Consumer Reports award Tesla Model s p85D 103 out of 100, breaking their scoring system.
According to a new report (warning super slow website) out of Consumer Reports, the Tesla Model S P85D, all-wheel-drive, high performance electric car, performed “better in our tests than any other car ever has, earning a perfect road-test score.”
Actually, it did better than that, scoring 103 points in a scoring system that, “by definition,” doesn’t go past 100.
The P85D excelled in everything CR threw at it. With a 0-60 time of 3.5 seconds, the EV was the quickest vehicle they’ve tested, though slightly less than the insane promise. At 87 mpge, the sedan was also even more efficient than the previously tested regular 85-kWh model. Things were so amazing that CR has lowered the drawbridge on the website’s pay wall to let anyone check out the full ratings.
Among the many reasons it scored so remarkably high, says the outlet: its “brutally quick” acceleration (the car soars from 0 to 60 miles per hour in 3.5 seconds); better braking and handling than the standard Model S (which also receives high marks from Consumer Reports); and its stunning energy efficiency.
Of course, the car isn’t perfect, says the report. Its 200-plus mile range can be a concern on a long drive if a charging station isn’t nearby. (Consumer Reports clearly hasn’t heard of Bjørn Nyland, a programmer who recently drove 452.8 miles on a single charge in a P85D by cruising at 25 miles per hour.)
It’s also louder than the Model S, less opulent than other luxury vehicles, and too expensive for most of us, with a price tag of $127,820.
The last car to receive such effusive praise from the magazine was also a Tesla Model S, when it scored 99 points in 2013. The P85D offered just the right upgrades to earn the ultimate score. Listen to CR’s full thoughts about the EV in the clip, above.
Still, Consumer Reports is calling it an “automotive milepost” and a “powerful statement of American startup ingenuity.”