Video: Jaguar I-Pace vs Tesla Model X in drag race

ELECTRIC CARS are slow and boring, right? Wrong. In this video, watch the latest high-tech battery-powered motor blast from a standstill to 60mph as fast as a Porsche 911 – and beating a Tesla Model X in the process.

The showdown was performed by Jaguar, as it launched its new I-Pace electric car.

Held at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez race track, in Mexico, it saw the British-built electric car take on its biggest rival, the Tesla Model X 75D.

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Costing £10,000 more than the Jaguar, the Californian-built, four-wheel drive electric car should breeze the race. Yet it struggles to match the I-Pace for acceleration and braking performance.

In a second showdown, the more powerful Tesla Model X is wheeled out to take on the Jaguar. It promptly loses.

Jaguar says its new I-Pace can accelerate from 0-60mph in 4.5 seconds, thanks to two electric motors that produce a combined power output of 394bhp.

By comparison, Tesla claims the Model X 75D can reach 60mph in 4.9 seconds. The more powerful 100D is rated at 4.7 seconds.

Driving the new Jag is Mitch Evans, a racer competing in Formula E with Panasonic Jaguar. At the wheel of the Tesla is Tony Kanaan, an Indy Car Champion and winner of the famous Indianapolis 500 race.

Although the promotional video should be taken with a pinch of salt, it shows how electric cars can be fun to drive, with rapid acceleration thanks to the way they deliver all their pulling power from the moment the driver floors the accelerator.

Some will point out that it’s the battery range and charging time that should be put under scrutiny. However, according to official figures, the Jaguar still wins that contest, travelling up to 298 miles on a full battery, whereas the Tesla Model X 75D goes just 259 miles.

The Jaguar is on sale now, priced from £63,495.

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