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Tesla Model 3 duels the Porsche Taycan Turbo S in track race–with surprising results

(Credit: Unplugged Performance)

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The Tesla Model 3 is starting to become a popular vehicle for track enthusiasts in Japan. In the recently held All Japan EV Grand Prix at the Fuji Speedway in Oyama, the event’s flagship EV-1 category featured five Model 3s from several different teams. But this time around, the event also hosted a new, formidable electric car—the 560 KW Porsche Taycan Turbo S. 

The Porsche Taycan Turbo S is a powerhouse all-electric sports car that was bred on the cruel turns of the Nurburgring. As such, the organizers of the All-Japan EV Grand Prix were quite excited about the vehicle. The Taycan Turbo S was deployed by the GULF Racing Team, which also had a Model 3 in the race. Other Teslas in the event included a pair of modified Model 3s from Team Taisan, which were partially modified with parts from aftermarket EV company Unplugged Performance. 

Credit: JEVRA

The exact modifications to the Porsche Taycan Turbo S from GULF Racing were not disclosed on the All Japan EV Grand Prix’s program, though racers who participated in the event noted that the German track monster was fitted with Hoosier R7 tires. And for all intents and purposes, the Taycan did perform very well, recording the fastest lap in the race at 1:55.885 and an average speed of 141.751 km/h (88.079 mph). 

But surprisingly enough, the Porsche Taycan Turbo S did not take the overall win of the day. That honor went to one of Team Taisan’s partially modified Tesla Model 3s. Interestingly enough, Unplugged Performance CEO Ben Schaffer noted that Team Taisan’s Model 3 actually had fewer aerodynamic mods due to Japan’s race regulations. But despite this, the Model 3 came out as the overall winner in the All Japan EV Grand Prix’s EV-1 segment, with a total lap time of 24:29.801 and an average speed of 133.370 km/h (82.872 mph). 

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Particularly interesting is that the Tesla Model 3s practically dominated the event. Following Team Taisan’s partially modified Model 3 were three other Teslas, all of which performed very well. The Porsche Taycan Turbo S came in 5th place with a total lap time of 25:30.408 and an average speed of 128.088 km/h (79.590 mph), about one minute behind Team Taisan’s Model 3. 

The Model 3 may be Tesla’s entry-level car, but the midsize sedan has a lot of bite. And thanks to its track capability, it is arguably the most fun vehicle to drive among Tesla’s existing lineup. That is, at least, until Tesla releases the Model S Plaid and Model S Plaid+, both of which were also tested in the unforgiving turns of the Nurburgring. 

Check out the All Japan EV Grand Prix’s program in the video below. 

EV2021 r1 Program by Simon Alvarez on Scribd

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Simon is an experienced automotive reporter with a passion for electric cars and clean energy. Fascinated by the world envisioned by Elon Musk, he hopes to make it to Mars (at least as a tourist) someday. For stories or tips--or even to just say a simple hello--send a message to his email, simon@teslarati.com or his handle on X, @ResidentSponge.

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Elon Musk

Elon Musk teases the capabilities of the Tesla Roadster once again

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Elon Musk has once again teased the capabilities of the Tesla Roadster, fueling the anticipation that many have for the vehicle, despite it still having no public production or delivery date.

The Roadster is among the most anticipated vehicles in the automotive sector currently, and as Tesla has teased its capabilities, from a lightning-fast 1.1-second 0-60 MPH acceleration to potential hovering with cold-gas thrusters, people are eager to see it.

Although the design seemed to be finalized, there was still more work to be done. Earlier this year, as Tesla was showcasing some of the Roadster’s capabilities to Musk, he stated that it was capable of even more.

This pushed back its production date even further, much to the chagrin of those who have been waiting years for it.

Musk continues to tease us all, and as we sit here waiting hopelessly for it to be revealed, he said today that it is “something special beyond a car.”

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Musk’s words were in response to a video posted by Tesla China, showing the Roadster in a new promotional video created by a fan.

The Roadster was planned to be released in 2020, but here we are in 2025, and there is still no sign of the vehicle entering production. However, Tesla did say earlier this year that it would host a demo event for the Roadster, where the company would showcase its capabilities.

Lars Moravy said earlier this year:

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“Roadster is definitely in development. We did talk about it last Sunday night. We are gearing up for a super cool demo. It’s going to be mind-blowing; We showed Elon some cool demos last week of the tech we’ve been working on, and he got a little excited.”

Tesla exec gives big update on Roadster, confirming recent rumor

The delays have been attributed to “radically increased design goals” for the vehicle, which have, without a doubt, improved its capabilities, but at the same time, we just want to know if it’s ever going to come.

Tesla can always make it “better,” but at what point do you say, “Okay, it’s time to show this thing off.” They could always build another, even more capable supercar in the next ten years.

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Elon Musk reiterates shocking xAI detail, and hints at an upcoming monster

He also announced that xAI’s upcoming model, Grok 5, will begin training very soon.

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MINISTÉRIO DAS COMUNICAÇÕES, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

Elon Musk has reiterated a rather shocking tidbit about xAI’s impressive scores at the ARC-AGI benchmark.

He also announced that xAI’s upcoming model, Grok 5, will begin training very soon.

xAI results on the ARC-AGI benchmark

In a recent post on social media platform X, Greg Kamradt, President of the ARC Prize Foundation, noted that Grok 4 has been used in two SOTA submissions to the ARC-AGI V1 and V2 benchmarks. The submissions, which were the best that the foundation has encountered to date, were done using xAI’s large language model, Grok 4. 

As per Kamradt, when asked about why the submissions were done using Grok 4, the authors stated that “It was the best model I used in testing.” Musk was evidently proud of this accomplishment, though he also highlighted that these accomplishments were attained with just Grok 4. This suggests that once Grok 5 is in the picture, xAI’s lead in the AI sector could become notable.

Grok 5 incoming

Elon Musk has shared a number of tidbits about Grok 5 as of late. In recent comments on X, the Tesla and SpaceX CEO stated that he believes Grok 5 has the potential to actually reach artificial general intelligence (AGI). This suggests that Grok 5 would be nothing short of a monster, as it could be capable of matching or surpassing human-level intelligence across tasks such as thinking, reasoning, and other domains by a substantial margin.

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Grok 5 may also be coming soon. As per Musk in another post on X, xAI will be starting the training of Grok 5 in a few weeks. Musk definitely seems to be highly optimistic about the capabilities of Grok 5, with the CEO stating late last month that the update would be coming before the end of the year and that it will be “crushingly good.”

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SpaceX is partnering with chipmakers to enable Starlink satellite-to-cell service

President Gwynne Shotwell outlined the effort during a space industry conference in Paris.

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Credit: SpaceX/X

SpaceX is working with microchip manufacturers to integrate satellite-connectivity hardware into smartphones, advancing its plan for direct-to-device services through Starlink. 

The move follows the company’s $17 billion acquisition of wireless spectrum from EchoStar Corp., a deal that positions SpaceX to operate more independently of traditional telecom carriers. 

President Gwynne Shotwell outlined the effort during a space industry conference in Paris this week, as noted in a Bloomberg News report.

Starlink direct-to-device

Starlink currently serves millions of customers in over 100 countries, primarily through ground-based dishes. The company, however, is now expanding into satellite-to-cell service, which should enable unmodified phones to connect directly with orbiting satellites. While SpaceX has a partnership with T-Mobile US, the EchoStar spectrum purchase gives it more control to negotiate with global carriers on its own terms.

“We’re working with chip manufacturers to get the proper chips in phones,” the SpaceX President stated. “We will now be initiating discussions with telcos in a different way now. Now it’s our spectrum, but we want to work with them, almost providing capacity and wholesaling capacity to their customers.”

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The company plans to launch satellites capable of supporting its direct-to-device business within two years, with early mobile phone testing expected by late 2026.

Starship program continues test flights

Shotwell also addressed SpaceX’s Starship program, which recently completed its 10th test flight in August. She said the mission met all objectives, providing a critical morale boost to teams after a challenging development year. 

“My Starship team needed that win,” Shotwell noted. “Development programs always are kind of a 24/7 operation, and I was really pleased for them.”

SpaceX is planning to fly one more iteration of the current Starship prototype, known as V2, before transitioning to the next-generation V3 vehicle. That version, expected to debut late this year or early 2026, is designed to be more capable and support eventual crewed missions to the Moon and Mars. 

“The V3, which we want to fly hopefully late this year, but maybe early next year, is really the vehicle that could take humans to the moon and Mars,” Shotwell stated.

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