from the january 2022 issue of car and driver.
there are layers upon layers of the ways that the tesla model s plaid moves the bar for evs. something that can be lost in the ostentatious claims regarding acceleration and 200-mph top speed is how much faster the plaid can recharge at one of the company's dc fast chargers.
just two years ago, the model s couldn't accept the peak 250 kilowatts from the company's fastest superchargers. now, with a reworked battery pack that uses the same panasonic 18650 cells, our test from a 10 to 90 percent state of charge shows that the plaid hangs out at the peak for almost five minutes, then continues to replenish itself at a higher rate than before for the rest of the charge. its total time was 38 minutes—some nine minutes, or 19 percent, quicker than the 2021 model s long range plus we tested—with the highest average charging rate (125 kilowatts) we've seen yet. that betters the average charging rate that we've measured on the audi e-tron (121 kw) and porsche taycan (118 kw) and obliterates that of some other evs, such as the vw id.4 (82 kw) or ford mustang mach-e (47 kw).
based on the plaid's equally impressive 280-mile result in our 75-mph range test means that charging in this manner the model s would be good for 224 miles of highway cruising at 75 mph between stops.