Tesla breaks own Nürburgring record with new Track Pack enhanced Model S

By Umar Shakir, a news writer fond of the electric vehicle lifestyle and things that plug in via USB-C. He spent over 15 years in IT support before joining The Verge.

Tesla's Model S Plaid returned to the world-famous Nürburgring race course in Germany on Saturday, and it set a new best lap record for a production EV. The Model S Plaid completed the 12.9-mile lap in just 7 minutes and 25.231 seconds while being equipped with a new Track Pack system that upgrades the car's components and software.

This new record beats Tesla's own previous best time of 7 minutes and 30.909 seconds set in 2021. Although the 2021 lap time was set based on a measured 12.8-mile version of the Nürburgring track, Tesla had also set an official 12.9-mile record for 7 minutes and 35.579 seconds on the same day. Either way, Tesla now has two authentic Model S records ahead of Porsche's 2019 record with the all-electric Taycan at about 7 minutes and 42 seconds.

What's new with the Model S Plaid this time around the Nürburgring is the addition of the long-awaited Track Pack, which the automaker said in May was "coming soon." Tesla had originally made a track mode, which includes some software and hardware upgrades, for the Model 3 Performance in 2018.

Tesla announced availability of the Model S Track Pack on Sunday, but the $20,000 package appears to already be sold out. Tesla made it available to be purchased through the Tesla app as an upgrade for a current Model S Plaid, and includes shipping service to your preferred service center for a retrofit.

Track pack comes with a new carbon ceramic brake kit that includes upgraded rotors, calipers, brake pads, brake fluid, parking brakes, and new firmware that unlocks "peak performance." In addition, you get 20-inch staggered "Zero-G" wheels with Goodyear Supercar 3R tires (285/35 front, 305/30 rear), and included TPMS, valves, center caps, and lug nut covers.

Tesla is also offering just the ceramic brake kit separately for $15,000, assuming you’ve previously already plopped down for performance wheels and tires. Tesla notes the Zero-G and 21-inch Arachnid style wheels are compatible.

While Tesla deserves the fanfare for its Nürburgring achievement, keep in mind there's a whole lot of faster non-production vehicles out there setting ridiculous records on the same track. The current lap record is 5 minutes and 19.55 seconds in a Porsche 919 Hybrid Evo, and the fastest all-electric is with Volkswagen's ID R race car with a 6 minutes and 5.34 seconds time.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk once said he expects Model S to achieve sub-7 seconds, which would be wild for the car since it's entirely street legal. Now whether a future Roadster equipped with a SpaceX rocket will be allowed in your neighborhood, well, that would be a sight.

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