certainly have a lot to do with this. Obviously the bike’s coefficient of drag is much worse than the car, but the Zero and its rider are hitting less of it.
One thing is for certain, if Zero offered an aerodynamic fairing set for the SR/F the bike would win 100 times out of 100. And the bike would probably achieve a much better range.
I honestly expected the big power Tesla to walk this thing, and if I’d been riding the motorcycle (especially after last night’s Christmas dinner) it easily would have.
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